Zoom in on Net Zero - with Schroders' sustainability head Madeleine Cobb

Madeleine Cobb is head of corporate sustainability at global investment company Schroders, which manages over £700bn* of assets worldwide.

While the overwhelming majority of Schroders' carbon footprint is derived from its financed emissions - i.e. the impact of the investments it manages - a significant chunk of Cobb's role is to tackle the remaining emissions directly produced by the company itself, where she has far more directly control.

As Cobb explains, that chunk of Schroders' own emissions - covering its energy use, buildings, and travel etc - is hugely imporant, not least because "we want to practice what we preach - if we're asking other companies to look at their efficiencies, to make reduction targets, to show us their progress, then they want to look at us and see that we're doing exactly that too".

In a fascinating chat with BusinessGreen's editor in chief James Murray recently, Cobb explained the challenges of her role, including her work developing and driving Schroders' sustainability strategy, how the pandemic has affected corporate sustainability, and the stewardship role of asset managers in pushing other companies to step up their climate efforts. The conversation can be watched in full above.

Schroders is a partner of the Net Zero Festival.

*As of the 30th September 2021