Jamie Hicks

Investment Advisers, Sustainability Accounting, and Their Effects on Corporate Social Responsibility. Actions that fall under the catchall of “corporate social responsibility” have been viewed with skepticism. In the United States, part of the blame lies with lax laws and regulations surrounding social and environmental disclosure. Disclosure may soon be vastly improved with finalisation of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board’s financially material social and environmental reporting standards. While the standards are voluntary, the fact that they have been endorsed as “material” by many of the world’s largest investment advisers will transform them into legally actionable standards.

Sustainable and impact investing represent a huge opportunity for both the UK’s investment management industry and British society. Driven by a triple helix of change – environmental, regulatory and social – demand from investors for products which demonstrate tangible positive impact is rising rapidly. How is regulatory pressure affecting this growing market, and how can the investment industry capitalise on the opportunities it presents?

This paper focuses on underlying causes for the emerging systemic emphasis among major corporate governance institutional owners. It does this by building incorporating three stages of corporate governance: structure and process as governance (stage I), broadening to include E and S factors (stage II), and stage III, a system focus. By looking at system focus this paper breaks ground by arguing one must examine the role modern portfolio theory (MPT) in the investment processes and explore how MPT impacts corporate structure, behavior and governance.

The objective of WWF Switzerland is to encourage and promote dialogue with respect to responsible investment of the second-pillar pension system on a permanent basis. Furthermore, the rating provides a market overview and orientation aid for Swiss pension funds and their service providers. It is a practical compendium that offers an impartial assessment of the current state of responsible investment in occupational pension plans, the urgent need for action and best practices. Last but not least, the rating also contains clear recommendations for pension funds.

How investors can integrate social impact and place-based financing into climate strategies. The just transition offers investors in the UK a strategic opportunity to connect climate action with positive social impact across the country. This report sets out the initial findings of a project designed to identify how this opportunity can be realised, with a regional focus on Yorkshire and the Humber. The just transition is rapidly emerging as an essential element in the successful transition to a resilient zero-carbon economy. This rise to prominence was marked at the COP24 climate conference in 2018 by the adoption of a just transition declaration signed by 53 governments, including the UK’s, and support for an investor statement backed by over 100 institutions with more than US$6 trillion in assets – more than 20 of which are based in the UK.

Based on interviews with corporate bond market experts, this report examines whether corporate bond investors are motivated to speed up alignment with the Paris Agreement and participate in forceful engagement.

Tundra Fonder share their yearly progress on ESG. “Our efforts within responsible investments – including factors pertaining to environment, social responsibility and governance (ESG) – continue to gain attention, both in Sweden and internationally. We launched 2017 with two prestigious awards following our efforts during 2016, which in turn encouraged us to further pursue our journey of sustainability, transparency and progress towards change.”

In this report Tundra Fonder, a specialist asset manager in frontier and emerging markets, explain their approach to ESG and how it is incorporated into their rating system.

For decades, our industry has engaged meaningfully with companies on research, advocacy, benchmarking and problem-solving to improve environmental, social and governance (ESG) outcomes for the planet we all share. Yet our data shows that most of our firms are maintaining exclusionary, predominantly white environments that are failing to employ people of colour. Until our industry addresses its racial inequities, our work will continue to fall short.

The Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report: Institutional Investors reveals new criteria for evaluating investments as well as insights on what drives institutional investor trust in companies. The second annual special report finds that investment criteria are evolving to target areas beyond financial metrics, with a strong focus on corporate culture, ESG investing, and companies’ roles within broader society. The research surveyed more than 500 chief investment officers, portfolio managers, and buy-side analysts in five countries (U.S., Canada, UK, Germany and Japan), representing firms that collectively manage over $4.5 trillion in assets. The report is a supplement to the Edelman Trust Barometer launched annually in January at the World Economic Forum. Visit the Edelman website to download the U.S., UK, and Canada results.