Working to make an enduring impact on our world

We believe climate change is an investment risk. Also, investors want to ensure their retirement accounts stay ahead of the global shift away from carbon-emitting industries and companies. At TIAA, we are committed to protecting the environment and we also believe this goal aligns with our priority to achieve the best possible investment outcomes for our clients.

Helping the companies we invest in understand and manage the climate risks they face is essential to our continued success. We believe that this is not achieved by avoiding certain investments, but by partnering with companies, properties and assets to change the way they operate. We believe that engaging with companies, partners, issuers, tenants, operators and asset owners to encourage climate best practices is also in our clients’ economic interest. For example, we've promoted smart building technology in our real estate holdings to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We've invested in bond holdings that fund clean water initiatives, and we've focused on protecting native vegetation in our farmland investments. So we aren't immediately selling or divesting from all carbon-generating investments. That pushes the problem onto someone else. Instead, we are addressing the broader changes needed to tackle climate change. Rather than selling an energy holding, we can work with management teams to adopt changes that align with the Paris Agreement. Instead of selling a real estate holding, we can enhance its carbon efficiency. In the short term, we will focus on investments that have low-carbon footprints, such as energy-efficient real estate, reforestation, sustainable farming.

Longer term, we will accelerate our investments in climate solutions, including renewable energy, climate-smart agriculture and timber, negative emission technologies. All is part of our effort to move to a net carbon zero stance by 2050 in the TIAA General Account that backs our TIAA Traditional retirement strategy. It's also part of our broader efforts to mitigate climate risks by integrating climate change factors in everything we do as an owner and manager of investment assets, including offering a number of dedicated responsible investing strategies that may be available as part of your retirement plan. We believe proactively addressing climate risk leads to long-term investment success and the best possible outcomes for our clients and the world we all share. We encourage you to meet with a TIAA financial advisor to learn more, or visit tiaa.org/responsible-investing.