Jan-Willem Ruisbroek's contribution to the real-assets industry extends well beyond building one of Europe’s leading institutional infrastructure portfolios. Over almost two decades at APG, he has been a prominent advocate for pension funds using their scale, expertise and ownership influence to invest for the long term while delivering tangible societal value. APG’s infrastructure strategy was twice recognised by IPE Real Assets, with the jury highlighting its leadership, long-term outlook and innovative use of megatrends.

More importantly, Ruisbroek has consistently challenged institutional investors to think differently. He has argued that pension funds should “take back their power” as owners of infrastructure, rather than simply allocating capital through increasingly intermediated markets.  He has also been an early advocate of private natural capital as an institutional asset class, drawing parallels between biodiversity investing today and the energy transition 10-15 years ago.

His recent reflections on leaving APG reinforce that wider ambition: bringing more capital into infrastructure and natural capital and improving the industry’s ability to deliver the investment society needs.

That combination of investment leadership, industry advocacy and commitment to real-world outcomes makes Ruisbroek a particularly strong candidate for Outstanding Industry Contribution.