ESG

Australian Investors Call for Supply Chain Reporting

August 17, 2017

The Australian Council of Superannuation Investors has called on the Australian government to pass a bill similar to the UK’s Modern Slavery Act requiring companies to report annually on how they are combating forced labor in their global supply chains.
Investment Adviser Bolsters Climate Risk Analysis

August 17, 2017

CNBC reports that, as the UN and environmental activists target investors to place pressure on companies to mitigate their climate impacts, investor advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services has purchased a "climate change data analytics" company to help screen their clients' portfolios for risks related to global warming.
EU Issues Corporate Non-Financial Reporting Guidelines

August 17, 2017

The European Commission has released a set of "voluntary" guidelines for companies to use to incorporate the latest developments from the global social and environmental agenda, such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals and Paris climate accord, as they comply with an EU directive on public reporting of non-financial information.
NGO Pushes Businesses on Labor Rights in Supply Chains

August 17, 2017

A paper from researchers at the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre asserts that companies have a "responsibility" to conduct human rights "due diligence" and engage in public reporting of their efforts to advance labor rights for migrant workers in their global supply chains.
EU Proposal Targets Tax Advisers on Profit Shifting

August 16, 2017

Reuters reports that the European Commission has proposed legislation requiring tax advisers to inform EU authorities of their assistance in "potentially aggressive tax planning arrangements" that help companies decrease their tax bills by shifting their profits to jurisdictions, including within the EU, that have lower corporate taxes.
NGO Pushes for G20 Action on Corporate "Due Diligence"

August 15, 2017

Juliane Kippenberg of Human Rights Watch writes that the Group of 20 countries (G20) must support mandatory "due diligence" rules across its members legally requiring businesses "to assess, prevent, mitigate, and remediate harmful human rights impacts of their actions" across their global supply chains and publicly report on their suppliers.
Companies Support US Proposal for "Carbon Tax"

August 15, 2017

The New York Times reports that, showing global activist and UN pressure on companies to embrace policies combating climate change, a group of large energy companies has announced its support of a proposal by former US cabinet officials to impose a federal US tax on greenhouse gas emissions and redistribute the proceeds to citizens as a "carbon dividend."
Church of England Aligns Investments with UNPRI

August 15, 2017

In recent years, the Church of England has sought to align its £7.9 billion investment portfolio with the UN-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI), most recently leading a successful effort in a shareholder vote to push ExxonMobil into releasing a report on how climate change could affect its business.
ISO Pushes Small Businesses on "Environmental Management"

August 14, 2017

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published a handbook guiding small and medium-sized businesses how to establish a proper "environmental management system" to improve their performance on the global environmental agenda.
Apple Issues $1 Billion "Green Bond"

August 14, 2017

Reuters reports that, in the wake of US President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw the US from the UN's Paris climate deal, technology giant Apple issued a $1 billion "green bond" that it says it will use to drive private investment toward funding renewable energy projects and increase energy efficiency at its facilities.