Manulife Investment Management’s Forest Climate Fund has reached third and final close at US$480.1 million, supported by investments from global institutional investors. The fund aims to offer investors the opportunity to diversify their portfolios with sustainably-managed forestland assets, and has targeted the sequestration of more than six million tons of carbon dioxide. “We have seen strong interest in the forest climate strategy from a broad base of global investors, further highlighting the acceptance and growing use of forestland as a climate change mitigation tool that has added new dimensions to timberland investment,” said Tom Sarno, Global Head of Timberland Investments at Manulife. A further objective of the strategy is to establish new forests through afforestation or reforestation to generate high-quality carbon credits and long-term sustainable timber value. Commitments to the fund have come from a diverse range of sources including US investors, corporates and global institutional investors. The fund has so far acquired more than 150,000 acres and is approaching 50% deployment. Manulife’s team has also identified a pipeline of additional opportunities in 2025 to further diversify and grow the portfolio. “Investors are showing confidence in forests as a top natural climate solution,” said Eric Cooperstrom, Managing Director, Impact Investing and Natural Climate Solutions at Manulife. “With the interest we have seen in the fund, we will continue to pursue natural climate solutions to drive new opportunities for impact and results for our clients.”
