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Newsletter

Source: Governance & Accountability Institute

Sustainability-Highlights-Header
November 10, 2011

SERVICES  |  RESEARCH  |  EVENTS  |  WEBINARS  |  BLOG  |  ARCHIVE

New Profiles Added to SHQ - ESG

  • Coalition for Urban/Rural Environmental Stewardship's mission is to “create and deliver science-based solutions and education to ensure that tools to control pests and grow plants are used in ways that protect people and the environment.”
  • Organic Consumers Association describes itself as “an online and grassroots non-profit 501(c)3 public interest organization campaigning for health, justice, and sustainability.”
  • World Trade Organization (WTO) calls itself “…the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations.”
  • Western Growers Association describes its work by writing “Being the nation's leading agricultural trade association, it is Western Growers' vision to guide our members toward a healthy, sustainable and profitable future by offering quality services and programs that complement their businesses.”
  • Terra de Direitos was established “…with the objective of developing and supporting activities related to the promotion and defense of the rights and liberties of Latin American, and in particular, Brazilian social movement.
  • Michael Pollan is a writer whose work focuses on food -- particularly food production, nutrition, and eating habits. Pollan’s most recent book, Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual, is designed to provide the reader with simple advice on healthy eating.


ESG / Sustainability

Debate rages despite carbon tax green light  
(Perth Now
History  may have been made but it was a mixed reaction that greeted the passing of the carbon tax, with debate over the controversial tax still inciting heated debate. Earlier today, the ‘Clean Energy Bill’ cleared its final parliamentary hurdle when it went to a favourable vote in the Senate, after months of public debate and fierce opposition from the coalition.  Associated Profiles : Investor Group on Climate Change - Australia / New Zealand 

‘We Cannot Burn Our Way to the Future, Consume our Way to Greater Prosperity’, Secretary-General Tells Labour Summit, Urging Sustainable Growth, Development 
(IEWY.com)  Here together, today, we are at the right place at the right time. Once again, labour issues are moving up the global agenda. That’s no accident. It took advocacy and hard work from all of you. And it took idealism and energy of your members around the world.You and the United Nations share the same DNA. The values and principles that you stand for, every day, are the same as those we stand for, every day: justice; dignity; human rights, including the right to work; fairness; equity. More formally, you belong to the United Nations family through the International Labour Organization (ILO).  Associated Profiles : UN - Global Compact 

The Real Issue With Solar Energy Isn't Its Cost  
(Seeking Alpha
In the last decade or so, solar energy really has come of age. There is serious money going into renewables like solar energy:  Also in the US: In the past half-decade, venture capitalists have pumped more than $7 billion into dozens of solar start-ups developing cutting-edge technology, most of them in the San Francisco Bay area, according to data compiled by GTM Research and Ernst & Young.  Associated Profiles : Bloomberg New Energy Finance

Commentary

Occupy Wall Street – answers to some, but not all the questions.  (Source:  Ken Cynar, Executive Vice President of the Governance & Accountability Institute, Inc)  For weeks now small groups of people have been carry placards and pitching tents and occupying somewhere:  Wall Street, Dublin, London, Oakland, Seattle, and more communities in the United States.  And the “occupy” movement is spreading to other cities – London’s St. Paul’s church is “occupied” at this writing. People have assembled to protest something ...well, what that is, I am not quite sure.  So, I started a quest to find out who they are, what specifically they were protesting -- and what do they want to happen as a result of their protests.  Associated Profiles : Governance & Accountability Institute, Inc.



Sovereign Wealth Funds

China aid to Europe should await workable plans: c.bank adviser
(Reuters
China should await workable plans from Europe before Beijing puts money into any bailout package, an adviser to the Chinese central bank said on Friday, adding that China should insist on "certain controls" over how the money will be used. Associated Profiles : China Investment Corporation, National Social Security Fund (SPF)

UK pension funds deficit reduced, says PPF  
(BBC News
The deficit faced by the UK's private sector pension funds was cut to £159bn by the end of October, according to the Pension Protection Fund (PPF). The 6,533 final-salary schemes remained in the red for a third consecutive month, but the deficit was less than the £196bn recorded at the end of September.  Associated Profiles : Pension Protection Fund - United Kingdom

Permanent Fund takes an early beating   
(Juneau Empire
Alaska’s Permanent Fund lost more than three billion dollars in the first quarter of fiscal year 2012, the Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. announced Wednesday. That could mean a big hit for next year’s and future years' dividends, depending on whether the losses are made up during the remainder of the year. The fund ended the quarter Sept. 30 at $37 billion, down $3.1 billion from where it had been at the start of the quarter and fiscal year on July Associated Profiles : Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation 

Libya Waits for New Govt. Before Seeking Release of More Frozen Assets
(The Tripoli Post
Libya will wait until a new government is in place before pushing for the release of more Libyan assets frozen abroad, an official with the country’s stabilisation group said. “We are in a comfortable financial situation for the next nine months, so we decided it’s best to wait” until Libya regains political stability, Wafik Shater, head of financial affairs for the group, said in an interview with Bloombergin Dubai. Associated Profiles : Libyan Investment Authority

Asset Managers

China Stocks Rise for First Time in Three Days on Inflation Data 
(BusinessWeek)
  China’s stocks rose for the first time in three days after the country’s inflation cooled to the slowest pace in five months, giving policy makers more room to support economic growth. Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. led gains for lenders as the statistics bureau said consumer prices rose 5.5 percent in October from a year earlier. PetroChina Co. and Jiangxi Copper Co. paced gains by commodity producers after oil and metal prices climbed.  Associated Profiles : Credit Suisse Group AG 

Change in sale process for Dodgers?   
(ESPN
The process of selling the Los Angeles Dodgers will deviate slightly from the norm, according to three sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity. In this case, Major League Baseball's vetting of groups or individuals who apply to buy the club, which normally is one of the final steps in the process, will instead be one of the initial steps. This change was agreed upon by Frank McCourt, the current owner of the club who announced last week his intention to sell, and MLB. Associated Profiles : The Blackstone Group

MF Global Creditors to Form Committee, Seek Ways to Recover
(Bloomberg
MF Global Holdings Ltd. creditors looking to recover from the eighth largest bankruptcy in U.S. history may sue the company’s advisers, search for assets overseas and seek information from a probe into the commingling of customer accounts at the brokerage, a bankruptcy lawyer said. Creditors seeking a position on a committee that could shape the approach to recoveries are set to meet today at the Millennium Hilton hotel in Manhattan. A trustee overseeing the liquidation of the company’s operating unit, MF Global Inc., started his investigation into possible fraud or misconduct on Nov. 4. The FBI has also started a probe, according to a person familiar with the matter. MF Global has until Jan. 30 to report a detailed list of its assets and debt. Associated Profiles : Credit Suisse Group AG


Corporate ESG Performance Factors are important to financial analysts, asset owners and managers, and many stakeholders.  The ESG framework or approach considers environmental and energy issues and impacts, the company’s positioning and actions on social/societal issues, and corporate governance.

ESG key performance indicators are also considered proxies for effective governance and management of corporations by investors. Dozens of independent research and financial analysis firms are monitoring and measuring these and advising investors.  The Sustainability HQ™ platform is an important profiling and monitoring resource for the G&A team, and for our clients and subscribers.

Many of the ESG market players and corporate reputation influencers are profiled by G&A Institute. In these Highlights we offer a few of the results of our continuous global scanning for ESG, sustainability and corporate responsibility news, commentary and research from thousands of global sources. The Associated Profiles indicated are contained in our platforms.  For more information, email us atinfo@sustainabilityhq.com.

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Governance & Accountability Institute Services Portfolio:

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Make SustainabilityHQ™ your daily headquarters for important news, commentary and research results – your HQs for Sustainability and ESG knowledge management. The key capital market players focused on Sustainability and ESG (environmental management, social issues and effective corporate governance) are profiled with an abundance of relevant information.  Updates are continuous. The third party organizations helping to shape corporate valuations and corporate reputations are profiled and news about these players is updated every day. Log in and check it out!

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Governance & Accountability Institute - Benchmarking Services

In-depth profiling and analysis of leaders in Corporate Sustainability.

Learn from the Leaders to develop Your Winning Corporate Strategies

For information: 
hboerner@ga-institute.com
Tel:  646.430.8239

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Strategic Governance - Enabling Financial, Environmental, and Social Sustainability
A new book by Hank Boerner and Mark Sickles of the Governance & Accountability Institute.  Click here for more information.

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For more on:

ESG & Sustainability Players
- Shaping Perceptions, Valuations & Decision-Making

Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs)
- State-Owned Global Investors

US Public Sector Investors 
- State and Municipal Retirement Funds

Asset Managers
- Investors adopting ESG guidelines/policies & shaping market trends

Navigating the way to
Sustainability...

Contents © 2009 - 2011
All Rights Reserved

Copyrights for other providers
are noted where appropriate.
Please credit the source if quoted.

US Pension Funds

$8.3 billion question  
(Kansas.com
) If the state were starting from scratch in creating a pension system, it would no doubt set up a 401(k)-type plan, like many businesses have. But that’s not the situation. The Kansas Public Employees Retirement System already exists, and it faces a long-term funding shortfall of about $8.3 billion through 2033. If the state switched now to a defined-contribution plan, as Gov. Sam Brownback and some lawmakers want to do, how would it cover that unfunded liability?  Associated Profiles : Kansas Public Employees Retirement System (KPERS)

BNY Mellon reputation takes hit over pension fund accusations  
(Pittsburgh Business Journal)
Lawsuits alleging that Bank of New York Mellon Corp. defrauded pension funds of millions may have hurt the bank’s reputation, though the depth of damage is difficult to determine, financial professionals say. Since the beginning of August, attorneys general of New York, Florida and Virginia filed separate suits on behalf of pension funds in their respective states. By late October, suits were filed on behalf of the Massachusetts Pension Reserves Investment Management Board and the Los Angeles County Employees Pension Fund.  Associated Profiles: Pension Reserves Investment Management Board (Massachusetts), Massachusetts Pension Reserves Investment Management Board Profile

State pension fund hands out bonuses  
(Boston Herald
Boston -- The agency that manages the pension fund for retired state employees has earmarked more than a quarter of a million dollars for staff bonuses while the fund lost money and while few other state employees are getting raises. The bonuses, awarded through a performance-based compensation system adopted four years ago, are tied to a three-year period ending in June. During that time, the fund, which started at $50.6 billion, suffered deep losses before rebounding to $45.6 billion. Associated Profiles : Pension Reserves Investment Management Board (Massachusetts)

 

Watching the Watchers

The Climate Group
Headquarters: London, England, with presences in the U.S., Canada, Belgium, Australia, China, Hong Kong, and India
Established: late 2003

KEY PARTNERS
Include World Economic Forum and United Nations Development Programme. The HSBC Climate Partnership joins the Climate Group with Earthwatch Institute, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, and WWF.

OVERVIEW / MISSION
The Climate Group describes its policy work by writing:

“The Climate Group is working with its corporate partners, political decision makers, and international thought leaders to help identify and develop the global and national policy frameworks that will accelerate the low-carbon transition.

"In 2010 to 2012, our policy work will focus on the technology, financing and investment issues that business and political decision makers need to understand to make sure the revolution happens at the scale and speed we need."

News Sweeps
Cast Strategies helps US composites companies explore India
(Monday - November 07, 2011) Associated Profiles : The Climate Group - Senior figures from Indian Government and business have backed a new report by international NGO The Climate Group, which describes how a low carbon development path is the only one that will guarantee future ...

Building the green agenda
(Monday - November 07, 2011) Associated Profiles : The Climate Group - He is speaking today at the Business Summit on Climate Leadership in Hong Kong, organised by the Climate Group. Olivia Boyd: What are the biggest environmental challenges facing the Chinese property market' Chris ... [more] 

Twenty Global Cities Launch Technology Award to Improve the Living Standards ...
(Friday - November 04, 2011) Associated Profiles : The Climate Group- Twenty global cities, including Barcelona, Cape Town, Lagos, Mexico City, Rio de Janeiro and San Francisco, in four continents, join forces with Living Labs Global, Oracle, CityMart.com and The Climate Group in an ... [more]

SustainabilityHQ Highlights is prepared by the Governance & Accountability Institute, Inc. based on continuous monitoring of trends and developments in Sustainability and ESG.    The SustainabilityHQ platform is available by subscription.

Governance & Accountability Instiute is the “Sustainability Headquarters™” for clients in the corporate, investment, public and social sectors.  The G&A team provides research, monitoring, advisory and strategic information resources to clients in the corporate, investment, public and social sectors.The G&A services portfolio includes:
ESG Counseling, Strategies & Benchmarking | Sustainability Coaching, Team Building & Training | Corporate Sustainability & Responsibility Reporting | ESG & CR Issues Monitoring & Research | Stakeholder Identification, Monitoring & Engagement | Strategic Risk Management

SustainabilityHQ™ is managed and published by Governance & Accountability Institute, Inc.
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