Global Child Forum

Sustainable investing:
Children’s Rights starting to shape investor sustainability strategies

Feb 2023

Investing sustainably has never been harder. The toxic combination of a global economy on the brink of recession, the Ukraine war, the fallout from the global pandemic, soaring interest rates and the ESG backlash in America at a time when environmental and social issues are more pressing than ever has created a challenging situation for sustainable investors.

But it’s not all doom and gloom. In fact, now is the time for investors to double down on sustainable investing. In support of this endeavour, Global Child Forum has started sharing its underlying benchmark data on children’s rights with the investor community. Some of the top global investors are using this data to shape their sustainable investing strategies.

But how does child-inclusive investing relate to children’s rights and what key children’s rights indicators should investors be looking at when investing?

How does sustainable investing relate to children’s rights?

Almost all investors already consider children to be an important part of sustainable investing. Child labour in supply chains is an area that has received much attention. However, this is the only children’s rights issue that most investors devote any significant attention to. Issues such as product development, advertising and flexible parental leave affect billions of children across the globe and receive little or no investor focus.

Children make up one-third of the total global population and are a vulnerable group that needs greater protection than adults. No sustainable investing strategy can be considered truly sustainable unless it accommodates this large, important and vulnerable part of society.

What children’s rights indicators should investors be looking at when investing in companies?

Businesses and their operations touch so many aspects and can have an enormous impact on many lives. Therefore, it is important that they take their responsibility seriously. Let’s explore some of the ways companies can help shaping a brighter future for today’s children.

  • Committing to children’s rights: Companies need to commit to safeguarding children consistently and continuously across the full spectrum of children’s rights. This may mean dissolving partnerships and severing ties with suppliers that don’t uphold the right values, creating policies incorporating children’s rights, providing training, communicating guidelines to relevant stakeholders, and embedding them into daily practice.
  • Transparency: One of the foundations for safeguarding children is for businesses to identify all areas of operation that affect young people. Whether that involves the use of resources, the communities in which the company operates, or marketing practices directed toward children, every business needs to recognize and understand their impact on children so they can take steps to address it.
  • Ensuring a stable home environment: By providing good working conditions, fair salaries, and flexibility for parents, companies can contribute to a more balanced home/work life, with substantial benefits for children. This, in turn, enhances job satisfaction and employee retention, further profiting the business.
Children make up one-third of the total global population and are a vulnerable group that needs greater protection than adults. No sustainable investing strategy can be considered truly sustainable unless it accommodates this large, important and vulnerable part of society.