Shell’s shareholders vote for its climate strategy, despite growing support for its activist rival May 18, 2021 Energy giant Shell saw its shareholders overwhelmingly support the company’s energy transition strategy today, despite growing backing for a second climate resolution filed by an activist group. An advisory vote on its climate strategy, which meant it was a non-binding resolution, won 88.74 per cent shareholder support at its annual general meeting (AGM) today. The [...]
Let’s celebrate the number of women on FTSE boards, but smaller companies will face regulatory hurdles if they don’t step up February 24, 2021 It is worth taking a moment to celebrate that the number of women on FTSE 350 boards has jumped by 50 per cent over the last five years, according to the Hampton-Alexander review published yesterday. But we must not take our foot off the pedal, the work is far from done. Another recent report from [...]
How to build an ethical business July 12, 2021 The demand for businesses to be ethical is rising. But how can companies ensure that sustainability does not come at the cost of financial stability? Christian Koch investigates. This article was written before the coronavirus pandemic had escalated in the UK, Europe and the USA and first appears in the April 2020 issue of CA magazine. [...]
City of London Corporation vows to achieve net zero emissions by 2040 October 9, 2020 The City of London Corporation has vowed to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2040 as a part of a new climate action plan. The powerful local authority passed the draft proposal yesterday, which will see the Corporation spend £68m on “fighting climate change” over the next six years. The plan will include changing planning [...]
Blackrock backs calls for convergence of investment reporting standards October 29, 2020 Blackrock, the world’s biggest asset manager, has called for a clear set of reporting standards for sustainable investments to tackle a ‘lack of clarity’. There has been a significant uptick in interest in sustainable investments in recent years. Figures from the Investment Association showed what it termed responsible investment funds under management in the UK [...]
It’s a myth to say sustainable and ethical clothing can’t be affordable April 8, 2021 Forced labour. Environmental hazard. A race to the bottom. It is no secret that the fashion industry is broken. Clothes are the second highest products at risk of slavery and produce around 10 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions – that’s more than planes. With labour supply across the global supply chain exceeding demand, fashion [...]
UK to see six new offshore windfarms in drive toward net zero February 8, 2021 Britain’s first major auction of offshore wind farm leases in over a decade has seen Orsted, RWE, BP and Total awarded contracts, the Crown Estate said this morning. With six projects, the venture will represent nearly eight gigawatts (GW) and could provide enough power to fuel around 7m homes. Chief executive of The Crown Estate [...]
HSBC results: Shift to Asia, office space slashed, dividend returns February 23, 2021 HSBC today said it plans to nearly halve its office space globally as part of a radical overhaul that will see the lender shift its focus to Asia. The bank will pump roughly $6bn (£4.3bn) into the region over the next five years, focusing mainly on its wealth management business in greater China as well [...]
Climate-related risk becomes leading concern for business leaders October 8, 2020 Global business leaders are becoming increasingly concerned about the risk climate change poses to business. The World Economic Forum’s risk report shows that the top risks remain related to economics, with unemployment the main concern for business executives. Previously the risk of infectious diseases had been underestimated but have inevitably jumped 28 spots and it [...]
Corporate philotimy: The big new concept in responsible capitalism December 18, 2020 Capitalism — like most isms — has many faces. In the eighteenth century, it produced the military-political piracy of the East India Company, and in the twenty-first, the philanthropy of the $47bn Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. It has the capacity for profoundly significant choices. Economies are capitalist if they are dominated by private capital [...]