“Literally every company on the planet needs to transition to a sustainable model. So, what we decided to do is find those companies that are already focusing on biodiversity — our biodiversity champions. ”
— Ingrid Kukuljan
Portfolios looking to make a real-world impact are increasingly considering real assets as part of their investment strategies.
Biodiversity is essential for the survival of humankind, yet we threaten it every day as a society.
But what’s most concerning is how it’s vastly overlooked by companies in the investment space, not realizing how their future returns depend on having healthy ecosystems.
To help shift this narrative is my guest Ingrid Kukuljan, Head of Impact and Sustainable Investing at Federated Hermes. Ingrid’s journey begins in Croatia, where her childhood experiences with nature laid the foundation for her future career. She started as an equity research analyst at Lazard, where she quickly made her mark and earned a spot in Citywire’s first-ever global compilation of the 1,000 top fund managers in the world.
With a career trajectory that spans several significant roles, she’s now at Federated Hermes, a multi-strategy US/UK-based asset manager with $770 billion in AUM and $1.8 trillion under stewardship advisory.
There, Ingrid is responsible for developing and leading their impact and sustainable investing franchise, overseeing products, strategies, and thought leadership primarily within the public markets.
She explains how Federated Hermes integrates impact across all investment portfolios using proprietary data tools, ensuring sustainability is embedded in every aspect of their operations across multiple asset classes. We also talk about their biodiversity champions, transition investments, their proprietary data tools, stewardship and engagement work, and their Biodiversity Equity Fund.
Join this conversation to learn about how Federated Hermes is leading the charge in biodiversity investing and beyond.
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can watch the interview on YouTube here.
What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
- Connect with Ingrid: LinkedIn
- Federated Hermes
- Follow Federated Hermes on LinkedIn
- Follow Federated Hermes on X
SHOW NOTES:
[00:00] Introducing Ingrid Kukuljan and her early connection to nature
[11:42] Ingrid’s start at Lazard & other career moves
[24:11] Involvement in the Natural Capital Investment Alliance and Biodiversity Credits Panel
[27:03] Ingrid delivers an overview on Federated Hermes
[39:51] The theory of change at Federated Hermes & investing on the secondary market
[44:04] Ingrid’s take on integrating sustainability and impact in investment analysis
[53:12] Investment process, KPIs, and generating impact across various asset classes
[01:05:58] A peek into Federated Hermes’ proprietary data tools
[01:12:40] The role of stewardship for achieved targeted outcomes & divestment
[01:19:54] The Biodiversity Equity Fund at Federated Hermes & biodiversity credits
[01:31:31] Rapid fire questions
MORE INGRID KUKULJAN QUOTES FROM THE INTERVIEW:
“We have found that companies are not taking biodiversity into account routinely, either as a part of their strategic decisions or as a part of their risk management. ”
— Ingrid Kukuljan
“We believe in engaging rather than divesting, because if you divest, you haven’t changed anything — there is no positive outcome for anyone there. What’s key is that you can hold companies accountable when you engage with them. ”
— Ingrid Kukuljan
