Cushon co-authored the white paper with the University of Exeter, titled Investing in Resilience: Unlocking Pension Capital for Climate Adaptation. It was launched shortly after the publication of the first reported figures from the Mansion House Accord.

There was £22.1bn of defined contribution (DC) growth-phase assets invested in private markets as of December 31, 2025. Of that, £11.1bn was invested in the UK, with a further £3bn in UK deals committed but not yet deployed.

The paper calls for four improvements to turn this momentum into a deeper market for UK climate resilience:

- Decision-useful data on physical climate risks, including extreme events and tipping points.
- A pipeline of adaptation projects that meet DC requirements for scale, governance and value.
- Clearer government guidance and incentives to attract private capital.
- Closer coordination between government, public finance institutions, pension schemes and asset managers.

The proposals also seek to address barriers highlighted in the Mansion House Accord’s first progress report, including the supply of investable opportunities, regulatory friction and the need to focus on value.

The paper argues that, alongside investment in climate change mitigation, the UK needs to prepare for the growing impacts of climate hazards and invest in adaptation to reduce their potential effects.

In June 2025, Cushon committed to a 2% allocation to the Aviva Investors Carbon Removal Fund as part of its sustainable investment strategy.

Martin Logan, sustainability manager at Cushon, said: “As a Mansion House Accord signatory, Cushon is committed to turning intent into investable allocations. Providers already have £11.1bn at work in UK private markets, which is a strong start, and the £3bn pipeline shows momentum is building.

“The next opportunity is resilience. Funding infrastructure and assets that can cope with a changing climate opens up long-term value creation for members and for the UK economy.

“The investment case is becoming harder to ignore. Physical climate risks are already affecting UK assets, while the pipeline of pension-scale adaptation opportunities remains underdeveloped. It identifies resilient infrastructure, flood and heat protection, nature-based solutions and upgrades to existing assets as areas with potential to deliver durable value.”

Dr Jesse Abrams, senior impact fellow at the University of Exeter, said: “Pension capital is well suited to long-term challenges, but the market needs clearer data, stronger project pipelines and policy support. The Mansion House Accord creates real momentum; now we should use it to make the UK economy both more productive and more resilient.”