In 2018, Aware Super, a GISD member and pension fund based in Australia with approximately AUD$150 billion in assets, set a goal of strengthening its measurement of environmental and social impact and linkages to the SDGs.

As a means of strengthening this measurement, Aware Super incorporated the SDI definition into its investment due diligence. The SDI assessment is completed by the Responsible Investment team and is applied to prospective private market investments, consisting of infrastructure, property, and private equity assets.

In this case study, Aware Super introduces the rationale for its usage of the SDI definition and the practical steps it has outlined to measure adherence to the definition. Finally, it shares results from the definition’s application to one transaction, the 2021 acquisition in a consortium with Macquarie of the telco Vocus Group.

In doing so, Aware Super provides an example for asset owners and managers of how the SDI definition can be practically adopted. Non-GISD companies are encouraged to consider how the definition could be beneficial for their investment strategies and processes, especially against a backdrop of increased mandatory sustainability disclosure for financial market participants.