ESG Archive

Evidence of the link between investment returns and companies’ ESG commitments is mounting exponentially, showing that ESG should no longer be viewed as a fad and fueling scrutiny from asset managers. With this in mind, Curley Global IR (CGIR) in 2018 conducted research into ESG-related issues such as sustainability definitions, materiality and disclosure, issuer engagement and perspectives on current best practices. CGIR’s data derives from detailed discussions...

Twelve investor and shareholder advocacy groups have called for BlackRock to improve its efforts on climate-related shareholder resolutions and engagements. The groups wrote to BlackRock in anticipation of CEO Larry Fink’s yearly letter to companies reminding them of their need to address global strategic challenges and deliver long-term value for shareholders and society. The groups’ own letter calls out the fund manager for what it calls its own ‘poor...

The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) today launched its 77 industry-specific reporting standards for companies to disclose material environmental risks. SASB had previously issued provisional reporting standards that were adopted by a selection of companies – such as GM, Merck, Nike and JetBlue – and praised by investors for their focus on industry-spec...

As ESG considerations continue to swell, institutional investors globally are increasingly building coalitions and engaging with their portfolio companies to improve transparency and enact change on a broad range of ESG and sustainability-related issues. ESG communications specialists (typically working within investor relations, corporate communications or sustainability teams) should act now to stay on top of the rapidly changing developments in this area and more...