We are now publishing our ESG links on a monthly basis. However the coronavirus pandemic has taken the wind out of ESG coverage and commentary. We will continue to monitor the space for now. You can check out the previous set of links including a look at a number of companies planning to go carbon neutral.
Quote of the Day
“Asset managers are sheep. A lot of them will say ‘we will vote for someone’s else’s resolution’, but why aren’t they filing their own resolutions?”
(Christopher Hohn)
Chart of the Day

Americans increasingly think corporations should prioritize their workers.
Asset management
- Why achieving diversity in asset management has been so difficult to achieve. (pionline.com)
- Should asset managers like Blackrock ($BLK) get credit for their 'behind the scenes' efforts to influence company management? (barrons.com)
- Human rights is the next wave in sustainable investing. (barrons.com)
- How 'conscience investing' differs from ESG. (ft.com)
Portfolios
- Putting together an ESG model portfolio is not a straight forward exercise. (citywireusa.com)
- How to build a very cheap ESG ETF portfolio. (etf.com)
Investing
- Robert Armstrong, "None of this suggests that investors should not put their savings behind the things that they care about. It means only that they should not think of this as a wealth maximising strategy." (ft.com)
- Emissions data don't provide any additional information about company returns. (papers.ssrn.com)
- A Q&A with ESG investing pioneer Amy Domini of Domini Impact Investments LLC. (investmentnews.com)
- Why the ESG universe needs short sellers. (ft.com)
- Five common myths about ESG investing debunked. (wsj.com)
- Is ESG investing just another passing fad? (uk.news.yahoo.com)
Data
- The number of ESG indexes worldwide grew by 40% in the past 12 months. (barrons.com)
- Sovereign bond indices that weight countries by climate impact are here. (ft.com)
- Factset ($FDS) is buying ESG data provider Truvalue Labs Inc. (pionline.com)
- Blackrock ($BLK) wants companies to report sustinability data per SASB. (barrons.com)
- A new ranking of The 100 Most Sustainably Managed Companies in the World. (wsj.com)
Climate
- Exxon ($XOM) has no plans to cut back its carbon emissions any time soon, per leaked documents. (bloomberg.com)
- JP Morgan ($JPM) is pledging to use its influence on clients to meet climate goals. (wsj.com)
- By this measure electric utilities don't earn any profits once you take into account their environmental costs. (klementoninvesting.substack.com)
- Nobody really thinks the oil and gas industry can green itself. (axios.com)
Companies
- No company is going to be perfect on any kind of ESG scale. (wsj.com)
- Generating and maintaining sustainability data for third parties is no small task. (wsj.com)
- Starbucks ($SBUX) is tying executive pay, in part, to meeting diversity goals. (wsj.com)
- P&G ($PG) just lost a shareholder vote on forest sustainability. (ft.com)
- Companies in the UK want to prevent the import of food from deforested lands. (bbc.com)
- A record number of big American companies now have female CFOs. (msn.com)