In the United States, at least, the year 2020 was not only the year of the Pandemic, but also a cry for more equality, racial and gender justice, and in general, more respect for one another. Many experts say that COVID-19 exasperated these issues by bringing much of the disparity to the fore because so many were out of work for so long. What takes place on the political and social front, is naturally reflected in the workplace. This is seen in many of the topics covered by the State of Green Business 2021 report by Joel Makower and the editors at GreenBiz Manjit Jus, in his article, “The ‘S’ in ESG Gains Currency,” writes “Companies are making progress in disclosing their environmental impact and governance standards, but social factors have not bee...
UN negotiators have resumed work on the text of world-wide plan to protect nature and species for the next decade.The draft Global Biodiversity Framework aims to conserve at least 30% of the world's land and oceans.It will also push to eliminate plastic waste and cut pesticide use by at least two thirds.The pact was due to be agreed at a UN biodiversity summit in China this October, but face to face talks have been delayed until April next year..UK government's 'toothless policies' fail natureCows return to coastal sand dunes after 90 yearsThousandth dormouse brought back to the wildThe Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is a UN treaty that has been ratified by 195 countries plus the European Union.The United States signed the agreement in 1993 but has failed...
Damage to ecosystems including forests and coral reefs forecast to have devastating effect on global economy.Please use the sharing tools found via the share button at the top or side of articles. Copying articles to share with others is a breach of FT.com T&Cs and Copyright Policy. Email licensing@ft.com to buy additional rights. Subscribers may share up to 10 or 20 articles per month using the gift article service. More information can be found here. https://www.ft.com/content/100f0c5b-83c5-4e9a-8ad0-89af2ea4a758 As environmental, social and governance investing has swept across the financial world, the “E” in ESG has become nearly synonymous with attempts to mitigate climate change. But while the climate crisis is one of the planet’s gravest problems, it is not the only envi...
The growing ESG movement is due to the confluence of the private interests of management with a loss of confidence in the government to address, much less to solve, top environmental and social problems of the day, says Yale Law School Professor Jonathan Macey. This has played conveniently into the hands of corporate managers who wish to avoid accountability.Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles have emerged to dominate the corporate governance and investing landscape. The rise of ESG investing threatens to displace the longstanding paradigm in corporate law that the purpose of the corporation is to maximize value for shareholders.ESG investing ignores the role of government in solving problems and inserts the corporation as the primary source of solutions to the great iss...
A new global agreement - the Glasgow Climate Pact - was reached at the COP26 summit.It aims to reduce the worst impacts of climate change - but some leaders and campaigners say it does not go far enough.What was in the COP26 agreement?The agreement - although not legally binding - will set the global agenda on climate change for the next decade:EmissionsADVERTISEMENTIt was agreed countries will meet next year to pledge further cuts to emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) - a greenhouse gas which causes climate change.This is to try to keep temperature rises within 1.5C - which scientists say is required to prevent a "climate catastrophe". Current pledges, if met, will only limit global warming to about 2.4C.CoalFor the first time at a COP conference, there was an explicit plan to reduce ...