Kone Foundation’s investment activities

Eco-social education is one of the core values of Kone Foundation, and it also guides the Foundation’s investment activities. To us, eco-social education means social, cultural and ecological responsibility for the human race, other species and the environment.

Our investment activities aim to contribute to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Climate Agreement, and the EU’s environmental objectives.

Responsible investment approaches at Kone Foundation

Kone Foundation employs a variety of approaches to responsible investing: negative screening, ESG criteria assessment, thematic investing, impact investing and active ownership.

Negative screening

Negative screening refers to excluding certain products, companies or industries from the investment portfolio because they do not meet ethical, social or environmental criteria.

For example, Kone Foundation does not make direct investments in the arms, coal, or tobacco industries.

ESG criteria assessment

In evaluating and selecting investments, we factor in Environmental, Social and Governance  (ESG) criteria for corporate responsibility.

Environmental factors include the company’s emissions and waste, energy efficiency, climate targets, water use and nature risk. Social responsibility includes human rights, labour rights, accidents at work, and product liability. Good governance refers to anti-corruption, tax compliance, board independence and composition, as well as the performance of the CEO and the management team.

Kone Foundation uses ESG criteria as a way to identify the sustainability risks and opportunities that are relevant to a company’s business. We also recognise that ESG assessment methodologies and interpretations may vary between service providers.The same company can have different ESG scores depending on the assessor. There may also be gaps in the quantity, quality and comparability of data.

Thematic investing

Thematic investing focuses on a long-term theme that is expected to have a significant impact on the market and the economy in the future.

Risks such as climate change, freshwater scarcity, pollution, and the loss of biodiversity can have very significant and unexpected impacts. Business opportunities exist for companies whose products or services provide solutions to global sustainability challenges.

At Kone Foundation, we favour such investments, including, for example, water and climate funds. The Foundation has also invested in thematic funds which support energy efficiency and the transition to a low-carbon economy, such as renewable energy and infrastructure funds.

Impact investing

Impact investing is an investment approach that, in addition to financial returns, seeks positive, measurable impacts on society or the environment.

Kone Foundation has invested in impact funds where the investments have clearly defined sustainability objectives. With such funds, fund managers must actively seek to mitigate the adverse environmental or social impacts of the investments so that positive objectives are achieved without adverse impacts.

The Foundation has also invested in green bonds. They earmark the lending for projects that generate positive and measurable environmental benefits. The projects must also achieve something that the organisation could not do without borrowing.

In addition, Kone Foundation has made investments in companies with measurable sustainability targets, the achievement of which is monitored.

Active ownership

In its capacity as an owner and investor, Kone Foundation seeks to promote ecologically, socially and culturally sustainable business in compliance with the principles of good corporate governance.

As a shareholder, we seek to influence KONE Corporation, Hiab Corporation (formerly Cargotec Corporation) and Kalmar Corporation by engaging in dialogue on sustainability issues such as combating biodiversity loss, climate change mitigation and the circular economy.

We exercise our ownership rights by directly participating in and voting at the general meetings of the companies we own. We use asset managers for voting at general meetings of foreign companies and companies in which we invest through funds.

We require our investments to comply with the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. We take breaches of these standards seriously, and if our efforts do not produce the desired results, we may withdraw our investment.

We require asset and fund managers to commit to the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). The Foundation encourages asset managers to take bold steps in sustainability reporting, increasing the number of sustainable investment products, and actively lobbying for corporate sustainability.

We also seek dialogue and cooperation on sustainability issues with other investors.

Text updated on 14 May 2025