Newsletter

ESG / Sustainability

Strong Votes on Hydraulic Fracturing Send Clear Message to Natural Gas Drillers Investors seeking more disclosure of corporate steps to reduce hazards
(Source: The Investor Environmental Health Network) Boston, MA— As BP* shareholders face the suspension of their dividends as a result of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, investors at other oil and gas companies are working to prevent the next drilling disaster.  New shareholder proposals - challenging companies to improve disclosure of the risks associated with hydraulic fracturing used in natural gas drilling operations - have received remarkable levels of support according to their proponents.

ESG Investing Can Restore the Legitimacy of Financial Markets: Pax World's Joe Keefe Addresses Boston Fed
(Source: Risk Metrics Group) In recent months, ESG Insight has, unfortunately, had plenty of bad news to write about. From the risks of coal mining to BP's safety practices to conditions in Chinese factories, longstanding environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues have become front-page news.

Investors Not Involved in Sustainability Decisions, Survey Says
(Source: Bloomberg/BusinessWeek)  A minority the world’s largest companies include investors in making decisions on sustainability issues, according to a United Nations-sponsored survey of 766 chief executive officers. Twenty-two percent of the CEOs said investors were a major factor in their attempts to bring sustainability into business decisions, the report released today by the UN Global Compact program and Accenture concluded. Alcoa Inc.’s Klaus Kleinfeld, Unilever NV’s Paul Polman and Enel SpA’s Fulvio Conti were among those polled, the study said.

Sovereign Wealth Funds

How Can Sovereign Wealth Funds Adjust to the 'New Normal'?
(Source: CityWire)  Mohamed El-Erian, CIO and CEO of bond giant Pimco, has outlined how he sees the future for sovereign wealth funds in an article published on the website of the IMF. He thinks the 'new normal' conditions in global markets will require important changes in the way sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) operate.

Asian Sovereign Wealth Funds Invest in Chesapeake
(Source: Bloomberg/BusinessWeek)  Sovereign wealth funds from China, Singapore and South Korea and two private-equity firms agreed to invest $900 million in Chesapeake Energy Corp., the third- largest natural-gas producer in the U.S.

Saudi Prince Eyes Qatar Holding Partnership
(Source: Kippreport)  Saudi Arabian Kingdom Holding has revealed it has discussed potential business collaboration with Qatar Holding, reports Gulf News. Qatar Holding is the prime vehicle for strategic investments by Qatar, and Kingdom Holding is owned and run by Saudi Arabia’s billionaire Prince Al Waleed Bin Talal. Prince Al Waleed held a meeting in Riyadh with Ahmad Al Sayed, the chief executive of Qatar Holding, which is the investment arm of the country’s sovereign wealth fund – the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA).

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US Public Sector Pension Funds

New York Pension Fund to Sue BP for Investment Losses
(Source: Reuters)  New York state's pension fund plans to sue BP Plc to recover losses from the drop in the company's stock price following the worst oil spill in U.S. history, state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said on Wednesday. New York's Common Retirement Fund has a long history of serving as the lead plaintiff in shareholder lawsuits. DiNapoli said the fund owned more than 19 million shares when the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico in April.

State House Passes Ban on Pension Investments in Sudan, Iran
(Source: Pittsburgh Post- Gazette)  HARRISBURG -- Companies doing business with the much-criticized regimes in Sudan and Iran should not expect any investments from state pension funds. The state House unanimously passed a bill Tuesday that bans a state employee pension fund and a public teachers fund from investing in companies that do substantial business with the two countries. The bill was sponsored by Rep. Josh Shapiro, D-Montgomery, who said he's worked on the issue for six years.

California Pension System Given $700 Million From Other Funds
(Source: Fox Business News)  California has a $19 billion deficit, and its pension shortfall is massive. In order to mitigate its shortfall, the California state government withdraws $700 million from the state system to fund CalPers, the California Pension Retirement System. According to FOX Business' Liz MacDonald, $600 million of the funds rewarded to CalPers were taken from fee-based organizations, such as transportation agencies, and $108 million was taken from the education systems’ budget.

Watching the Watchers

World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD)
Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland, with offices in Washington, DC, USA, and Brussels, Belgium
Established: 1992, as Business Council for Sustainable Development

KEY PARTNERS
Collaborations with International Union for the Conservation of Nature, World Resources Institute, World Economic Forum, International Institute for Sustainable Development, among others.

OVERVIEW / MISSION
WBCSD describes itself as "a CEO-led, global association of 200 companies" located in 35 countries and 20 major industrial sectors. WBCSD focuses on business and sustainable development, and its network includes almost 60 [national and regional] business councils and partners.

The mission statement for the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) is: “Our mission is to provide business leadership as a catalyst for change toward sustainable development, and to support the business license to operate, innovate and grow in a world increasingly shaped by sustainable development issues.”

WBCSD’s strategy emphasizes collaboration between government, business, and civil society, and concentrates its work on four areas: energy and climate, development, the business role, and ecosystems.

WBCSD produces numerous varied publications: two titles from March 2009 are “Mobility for Development” and “Water, Energy and Climate Change.”

Governance & Accountability Institute is a monitoring, intelligence-gathering and knowledge management center operating at the intersections of powerful forces reshaping relationship between stockholders and stakeholders, and the public corporation. For more information, contact us at 516.248.2383 or info@ga-institute.com.