Tomorrow is St Patrick’s Day, a celebration long associated with Irish luck and, conveniently, a good excuse for a whiskey. Four-leaf clovers, pots of gold and the comforting notion that fortune might simply fall your way. As an Irish person, I feel somewhat obliged to weigh in on the subject. Unfortunately, recent evidence suggests that luck may not be my defining characteristic.
Last Wednesday, I started the day by burning my head with curling tongs, quickly followed by dropping a full litre of milk on the floor. In an attempt to turn the day around, I bought some coffees on the way to work, only for Steve, the audacious seagull who patrols Market Square in Guernsey, to swoop down, steal the treats and knock over all the coffee in the process.
If luck is a strategy, I appear to have missed the memo.
This month also marks four years since the launch of the Global Solutions strategy. The fund, which I had spent months planning, researching and building a pipeline for (no luck of the Irish involved!), was due to launch on 31 March 2022. When Russia invaded Ukraine two weeks before that date, a colleague pulled me into a meeting room with a perfectly reasonable question: should we delay the launch until things settled down? In typical fashion, I firmly stated that we would be pressing ahead. I was completely determined, although quietly aware that the timing could hardly have been more uncertain.
From the outset, the premise of Global Solutions was straightforward, the most compelling investment opportunities of the coming decade would not arise from real-world constraints. The portfolio was built around long-term themes including energy transition, resource scarcity, basic needs like waste and water management, healthcare, physical and digital infrastructure and emerging markets.
At the time, the global economy was entering a period defined by structural challenges. Energy systems were being reshaped. Natural resources were under pressure. Healthcare systems were confronting demographic change and logistics networks were being forced to evolve as global trade patterns shifted.
Those forces have only intensified.
The energy transition is a clear example, what was once framed largely as an environmental discussion has rapidly become a geopolitical priority. Countries are racing to diversify energy supply, electrify transport and strengthen grid infrastructure. These shifts are driving sustained investment across electrification, storage, grid technology and energy efficiency.
Resource scarcity remains one of the most powerful structural forces shaping the global economy. As populations grow, living standards rise and AI continues to expand, demand for key raw materials such as copper, lithium and rare earth elements continues to accelerate. Copper is critical for electricity networks and electrification. Lithium and nickel underpin battery technologies while a range of specialised materials are required for renewable energy systems, semiconductors and advanced manufacturing. At the same time, supply growth for many of these resources remains constrained due to long project development timelines, declining ore grades and increasing environmental and geopolitical considerations. This imbalance between rising demand and limited supply is driving renewed investment across the mining, materials and industrial value chains, as companies work to secure access to critical resources and improve efficiency through recycling, substitution and more advanced materials technologies.
Healthcare remains another powerful structural driver. Ageing populations across developed markets are placing increasing pressure on medical systems, while innovation in diagnostics, medical technology and biotechnology is transforming how diseases are detected and treated.
None of these themes depend on luck.
They are built on the recognition that the world faces tangible challenges. Energy systems must evolve, resources must be managed more efficiently, healthcare systems must adapt and supply chains must become more resilient.
So this week, with St Patrick’s Day tomorrow, investors might reasonably ask themselves a simple question.
Are you feeling lucky?
Thankfully, our investment process doesn’t require luck. Just good companies solving real problems.
Here’s hoping the week ahead brings a little luck for us all.
