Reporting
-
Anti-ESG proxy votes surge but they’re not passing
Shareholders submitted more than 100 anti-ESG proposals in the 2024 proxy season but none of those that made it to a vote received more than single-digit support.
By Robert Freedman • Oct. 4, 2024 -
US corporate commitment to diversity in decline, McKinsey says
“Progress is surprisingly fragile, especially for women of color, who continue to be underrepresented at every level” of the corporate hierarchy, McKinsey said.
By Jim Tyson • Oct. 4, 2024 -
Trendline
Top 5 stories from ESG Dive
This year has shaped up to be a formative one for ESG, both on the regulatory and financial front, with the SEC’s climate disclosure rule and the battle over shareholder rights and proposal approvals.
By ESG Dive staff -
California Gov. Newsom greenlights climate disclosure acts by signing new bill
Senate Bill 219 includes a series of amendments to climate bills SB 253 and SB 261, originally approved by Newsom last October, while retaining a 2026 start date.
By Zoya Mirza • Oct. 2, 2024 -
ESG and sustainability conferences to watch in 2025
Early agendas for 2025 events show a growing focus on decarbonizing data centers, as well as increasing climate financing and aligning ESG standards.
By Lamar Johnson , Zoya Mirza • Oct. 1, 2024 -
State Street reduces support for E + S proposals, following other Big Three asset managers
State Street supported 6% of environmental and 7% of social proposals in the 2024 proxy season, confirming the nation’s largest asset managers all supported fewer such proposals than in 2023.
By Lamar Johnson • Sept. 23, 2024 -
House GOP passes pair of anti-ESG bills targeting ‘woke’ investment policies
House Republicans passed a pair of bills this week aimed at pension funds and the Securities and Exchange Commission that Rep. Juan Vargas, D-Calif., said are “going nowhere” in a Democrat-controlled Senate.
By Lamar Johnson • Sept. 20, 2024 -
Under 25% of Vanguard’s 2024 proxy pilot participants chose ESG-centered policies
The program’s third-party ESG policy option was particularly popular with investors of one of the firm’s ESG funds, though just under a quarter of pilot participants picked the option overall.
By Lamar Johnson • Sept. 18, 2024 -
Real estate firm CBRE curbs scope 1, 2 emissions by 24% since 2019
Its scope 1 emissions rose almost 16% since 2022 due to increased mileage across its vehicle fleet, which it looks to fully electrify by 2035, according to CBRE’s 2023 corporate responsibility report.
By Joe Burns • Sept. 18, 2024 -
House GOP members probing federal membership in green finance network
Leaders of the House Financial Services Committee are conducting an investigation into the participation of U.S. agencies in the Network for Greening the Financial System.
By Lamar Johnson • Sept. 17, 2024 -
EPA issues violation notice to ADM over carbon sequestration permit
The violation relates to corrosion in a monitoring well at the agricultural supply chain company’s second injection site that has since been plugged and did not affect surface or groundwater, ADM said in a statement.
By Lamar Johnson • Sept. 16, 2024 -
House Financial Services panel hearing probes proxy advisors’ ESG influence
Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., said advisors are becoming “de facto standard setters” for governance, while a witness compared them to consultants who help investors “sift through mountains of data.”
By Lamar Johnson • Sept. 12, 2024 -
BofA closes $205M tax equity deal for carbon capture, clean fuel credits
Bank of America will purchase carbon capture and clean fuel production tax credits in a novel financing deal with biofuels producer Harvestone Low Carbon Partners.
By Lamar Johnson • Sept. 11, 2024 -
Workiva, Visual Lease team up to boost sustainability reporting
The partnership between the ESG reporting software firm and the lease management platform will allow mutual clients to accurately report progress on their sustainability goals.
By Zoya Mirza • Sept. 10, 2024 -
Volvo scales back its EV goals
In 2021, the automaker pledged to be fully electric by 2030. Now, the company is abandoning that goal, focusing instead on “electrified” models.
By Haley Cawthon • Sept. 9, 2024 -
Morgan Stanley drops plastic pollution financing goal
A spokesperson for the bank told ESG Dive it would no longer have the standalone goal due to data availability and quality challenges as required climate disclosures near.
By Lamar Johnson • Sept. 6, 2024 -
Q&A
5 keys to strong organizational sustainability governance: MorganFranklin Consulting
Andrew Rizkallah, who leads the firm's ESG advisory services, explained how to beef up key reporting processes or start from scratch.
By Lamar Johnson • Aug. 30, 2024 -
Major oil and gas firms ramp up voluntary ESG reporting: EY
Regulatory and shareholder pressure is elevating sustainability reporting to a key priority on par with a firm’s financial and operational performance, an EY report suggests.
By Suman Bhattacharyya • Aug. 30, 2024 -
US clean energy jobs grew 4.2% in 2023: DOE
The U.S. added clean energy jobs at more than twice the rate of the broader economy, according to the Department of Energy.
By Robert Walton • Aug. 29, 2024 -
Global packaging giant Amcor releases decarbonization road map
Redesigning packaging to weigh less, use fewer materials and incorporate lower-carbon materials is part of the company’s efforts to reach SBTi-validated 2033 emissions reduction targets.
By Maria Rachal • Aug. 27, 2024 -
Shein reports 2 cases of child labor in its supply chain
The fast fashion giant discovered the cases last year, and suspended orders from the manufacturers pending “appropriate remediation.”
By Laurel Deppen • Aug. 26, 2024 -
Coca-Cola ‘on track’ for packaging recyclability goal, ‘behind plan’ on recycled content target
In an environmental update, the beverage giant reported that progress on reusable packaging formats and recyclability was stagnant in 2023 while its rate of recycled PET use ticked up.
By Maria Rachal • Aug. 23, 2024 -
BlackRock’s support for E+S proposals whittles away in 2024 proxy season
The nation’s largest investment manager noted a rise in shareholder proposals focused on environmental and social matters and anti-ESG filings.
By Lamar Johnson • Aug. 22, 2024 -
Friend or foe: Unpacking what the amicus briefs say about the SEC’s climate rule
Amicus briefs in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s ongoing lawsuit concerning its climate disclosure rule find institutional investors and businesses largely on opposite sides.
By Lamar Johnson • Aug. 20, 2024 -
Microsoft builds on sustainability suite with new ESG reporting tool
The new tool allows companies to streamline, simplify and accelerate their reporting process and offers templates for a broad range of ESG standards and frameworks.
By Zoya Mirza • Aug. 9, 2024 -
SEC defends its authority for climate disclosure rule in court
The agency said its climate rule will help to better inform investors with “more detailed, consistent, and comparable information” in replying to legal challengers.
By Lamar Johnson • Aug. 8, 2024