HIF doesn’t have any direct investments with fossil fuel companies. However, as we invest in a number of fully diversified unit trusts, there may be some minor investments in fossil fuels within these. We believe our exposure is low, but our investment committee does take any concerns into consideration along with concerns about the many other industries that are detrimental to health and the environment.
In terms of how we run our business, our office is centrally located in Perth to encourage staff to use public transport. Additionally, we have cycling and shower facilities to encourage our staff to ride to work. We don’t have a fleet of company vehicles, and our one and only office building was designed and built to the National Australian Built Environment Rating System (NABERS) 4 star standards.
Our business is largely paperless, and our internal processes are all electronic and produce very little waste. We also encourage our members to opt-in for electronic communications to help us be greener, and we encourage staff to recycle their waste.
As a not-for-profit health fund, we aim to minimise costs and maximise returns to our members, while taking our social responsibility and environmental commitments seriously. In fact, HIF was the very first certified NOC02 health fund in Australia and we’ve held that accreditation for over 10 years now.
Apart from not investing in fossil fuels, does HIF invest ethically?
HIF’s investments consist of term deposits with leading Australian Banks, our office building at 100 Stirling St Perth and an investment property at 60 Stirling St; as well as managed funds through global investment advisor Mercer. HIF has an Investment Policy approved by the Board which specifically excludes investments in controversial weapons and tobacco companies. HIF believes that having sustainable investing principles embedded in its investment portfolio is important and will lead to improved outcomes for the investment portfolio and its broader group of stakeholders. HIF and Mercer continually assess and review environmental, social and corporate governance factors relating to HIF ‘s investments. Further information on Mercer’s investment philosophy can be found at Responsible Investment Solutions | Mercer Australia