Introduction
Sustainability is central to our investment strategy and is embedded in each stage of our investment decision-making process. While several team members within the firm are dedicated to driving sustainability initiatives, we believe that comprehensive and effective integration of sustainability considerations requires collective responsibility.
Together with our portfolio company management teams, we create bespoke sustainability strategies comprising portfolio-wide KPIs and company-specific initiatives. In particular, we aim to mitigate climate change by reducing carbon emissions and to create positive workplaces with engaged employees.
In 2024, Freshstream was selected by the BVCA as the leading GP in the below £1bn AUM category at their Excellence in ESG Awards. Additionally, we were shortlisted for the second consecutive year for Real Deal’s ESG Award in the category PE House of the Year in the Lower Mid Market (EV Entry of €20-50m).
Recent highlights
Initiatives we support
Freshstream has been a signatory to the United Nations-backed Principles for Responsible Investment Initiative (UN PRI) since 2021. The UN PRI is a network of international investors working together to ensure that ESG issues are given appropriate consideration in the investment process. Signatories incorporate environmental, social and governance principles into investment analysis, decision-making processes, ownership policies and practice.
We were also one of the 100 first participants of the ESG Data Convergence Initiative (EDCI). The ESG Data Convergence Initiative is an open partnership of private equity stakeholders committed to streamlining the private investment industry’s historically fragmented approach to collecting and reporting ESG data.
In order to help us progress and align with the TCFD’s three phase action plan, we have become a signatory of the initiative Climat International (iCI), joining a global community of private equity investors who seek to better understand and manage the risk associated with climate change, reducing the climate impact of their own investment strategies, as well as the carbon intensity of their portfolios.
Finally, we adhere to third-party benchmarking tools from Preqin and Institutional Limited Partners Association (ILPA).
Mitigating climate change
We believe every business big or small should account for its impact on climate and has a responsibility to work towards mitigating impact through both reduction strategies and carbon offsetting.
We measure scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions for all our portfolio companies and work closely with our investments to set long-term science-based reduction targets in line with The Paris Agreement, provide a framework for periodic reporting on key metrics, and encourage initiatives to reduce emissions at the source.
We offset residual emissions through two certified projects: an afforestation project in Colombia and a clean water and cooking project in Guatemala. Freshstream is proud to have been carbon-neutral since 2018, and, since 2021, we have achieved this across all our majority investments, in line with our carbon neutrality policy.
Creating positive workplaces
At the foundation of every successful business are engaged employees. Engaged employees are more productive, stay at the company longer, help to recruit the best talent and perhaps most importantly, they make for happy customers. That is why, at Freshstream, we are passionate about creating positive workplaces where people are proud to work.
We work with our portfolio companies to consistently monitor employee engagement through tailored surveys and encourage initiatives to continuously improve employee satisfaction.