About VicSuper
In the 2007/08 financial year, we saw the significant impact adverse economic conditions can have on company profitability - which is the primary source of investment returns. The failure of sub-prime mortgage loans in the United States, higher oil and food prices and rising inflation were among the causes of the worst performance on Australian and international sharemarkets for many years.
As a large superannuation fund with over $6 billion invested globally, we understand that sustainability issues affect company returns and thereby impact directly on our members and other stakeholders. Our vision is to build a sustainable super fund through the integration of economic, environmental and social factors into all decision making - in both our operations and our investments.
Our report's theme this year, 'a shared future', highlights both the interdependence of these environmental, social and economic factors, as well as the common goals for a healthy and prosperous future that VicSuper shares with the entire Victorian community. This report is a summary of our business: it presents our sustainability strategy, our performance over the past year, and commitments for the next year.
Last year highlights the importance of taking a long-term approach to investing and operating that takes the risks and opportunities presented by sustainability challenges into account. In fact, Australia is preparing to move to a carbon constrained economy as soon as 2010, which helps us to see sustainability risks and opportunities more clearly than ever before.
We believe that building a sustainable super fund is the best approach to help our members meet their income needs in later life. The integration of economic, environmental and social considerations into business strategy is now actively occurring in the financial services sector. Institutional investors continue to sign up to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment - which now represent US$14 trillion in assets under management.
Last year, VicSuper's performance was recognised with the inaugural 'Sustainable Super Fund of the Year' award at the seventh Australian Sustainability Awards in November. This award helps to confirm that we're moving in the right direction as we continue to work to influence positive action on sustainability issues among our members, the financial community, government, and organisations in which we invest.
We hope you find this report useful and look forward to any feedback you may have on both the concise report and the full PDF version.
David Craig
Chairperson
Bob Welsh
Chief Executive
