Sustainability Now

A low carbon alternative to maritime shipping is coming to the market. The largest shipping company in the world, Maersk, has ordered eight vessels propelled by cleanly made methanol instead of an oil-based fuel. But their shipping costs will increase by 15%. So who is going to pay for that? Then, the German government adopted a new gender diversity quota that will require certain listed companies to have at least one woman on their management board starting in 2022. But will it work? Listen to find out.

The largest mining company in the world, BHP Group, has made three massive moves this week. First, it said it would sell its oil and gas operations to oil and gas company Woodside Petroleum in exchange for shares that it will distribute to its own investors. Second, it approved a 5.7 billion USD investment to build a very large new potash fertilizer mine in Canada called the Jansen potash project. And third, it will collapse it’s dual listing across London and Australia and focus only on its Australia listing. We discuss the first two moves and what they mean for the global fight to reduce carbon.

The IPCC's newest climate science has signaled a code red for humanity. As the specter of physical climate risk looms large, we look at how railways will need to adapt and how investors can think about the challenge. Then we break down the decision of the South Korean government to grant early parole to Samsung's de facto leader, Lee Jae–yong.

Some companies are mandating their employees be vaccinated if they want to continue working at the company. The idea sort of seems like a mandatory health and safety procedure, albeit one with a bit more controversy surrounding it than others. Still, the companies that have a fully vaccinated workforce may be in a better place come winter than those without. We discuss how vaccine mandates are similar to the proactive health and safety policies implemented at companies in more traditionally dangerous industries. Then we ask whether Walmart has become a social impact company with its new relatively low cost insulin product offered to uninsured Americans.

In a sweeping overhaul of its private education sector, China issued new regulations that requires the USD 100 billion industry to register as a non‐profit. The move threatened to wipe out billions of dollars of market capital for any publicly listed Chinese education company and ignited a debate around profits, education, and private capital. We discuss what the move means from a local standpoint, a market standpoint, and from an impact investor standpoint. Then we discuss the ongoing sexual harassment controversy at Activision Blizzard that led to thousands of employees walking out of their jobs in protest this week.

In the world of climate mitigative energy sources, natural gas lives in an uneasy balance. It is viewed by some as a bridge from heavy polluting fossil fuels to lower‐emission sources, while others see it as a much more pollutive source than advertised. This is because of the issue of flaring, venting, and fugitive methane emissions along the natural gas supply chain. We discuss the new regulations that are coming to prevent methane emissions that are likely to impact oil and gas companies, and the attempts by some companies to make carbon neutral natural gas sources. Then we discuss the two devastating floods in Germany and China, and what it means for our world’s critical infrastructure.

This week we bring you a special episode of ESG now: The speech Linda‐Eling Lee gave at the International Conference on Climate in Venice, Italy held by the G20 summit. In her speech Linda focused on the dwindling pool of companies that are able to meet the goals set in the Paris climate agreement and what should be done to address that in the future.

As a vicious heatwave hovers over the US and Canada, we get into the dirty details of oil pipelines and the intersection between climate change and community and biodiversity impacts. And in a world of growing inequality, we take a look at Ally Bank’s decision to permanently scrap overdraft fees

The APAC region is one of the richest in terms of ESG opportunities, such as renewables and electric vehicles, yet also one of the highest risk areas, with pollution and supply chain risk in abundance. The good news? Some of the highest risk markets in APAC have seen some of the biggest improvement in ESG scores in the past three years. We talk about what this means. And then we discuss what would happen to global emissions if everyone in the world drove electric vehicles for a year.

After nearly a decade, the SEC has begun to update the reporting requirements for companies on climate change. But before they can do that, they need to hear what the public has to say. In March 2021 the SEC sent out a 15‐question consultation that asked investors, data providers, companies, academia, and others what the most appropriate climate change disclosures would be. Comments were due this week, and we discuss what we wrote to the SEC and what we think is the best way forward. We also discuss the trouble that is brewing at Toshiba after a report was made public that said the company worked with the Japanese government to suppress shareholder votes. As its board chair refuses to step down and the Japanese government remains intransigent, we ask what is next for Toshiba and corporate Japan?