Interview: David Honick, UNFCU Senior Manager, Global Sustainability & Climate 

As UNFCU’s Senior Manager, Global Sustainability & Climate, David contributes to a range of environmental and social initiatives, including the Global Sustainability Program, climate risk efforts, the United in Sustainability Network, impact reporting, and collaboration with the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials. 

Why is UNFCU committed to being a leader among credit unions in sustainability? 

There are many reasons. One that comes to mind is that we always want to be aligned with our members and their values. I think that members are increasingly interested in how they can address climate change in their own lives. And we want to make sure that we are offering products that reflect their interests and their values. 

Along with that, sustainability has a material impact on business. We have to review how the loans we offer can be impacted by climate events. Our own operations can also be impacted by severe weather. New regulations on climate change or inspired by climate change can also impact financial institutions. 

As a credit union serving the United Nations community, how does UNFCU take inspiration from the UN and their work toward sustainability? 

We take inspiration from the UN Sustainable Development Goals, always trying to align our sustainability program with these goals and find ways to impact them positively. We also report in line with the UN Global Compact. 

We also have our United in Sustainability Summit, which gathers credit unions to show participants how they can take the next steps of their sustainability journey. 

Is there anything that makes credit unions special among financial institutions in the sustainability space?  

Absolutely! The fact that credit unions such as UNFCU are member-owned makes them especially responsive to members. We communicate with our members closely to understand their needs and desires around sustainability. And as not-for-profit cooperative organizations, we have an inherent inclination to be considerate of environmental and social initiatives. 

What are some ways that a person who values sustainability can evaluate their financial institution? 

I would start by looking at the financial institution’s annual reporting on impact and sustainability. This can help you understand the initiatives they are working on, the goals they are setting, and the commitments they are making. For example, you can read in UNFCU’s 2025 Impact Report about how we reduced paper use by 33% since 2019. 

You can also look at the products they make available to you. Maybe they offer a discount on loans for electric or hybrid vehicles. Maybe they offer home improvement loans that you can use for energy efficient products or for making your home more resilient to severe weather events driven by climate change. 

Can you share any recent sustainability highlights at UNFCU? 

We are very happy to say that we have just completed our most recent set of five-year impact goals. I’m especially proud of our progress on reducing emissions — from our 2019 baseline, we’ve seen a 53% decrease in Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions. 

In addition to that, we are celebrating 10 years of our Global Sustainability Program, an internal, employee-led working group focused on environmental and social topics. 

We also recorded more than 11,000 hours of employee volunteer work in 2025, and UNFCU Foundation provided over $1 million in funding to its grant partners. 

What can members expect from UNFCU in the sustainability space in the future? 

We are looking forward to releasing our next set of impact goals, aligned with the UN SDGs, later in 2026. We are excited to give members an understanding of our future trajectory and how we plan to continue becoming more sustainable, both on the environmental and the social side.