Newsletter

Americans Tuning in to Sustainability During Crises, Expecting “More” from Government and Corporate Sector

According to responses to a June on-line survey of 2,000 adults in the U.S.A. for “clean manufacturing” leader Genomatica, sustainability is now a top-of-mind issue, with an overwhelming majority (85% of respondents) of Americans indicating they’ve been thinking about sustainability the same amount or more…and 56% want brands and government to prioritize sustainability even in the midst of the crises (Coronavirus, economic downturn – plus civil unrest).

According to Genomatica CEO Christophe Schilling: "The collective consciousness on sustainability is rising, and certainly faster than most would have expected during these unprecedented times. While this shift has been underway for decades, and is particularly strong in Europe, many of us in the U.S. have been inspired by the rapid improvement in air quality and traffic that shine a bright light on how our behaviors and decisions impact our environment and quality of life."

Other interesting survey findings:

• 59% of Americans say working from home is more sustainable than working in an office.
• 37% of Americans are willing to pay a little more for sustainable products, even during an economic downturn. Gen-Z is the most willing age group, at 43%.
• Half of Americans won't be comfortable using sharing economy services like Uber or Airbnb (53%), riding public transportation (54%) or carpooling (50%) until there is a vaccine, if ever.

There’s more findings in the Top Story link below:

Part of the “sustainability thinking” is about personal investments…and how to do well financially while doing good with one’s financial activities.

A new report published by the foundation of The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment (US SIF) explores the growth of passive ESG investing and the outpace of investor flows into passive vs. active ESG funds. The report shows that "net flows into passively-managed ESG funds have in recent years outpaced net flows into their actively managed counterparts" -- despite the fact that "the vast majority of sustainably-invested assets are in actively-managed ESG funds."

Meg Voorhes, Director of Research at the US SIF Foundation explains:  "The advent of passive ESG funds provides more options to investors seeking sustainable impact, and we encourage these fund managers to make commitments to comprehensive ESG approaches." 

• US SIF Foundation Releases Report On The Rise Of ESG In Passive Investments (Source: US SIF)  

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Follow Up to Last Week
In last week’s Highlights we told you about Morgan Stanley’s pioneering move to join the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (“PCAF”).  The update:  Citi and Bank of America are on board, too.

Citi, Bank of America join Morgan Stanley in carbon-disclosure group   

Individual news releases from the banks with the details:

• Citibank
• Bank of America

Sustainability Standard Setters & Policy Makers
SEC, SASB, GRI, IIRC, FSB-TCFD

• Putting Sustainability At The Heart Of The Standards Agenda (Source: ISO)
• SASB Investor Advisory Group Expands Asia-Pacific Membership (Source: SASB)
• CDSB's Climate Guidance marks the launch of application series (Source: CDSB)

MORE Sustainability Standard Setters & Policy Makers

ESG / Sustainable & Responsible Investment
Asset Owners & Managers, Ratings Agencies

• Fridson on Finance: ESG vs. broader high yield – assessing profiles & returns   (Source: S&P Global)
• Major investors oppose proposed rule that would impede ESG investing
  Investors, Companies and Corporate Governance Organizations Encouraged to Participate in ISS’ Annual Policy Development Process (Source: ISS)

MORE ESG / Sustainable & Responsible Investment

Corporate Sustainability / ESG
Disclosure, Reporting, Corporate Initiatives

• Sustainability Reporting by Largest U.S. Companies Hits New Highs (Source: Triple Pundit)
• Sustainability Reporting in China: The Rise of CSR and ESG Reporting by Businesses (Source: China Briefing)
• The Estée Lauder Companies' sustainability leader on racial justice, 'sector-agnostic' solutions (Source: GreenBiz)

And for corporate managements, here are perspectives from Ecovadis about the lack of supply chain due diligence – and why this is so important. The fourth edition of the Business Sustainability Risk & Performance Index is available – with ratings on 40,000 companies:

• Sustainability Ratings Key to Monitoring Supply Chain Resilience Leading Up to the COVID-19 Crisis (Source: EcoVadis)

MORE Corporate Sustainability / ESG

Stakeholders That Matter
Developments, Trends, Corporate Actions Affecting Stakeholders

• Global Public Thinks GDP Should Include Health, Education, Environmental Data (Source: Sustainable Brands)

MORE Stakeholders That Matter

Sustainability Data in Focus
Developments in Data, Research Trends

• Data transparency 'key' to end racial disparities in insurance, regulator says (Source: S&P Global)

MORE Sustainability Data That Matters

Global Sustainability : Forward Momentum!
News & Developments of Note

• John Kerry Backs New Carbon-Price ETF in Climate Change Fight (Source: Bloomberg)
• Path to net zero: In taking plunge, US utilities ahead of global oil, mining (Source: S&P Global)

Here are interesting perspectives from the Aspen Institute think tank about the sustainability profession:

• Whitewater Management: Insights from the Aspen Leaders Forum on the Evolving Sustainability Profession (Source: Aspen Institute)

MORE Global Sustainability : Forward Momentum!

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