The LSE Transition Pathway Initiative Centre was established on 1 June 2022 at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, which is based at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). The Grantham Research Institute has been the academic partner of the Transition Pathway Initiative, a global initiative led by asset owners and supported by asset managers. In 2017 the Institute launched a research programme to assess the world’s biggest companies from high emitting sectors on the transition to a low carbon economy. Now, the TPI Centre is scaling up this research programme.

To perform its research the TPI Centre team works variously with its data partner, FTSE Russell, and with other partners, including a recent partnership with the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC). The TPI Centre is also the academic partner of the investor initiative Assessing Sovereign Climate-related Opportunities and Risks (ASCOR). 

The TPI Centre intends to be a key part of the post-COP26 financial infrastructure to drive greater transparency and accountability for corporate commitments to net zero and to support those seeking to raise capital in public markets. 

The TPI Centre will support investor commitments to: 

·       Align portfolios with net zero 

·       Support global investor engagement initiatives such as Climate Action 100+, which targets the alignment of the world’s most carbon-intensive companies 

·       Place transparency and independent analysis at the heart of informing investor decision-making

·       Support the transition within public markets, corporate debt markets and sovereign debt markets. 

The TPI Centre operates within the Grantham Research Institute’s current system of governance and is subject to LSE’s Guidelines on the Governance of Research Centres. The TPI Centre is also subject to oversight by LSE’s Research Committee in line with LSE’s associated policies and procedures. The TPI Centre is governed by a dedicated Advisory Board, Management Committee, and Technical Advisory Group.

The Advisory Board provides the Executive Director of the TPI Centre and members of the Management Committee with external oversight. It considers issues of strategy and policy, providing a forum in which legitimate interests of the funders of the  TPI Centre’s research are represented. It comprises representatives from the TPI Centre’s funders, and staff from the Centre, the Grantham Research Institute and LSE.

The Management Committee is responsible for the management of the TPI Centre, including: setting academic priorities; organising its activities; overseeing its budget; overseeing human resources matters; and reporting to both the TPI Centre’s Advisory Board and LSE’s Research Committee. The Management Committee is comprised from the TPI Centre’s staff.

The Technical Advisory Group undertakes regular technical reviews of the TPI Centre’s research. The Group’s key objectives include advising on all aspects of the TPI methodology, such as its general approach, specific sources of data, and presentation of data. This advisory role supports the TPI Centre to achieve its overall objectives within the parameters of LSE’s own charitable objectives, acting as a critical friend. Group membership is based on technical and research expertise, drawing on experts both internal and external to LSE. 

Transition Pathway Initiative Limited (TPI Ltd.). The Transition Pathway Initiative (TPI) was created in 2017 as a joint initiative of the National Investing Bodies of the Church of England and the Environment Agency Pension Fund, chaired by the Church of England Pensions Board.  The Initiative is a global effort led by asset owners and supported by asset managers. Its mission is to assess the progress of large corporations on the transition to a low-carbon economy, supporting efforts by investors to address climate change. 

 

As of September 2022, TPI Ltd. a not-for-profit company listed in the UK was established with the mission to ensure the research agenda of Asset Owners is met and that sufficient funding in place to support the TPI Centre. The Initiative is supported by 144 asset owners, asset managers and service providers representing approximately $64 trillion in combined assets under management and advice. Since 2017, the Grantham Research Institute has been the academic partner of TPI. The TPI research conducted at the Grantham Research Institute has been funded by contributions from asset owners and six research funding partners (who are asset managers). TPI Ltd. was instrumental in the creation of the TPI Centre. It is the Centre’s key strategic partner.

 

FTSE Russell is the TPI Centre’s data partner, co-producing the Management Quality data. It is also the TPI Centre’s partner in commercialising its data. With the Church of England Pensions Board, FTSE Russell has created the FTSE-TPI Climate Transition Index, which embeds FTSE Russell data with LSE’s data and methodologies.

Climate Arc, which is a project housed at the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (RPA), with initial funds from the Children Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), is a funder of the TPI Centre.

The London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) Foundation is another funder of the TPI Centre. The LSEG Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the LSEG.