There is good news for the world of sustainable investment. It appears that the audience most attentive to social and environmental responsibility is the very same one that, over the coming decades, will hold economic and political power. We are talking about millennials — that is, the generation born between 1980 and 2000.

Environment, society and governance are young people's priorities

Like anyone with savings to invest, millennials want to make their money work. But that's not all. Far more than previous generations, they also want to have a positive impact on the world around them. This means that, when evaluating investments, they weigh ESG issues (environment, society and governance) on a par with expected returns. This is revealed by a study by Schroders Investment Management, cited by the Boston Globe, which goes even further: the likelihood that millennials will choose ESG-oriented investments is 15 per cent higher than the average. Meanwhile, as age increases, attention to sustainability declines.

But "sustainability" is a very broad and varied concept. What is the hierarchy of priorities? Millennials place governance first, followed by CSR, environmental impact and community relations. Young people are highly sensitive to food labelling, vegan and vegetarian diets, corruption and transparency, as well as inequality in the distribution of wealth. These issues are not approached from a philanthropic perspective, but enter fully into actual business decisions. This, the Boston Globe points out, is the real shift in direction.

Millennials know (and appreciate) impact investing

American Century Investments surveyed a representative sample of the American population, divided into three categories: millennials (aged 18 to 35), Generation X (36 to 51) and baby boomers (52 to 70). Twenty-nine per cent of millennials say they are familiar with the concept of impact investing, a considerably higher percentage than the 19 per cent of Generation X and the 14 per cent of baby boomers. In many cases, it goes well beyond mere familiarity with the term. As many as 54 per cent of millennials, in fact, take into account the social impact of potential financial investments when considering them. For Generation X and baby boomers, the figure drops to 37 and 34 per cent respectively.

The golden moment of impact investing

Impact investments, moreover, are experiencing a genuine boom. This is demonstrated by the latest report from the Global Impact Investing Network (Giin): between 2013 and 2015, their volume grew from 1.7 to 2.3 billion dollars. What is more, 95 per cent of respondents achieved financial returns equal to or greater than their expectations. As an analysis by ImpactAlpha points out, we are not talking only about the traditional world of finance, but also about private citizens, activists, artists and philanthropic organisations who want to use their savings to do something positive for the planet.