Our team is watching the watchers for you. We scan the globe for news, commentary and research in key areas of interest for both investors and asset managers and for corporate boards and executives and managers. As Sustainability and ESG frameworks are adopted by more investors, the market is determining winners, laggards and losers. Track the trends, the news, updates, the important developments – makeSustainability HQ™ your headquarters for ESG knowledge management. New SustainabilityHQ Profiles & Updates Asset Managers:
• Deutsche Bank ESG/Sustainability:
• First Affirmative Financial Network US Public Pension Funds:
• Ohio(updated)
• Pennsylvania (updated)
• New Jersey(updated) ESG / Sustainability Dutch pension funds taking ESG beyond developed markets equity
(Source: Responsible Investor) Dutch pension funds are increasingly looking to integrate environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors beyond the developed market equity asset class, according to a new study from the VBDO, the Dutch Association of Investors for Sustainable Development. Associated Profiles : PGGM – Asset Managers for Pension Funds Weak Commitment to Human Rights Factors into Boston Common’s Decision to Divest of Cisco Systems
(Source: CSR Wire) Boston Common Asset Management, LLC has divested of its holdings in Cisco Systems, Inc. stock (NYSE: CSCO) due in part to the company's weak human rights risk management and poor response to investor concerns. Cisco's deceptive announcement of vote results on proxy items at the 2010 annual shareholder meeting has raised further alarm about the company's commitment to transparency. Starbucks Ignores Customer Demands for More Fair Trade Coffee
(Source: HumanTrafficing. Change.org) This week, Starbucks announced the release of yet another coffee product -- their VIA French Roast. And yet again, their new offering is not Fair Trade. As the economy recovers and coffee sales grow, will Starbucks begin to listen to consumer demand for more Fair Trade coffee? Or will the java giant keep selling beans grown by exploited workers around the world. Associated Profiles : TransFair USA Landmark greenhouse gas cap-and-trade program adopted in California
(Source: Lexology) California's Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB 32) directed the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to adopt regulations that would reduce the state's greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) to 1990 levels by the year 2020. Associated Profiles : Western Climate Initiative (WCI) - USA Five Myths About Green Building
(Source: Tyee News) Green buildings have earned a reputation for being large, complicated and absurdly expensive. This is particularly true in Vancouver, where taxpayers are still forking out millions of dollars a month in interest payments on the world's first LEED Platinum neighborhood -- the 2010 Olympic Village. Associated Profiles : World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) Sovereign Wealth Funds Government will not interfere in Temasek's business decisions
(Source: AsiaOne News) Although the government is a shareholding of Singapore's Temasek Holdings, it operates autonomously and makes its investment decisions on a commercial basis, said Singapore's finance minister Mr. Tharman Shanmugaratnam. "The Government does not interfere in Temasek’s business decisions or actions. This applies to Temasek’s investments in Indonesia," said Mr. Shanmugaratnam in a written response to question posed in parliament yesterday about its situation with Indonesia's Business Competition Supervisory Commission. Associated Profile: Temasek Holdings. China voices faith in Europe, vows to buy debt
(Source: MoneyControl.com) China voiced support for European government bonds on Friday as crucial investment choices for the country's massive foreign exchange reserves in the "past, present and future". State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) head Yi Gang also expressed confidence in the struggling euro, saying the currency played an important role in global markets. Associated Profiles:. State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) Investment Company (China) Nigeria sees Eurobond, wealth fund before polls
(Source: Reuters) Nigeria plans to go ahead with its delayed $500 million debut Eurobond in two to three weeks and expects a bill to create a sovereign wealth fund to pass under the current administration, the finance minister said on Friday. Africa's top crude oil exporter first announced plans to borrow in the international bond market in September 2008 but has put the issue on hold several times, most recently in December, citing adverse market conditions. Associated Profile: Excess Crude Account (Nigeria) |
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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United States Pension Funds Pension Funds Ask Banks to Review Mortgage Practices
(Source: Bloomberg) A group of seven public-sector pension fund systems called on the boards of the four largest U.S. banks, including Bank of America Corp., to review foreclosure practices, saying there’s a “fundamental” flaw in the companies’ methods. The lenders, which also include Wells Fargo & Co., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc., should report their findings on annual proxy statements to shareholders in coming months, the pension group said. Associated Profiles: : New York City Comptroller’s Office: Bureau of Asset Management , New York State Common Retirement Fund , North Carolina Retirement Systems , Oregon Public Employee Retirement System (PERS), Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds – State Treasurer’s Office SEC probes California over Calpers: report
(Source: Reuters) The U.S. securities regulator is examining whether the state of California violated securities laws by failing to disclose the risks attached to its public pension fund, the New York Times reported, citing a person with knowledge of the investigation. California Public Employees Retirement System, also known as Calpers, suffered steep losses during the financial meltdown. The value of the fund's assets had plunged to $160 billion from a peak of $260 billion in 2007, though they have since recovered to about $220 billion. Associated Profiles: : California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) Pension Fund Losses Hit States Hard, Data Show
(Source: NY Times) When total state government revenues across the nation plummeted by a record-breaking 30.8 percent in 2009, the steep investment losses of pension funds proved to be an even bigger drain on state coffers than recession-battered tax collections, according to census data released Wednesday. States reported $1.1 trillion in total revenues in 2009, down from $1.6 trillion a year earlier — the steepest drop the United States Census Bureau has reported since it began collecting data on state government finances in 1951. Watching the Watchers  Green America (Co-Op America)
Headquarters: Washington, DC
Established: 1982, original name was Co-op America (some may still refer to it by that name)
ESG/Sustainability Focus:
A focus on changing behavior to promote greater sustainability. Signature line on Web site: “Economic Action for a Just Planet” – “Come Together” KEY PARTNERS
Social Investment Forum (SIF), Clean Edge, Global Exchange OVERVIEW/MISSION
Green America states: “Our mission is to harness economic power—the strength of consumers, investors, businesses, and the marketplace—to create a socially just and environmentally sustainable society.” Green America stresses that its concept of “green” encompasses social and environmental questions. Green America News Sweeps
Luther to host Nobel Peace Prize Forum March 4-5
(Wednesday - January 12, 2011) Associated Profiles : Green America - Co-Op America
- Alisa Gravitz, executive director of Green America (formerly Co-op America), the nation's leading green economy organization. Gravitz will address the topic ... [more] Obama's American Civil War – The Progressive Summer Uprising becomes the ...
(Wednesday - January 12, 2011) Associated Profiles : Green America - Co-Op America
- When Van Jones concluded such sermons, standing before teenagers in his luxury suits claiming to build a “Green America”, he went forward, spewing hatred ... [more] The Green Community week in review: Scrapping for the Arts, deepwater drilling ...
(Sunday - January 09, 2011) Associated Profiles : Green America - Co-Op America
- All participating companies meet Green America's strict standards for social and environmental responsibility in their policies, practices, and products [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 Institute is a monitoring, research, intelligence-gathering and knowledge management organizations operating at the intersections of powerful forces reshaping relationship between stockholders and stakeholders, and the public corporation. For more information, contact us at 646.430.8230 or info@ga-institute.com. G&A Institute manages SustainabilityHQ. |
