Socially Responsible Investing News

TIAA-CREF Calls on Shareowners to Take More Active Roles in Corporate Governance Referring to crises in governance from Enron to the financial crisis, the financial services organization recommends that institutional investors meet their responsibilities as universal owners through active engagement with companies in their portfolios. - (02/08/10)

In Wake of Controversial Supreme Court Decision, Shareowner Activists Develop Plan for Corporate Disclosure of Political Spending Asserting that excessive corporate political spending reduces shareowner value and weakens corporate governance, shareowner advocates call on corporations to adopt a framework for disclosure developed by the Center for Political Accountability. - (02/05/10)

Shareowners Are Urged to Press Companies to Link Compensation with ESG Factors A Eurosif study of companies listed in the FTSE Eurofirst300 index finds that relatively few European companies link executive compensation to ESG performance, with financial institutions lagging behind all other sectors. - (02/04/10)

Book Review: The Surprising Solution: Creating Possibility in a Swift and Severe World Author Bruce Piasecki describes a new global equity culture in which the corporations that thrive will be those that respond to the social challenges of a resource-restrained world. - (02/03/10)

Obama Announces Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets for Federal Agencies Following his October Executive Order directing Federal agencies to set reduction targets, Obama announces that the Federal Government will reduce GHG emissions by 28% by 2020. - (02/02/10)

SEC Ruling on Proxy Disclosure Is Likely to Lead to Increased Shareowner Activism An overview by the Corporate Library details some of the possible effects of the ruling on shareowner actions in what could shape up to be a critically important proxy season. - (02/01/10)

Shareowner Campaign Targets Hydraulic Fracturing by Natural Gas Companies Twelve shareowner resolutions ask natural gas companies for transparency about the business and environmental risks of a controversial drilling method. - (01/29/10)

SEC Issues Guidance for Corporate Reporting on Climate Change The decision, which directs companies to disclose business risks and opportunities associated with climate change, is welcomed by investors who have been calling for such guidance for years. - (01/28/10)

Report Links Effective Corporate Sustainability Reporting to Presence of Key Performance Indicators Based on his survey of prominent investors and analysts, Dr. Axel Hesse of Sustainable Development Management develops key performance indicators for sustainability that should be included in corporate reporting. - (01/28/10)

Sixty Companies Agree to Measure Emissions From Product Life Cycles and Supply Chains Measurement and disclosure of Scope 3 emissions and emissions from product life cycles are based on standards developed by the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. - (01/26/10)

Most Socially Responsible Mutual Funds Outperformed Benchmarks in 2009 A study of mutual funds managed by members of the Social Investment Forum finds that two-thirds outperformed their benchmarks across nearly all asset classes in 2009, and most large cap funds outperformed the S&P 500 over three and 10 years. - (01/25/10)

Apple Tells Shareowners to Reject Proposal for Annual Sustainability Report Asserting that industry peers HP and Dell issue such reports and are far more transparent on sustainability issues, shareowner proposal filed by As You Sow requests that Apple produce a report that includes greenhouse gas reduction targets. - (01/23/10)