Early reporting trends for California’s AB 1305

Here’s a memo from Gibson Dunn that – among other things – notes these early reporting trends for California’s new disclosure law about voluntary carbon offsets – disclosures under this new law are not yet mandated. AB 1305 does not contain specific formatting or presentation requirements. This is a notable contrast to other more prescriptive…

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Do investors walking the ESG walk perform better?

– One study shows that investors that are ESG-oriented perform better. – Companies outside the US that are ESG-oriented perform better than US ESG-oriented companies. This was the question posed by Andreas Posavac in this note. Do investors who publicly commit to responsible investing also perform or manage risk better? Andreas notes this is an…

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A good example of how one person can make a difference

– You can make a difference. Even though it might feel like you can’t. Here’s a note from Dr. Raj Thamotheram about this article entitled “Climate Activist Who Took on BlackRock Now Takes on Vanguard”: This is a very moving and deeply hopeful story about how someone with a life-threatening illness is choosing to spend…

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Financed emissions metric might be a distraction rather than a solution

Here’s the intro from this Bloomberg Green article: Pretty much every major western bank and asset manager, including BlackRock Inc., HSBC Holdings Plc and JPMorgan Chase & Co., discloses their financed emissions, or the greenhouse gas-pollution that they enable via the loans and investments they make. The metric has grown in prominence over the past…

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Social issue boycotts can influence board turnover

– Study shows a modest increase in board turnover if there is a boycott against a company. – Board turnover is higher if a director shares the boycotter’s goals. Here’s a note from TheCorporateCounsel.net: According to an academic study, researchers say social boycotts can lead to increased board turnover at targeted companies. The study’s abstract provides…

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The ESG solutions market is getting overcrowded

Here’s a note from Nawar Alsaadi (and here is a follow-up note): The market for sustainability software such as those focusing on carbon accounting and ESG management has become extremely crowded. I speak with many ESG/sustainability professionals every week, and many of them are overwhelmed by the amount of outreach by sustainability startups. Just last…

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How the S&P 500 uses ESG metrics for CEO incentives

This memo from Meridian Compensation Partners benchmarks the use of ESG-related metrics in short- and long-term incentives granted to CEOs at S&P 500 companies over the last year. Here’s an excerpt: 73% of S&P 500 companies report at least one ESG metric in STI and/or LTI plans in 2024 proxy (unchanged from 2023) • Overall,…

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Have large companies ditched their DEI goals?

Following up on yesterday’s blog riffing off a Teneo report, here is a related one from Teneo called “DEI Will Survive.” Here is an excerpt: Have Companies Ditched their DEI Goals? A little under half (43%) of the S&P 500 continues to maintain and promote quantitative, time-bound DEI goals within their sustainability reports, with almost…

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Top 10 takeaways from the latest sustainability reports

Here are the “top 10” takeaways from Teneo’s excellent annual survey of sustainability reports: 01: The acronym “ESG” is down but certainly not out. The most common key word in 2024 report titles was “Sustainability” (39%), overtaking last year’s leader “ESG” (24%, down from 35% in 2023). However, the “ESG” acronym appeared 62 times within…

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Some companies aren’t drawing up credible transition plans

Here’s a note from Nawar Alsaadi: The transformation of the world economy to meet our climate change challenge is the singular most significant economic risk and opportunity of our life time. If you are not reassessing your professional career, or if you are not reevaluating the risks and opportunities facing your business in light of…

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