Timberland and agriculture

Materiality
assessment
summary
Introduction
Materiality assessments are conducted in order to identify the environmental,social, and governance (ESG) factors that are important or that may be financiallymaterial to a company’s business. As a steward and investment manager of majortimberland and farmland holdings throughout the world, and as an active memberof the communities in which we operate, Manulife Investment Management
recognizes the importance of sustainable timberland and farmland management.
In 2018, our timberland and agriculture businesses commissioned The Delphi
Group to conduct an independent, third-party materiality assessment of ourbusiness, the results of which are summarized here.

Materiality defined
Manulife Investment Management defines materiality in line with the Global
Reporting Initiative (GRI), which describes material issues as those that reflect
the organization’s significant economic, environmental, and social impacts orthat substantively influence the assessments and decisions of stakeholders.1 Inother words, material information is any information that would affect decisions
not only of investors, but also of employees, communities, governments, or otherorganizations. Understanding material information enables companies to identify
risks and opportunities that may not otherwise be identified in ordinary operations.

Materiality assessment process
In order to identify factors material to our timberland and agriculturebusinesses, Delphi conducted a five-stage assessment process. Secondary
research included consultation of general sustainability frameworks (UNPRI, GIIN, GRI, DJSI), as well as specificframeworks for forestry and agriculture(SASB forestry, FAO, SPOTT, Montreal
Compact, etc.) and peers’ sustainability
reports. Primary research included
consultation of multiple internal
timberland and agriculture teams andworking groups, as well as operationalrisk assessments and investor requests
for information. Over 70 issues wereidentified in the research phase, whichwere consolidated into 27 issues.
These issues were then analyzed
using a modified SASB framework that
evaluated them in five respects: direct
financial impacts and risks; legal,regulatory, and policy drivers; industry
norms, best practices, and competitivedrivers; stakeholder concerns andsocial trends; and opportunities. After
further consolidation into 22 issues, theassessment was presented to Manulife
Investment Management’s timberland
and agriculture leadership team. After
feedback from the team and further
testing through discussion with investors
and a materiality survey of more than 60
employees, the list was further refined
into 20 issues, which were ranked basedon their importance to our timberland
and agriculture businesses and theirimportance to stakeholders.

1 Research

Conducted primary and secondary research to develop anextensive list of material issues

Consolidated extensive list of material issues based on:

2 Consolidate•R elevancy and importance to Manulife Investment
Management’s stakeholders• Prevalence with industry peers• Frequency of appearance from across the various sources

Developed a preliminary materiality matrix and evaluatedissues based on:• Input from Manulife Investment Management’s timberland andagriculture SRI team

3 Evaluate• Evaluation of issues as driving vs. enabling• Manulife Investment Management’s risk assessments• SASB’s materiality framework• Defining the scope and business activities to include• Identifying the degree of specificity of issues (i.e., granularity)

Tested draft list of material issues with stakeholders and gained
further insight from:•M anulife Investment Management’s timberland andagriculture SRI team

4 Test•M anulife Investment Management’s timberland andagriculture actions and metrics team•M anulife Investment Management’s timberland andagriculture senior leadership•M anulife Investment Management’s timberland andagriculture investors

Refined material issues list and matrix based on:

5 Refine• Input from Manulife Investment Management’s stakeholders• Defining the issues that are important to the businesses,
stakeholders, and both groups togetherTimberland and agriculture materiality assessment results
Our timberland and agriculture teams and Delphi were able toidentify five main themes that captured each one of the 20 issues
identified: climate stability, people empowerment, ecosystem
resiliency, watershed protection, and community prosperity. Twoissues—ethics and governance and economic performance—
were recognized as highly important issues to both Manulife
Investment Management and our stakeholders. These cross-cutting issues are applicable to all five themes in many respects:
All material sustainability and responsible investing (SRI)
issues also need to contribute to economic success and good
governance. Ethics and governance enable positive performanceon the themes, and economic performance is a result of positive
performance on the themes.

Economic performance—sustainable food and fiberCore themes

SRI material
issuesClimatestability

Peopleempowerment

Ecosystem
resiliency

Watershedprotection

Community
prosperity• Land use and management• Sensitive lands• Climate change mitigation• Resource productivity
and utilization• Waste and recycling• Energy management
and renewables• Compliance• Labor management andworking conditions• OHS• Compliance• Indigenous engagement• Diversity and inclusion• Workforce development
and training• Land use and management• Certification standards• Sensitive lands• OHS• Compliance• Labor management andworking conditions• Resource productivity
and utilization• Waste and recycling• Biodiversity• Value chain transparency• Land use andmanagement• Resource productivity
and utilization• Waste and recycling• Value chaintransparency• Compliance• Sensitive lands• Indigenousengagement• Waste and recycling• Recreational andpublic use of land
• Compliance• Biodiversity• Labor management
and working
conditions

Ethics and governance
After identifying these five themes and the underlying material
issues for our business, we built our sustainability strategy onthem. These five themes represent the operational areas of risk
and opportunity most critical for the success of our timberland
and agriculture businesses and collectively form our timberland
and agriculture ESG investing strategy. At Manulife Investment
Management, SRI animates everything we do. Rather than ideals,
we recognize SRI and its five themes as essential strategies tomaximize value and, as such, embrace them as core guiding
principles in our timberland and agriculture businesses.

3 Ecosystem resiliency—Healthy ecosystems provide immense
value to the vitality of communities and economies. To ensure thisfor generations to come, we operate in a way that responsibly
manages land and protects sensitive lands and biodiversity.

1 Climate stability—We seek to limit the impacts of climatechange by responsibly using and managing land, creating carbon
sequestration opportunities with our forests and farms, andmitigating climate change through investing in renewables andenergy efficiency.

5 Community prosperity—We’re committed to supporting andstrengthening the local and indigenous communities in which weoperate. We provide employment opportunities and public useof our land, engage with non-governmental organizations, andsupport local causes as part of our community stewardship.

2 People empowerment—We value our people, employees,
and contractors and work to ensure that we’re offering not only
safe and healthy working environments but the tools, training, andsupport they need to thrive.

4 Watershed protection—Protecting and improving
watersheds is vital for the ecosystems and communities thatdepend on them. We do this by protecting sensitive lands,
adhering to strict water and land management policies and bestpractices, and supporting forest growth.

1 https://www.globalreporting.org/how-to-use-the-gri-standards/questions-and-answers/materiality-and-topicboundary/
Investing involves risks, including the potential loss of principal. Financial markets are volatile and can fluctuatesignificantly in response to company, industry, political, regulatory, market, or economic developments. These risks
are magnified for investments made in emerging markets. Currency risk is the risk that fluctuations in exchange
rates may adversely affect the value of a portfolio’s investments.
The information provided does not take into account the suitability, investment objectives, financial situation,or particular needs of any specific person. You should consider the suitability of any type of investment for yourcircumstances and, if necessary, seek professional advice.
This material, intended for the exclusive use by the recipients who are allowable to receive this document under theapplicable laws and regulations of the relevant jurisdictions, was produced by, and the opinions expressed are thoseof, Manulife Investment Management as of the date of this publication, and are subject to change based on market
and other conditions. The information and/or analysis contained in this material have been compiled or arrived atfrom sources believed to be reliable, but Manulife Investment Management does not make any representation as
to their accuracy, correctness, usefulness, or completeness and does not accept liability for any loss arising fromthe use of the information and/or analysis contained. The information in this material may contain projections orother forward-looking statements regarding future events, targets, management discipline, or other expectations,and is only as current as of the date indicated. The information in this document, including statements concerning
financial market trends, are based on current market conditions, which will fluctuate and may be superseded bysubsequent market events or for other reasons. Manulife Investment Management disclaims any responsibility toupdate such information.
Neither Manulife Investment Management or its affiliates, nor any of their directors, officers or employees shallassume any liability or responsibility for any direct or indirect loss or damage or any other consequence of any
person acting or not acting in reliance on the information contained herein. All overviews and commentary areintended to be general in nature and for current interest. While helpful, these overviews are no substitute forprofessional tax, investment or legal advice. Clients should seek professional advice for their particular situation.
Neither Manulife, Manulife Investment Management, nor any of their affiliates or representatives is providing
tax, investment or legal advice. Past performance does not guarantee future results. This material was preparedsolely for informational purposes, does not constitute a recommendation, professional advice, an offer or aninvitation by or on behalf of Manulife Investment Management to any person to buy or sell any security or adopt any
investment strategy, and is no indication of trading intent in any fund or account managed by Manulife Investment
Management. No investment strategy or risk management technique can guarantee returns or eliminate risk in any
market environment. Diversification or asset allocation does not guarantee a profit nor protect against loss in any
market. Unless otherwise specified, all data is sourced from Manulife Investment Management.
Manulife Investment Management
Manulife Investment Management is the global wealth and asset management segment of Manulife Financial
Corporation. We draw on more than a century of financial stewardship to partner with clients across ourinstitutional, retail, and retirement businesses globally. Our specialist approach to money management includes
the highly differentiated strategies of our fixed-income, specialized equity, multi-asset solutions, and private
markets teams—along with access to specialized, unaffiliated asset managers from around the world through ourmultimanager model.
This material has not been reviewed by, is not registered with any securities or other regulatory authority, and may,where appropriate, be distributed by the following Manulife entities in their respective jurisdictions. Additional
information about Manulife Investment Management may be found at manulifeim.com/institutional.
Australia: Australia: Manulife Investment Management Timberland and Agriculture (Australasia) Pty Ltd,Manulife Investment Management (Hong Kong) Limited. Canada: Manulife Investment Management Limited,Manulife Investment Management Distributors Inc., Manulife Investment Management (North America)
Limited, Manulife Investment Management Private Markets (Canada) Corp. China: Manulife Overseas
Investment Fund Management (Shanghai) Limited Company. European Economic Area: Manulife Investment
Management (Ireland) Ltd. which is authorised and regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. Hong Kong:
Manulife Investment Management (Hong Kong) Limited. Indonesia: PT Manulife Aset Manajemen Indonesia.
Japan: Manulife Investment Management (Japan) Limited. Malaysia: Manulife Investment Management (M)Berhad 200801033087 (834424-U). Philippines: Manulife Investment Management and Trust Corporation.
Singapore: Manulife Investment Management (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. (Company Registration No. 200709952G).
South Korea: Manulife Investment Management (Hong Kong) Limited. Switzerland: Manulife IM (Switzerland)
LLC. Taiwan: Manulife Investment Management (Taiwan) Co. Ltd. United Kingdom: Manulife Investment
Management (Europe) Ltd. which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. United States:
John Hancock Investment Management LLC, Manulife Investment Management (US) LLC, Manulife Investment
Management Private Markets (US) LLC and Manulife Investment Management Timberland and Agriculture Inc(MIMTA). Vietnam: Manulife Investment Fund Management (Vietnam) Company Limited.
Manulife, Manulife Investment Management, Stylized M Design, and Manulife Investment Management & Stylized M Design
are trademarks of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company and are used by it, and by its affiliates under license.

54548511/21