Risk and Opportunity in Biodiversity: How Sustainable Finance Can Help
This article outlines how biodiversity loss poses material risks to business and how it connects to many other issues that companies can’t ignore. In addition, it covers how biodiversity conservation presents substantial economic opportunities, and how businesses can address and access these opportunities by issuing linked instruments that integrate biodiversity considerations.
Scope 3 Supply Chain Emissions: Five Questions Investors Need to Know
To assess climate-related transition risks, investors should evaluate GHG emissions across portfolio companies’ value chains. In this blog post we’ll answer the key questions investors need to know about supply chain GHG emissions, and why decarbonization of the supply chain is an essential component of an effective climate transition strategy.
Ocean Carriers Facing Increased ESG Risk Amidst Supply Chain Crisis
Maritime shipping is the most common mode of transport for global trade, with around 80-90% of the volume of international trade in goods carried by sea. Complex supply chain challenges around the world made 2021 an exceptionally challenging year for retailers, exacerbating global inflation. Still, it was also very profitable for ocean carriers and containership owners.
Cobalt ESG Risks Threaten Electric Vehicle Supply Chain
Transport electrification is at the forefront of the international climate transition agenda. Because of this, global demand for cobalt is projected to grow fourfold by 2030, which raises the question, are mineral supply chains robust enough to fuel a sustainable EV revolution?
Leveraging Blockchain to Improve Supply Chain Management - A Case Study for Household and Personal Products Companies
With growing scrutiny from stakeholders—international regulators and regional governments, NGOs, the general public, investors, and financial institutions—companies accused of human rights violations and environmental damage in their supply chains face substantial risks.
Looking at ESG in Crypto, Blockchain, and Public Equities
Beyond the volatile crypto market, blockchain has several features that lend well to commercial applications. Blockchain can help improve the transparency, speed and efficiency of data transfers and monetary transactions. Businesses in multiple industries are using blockchain tools to enhance payment platforms and secure supply chain management systems. Sustainalytics’ latest Thematic Research report, An ESG Lens on Blockchain and Public Equities, surveys ESG risks and opportunities related to applications of blockchain technology that are being developed by listed companies across multiple sectors of the economy.
Answering the Call for Progress: How Companies Can Respond to Investor Demands on DEI
In this blog post we share what companies can do to communicate their progress on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) to investors and other key stakeholders, particularly with respect to gender diversity and advancing women’s socio-economic status.
What You Don’t Know Can Hurt You: Getting to the Bottom of Supply Chain Risk
To address supply chain risk, business leaders must consider an increasingly broad range of factors in procurement, including environmental, social and governance (ESG) impacts. Investors, customers, and regulators are applying substantial pressure on companies to reduce risks like labor disruptions, workforce health and safety incidents, human rights issues, and shortages of natural resources.
Sustainable Finance and Banks: Reduced Risk, Increased Opportunity
Banks will play a key role in the green transition and those that commit to sustainable banking may gain an advantage over competitors, among other benefits. Indeed, banks are uniquely positioned to participate in and benefit from the transition to a green economy.
COP 26: A Spotlight on Emerging Climate Action Themes for Investors
Reactions to the COP26 Conference and the resulting Glasgow Climate Pact have predictably run the gamut from claims of greenwashing to the celebration of progress in the fight against climate change. Ultimately, any judgement on COP26 may be premature, as the success of the conference will best be measured in time by the extent to which commitments made are put into motion. While we wait to see the concrete actions that materialize, the past two weeks have underscored the importance of several themes that will garner increasing attention and should be considered by sustainable investors.
Infographic | 5 Breakout Innovations in Sustainable Finance for Banks
This infographic describes five key innovations in sustainable finance, including green deposits, sustainable deposits, green trade loans, green guarantees and letters of credit, sustainable supply chain financing, and offerings for borrowers in industries not traditionally considered green.
Bringing Investors and Companies Together to Accelerate Human Rights Progress
Human rights issues have been rising on the responsible investment agenda in recent years. The COVID-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement have provoked even more pointed discourse on the topic. The European Union’s current efforts to introduce rules to hold companies accountable for social and environmental risks in their supply chains further accelerate that ascent. This wave of legal requirements and normative expectations is impacting financial markets worldwide, with responsible business regulations already in place or quickly becoming valid.