Billy Berler, billy.berler@sierraclub.org
SACRAMENTO, CA — On Monday, the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) reported that the value of investments it classifies as climate solutions reached $71 billion as of June 30, 2026, up from $59.7 billion a year earlier. The increase brings the nation’s largest public pension fund closer to its goal of $100 billion in climate investments by 2030.
Sierra Club welcomed CalPERS’ continued commitment to climate-solutions investing and called on the fund to adopt stronger standards and transparency around what counts toward its $100 billion goal. Sierra Club also urged CalPERS to prioritize investments that support real-world emissions reductions and address climate risks across its broader portfolio to protect the retirement security of the workers and retirees it serves.
In response, Ben Cushing, Director of Sierra Club’s Sustainable Finance Campaign, released the following statement:
“It’s encouraging to see CalPERS make progress toward its climate-solutions goal, but a growing investment total doesn’t tell us how much new money is helping build clean energy and cut emissions. Reducing climate risk also means looking at where CalPERS invests across the whole portfolio. CalPERS has already taken the important step of using its votes to hold company directors accountable for how they handle climate risk. It can build on that work by adopting a policy to stop financing fossil fuel expansion and backing climate projects that need new investment to get built or expand.”
Background:
CalPERS said the $11.3 billion increase came from both new investments and gains on assets it already held. CalPERS also reported that financed emissions across the asset classes covered by its analysis rose by approximately 6 percent over the past year, largely reflecting investments in higher-emitting assets that it expects to decarbonize over time. For its global public equity and U.S. corporate credit holdings, CalPERS reported an implied temperature rise of 2.9°C, up from 2.7°C a year earlier.
Last year, Sierra Club and the California Common Good coalition urged CalPERS to publish a full list of the investments it counts toward its $100 billion goal, adopt science-based standards for what qualifies as a climate solution, and exclude fossil fuel investments from that total. Sierra Club has raised these concerns at CalPERS board meetings, and elaborated on them in a December 2025 CalMatters op-ed questioning the credibility and real-world impact of CalPERS' reported climate investments.
Sierra Club's 2025 Principles for Climate Solutions Investments outline standards for credible investing, including prioritizing real-world emissions reductions and establishing safeguards for transition financing. Its January 2026 Climate Solutions Gap report likewise highlighted CalPERS as an example of why ambitious climate-solutions targets must be backed by credible definitions, clear eligibility criteria, and transparent reporting.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.