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2023 Outlook: Real Assets

We expect energy equities will be resilient due to underinvestment in recent years. So, we don’t think investors should underweight this economic sector in the near term despite some long-term headwinds from decarbonization efforts. In real estate, we think offices may finally offer some attractive opportunities for the discerning investor. Energy Equities at Benchmark Weights […]

December 2022

VantagePoint: Three Big Questions

Policymakers are in a tough spot. One doesn’t need to look further than the United Kingdom to see their challenges. High inflation and slowing growth have pitted central banks against politicians seeking to stimulate. As a result, capital markets of all sorts—risky and defensive—have corrected sharply. Much bad news has been discounted, but is it […]

November 2022

Does the Inflation Reduction Act Increase the Attractiveness of Clean Energy Investments?

Yes. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) will generate significant benefits for companies involved in clean energy. The bill is anticipated to provide almost $370 billion over the next decade to a variety of industries, including utilities, transportation, and manufacturers of products such as batteries and solar components. The ten-year life of these tax credits provides […]

August 2022

Water: Carbon Sinking Kelp Farms

Oceans make up 72% of the earth’s surface and have absorbed around 40% of carbon emissions since 1840. As such, investors are increasingly putting capital to work in ocean-based businesses to both mitigate climate change and enhance the Blue Economy—but how? In this episode, we visit Running Tide in Portland, ME to see this concept […]

June 2022

Can Commodities Still Provide Shelter in the Storm as Both Stocks and Bonds Suffer Losses?

Yes, although such investments are not for the faint of heart. As we have seen in 2022, both stocks and bonds have lost value as inflation expectations have escalated. The current environment favors building robustness into portfolios, and exposure to commodities—in addition to high quality bonds—could be a part of this, particularly for investors whose […]

May 2022

Fire: Net-Zero Plasma Diamonds

Fire is often a marker associated with the worst effects of climate change. But what if fire could actually be harnessed to help reverse it? In this episode, we meet Diamond Foundry, a company revolutionizing the diamond industry with their affordable, lab-created diamonds—free from the myriad of problems associated with the mining process. We’ll learn […]

May 2022

Earth: Mushrooms and the Future of Meat

Livestock take up nearly 80% of global agricultural land yet produce only 20% of the world’s supply of calories—so how can we make feeding people more efficient? In this season two premiere of Unseen Upside: Investments Beyond Their Returns, we visit an alternative protein company in Boulder, Colorado called Meati. There, we explore how a […]

April 2022

Are High Oil Prices a Threat to Investors?

Yes, but the level of threat varies across asset classes. Higher oil prices are likely to slow economic growth and weigh on corporate profits across many regions, but more so in countries that are large energy importers, where the energy intensity of growth is highest and where governments have the fewest resources to cushion the […]

April 2022