Sustainability Now

Part of proxy season is over, so we take a look at the landscape of shareholder proposals. And it is well known for to those who are closely watching shareholder proposals that ESG proposals have pretty much plummeted this year vs. last year and previous years – but why is that? Are ESG shareholder proposals losing steam and momentum? Or is that maybe too simple of a reading of the data? We also discuss the new crop of proposals coming out from a set of contrarian shareholder groups that buck the trend of proposals to date.Host: Mike Disabato, MSCI ESG ResearchGuest: Harlan Tufford, MSCI ESG Research

Semiconductors are used in ev-er-y-thing. But semiconductor manufacturers have a high greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions footprint. Since they are so ubiquitous in our economy, will they get a free pass and not be pressured to lower their GHG emissions? Or will the expanding industry be pushed to lower their emissions a la the oil and gas industry? These questions and more are answered on this week's episode of ESG now.Host: Mike Disabato, MSCI ESG ResearchGuest: Siyu Liu, MSCI ESG Research

Under pressure from wildfires and inflation, State Farm has stopped issuing new homeowner policies in California. We get to the bottom of how physical climate hazards may change the future shape of the insurance industry. And then we ask why the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance is a little different from the other alliances that fall under the GFANZ. Host: Bentley Kaplan, MSCI ESG ResearchGuests: Cody Dong & Sylvain Vanston, MSCI ESG Research

There are a number of looming carbon emission regulations set to hit the commercial real estate sector in the coming years. These regulations would require building managers to retrofit their asset’s with emissions reducing technology else face hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of fines. We discuss what these regulations mean for the long-term sustainability of the commercial real-estate sector, and the financial importance of making a building more energy efficient.Host: Mike Disabato, MSCI ESG Research Guests: Mark Bessoudo, MSCI ESG Research

Are you aware of how much progress we are making on addressing climate change? There are all-these-pledges and all-these-plans made by companies, but have those plans been useful? Are they actually making progress on cutting emissions or are they just saying, “yeah we care about it, and we will do….something.” And what are those “somethings?” Are they far away technologies that can suck the bad stuff out of our atmosphere like a sort of techno-savior? Or something else? We answer those questions on this episode of ESG now.Host: Mike Disabato, MSCI ESG Research Guests: Sylvain Vanston and Chris Cote, MSCI ESG Research

NGOs have filed a lawsuit against BNP Paribas, arguing that bank has failed in its “Duty of Care”, under French law. As climate-related litigation escalates, we take a closer look at BNP’s financed emissions. And then, lawmakers have mandated the inclusion of female executives on the management boards of large German companies. We look at how things have shifted at this early stage and what that means for governance.Host: Bentley Kaplan, MSCI ESG ResearchGuests: Guilherme de Melo Silva & Florian Sommer, MSCI ESG Research

To meet net-zero ambitions, it looks like we’re going to need a whole lot of solar energy, and fast. And a complex value chain is bracing for soaring demand. In this episode, we work through the risks and opportunities for investors and companies (and not only the ones you’re expecting).Host: Bentley Kaplan, MSCI ESG ResearchGuest: Mathew Lee, MSCI ESG Research

There is a considerate environmental cost to e-cigarettes. The critical metals that make up their batteries are more likely to be found in landfills than recycling facilities. Not only does this pose a problem for the environment but regulators are starting to take notice. In this episode, we discuss the environmental problem of e-cigarettes and what may be done to address it. Then, we discuss the ambitious new regulation on tail pipe emissions by the US Environmental Protection Agency that might be the most ambitious air quality regulation ever.Host: Mike Disabato, MSCI ESG Research Guests: Aura Toader and Yu Ishihara, MSCI ESG ResearchSpecial thanks to Margarita Grabert and Gabriela De La Serna for their help with this episode.

This week we discuss why air pollution is a topic that investors may want to take greater interest in. It is not only a macro-economic burden, but also affects every company operating in polluted areas.Host: Mike Disabato, MSCI ESG Research Guests: Simon Albrecht and Jurgita Balaisyte, MSCI ESG Research

The Colorado river is shrinking and the tens of millions of Americans that rely on the water source are having to deal with the possibility of imposed water cuts. The urban sprawls that have peppered the desert are also in competition with the industries that operate in the area and use the water from the Colorado river: agriculture, semiconductors, and energy. In this week’s episode we discuss what happens when companies no longer have access to the water they need to operate. Host: Mike Disabato, MSCI ESG ResearchGuests: Cole Martin, Siping Guo, Mathew Lee; MSCI ESG Research