An Audience With

Steve Waygood: ‘We will come clean if we fall short of our net-zero goal’

He started out stuffing envelopes for the World Wide Fund for Nature, but Aviva Investors’ responsible investment head ended up shaping UN policy

Monday 2 October 2023 at 04:01

Steve Waygood says if governments are failing to deliver on their net-zero pledges, asset managers’ commitments 'become impossible to deliver, too'
Steve Waygood says if governments are failing to deliver on their net-zero pledges, asset managers’ commitments 'become impossible to deliver, too' Photo: Danilo Agutoli for FN

Throughout Steve Waygood’s almost three-decade career, he has often found himself in a room where important decisions are made.

Aviva Investors’ chief responsible investment officer was on the advisory committee that helped create the Principles for Responsible Investment in 2006 — the UN-backed network of financial institutions that promotes environmental, social and governance factors. It was the same year he joined the £221bn asset manager.