India regained its status as the world’s fastest-growing major economy at the end of 2017, posting a growth in GDP of 7.2%. Its population of 1.3 billion is also growing fast, as the country added 15 million people last year. Although welcome in their own right, these growth rates raise significant problems for the natural Read more […]
Today, S&P Dow Jones Indices and RobecoSAM announced the results of the annual rebalancing of the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI). The DJSI World will be celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2019, making it one of the longest-running sustainability benchmarks in the world. Even after nearly 20 years, the index has lost none of its Read more […]
In a prior blog, we highlighted that the recent Responsible Investor Europe Conference 2018 gave attendees the sense of a coming of age in the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) movement that could potentially portend a future filled with a greater sense of urgency and call for action in the sustainability world. As noted previously, Read more […]
Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risks have taken a strong hold in the developed investing space. Previously, the concept had resided in the domain of “do gooders” and “tree huggers” seeking to make a better world. So what has changed so much that it is now taking root in mainstream investing? By and large, ESG Read more […]
The 11th annual Responsible Investor (RI) Europe Conference, held June 5-6, 2018, showed a marked departure in ESG themes and focus from previous years. Compared with prior sessions, there was a strong shift and a coming of age in the ESG movement. For example, the title for the keynote plenary of the RI 2018 Conference Read more […]
Sovereign bonds remain largely unanalyzed by investors from a carbon risk and reporting perspective. This is despite clear acknowledgement in the Paris Agreement that governments have a critical role in curtailing global warming,[1] and the Financial Stability Board’s warning that climate change could affect all asset classes and the stability of the broader financial system.[2] Read more […]
In late April 2018, the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Office of Regulations and Interpretations issued the Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2018-01, clarifying guidance on how investment managers should interpret the DOL’s prior Interpretive Bulletins (IBs) issued in 2015 and 2016. Issued during the Obama administration, the IBs detail the exercise of shareholder rights, written statements Read more […]
Companies that act now to invest in low carbon technologies have the chance to maintain their license to grow and avoid carbon pricing costs that would significantly reduce profits. For example, in 2020, the technology sector’s investments in energy efficiency for their U.S. data centers could avoid over USD 6.9 billion in carbon costs and Read more […]
In a prior blog, we demonstrated that a sector-relative, carbon-efficient portfolio was superior to a sector-unconstrained one when forming low-carbon portfolios. In this blog, we explore the integration of carbon risk in quality factor portfolios. High-quality companies seek to generate higher profitability and enjoy more stable growth than “average” companies. Equally important, high-quality companies seek Read more […]
As part of a series of articles on ESG disclosure, Trucost describes the importance of accurate ESG disclosure for reporters and readers. By the time this blog is up, some seasoned ESG reporters in Southeast Asia will have published their sustainability reports; another group will be finalizing their reports; while the rest will still be Read more […]
