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Sustainable Investment team

Our investment process

The investment process seeks to generate strong returns from investing in companies aiming to deliver profits through positive social and environmental impacts. The fund managers look at the world through the prism of three mega trends – Better resource efficiency (cleaner), Improved health (healthier) and Greater safety and resilience (safer) – and then 22 themes within these.

If a company has significant exposure to one of the themes, the fund managers verify how sustainable the rest of its activities are. For each company, the fund managers determine the ESG factors that are important indicators of future success and assess how well these are managed, via the proprietary Liontrust Sustainability Matrix.

Companies in which the fund managers invest will have robust business fundamentals with a proven ability to deliver high returns of equity (RoE) through sustaining margins and asset turnover. Typically, these companies have a maintainable competitive advantage through scale, technology or business model.

Sustainability Focus label

All 10 of the UK-domiciled funds managed by the Sustainable Investment team have adopted the Sustainability Focus label under the Sustainability Disclosure Requirements (SDR) from 1 April 2025. This makes it one of the largest ranges of funds to adopt a SDR label, covering equity, fixed income and managed funds. The Sustainability Focus label is intended for a fund that “invests mainly in assets that focus on sustainability for people or the planet”. The Liontrust funds also meet an additional key requirement of the labelling regime by investing at least 70% of their total assets in sustainable investments.

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SDR labels: what they mean for investors

In this short video, Mike Appleby explains the different SDR labels, why they are beneficial to investors and why the Liontrust Sustainable Investment team has adopted the Sustainability Focus label for the equity, fixed income and managed funds they manage.

Funds managed by the team

The Liontrust Sustainable Investment team manages a broad range of funds across equities, bonds, and managed funds.

Funds managed by the team

Liontrust GF Sustainable Future US Growth Fund
Sustainable Investment team

GF Sustainable Future US Growth Fund

The Ireland-domiciled and Article 9 Fund under SFDR applies the Sustainable Future process to find the opportunities for sustainable investing in the US.

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Monthly Income Bond
Sustainable Investment team

Sustainable Future Monthly Income Bond Fund

The Fund seeks to produce monthly income payments together with capital growth by investing at least 80% of the portfolio in corporate bonds.

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SF Cautious Managed
Sustainable Investment team

Sustainable Future Cautious Managed Fund

The Fund aims to deliver capital growth, as well as some level of income, over the long term (5 years or more) through investing between 40% to 60% of the portfolio in global equities and the rest in bonds, infrastructure and cash.

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SF Corporate Bond
Sustainable Investment team

Sustainable Future Corporate Bond Fund

The Fund invests at least 80% of the portfolio in investment grade corporate bonds denominated in sterling or hedged back to sterling.

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SF Defensive Managed
Sustainable Investment team

Sustainable Future Defensive Managed Fund

The Fund aims to deliver capital growth, as well as some level of income, over the long term (5 years or more) through investing between 20% to 50% of the portfolio in global equities and the rest in bonds, infrastructure and cash.

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SF European Growth
Sustainable Investment team

Sustainable Future European Growth Fund

The Fund applies the Sustainable Future process to find the opportunities for sustainable investing in continental Europe and up to 5% in UK-listed stocks.

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SF Global Growth
Sustainable Investment team

Sustainable Future Global Growth Fund

The Fund invests between 90% to 100% in global equities, applying the Sustainable Future process to find the opportunities for sustainable investing in developed markets.

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SF Managed
Sustainable Investment team

Sustainable Future Managed Fund

The Fund aims to deliver capital growth, as well as some level of income, over the long term (5 years or more) through investing between 60% to 85% of the portfolio in global equities and the rest in bonds and cash.

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SF Managed Growth
Sustainable Investment team

Sustainable Future Managed Growth Fund

The Fund aims to deliver capital growth, as well as some level of income, over the long term (5 years or more) through investing between 60% to 100% of the portfolio in global equities and the rest in bonds and cash.

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SF UK Growth
Sustainable Investment team

Sustainable Future UK Growth Fund

The Fund applies the Sustainable Future process to find the opportunities for sustainable investing in UK-listed stocks.

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UK Ethical
Sustainable Investment team

UK Ethical Fund

The Fund uses a thematic approach to identify the key structural growth trends that will shape the global economy of the future and then seek to invest in well run UK-listed companies whose products and operations capitalise on these transformative changes.

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GF SF European Corporate Bond
Sustainable Investment team

GF Sustainable Future European Corporate Bond Fund

The Ireland-domiciled and Article 9 Fund under SFDR invests in euro denominated investment grade corporate bonds or non-euro denominated corporate bonds hedged back into euros.

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GF SF Global Growth
Sustainable Investment team

GF Sustainable Future Global Growth Fund

The Ireland-domiciled and Article 9 Fund under SFDR invests between 90% to 100% in global equities, applying the Sustainable Future process to find the opportunities for sustainable investing in developed markets.

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GF SF Multi-Asset Global
Sustainable Investment team

GF Sustainable Future Multi-Asset Global Fund

The Ireland-domiciled and Article 9 Fund under SFDR aims to deliver capital growth, as well as some level of income, over the long term (5 years or more) through investing in global equities, bonds and cash.

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GF SF Pan-European Growth
Sustainable Investment team

GF Sustainable Future Pan-European Growth Fund

The Ireland-domiciled and Article 9 Fund under SFDR aims to generate capital growth by finding the opportunities for sustainable investing across Europe, including in UK-listed stocks.

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Latest insights

More insights
Lionesses Multiple authors
Six key reasons sustainable investment matters In this summary article, the Liontrust Sustainable Investment team highlight six key reasons why sustainable investment matters, showing how it can help solve global challenges while delivering long-term value for shareholders.
icon 24 June 2025
How sustainable investment helps improve our world
Harriet Parker Harriet Parker
Preventing irreversible damage from the climate crisis Driving climate action through sustained, science-aligned engagement.
icon 10 June 2025
forest with an overcast of smoke across it
Peter Michaelis Peter Michaelis
Keeping ourselves safe in a digital world Investing and engaging to build digital security.
icon 2 June 2025
Kenny Watson Kenny Watson
ESG-labelled bonds: assessing the sustainability of a trillion-dollar market Exploring the rise of ESG bonds – and why issuer analysis still matters.
icon 29 May 2025
Simon Clements Simon Clements
Liontrust GF Sustainable Future Global Growth Fund - Q1 2025 update
Watch Now play video
icon 23 May 2025
Peter Michaelis Peter Michaelis
Liontrust Sustainable Future UK Growth Fund - Q1 2025 update
Watch Now play video
icon 23 May 2025

Meet the team

The team has been managing the Sustainable Future (SF) funds for more than 22 years.  A key differentiator is the fact all the sustainable elements are fully integrated within a single team. The team, which has over 200 years of combined experience, is headed by Peter Michaelis, who was previously Head of SRI at Aviva Investors and has been managing the SF funds since launch. The fund managers that joined from Alliance Trust Investments (ATI) as part of its acquisition were previously running the Sustainable Future fund range at Aviva Investors. The other lead equity managers are Simon Clements (who was formerly Head of Global Equities at Aviva Investors) along with Martyn Jones and Chris Foster who joined the management training programme at ATI as graduates. Fixed Income investments are managed by Kenny Watson (formerly at Ignis Asset Management), Aitken Ross and Jack Willis who also started their careers in the graduate scheme at ATI, and Connor Godsell. Harriet Parker leads on engagement activities across the team.

 

Peter Michaelis
Peter Michaelis Peter Michaelis joined Liontrust in April 2017 as part of the acquisition of ATI, where he was Head of Investment. Peter has been managing Sustainable Investment funds since 2001 when he was promoted to lead Portfolio Manager at Aviva Investors. Read more
Simon Clements
Simon Clements Simon Clements is a fund manager who joined Liontrust in April 2017 as part of the acquisition of Alliance Trust Investments (ATI), where he had managed funds for five years. Prior to this, Simon spent 12 years at Aviva Investors (previously Morley Fund Management) where, most recently, he was Head of Global Equities. In his early career, Simon worked as a Portfolio Accountant and Risk and Performance Analyst before joining Aviva Investors in 2000 to help develop its global equity and SRI propositions. Simon holds a Bachelor of Economics from the University of Newcastle, Australia, and a graduate diploma in Applied Finance & Investment from Securities Institute of Australia. Simon is a CFA Charterholder.
 
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Martyn Jones
Martyn Jones Martyn Jones is a fund manager who joined Liontrust in April 2017 as part of the acquisition of Alliance Trust Investments (ATI) and became a fund manager in November 2019. Prior to Liontrust, Martyn spent five years at ATI, initially as a graduate trainee and then as an analyst with the Sustainable Investment team. Martyn has an MA (Hons) in Management from the University of Glasgow and a Masters in Sustainability Leadership at the University of Cambridge. Martyn has completed the IMC and is a CFA Charterholder. Read more
Chris Foster
Chris Foster Chris Foster is a fund manager who joined Liontrust in April 2017 as part of the acquisition of Alliance Trust Investments (ATI). Previously, Chris joined ATI through the management training programme after graduating with a First Class Honours degree in Economics and Mathematics from the University of Edinburgh. Chris is a CFA Charterholder. Read more
Mike Appleby
Mike Appleby Mike Appleby joined Liontrust in April 2017 as part of the acquisition of ATI. Having started his investment career in 1992, Mike joined Aviva Investors in 2004 where he was a Fund Manager and then appointed Head of SRI Thematic Research. Read more
Harriet Parker
Harriet Parker Harriet Parker joined Liontrust in April 2017 as part of the acquisition of ATI. Harriet started her investment career in 2004 at Aviva Investors and was also a Research Assistant at the Department of Economics and Centre for Market and Public Organisation. Read more
Kenny Watson
Kenny Watson Kenny Watson joined Liontrust as part of the acquisition of ATI in April 2017. Prior to ATI, Kenny spent 15 years at Ignis Asset Management where he was responsible for sub-investment grade bond portfolios including the High Income Bond Fund. Read more
Aitken Ross
Aitken Ross Aitken Ross joined Liontrust as part of the acquisition of ATI in April 2017. Aitken started his career on the Alliance Trust Management Training programme in September 2010 and completed an MA in International Financial Analysis (Distinction) at Newcastle University. Read more
Jack Willis
Jack Willis Jack Willis joined Liontrust as part of the acquisition of ATI in April 2017. Jack started his career on the Alliance Trust Management Training programme in September 2014 and completed an MSc in Finance and Investment (Distinction) at the University of Leeds. Read more
Connor Godsell
Connor Godsell Connor Godsell joined Liontrust in November 2023. He is an Investment Manager on the Sustainable Investment team. Connor has seven years industry experience and has an MA (Hons) in Economics & Finance. Read more
Mingming Huang
Mingming Huang Mingming Huang joined Liontrust in June 2019 on the Sustainable Investment Equities team as a Portfolio Manager Assistant, providing analytical support for the team’s thematic analysis and engagement. This followed a 9-month internship with the team. Read more
Deepesh Marwaha
Deepesh Marwaha Deepesh joined Liontrust in September 2021 on the Sustainable Investment Fixed Income team. Deepesh graduated from the University of Strathclyde in Economics and Human Resource Management. He holds the IMC certificate and CFA Level I. Read more
Nancy Kondelidou
Nancy Kondelidou Nancy joined Liontrust in September 2021 on the Sustainable Investment Fixed Income team. Prior to this, she worked for a year in a fixed income data related role. Nancy holds the IMC certificate and CFA Level II. Read more
Ed Phelps
Ed Phelps Ed joined Liontrust in September 2021 on the Sustainable Investment Equities team. Ed previously completed an internship in the Responsible Investment department at Redington. He holds the IMC certificate and CFA Level III. Read more
Sarah Nottle
Sarah Nottle Sarah joined Liontrust in September 2021 on the Sustainable Investment Equities team. Prior to this, she worked within the asset management industry in an operations role. Sarah holds the IMC certificate and CFA Level III. Read more
Linnea Bengtsson
Linnea Bengtsson

Linnea Bengtsson is an Equity Analyst who joined Liontrust in 2023 as part of the Sustainable Investment team. Linnea previously worked at Ninety One Asset Management (formerly Investec), where she gained four years industry experience as a Sustainable Equity Investment Analyst. Prior to this, Linnea interned at Citi Bank and Deutsche Bank. Linnea holds a BA (Hons) degree in Chinese from the University of Durham and ECNU, Shanghai. In addition, Linnea holds the Investment Management Certificate (IMC).

 Read more
Hannah Muir
Hannah Muir Hannah Muir joined Liontrust in April 2017 as part of the company's acquisition of Alliance Trust Investments. Hannah joined the Sustainable Investment Fixed Income team as an Investment Analyst, producing sustainability analysis reports. Read more
Expand the team Show less of the team

"Over our first 20 years of managing the SF funds, our investments have been successful because they have provided something society needs.”

Peter Michaelis

Sustainable Investment: Annual Review 2023

Read about the team’s investment performance and investee company engagement in 2023 and their 22 sustainable investment themes.

READ ANNUAL REVIEW
Meet the tea