Now that we are starting to emerge from the aftermath of the financial crisis, it is worth spending some time to analyse which companies and individuals have come out unscathed and why?

Yes, markets have gone more slowly, but still, those companies which have tended to avoid great pain are the companies with a professional approach to clients and a lack of debt.

Many companies and individuals have became saddled with debt which put them in a risky position. Yes, leverage enhances your returns but at the cost of financial risk if things go wrong. A big win and also a big loss.

Leverage was the story of the heady decade of the new century. The current investment flavour is to play it safe and invest in cash assets which generate steady capital growth or consistent long term guaranteed income. This harks back to basics – save before you spend. It was and is a good policy.

A professional approach means treating clients, investors and partners with respect, following the law and not getting ahead of yourself in the race to build market share. At True Blue this is not enough. For us, business must be enjoyable and we therefore take a moral stance and follow business ethics which are in line with our own beliefs and actions.

That means honesty, transparency, a straightforward apporach to business and investing in areas which do not only generate high and/or regular returns but also have a positive benefit in the world. In other words, sustainable projects.

An example of an investment opportunity currently available which satisfies all of the above is our individual land purchase opportunity.

A simple opportunity where you purchase your own first class ’Black Earth’ agricultural land – with a low entry cost, zero debt/bank loans, a steady monthly or yearly payment in advance of 9% net by renting to local farmers and the chance of a capital gain of 57% in 5 years. A solid, steady and safe combination. All the while you are helping the world food crisis by bringing new agricultural land into production. At True Blue we let you arrange things yourself or we will manage the whole process for you as you prefer.

In the current investment climate, this is the type of opportunity that aligns your head, your heart and also your bank manager!

Hadley Barrett (Oxford Sustainable), for more information click here and add your full details and title your subject 'Hadley'.

In our mind (True Blue Wealth investment opinion), emerging markets have been and continue to be excellent investment locations. 'What Investment' gives a good summay of 10 key reasons to invest in emerging markets. http://www.whatinvestment.co.uk/making-money/alternative-investments/guides/1057232/top-10-reasons-to-invest-in-emerging-market-equities.thtml

The benefits include demographics, growth, stronger investment returns, less debt and the dynamic nature of the economies.

While China, Brazil, India and Russia get the highest focus because of their size and international presence, the emerging Eastern and Northern European countries are sometimes overlooked and therefore these gems, such as Finland, Estonia, Romania offer even higher returns to the savvy investor.

Emerging markets including the Central and Eastern Europe region are now no longer seen as ’risky’ investment areas, but are thoroughly in the mainstream:

Claire Simmonds, Client Portfolio Manager of JPMorgan Emerging Markets said, “Despite the long-held perception that Emerging Markets are riskier than Developed Markets, Emerging Markets have substantially outperformed Developed Markets this year. We believe the relative performance of Emerging Markets equities year to date reflects the improved macro fundamentals and competitive corporate profitability of the asset class.”

In various articles and press, when looking at the best 10 areas to invest in from a macro viewpoint, the same message is seen again and again and the following five asset classes continually come up:

1. Emerging markets
2. Renewable Energy
3. Sustainable Development (including scarce resources/commodities)
4. Agriculture
5. Aging demographics

Clearly, the top experts are solidly behind these investment areas and True Blue concurs completely. In addition, we encourage investment in the Europe North region.

So, for the best investment, at least that recommended by a vast number of experts, becoming involved in emerging and Northern economies in an area such as renewable energy or agriculture seems to be a superb direction to take for the coming years.

The above quotes are all available and taken from the public domain and can be verified on the internet.

Hadley Barrett. Ask an Expert here

While the market for sustainable investment products is still quite new, it is not surprising that there is great demand for these products. As a case in point, the smaller sustainable products that True Blue Wealth has introduced during the last 6 months have all been oversubscribed by both individual investors and High Net Worth investors.

Sustainable investments are considered to be either in sustainable companies, in sustainable assets or in sustainable developments. A sustainable investment is one in which, according to the UN definition, economic, environmental and social factors are considered. True Blue goes further in its assessment of the products it promotes, with a 360 degree approach to consider all relevant stakeholders so investors will receive a solidly performing investment.

As an example, within the sustainable segment, renewable energy has an important role. The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe has estimated that the current size of the renewable energy market alone is around 160bn Euro and is expected to grow to at least 600bn Euro by 2020.

In addition, there is a very clear argument for sustainable products and companies. Generic statistics show that companies with a sustainable approach have both a longer term investment approach and have consistently outperformed the FTSE 250 average during the last 20 years.

Why do sustainable projects generate a better return? Well, certainly not all products, sustainable or not, generate a good return. However, if applied correctly it is easy to see why the benefits of a good sustainable project will exceed other projects.

First, sustainability means less or zero waste. With less waste, less costs. Sustainability means being cautious with excess and therefore cautious with costs. It means taking a longer term view and therefore the ability to be more flexible and think in more valuable business terms than short term thinking.

Sustainability means thinking how financially and in investment terms the project can be successful. This often means less debt and less risk. These are just a few reasons.

So the argument is clear. What about an actual projects? The below example shows the returns generated from a sustainable/renewable energy biomass project with simplified figures.

Land Purchase 1,000,000 Euro
Planning costs 350,000 Euro
Legal costs 50,000 Euro
DD costs 50,000 Euro
Other costs 50,000 Euro
Sales price 4m Euro
Return (40-15)/15 = 167%

This makes it clear that the correctly chosen sustainable projects can deliver excellent returns during the project lifetime as well as doing good. For most investors this is a powerful combination.

Hadley Barrett - Oxford Sustainable.