CalPERS recruits impact investor for sustainable investing head

Peter Cashion will lead CalPERS’ stewardship and net-zero implementation and ‘develop new investment strategies’.

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System has appointed Peter Cashion as managing investment director for sustainable investments. Cashion will join CalPERS from the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation, where he has spent 27 years, most recently as global head of climate finance and chief investment officer in the IFC’s financial institutions group.

CalPERS’ sustainable investing programme involves ESG-related risk management for all asset classes, integrating ESG factors into investment strategies and “uncover[ing] opportunities through the sustainable investment lens”, according to a statement from CalPERS.

Cashion’s role also involves leading CalPERS’ stewardship and net-zero implementation efforts and “develop[ing] new investment strategies”, the investor’s statement says.

The programme was previously led by Anne Simpson, who left her position as managing investment director for board governance and sustainability in January 2022 to become Franklin Templeton’s global head of sustainability. James Andrus has been serving as interim managing investment director for board governance and sustainability since Simpson’s departure.