climate risk identification and assessment. GRM continues to enhance risk management practices to consider the potential impacts from climate-related risk, including in our investment decision-making processes, life insurance underwriting due diligence, and assessment of operational risks and controls. The Executive Risk Committee and the Risk Committee of the Board consider climate-related risks and opportunities through the ongoing monitoring and reporting of emerging risks. Risk management activities addressing climate-related risks are expected to continue to evolve over time as knowledge and capabilities further mature, and as applicable standards, frameworks and methodologies continue to emerge and coalesce. Manulife is a long-term oriented underwriter and investor. Therefore, climate-related risks and opportunities, including changes in the physical environment and policy and technological changes associated with the transition to a low-carbon economy, are strategically relevant and, in some cases, could become material to our business over time. In 2022, we continued to monitor climate-related risks and opportunities within our business strategy over short (1-5 year), medium (5-15 year), and long (beyond 15 years) time horizons to better assess the relative significance of potential impacts and how and when actions will be required to address such impacts. Our Climate Action Plan (released in May 2021) focuses on three areas, our operations, our general fund investments, and the products and services we offer to clients. It includes our commitment to achieve net zero financed emissions by 2050, and our commitment to reduce our absolute scope 1 and 2 emissions by 35% by 2035.1 We are also taking a combined sector and asset class approach to establish ambitious near term decarbonization targets for our financing activities in the general fund. Interim targets for real estate, power generation project finance, and listed equities and debt are being developed in line with the target-setting methodology of the Science-Based Targets Initiative (“SBTi”), a leading global standard for setting carbon emission reduction targets in line with global decarbonization ambitions to limit global warming. Interim target-setting activities for additional heavy emitting industries not covered by SBTi are also under development. Through our general fund we continue to make targeted investments in green asset categories (such as energy efficiency, sustainably certified timberlands, and renewable energy). We also continue to develop investment products and solutions for climate change mitigation and resilience through Manulife Investment Management. For additional information regarding strategic risks associated with Manulife’s sustainability commitments, see “Strategic Risk Factors – We may not be able to achieve our sustainability commitments, or our commitments may not meet the expectations of stakeholders or regulators”. Please also refer to our annual “Environmental, Social and Governance Report”, published in the second quarter of each year, for detailed disclosure on our alignment with the TCFD recommendations and our ESG performance. StrategicRiskFactors We may not be successful in executing our business strategies or these strategies may not achieve our objectives. • The global macroeconomic environment has a significant impact on our financial plans and ability to implement our business strategy. The macroeconomic environment can be significantly impacted by the actions of both the government sector (including central banks) and the private sector. The macroeconomic environment may also be affected by natural and human-made catastrophes. • Our business strategy and associated financial plans are developed by considering forecasts of economic growth, both globally and in the specific countries in which we operate. Actual economic growth can be significantly impacted by the macroeconomic environment and can deviate significantly from forecasts, thus impacting our financial results and the ability to implement our business strategy. • Any plans to expand our global operations in markets where we operate and potentially in new markets may require considerable management time, as well as start-up expenses for market development before any significant revenues and earnings are generated. Operations in new foreign markets may achieve low margins or may be unprofitable, and expansion in existing markets may be affected by local economic and market conditions. • Changes in the macroeconomic environment can also have a significant impact on financial markets, including movements in interest rates, spreads on fixed income assets, and returns on public equity and ALDA assets. Our financial plan, including income projections, capital projections, and valuation of liabilities are based on certain assumptions with respect to future movements in interest rates and spreads on fixed income assets, and expected future returns from our public equity and ALDA investments. Actual experience is highly variable and can deviate significantly from our assumptions, thus impacting our financial results. In addition, actual experience that is significantly different from our assumptions and/or changes in the macroeconomic environment may result in changes to the assumptions themselves which would also impact our financial results. • Specific changes in the macroeconomic environment can have very different impacts across different parts of the business. For example, a rise in interest rates is generally beneficial to us in the long-term but can adversely affect valuations of some ALDA assets, especially those that have returns dependent on contractual cash flows, such as real estate. • A rise in geopolitical tensions either within or outside of jurisdictions in which we operate can trigger changes in the macroeconomic environment which can have various impacts across our business. For example, economic sanctions imposed on a country could adversely impact our ability to achieve specific business objectives in that region. Military conflicts could drive financial and economic dislocations across global capital markets, supply chains or commodity markets. See also “Operational Risk Factors – Our operations face political, legal, operational and other risks that could negatively affect those operations or our results of operations and financial condition.” 1 See “Caution regarding forward-looking statements” above. 51