In this article, Tara McHugh, Global Lead, Product Specialists, discusses the sentiment and some of the recurring themes that have emerged in her conversations with investors in the US over the summer.
With September underway and New York's summer heat beginning to fade, Climate Week NYC 2026 is just around the corner. While climate remains firmly on the agenda for investors, the conversations we're having with clients are becoming more practical. The focus is less on reporting and more on resilience, financial materiality, and how climate insights can help inform real-world investment decisions.
Across the market, we're seeing investors look for ways to integrate climate intelligence directly into their existing workflows, making it more actionable and easier to use in day-to-day decision-making.
Takeaway 1: Climate Risk is Moving From Disclosure to Decision-Making
Physical risk is emerging as a key investment consideration, as extreme weather events become more visible and financially material across sectors and geographies. According to a recent Morningstar Sustainalytics poll, more than 40% of respondents believe that "managing physical climate risk" is the biggest climate challenge facing investors today.
We've found that investors are focused on understanding how climate hazards affect companies, assets, supply chains, and portfolio resilience – with an emphasis on integrating these insights into risk management and valuation. Interest is also growing among private market investors seeking climate intelligence to support due diligence and investment decisions. Physical climate risk is no longer a niche topic.
For more information about environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risks within the private markets, read Sustainalytics' recent report, Expanding ESG Transparency in Private Markets.
Takeaway 2: From Ratings to Decision Signals
In conversations with clients, in the US and globally, investors are increasingly expressing a desire to understand what is behind a company's ESG risk rating. They want to know what has changed, and how it might influence a company's risk profile. The conversation has shifted beyond headline ratings towards underlying indicators and financially material factors.
We are also seeing heightened interest across our client base – from hedge funds to banks – in understanding and monitoring event and reputation risk. Our clients want to leverage sustainability controversies and indicators as potential leading signals of changing risk profiles, and they want intentional signals that are more aligned with raw data, rather than scores.
Similar themes are emerging in private markets, where investors are seeking deeper visibility into governance concerns, controversies, and operational risk as part of their due diligence process.
Takeaway 3: Sustainability is Becoming Part of Everyday Investment Workflows
Recently, we've found that the competitive advantage for some of our clients is no longer about simply having sustainability data, it's about the ability to turn that data into useful investment insights.
Investors increasingly expect insights to be accessible through artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled workflows, which helps to reduce the barriers between data and decision-making, democratizing access to data across their firms. This aligns with findings from Sustainalytics' 2025 State of ESG Survey report, which found that seamless functionality and integration was of paramount importance to institutional investors.
Looking Ahead to New York Climate Week and Beyond
As Climate Week NYC approaches, I'm excited to connect with clients, industry peers, and colleagues from across the sustainability space. One of the things I enjoy most about Climate Week is the opportunity to step back from our day-to-day work, compare notes, and explore how investor priorities are continuing to evolve.
Many of these themes will also be front and center at our hosted event. From physical climate risk and private markets to decision-useful insights and AI-enabled workflows, I look forward to continuing the conversation and hearing how investors are putting climate and sustainability insights into practice, both during this week and beyond.
Ultimately, the most engaging discussions are no longer about whether these issues matter, but how they can be applied to support better investment and risk management decisions.
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