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AllianzGI announces second Impact Research Award and expands Impact & Sustainability Private Markets team

23.03.2026 | Allianz Global Investors (AllianzGI), one of the world’s leading active investment managers, today announced the winners of the second edition of its Impact Research Award, recognising cutting-edge scientific work that advances understanding of society’s most pressing challenges. The firm also announced the expansion of its Impact and Sustainability Private Markets team, reinforcing its commitment to sustainable and impact driven investing.

AllianzGI’s 2026 Impact Research Award

The 2026 Impact Research Award is presented to the NEMESIS research team from the Netherlands Institute of Mental Health and Addiction (Trimbos Institute), led by Margreet ten Have, senior researcher at the Department of Epidemiology. The winning team further includes Marlous Tuithof, Saskia van Dorsselaer, Simone Korteling, and Annemarie Luik.

Trimbos Institute provides research, policy, and practice-based advice for professionals on mental health and substance use across the life course, and across the promotion, prevention, treatment and recovery spectrum.

The awarded paper, “Prevalence and trends of common mental disorders from 2007–2009 to 2019–2022: results from the Netherlands Mental Health Survey and Incidence Studies (NEMESIS)”1 , provides a rigorous analysis of mental health trends before and during the COVID 19 pandemic. Unlike many previous population-based studies, the NEMESIS dataset relies on fully structured diagnostic interviews rather than abbreviated versions of such interviews or self reported symptom questionnaires, and examines socio demographic differences over time.

Among the study’s key findings, more than one quarter of respondents aged 18-75 years (25.9%) met the diagnostic criteria for a mood, anxiety, or substance-use disorder in the preceding 12 months. This evidence base is critical for understanding the scale of mental health needs and for informing investments and policy interventions aimed at improving health outcomes.

The Impact Research Award judging panel is composed of both AllianzGI and independent judging members, including Associate Professor Taren Sanders (Australian Catholic University) and Dr Concepción Galdón (IE Business School).

Matt Christensen

“At the highest level, impact investing requires a proper framing of the societal challenge being addressed,” said: Matt Christensen, Global Head of Sustainable and Impact Investing at AllianzGI. “In the case of the awarded research paper for 2026, the insights provided by the Trimbos team help society grasp the true extent of mental health challenges. Research of this calibre is essential if we are to channel capital into solutions that meaningfully improve people’s lives.”

Strengthening sustainability expertise in Private Markets

To enhance its capabilities in private‑markets sustainability, AllianzGI is expanding its Impact and Sustainability Private Markets team—part of its global Sustainable & Impact Investing platform. The team is led by Diane Mak whose role has enlarged to Head of Impact & Sustainability Private Markets. AllianzGI also welcomes David Hawkins as Sustainability Due Diligence and Performance Manager. Hawkins joins the team from NextEnergy Group, bringing over 15 years of sustainability and environmental experience across renewable energy and private‑markets investing. Additional specialist sustainability capacity has also been added across the private market platform through the Sustainability Standards & Analytics team, headed by Thomas Roulland, and the Reporting, Analytics & Investment Support function, led by Robby Thiele.

Contact

Marion Leblanc-Wohrer
Global Media Relations Lead
Email: Marion.leblancwohrer@allianzgi.com
Tel: +33 6 85 15 74 54

 

About Allianz Global Investors

Allianz Global Investors is a leading active asset manager with over 700 investment professionals in over 21 offices worldwide and managing EUR 591 billion in assets. We invest for the long term and seek to generate value for clients every step of the way. We do this by being active – in how we partner with clients and anticipate their changing needs, and build solutions based on capabilities across public and private markets. Our focus on protecting and enhancing our clients’ assets leads naturally to a commitment to sustainability to drive positive change. Our goal is to elevate the investment experience for clients, whatever their location or objectives.

Data as of 31 December 2025. Total assets under management are assets or securities portfolios, valued at current market value, for which Allianz Global Investors companies are responsible vis-á-vis clients for providing discretionary investment management decisions and portfolio management, either directly or via a sub-advisor (these include Allianz Global Investors assets which are now sub-advised by Voya IM since 25 July 2022). This excludes assets for which Allianz Global Investors companies are primarily responsible for administrative services only. Assets under management are managed on behalf of third parties as well as on behalf of the Allianz Group.

1 https://doi.org/10.1002/wps.21087

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