10th July 2026

Power, pipes and precision: the exciting next five years of investing in sustainability

Despite a noisy backlash against ESG, Rathbone Greenbank Multi-Asset Portfolios Fund Manager David Coombs argues that the underlying direction of travel hasn't changed – and identifies the themes he believes will drive returns over the next five years.

Over the past couple of years, the volume has been turned down on ESG (environmental, social and governance) – the claims and the rhetoric, that is. As for the actions and the results, they have continued to forge ahead regardless.

I think this has been a helpful reset for sustainability, one that’s more honest and more focused on what can be achieved. For a while there, sustainability became too anchored in aspiration. There was too much talk about what was going to happen down the track, and not enough focus on what companies were actually doing today. It often led to wildly optimistic forecasts and subsequent scepticism that goals could be achieved.

What makes me excited about the next five years for sustainability is that while we’re hearing about it less, the improvements are still there. I think it’s because of a solid truth at the core of sustainability: less waste is cheaper than more waste, happier workers are more productive, and cleaner production avoids the higher costs of pollution down the road. This stuff makes sense – and that's why companies keep doing it. 

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