Stakeholder Trends and Insights

Ford Foundation Drives Mission-Related Investment with $1B Commitment

The Ford Foundation announced today that it is committing up to $1 billion from its $12 billion endowment over the next 10 years to mission-related investing (MRIs). The commitment is one of the largest ever made to MRIs, and the largest by a private foundation. The move sends a signal to other foundation and institutional investors that the time has come to consider the potential of impact investing.

To Investors, Nonfinancial Performance Reveals True Value of Business

Many corporations don’t realize the connection between nonfinancial performance and investor behavior. To bridge the gap, Ernst & Young (EY) surveyed more than 320 senior decision-makers at buy-side investment institutions around the world for its third annual Climate Change and Sustainability Services (CCaSS) survey. The survey aims to improve understanding of the role integrated reporting practices can play in highlighting a company’s value creation story.

MSC Taps Stakeholders to Improve Sustainable Fishing, Traceability Standards

International non-profit Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) has launched its 2017 policy development round, opening up six areas of the MSC program to consultation from stakeholders to improve its existing programs and develop effective and sustainable new standards.

BlackRock Urges At-Risk Companies to Get Real About Climate Change

Global investment management corporation BlackRock, which controls assets worth $5.1 trillion, is getting serious about climate change and the risk it poses to businesses. The fund manager has recently threatened to put directors of companies that fail to address climate risks on the chopping block.

Shaping Our Future: Redefining the ‘Good Life’ and Creating ‘The Millennial Dream’

A little over a year ago, I was having a conversation about ‘brain drain’ with three change-makers in my community. We were debating what could reverse the brain drain of young people from smaller cities, towns and rural regions. Could we find out what other non-metropolitan regions are doing to keep their brightest talents in their hometowns to help their communities grow and thrive? We also questioned what an attractive and livable community looks like in the 21st century, in the age of connectivity, globalization and social enlightenment.

Dow Jones, World Bank Unveil New Financial Tools to Expand Sustainability Investments

New announcements from two major financial institutions could expand sustainability investment and drive it towards the mainstream S&P Dow Jones Indices (S&P DJI), the world’s leading provider of index-based concepts, data and research, has announced the launch of the S&P Green Bond Select Index which captures the most liquid and tradeable segment of green-labeled bonds issued globally. The index has been licensed to VanEck for an exchange-traded fund (ETF).

Report Reveals Gaps in Social Metrics Crucial for Investors to Identify Leading Companies

Over the past three decades, investor interest in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors has moved from niche to mainstream. Many attribute this shift to a rising demand from millennials and women, two groups that are increasingly seeking investments consistent with their values. A vast industry of ratings, research, and reporting services now exists to help identify corporate sustainability leaders.

Pure Strategies: Increased Corporate Sustainability Spending Spurred Gains of $5-8B in 2016

New research from sustainability consulting firm Pure Strategies reveals growth in corporate spending in sustainability; more than 80 percent of surveyed companies expect a budget increase from 2016 to 2017 with a third anticipating double-digit growth.

How I’ve Come to Love 'Emergency'

In the land of systems thinking, there is a principle called “emergence.” It refers to the interaction of the parts of a system, whereby characteristics arise that cannot be found in any of the system’s individual parts. In other words, something new forms.

Investors Worth $615.7B Urge Latin America to Make Good on Zero-Deforestation Commitments

Forest destruction accounts for nearly the same amount of global greenhouse gas emissions as the entire global transportation sector and deforestation rates are yet again on the rise. In response, thirty-eight investors from across the globe have joined Green Century Capital Management to demand that companies reaffirm and extend zero deforestation commitments specific to Latin America.

LUCK: The Science of Transformational Leadership, Part 1

This is part one of a four-part weekly series exploring the LUCK formula for creating the inner change necessary to become a transformational leader. Some leaders make change look easy. While most strive to drive change through persuasion, they stoke our imaginations and inspire us to embrace daring new visions. How do they do it? Is there a secret formula or are they just lucky? The simple answer is yes.

Future 500 Reveals Latest Stakeholders Engagement Trends

Stakeholder engagement non-profit Future 500 has released its annual Top 10 Stakeholder Engagement Trends report for 2017.

Global Oil Demand Will Grow into 2040s, According to BP Energy Outlook

Global oil demand will continue to grow into the 2040s even as electrical vehicle fleets expand and the low-carbon energy transition gains traction around the world, BP revealed in its annual Energy Outlook, an industry benchmark report forecasting long-term trends and informs the company’s internal strategy. The predictions come as other oil companies such as Royal Dutch Shell prepare for demand to peak by the early 2030s and countries make the shift to cleaner forms of energy.

SustainAbility: Global Health, Media, Climate Leadership Among Trends Shaping 2017

Think tank SustainAbility has released its 2017 trend report, which highlights 10 issues that are expected to have the greatest influence over sustainability in the upcoming year and their implications for the private sector. 2016 was a year of profound global change, rife with protectionism, populism, and political and economic instability, whose far-reaching effects pose a potential threat to the further advancement of the sustainability agenda.

America May Have Elected Trump, But Only 14% Support His Environmental Platform

Yes, Americans are divided — but apparently not on the environment. The results of the 2016 U.S. presidential election exposed some deep rifts in the American psyche and left many of us feeling more divided than ever as Donald Trump takes office.

2/3 of People Around the World Believe Their Country Is Heading in the Wrong Direction

Is your country on the right track? A new Ipsos MORI study entitled “What Worries the World” seeks to answer this question, asking thousands of adults under 65 in countries across the globe to identify issues that most worry them and whether they think things in their country are headed in the right direction.

When All Around Is Broken: Maintaining Optimism for Sustainability

“The main Business of Natural Philosophy is to argue from Phænomena without feigning Hypotheses, and to deduce Causes from Effects till we come to the very first Cause, which certainly is not mechanical; and not only to unfold the Mechanism of the World, but chiefly to resolve these, and to such like Questions.” ~ Sir Isaac Newton It can be difficult being a sustainability practitioner. Our mission sets us in opposition to the general direction of the world. Finding ways to stay optimistic, to celebrate change and keep an eye on the scale of transformation that is required takes resilience, flexibility and deep reserves of passion.

Investors Continue to Push for Sustainability Data

The incoming administration has suggested it will take a sharp turn away from President Obama’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, causing uncertainty regarding the factors that have made energy strategy a top priority among businesses in recent years.

Study: Effectively Marketing Sustainable Goods Could Represent $1T Market Opportunity

A new global consumer study from Unilever reveals fascinating insights regarding consumer interest in and commitment to sustainable products, as well as an over $1 trillion market opportunity for brands that can effectively and transparently market the sustainability of their wares.

How Google, Apple, Other Silicon Valley Firms Measure Up on Sustainability

Silicon Valley-based firms are often praised for innovation, but how do they measure up when it comes to sustainability efforts?