Defence and Dual-Use Investment Advice
Independent advice for institutional investors navigating defence exposure, responsible investment, human rights and governance.
I support asset owners, foundations, investment committees and asset managers in developing clear, practical and defensible approaches to defence and dual-use investments.
Policy · Governance · Due diligence · Stewardship · Board support
Defence investments can no longer be treated as a simple screening question
Investors are being asked to reconcile national security, fiduciary responsibility, responsible investment commitments, human-rights risks and changing stakeholder expectations.
Exclusion lists remain relevant—but they do not answer every governance, classification, due-diligence or stewardship question.
"The central question is no longer only whether an investor permits defence exposure, but how that exposure is understood, governed and monitored."
Questions I help investors answer
-
Which forms of defence exposure are compatible with our mandate?
-
How should we distinguish defence, controversial weapons and dual-use technologies?
-
Are our definitions and revenue thresholds sufficiently clear?
-
What should we expect from external asset managers?
-
How should we assess human-rights and end-use risks?
-
What should be reported to the board or investment committee?
How I can help
Review and strengthen how defence and dual-use exposure is defined, governed and implemented
Assess how defence, controversial-weapons and dual-use holdings are classified across your portfolio
Strengthen the assessment of human-rights, conflict, end-use and governance risks linked to defence
Develop a structured approach to engaging defence and dual-use companies on the issues most relevant
Provide boards and investment committees with independent analysis for complex defence-related polic
Heightened Human Rights Due Diligence
Heightened human-rights due diligence for defence and dual-use investments requires investors to consider not only the company itself, but also products, customers, end users, conflict exposure and the potential consequences of misuse.
01
Identify
Relevant products, markets, customers and potential impacts.
03
Engage
Seek decision-useful information from companies and managers.
02
Assess
Severity, likelihood, company governance and available evidence
04
Decide and document
Establish an explainable basis for investment, engagement or escalation decisions.
About
About Anna-Stina Wiklund
Anna-Stina Wiklund is an independent sustainable investment adviser specialising in institutional investment governance, responsible investment, defence and dual-use technologies, stewardship and human-rights due diligence.
CURRENT ROLES
-
Founder of Flora Advisory Ltd and Founding Member at the Global Advisory Alliance, where she leads and contributes to work on defence, dual-use technologies and responsible investment.
-
Investment committé member at University of Eastern Finland
PREVIOUS ROLES
-
Head of Reponsible Investment and Portfolio Manager at Church Pension Fund in Finland where she headed responsible investment development and implementation.
-
Head of Sustainable Investment at Ålandsbanken in Finland and Sweden.
-
Board member of Finsif (Finnish Sustainable Investment Forum)
Research, publications & Investor Engagement
From Exclusion to Engagement: A Stewardship Lens on Europe’s Evolving Defence Investments
Author · Woodsford Engage Quarterly · 2025
Analysis of how institutional investors in Northern and Southern Europe have changed their approaches to defence-related stewardship since 2022.
Read article ->
Selected Investor Dialogue & Outreach
Europe: Responsible Investment and Defence
Panel participant Investor webinar 2026
Contributed to a European investor discussion on responsible investment, defence exposure, fiduciary duty and stewardship.
Watch the webinar recording ->
Facilitator · Chatham House Rule roundtables
Following the webinar, facilitated a closed-door discussion with institutional investors exploring how asset owners, asset managers and private market participants are adapting policies, due diligence and engagement approaches in response to the changing defence investment landscape.
Research output
Produced an anonymized summary of the key themes, areas of convergence and unresolved investor questions emerging from the discussion.
Read the anonymized summary ->
North America: Responsible Investment and Defence
Panel participant Investor webinar 2026
Contributed to a North American investor discussion on defence investment, fiduciary responsibility and portfolio implications.
Watch the webinar recording ->
Facilitator · Chatham House Rule roundtables
Facilitated follow-up discussions with institutional investors on practical challenges including policy interpretation, stewardship, company disclosure, human-rights risks and ESG data limitations.
Research output
Synthesized the discussions into an anonymized insight summary highlighting common concerns, emerging practices and areas where investors are seeking further guidance.
Read the anonymized summary ->