PRESS RELEASE
Crédit Agricole, Danone, Firmenich, Hermès, Michelin, SAP, Schneider Electric & Voyageurs du Monde accelerate their actions for climate & the most vulnerable populations
A new impact investment fund, with a target of 100 million euros, aims at improving the lives of 2 million people and avoiding the emissions of up to 25 million tons of CO2 over a 20-year span.
On 11 December 2017 in Paris, just before the One Planet Climate Summit, these 8 companies will officially launch the new Livelihoods Carbon Fund. They will invite other companies and impact investors to join the momentum to reach the 100 million euros investment target as of 2018. The new Livelihoods Carbon Fund will start investing in ecosystem restoration, agroforestry and energy projects next year. Projects will be mainly implemented in developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Tangible results since 2011 with the first Livelihoods Carbon Fund
The companies investing in this new fund have been committed in the first Livelihoods Carbon Fund since 2011. Now, they are aiming to increase the scale and the number of projects which fight climate change by restoring ecosystems which provide vital resources to the most vulnerable populations. Moreover, these projects will enable companies to voluntarily offset part of their CO2 emissions, in addition to their own efforts to reduce the carbon footprint of their activities. These companies are strongly motivated by the results achieved by the initial Livelihoods Carbon Fund: 1 million beneficiaries among the poorest in developing countries; 130 million trees planted, equivalent to 5 times the surface area of Paris; 120 000 families equipped with efficient cookstoves which mitigate deforestation and preserve women’s health; 10 million tons of CO2 to be sequestrated or avoided (projects span over 10 to 20 years). An overview of these projects is available p. 4.
“The investment model of the Livelihoods Fund has proven that we can build large-scale projects connecting worlds seemingly far from each other: large companies acting against climate change and poor communities faced with the effects of climate change. The results we have achieved since 2011 encourage us to move forward by building on our learnings. This new fund offers an interesting platform to investors who want to have a real impact on climate”, says Bernard Giraud, president and cofounder of Livelihoods.
An innovative investment model and a coalition of partners
The Livelihoods Carbon Funds are built on an innovative business model where investors mutualize investment risks to finance large-scale projects. They do not receive financial dividends but carbon credits with high social and environmental value delivered by the best international standards*. The return on investment is therefore based on measurable social and climate impact.
The success of Livelihoods Funds’ projects is based on the cooperation between private investors, civil society and public institutions. Projects financed by the funds are co-designed with NGOs which also implement them by making the beneficiaries the first actors of change.
Press contact: Nishal Ramdoo – 00 33 6 23 10 12 21 – nramdoo@livelihoods-venture.com