DWS sets up ESG Advisory Board

DWS has set up the ESG Advisory Board to advise on the firm’s ESG strategy.

The new ESG Advisory Board consists of six sustainability experts who will advise the CEO and the Executive Board of DWS on the acceleration of its ESG strategy.

The DWS ESG Advisory Board members are:

• Peter Damgaard-Jensen is Chairman of the Institutional Investor Group on Climate Change (IIGCC), the main European investor body focused on climate change. He represents the sustainability arena in the very relevant pension fund sector, namely as the former CEO of the Danish Pension Fund PKA, one of Denmark’s largest pension funds.

• Marie Haga serves as Associate Vice President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). In her former role as Executive Director of the Global Crop Diversity Trust, Marie has gained international reputation in the field of biodiversity and food security. She has also served as a member of Parliament in Norway and held three ministerial positions.

• Ioannis Ioannou is a Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School. He is an impactful and often cited academic in the fields of Corporate Sustainability, ESG integration and Responsible Business. He serves on the Advisory Board of Ethical Corporation – Reuters Events and is a member of the World Economic Forum Experts Network.

• Lisa P. Jackson is Vice President of Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives at Apple Inc. Leading the environmental, education policy and product accessibility strategy at Apple, she has a long track record of active engagement in all areas of ESG, having previously served as Head of the US Environmental Protection Agency appointed by former President Barack Obama.

• Georg Kell, Co-Chair
As a Founding Executive Director of the UN Global Compact, the world’s largest and most important initiative for sustainable business management, Georg Kell is also Chairman of Arabesque, the parent company of the two DWS partners Arabesque AI and Arabesque S-Ray, in which DWS holds minority stakes.

• Roelfien Kuijpers, Co-Chair
In her role as DWS’ Global ESG Client Officer, Roelfien co-chairs the new ESG Advisory Board together with Georg Kell. Roelfien is also a Board Member of the Institutional Investor Group on Climate Change.

“We want to take a leading role in ESG in the asset management industry and are already making ESG the core of everything we do. It is thrilling to now be able to work with such an internationally renowned group of experts to help advance and further accelerate our ESG strategy. I look forward to being challenged and to receive valuable input from our new ESG Advisory Board,” says Asoka Wöhrmann, CEO of DWS.

Co-Chair Georg Kell says: “I have long been convinced of the power that sustainable management and sustainable investment can unfold together. The work of this very diverse and high-calibre ESG Advisory Board, in close cooperation with the entire DWS Executive Board, will be characterized by concrete and forward-looking contributions. Our aim is to make DWS even stronger as one of the leading global asset managers in its own sustainable transformation process and that of its clients”.