Manulife Wealth in Woodstock sets a 60% GHG Reduction Target!

An interview with Greg MacPherson on his commitment to addressing climate change

Dear Greg, congratulations on setting a GHG reduction target for your business! Could you tell us more about your motivations for taking this step?

 

It may sound cheesy but I simply want to “do my part.” I am one out of 8 billion people in the world and I only have so much influence or say over how we fight climate change. I can’t control what others do, but I can control my own footprint. If everyone points the finger at other countries, jurisdictions, politicians, and industries, then no one will end up doing anything. I believe that everyone needs to take a look at their own footprint and do what they can in their own lives, families and businesses. I also want to be a good example to my children. In the future I want to be able to honestly say that I did what I could in my own life to combat climate change and I didn’t just keep living the typical North American lifestyle waiting for politicians to fix things.

 

Many of the changes that we have made (solar panels, heat pumps, energy efficiency upgrades on our new building) are investments with varying paybacks. There are incentive programs, tax considerations, and cost savings that were considered before making these investments. As energy costs rise, which I believe is a continuing trend, these become even better investments. A portion of my clients also value that they are doing business with an advisor that cares about the community and their environmental impact.

 

What are some of the benefits you expect to see by setting these targets?

 

I like the idea of setting meaningful targets and then monitoring and achieving those targets. It is probably part of what drew me to the financial planning profession. Some of the reasons I am setting the targets are altruistic, but there are also very real cost savings in many of our initiatives over time. I am already enjoying seeing the benefits of our investments in achieving these targets. Other benefits also included: a public demonstration of organizational values and improving the relationship with clients aligned with climate action and sustainability.

 

What are some of the challenges you expect to encounter on your journey to achieve your targets?

 

Our main challenge is that our business is growing. As we grow our practice and our team, it is very difficult to not increase our overall footprint. We can quite easily set intensity targets and meet those as we increase our business, but it is much more difficult to meet the absolute targets we have set. As a business owner, I have a lot of say and control over some of our business decisions and how we set and meet our targets, but I don’t have a lot of control over some of the Scope 3 sources that involve things such as employee commuting.

 

What trends and/or actions are you seeing in your field regarding climate action?

 

I wouldn’t say that I have seen a lot of direct meaningful action from other financial planning practices, but there has definitely been more interest from customers/clients in sustainable investing. The industry has responded to customer demand for investing with environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria in mind.

 

What advice can you give to other businesses who want to set their own targets?

 

I would suggest making meaningful changes. Don’t just make minor changes around the edges that don’t actually have much impact. While that is better than nothing, it doesn’t show that you are really serious about the issue. Similarly, don’t set your targets out so far that you are essentially kicking the can down the road and avoiding doing anything meaningful now. The changes and targets have to be realistic.

 

What advice would you give to businesses that are at the beginning of their climate action journey?

 

I would suggest working with an organization like Green Economy New Brunswick (GENB) that can help in every step of the way. They can help you measure your current footprint, to set meaningful but reasonable targets, and on how to achieve those. I think one of the biggest things they bring is accountability. Anyone can set a target, but GENB helps to make those targets compliant with recognized standards and protocols. This gives credibility, accountability, and legitimacy to any targets or claims you make.

 

I would also suggest involving as much as possible your team, employees and stakeholders in the process. Getting buy-in and setting it up as a culture within your organization is going to be much better than top-down mandates.

 

Thanks for sharing your motivations to advance business climate action in New Brunswick, Greg! We’re looking forward to what comes next.