U.S., int′l equities show greatest ESG growth potential. “Most asset managers believe that investors′ heightened focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategies is a long-term ’secular’ trend, according to a new report. Cerulli Associates discloses this finding in its August 2014 edition of ’The Cerulli Edge: U.S. Monthly Product Trends.’ Asset managers surveyed by…

The carbon taxes we’re already paying. “The world’s 3,000 biggest companies, according to a U.N. Environment Program report, cause $2.15 trillion in annual environmental costs, most of which are not accounted for in their profit/loss statements.” [COMMENTARY] This is a good article describing the carbon ’taxes’ that we’re already paying and asks who should pay…

New Web Tool Provides Easy Access to SEC Climate Change Disclosure from 3,000 Public Companies. “Ceres and CookESG Research today launched a free, easy to use web tool for accessing climate change-related disclosures in company filings with the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission, which issued formal climate disclosure guidance in 2010. Available at www.ceres.org/secsearchtool, the tool…

Canada, participate in Responsible Investment Week, May 26-30, 2014, Toronto & Vancouver. “The Responsible Investment Association (RIA) is proud to launch Canada′s first annual Responsible Investment Week – a week dedicated to education and awareness about responsible investment (RI). Join us. Learn more about managing the risks presented by environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues.…

GMI Ratings′ Study Finds That Only Ten Percent of S&P 500 Companies Disclose Specific Sustainability Targets in Executive Compensation Plans. “Energy and utility companies lead the way in tying sustainability metrics to executive compensation, while telecommunications, technology and cyclical consumer goods and services companies trail behind.” [COMMENTARY] Actually, compared to just a few years ago this…

Clicking Clean: How Companies are Building the Green Internet. “Here′s who hosts some of the internet′s most popular sites and services in their data centers – and whether those companies are using dirty or clean energy.” [COMMENTARY] Greenpeace has researched and rated internet related companies concerning their green energy usage. Google, Apple and Facebook do best.…

New EU rules require companies to report social impact. “Member states today approved a compromise deal with MEPs that would require large listed companies to file annual reports on their corporate social responsibility, detailing their policies and activities on issues such as human rights, corruption and protecting the environment.” [COMMENTARY] This is great news and…

Stock exchange aims to reinvent investing for birds, bees and trees. “Intrinsic Value Exchange’s (IVE) mission is ’transform intrinsic value into financial capital for natural and societal assets — things like clean air, water, wildlife and human potential,’ according to its website. ’This transformation provides direct incentives to protect and invest in these assets and…

Sustainability Becoming a Mainstream Corporate Strategy: BCG-Sloan Report. “The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and MIT Sloan Management Review have brought out a new report that shows the changing face of corporate strategy worldwide. In a global survey of more than a thousand business executives, BCG and Sloan found that businesses are increasingly integrating sustainability into…

Study: Educated Dutch women favouring SR/ethical investing more relaxed about returns. “Investors with a large proportion of educated female members have extra reason to take socially responsible investing seriously, but can possibly relax about poor returns. That is a fascinating finding of Rachel Pownall, an associate professor of Tilburg University, who has published groundbreaking work…

SRI Research: CSR-Related Shareholder Wins Get Bottom-Line Results. “Adopting corporate social responsibility (CSR) shareholder resolutions leads to large increases in shareholder value and operating performance, according to the study winning the 2013 Moskowitz Prize for Socially Responsible Investing… Specifically, Flammer’s [the award winner] results show that the stock market reacts positively to the passage of…

How to read a sustainability report. “Here, then, are five tips to help you make sense of the next report that lands on your desk or arrives via email. They were developed with help from Steve Lydenberg of Domini Social Investments — the principal author of ’How to Read a Corporate Social Responsibility Report’ [PDF],…

Article: What are we talking about when we talk about socially responsible investing? – [COMMENTARY] “The highest percentage of affluent investors (85 percent) regard socially responsible investing as investing in environmentally friendly investments or companies, the survey found. Almost two-thirds of respondents consider it to be investing in companies that support a specific social cause.”…

Ethical Lapses on Wall Street. – [COMMENTARY] “The second annual survey of Wall Street ethics (or the lack thereof) from the law firm Labaton Sucharow generated much interest but few surprises for me. Did you really believe Wall Street changed for the better since 2010 when the Dodd-Frank Act was passed by Congress?” The results…

Prince Of Wales Calls On Pension Funds To Make ESG Mainstream. – [COMMENTARY] “Addressing an audience of pensions professionals at a Prince of Wales Charities event, Resilience and the Long-term: Rethinking Portfolio Strategy, the Prince said the current signs of economic recovery were based on a ’return to the Elysian Fields of the business of…

Public Backing for Going Beyond GDP Remains Strong: Global Poll. – [COMMENTARY] “The public around the world remains strongly in favour of replacing GDP  with a broader way of reporting national progress, according to a new global poll released today. The study, conducted by GlobeScan on behalf of Ethical Markets, business think tank Tomorrow′s Company…

GISR Launches Principles For Rating The Raters. – [COMMENTARY] “The nearly two years, a nonprofit called GISR — the Global Initiative for Sustainability Ratings — has been working to create a standard for company-level sustainability ratings. It is doing this, it says, ’to accelerate the integration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues and indicators…

NYSE Euronext And Vigeo Launch ESG Indices. – [COMMENTARY] “To promote and support responsible investment (RI), NYSE Euronext (NYX), the world’s largest exchange group, and Vigeo, the leading European expert in responsible performance, have teamed up to launch a range of indices focusing on the three pillars of RI: the environment, social issues and governance…

Swiss Voters Approve Binding Say On Pay! – [COMMENTARY] “The vote gives shareholders of companies listed in Switzerland a binding say on the overall pay packages for executives and directors. Pension funds holding shares in a company would be obligated to take part in votes on compensation packages. In addition, companies would no longer be…

RIRA, India′s Sustainability Forum, Goes Live. – [COMMENTARY] “RIRA–India′s Sustainability Forum–was officially launched on the evening of January 29th. The project went live at a compact event at Mumbai, India attended by the Founders: Bloomberg, IDFC, GIZ, MCX- SX and YES Bank; Other Members: Penn Schoen Berland, Solaron and KPMG; prospect members, partners and other…