ESG Currents

Technology’s role in decarbonization is evolving, with many developments still in the making. In this episode of the ESG Currents podcast, Shaheen Contractor, Bloomberg Intelligence’s senior ESG analyst, interviews Daniel Hanna, head of Sustainable Finance at Barclays, Kelly Becker, president of Schneider Electric UK & Ireland, Mikkel Bülow-Lehnsby, co-founder and chairman of Urban Partners and Chris Dodwell, global head of Policy & Advocacy at Impax Asset Management, at the Bloomberg Sustainable Business Summit in London. They discuss how climate tech can be deployed and the risks and opportunities ahead. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In her new book “H Is for Hope: Climate Change from A to Z,” Elizabeth Kolbert writes that “to say amazing work is being done to combat climate change and to say that almost no progress has been made is not a contradiction. It’s a simple statement of fact.” In this episode of ESG Currents, the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author joins Bloomberg Intelligence Director of ESG Research Eric Kane to talk about this paradox, why she was drawn to writing about climate change and biodiversity, the timeline of earth’s history, whether we can reach net zero when we keep inventing new ways to consume energy and much more. This episode was recorded on April 22. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The New York State Insurance Fund (NYSIF) is working to reach net-zero carbon emissions in its investment portfolio by 2040. To achieve this goal, NYSIF focuses on four tenants: internal and external engagement, investment and divestment. In this episode of ESG Currents, Bloomberg Intelligence’s Eric Kane and Shaheen Contractor talk with Rajith Sebastian, Head of ESG and Sustainable Investing for NYSIF about the fund’s approach to net zero, minimizing risk and maximizing impact, the need for more intentionally impactful and evidence-based investment products and more.This episode was recorded on April 3. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As ESG has shifted from a niche investment strategy to the mainstream, it has become a hot-button political issue among top-level state and national officials. That includes laws banning ESG on one side of the aisle and mandating exclusionary screens on the other, and the trend may accelerate heading into the US elections. On this week’s episode of ESG Currents, BI Senior ESG Analyst Rob Du Boff is joined by Ropes & Gray partners Michael Littenberg, Josh Lichtenstein and Rob Skinner, who have extensive experience representing corporate and asset-management clients facing legal, compliance and regulatory issues around ESG. This episode was recorded on April 10. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Climate opportunities extend beyond clean-energy fuels and into a broad diffusion of business models, including areas such as efficiency and infrastructure. Join Senior BI analysts Shaheen Contractor and Andrew Stevenson as they speak with Sarah Wilson, managing director and head of climate strategy at Nuveen, to discuss the state of play in ESG asset gathering, strategies that are gaining steam and datasets to help portfolio managers make better ESG-related investment decisions. This episode was recorded on April 2. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Engagement plays an important role for managers to ensure the companies they invest in are managing ESG factors to maximize long-term value. But what happens when this engagement just doesn’t cut it? When the carrot doesn’t work, sometimes you need the stick. On this episode of ESG Currents, BI Senior ESG Analyst Rob Du Boff chats with NYS Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. They discuss the recent announcement that the New York State Common Retirement Fund, one of the largest public pensions in the US, will restrict investment in eight oil and gas companies it deemed not ready for the carbon transition, including Exxon Mobil. This episode was recorded on March 26. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

About 50% of global GDP is at least moderately dependent on nature, according to the World Bank. Increasing recognition of this dependency has fueled new biodiversity-related disclosure frameworks, regulations, and investor action. In this episode of ESG Currents, Bloomberg Intelligence’s Eric Kane and Melanie Rua are joined by David Craig, co-chair of the Task Force on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) to discuss how climate and biodiversity are interrelated, how the TNFD framework fits in with other disclosure guidelines, hopes for COP 16 in Colombia, why nature risk is financial risk, and much more. This episode was recorded on Mar. 18. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nearly 80% of the world’s 150 top CO2-emitting companies have stated net-zero ambitions for Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2050 or sooner, according to Climate Action 100+’s recent Net Zero Company Benchmark 2.0 report. However, the same study finds only 24% of companies assessed have short-term targets aligned with a 1.5-degree Celsius trajectory. On this episode of the ESG Currents podcast, Francois Humbert, Climate Action 100+’s (CA 100+) global investor representative and current Steering Committee Chair, joins Eric Kane, Bloomberg Intelligence’s director of ESG research, to discuss how the CA100+ has influenced company progress and investor behavior, and why we need to move to actions from words. This conversation was recorded on Nov. 23, 2023. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

ESG has become an important part of the investment landscape. But some critics say the term may be overly broad, conflating a number of topics that may or may not be financially material for different issuers. In this episode of ESG Currents, BI analysts Eric Kane and Rob Du Boff are joined by Alex Edmans, a professor of finance at London Business School, who recently authored a paper advocating the concept of “Rational Sustainability” as a worthy replacement. This episode was recorded on Feb. 13. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Founded in 1998, Impax Asset Management is a pioneer in investing in the transition to a more sustainable economy. On this episode of the ESG Currents podcast, Ian Simm, Impax’s Founder and CEO, joins Eric Kane, Bloomberg Intelligence’s director of ESG research, to discuss the evolution of the ESG space, single vs. double materiality, net zero vs. net-zero aligned, the complexity of biodiversity, why “green is not black and white” and much more. This episode was recorded on Feb. 12. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Asset Managers can find it difficult to navigate through all the noise related to the climate transition as the lack of standard data and quality of disclosures affects aspirations of reaching net-zero targets. In this episode of ESG Currents, BI analysts Shaheen Contractor and Chris Ratti are joined by Rob Fernandez and Tim Coffin from Breckinridge Capital Advisors. The two guests provide views into what the asset-management industry is looking at when it comes to the climate shift, with valuable insights into assessing the credibility of net-zero goals and more. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Inflation Reduction Act is an import signal that the United States is putting out to the world that is leading to real investments, yet its potential will soon come up against some very real roadblocks, says Aniket Shah, Managing Director at Jefferies. In this episode of Bloomberg Intelligence’s ESG Currents podcast, Shah discusses these threats to the energy transition and decarbonization with Chris Ratti, Bloomberg Intelligence’s Senior ESG Credit Analyst. They also talk about the future of green financing instruments. This episode was recorded on January 10. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A quarter of the world’s population is currently exposed to extremely high water stress each year, and that’s expected to grow to 60% by 2050, according to World Resources Institute’s recent Aqueduct 4.0 report. On this episode of the ESG Currents podcast, Sara Walker, WRI’s Director of Corporate Water Engagement, joins Eric Kane, Bloomberg Intelligence’s Director of ESG Research to discuss corporate water targets, water accounting, the concept of ‘virtual water’, and why the local problem of water has global implications. The episode recorded as of October 19. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gender lens investing remains a complex theme, seeing growing interest from investors and regulators in some regions and a backlash in others. In this episode of ESG Currents, BI analysts, Shaheen Contractor and Rob Du Boff are joined by Audrey Kaplan, the senior portfolio manager of Robeco Global Gender Equality Impact Equity Portfolio to discuss her work, ways in which one can evaluate companies, useful metrics, shareholder advocacy and measures of success. This episode was recorded on Nov. 9. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Climate Investing has evolved from a focus on portfolio exclusions to a diverse set of products, such as low-carbon solutions. In this episode of ESG Currents, senior ESG strategist Shaheen Contractor is joined by Leslie Samuelrich, the president of Green Century Capital Management, to discuss the evolution of climate investing, demand drivers, shareholder advocacy and measures of success. Green Century is one of the oldest environmental fund managers. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Corporate deliberations on ESG often revolve not only around shareholders, but also the relationships with employees, customers, governments, the local community and even the planet. But sometimes tensions can arise between these various groups, and one stakeholder can be vital to helping corporate managers navigate these challenges: the lawyers. On this episode of ESG Currents, senior ESG Analyst Rob Du Boff is joined by Abigail Gampher Takacs of Bloomberg Law to chat with Danielle Reyes, a partner and co-chair of the ESG & Impact practice at Goodwin Procter, to discuss the legal issues facing corporations and investors. This episode was recorded on Nov. 27. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the past three years, Starbucks has become a notable battleground for the resurgence of the American labor union. Amid continuous pushback from management, the unions are now leveraging a new tool in the fight -- corporate governance. The Strategic Organizing Center (SOC), a coalition of labor unions, recently began its first activist campaign, seeking three seats on the Starbucks board at the annual meeting this spring. On this episode of ESG Currents, senior ESG analyst Rob Du Boff spoke with Tejal Patel, corporate governance director at SOC Investment Group, to discuss why the unions decided to go active, what it would take to win, and other issues at the intersection of Social and Governance. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Investor action is foundational to ESG, and Ceres has long been at the forefront of working with capital markets to address sustainability challenges. The Ceres Investor Network includes more than 220 institutional investors with more than $45 trillion in assets, and focuses on climate, water and biodiversity. On this episode of the ESG Currents podcast, the Rev. Kirsten Snow Spalding, Ceres’ Vice President, Investor Network joins Eric Kane, Bloomberg Intelligence’s director of ESG research to discuss Ceres’ theory of change, the power of investor networks, how transition plans will become synonymous with business plans and the fact that when the data isn’t perfect, you still have to act. This episode was recorded on Oct. 17th. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Of working Americans, 65% say they live paycheck to paycheck, with 30% saying they run out of money at the end of every month, according to a Harris Poll. Join BI Senior ESG Analyst Andy Stevenson and his guest, MIT Professor of Economic Geography and Regional Planning and founder of the Living Wage Calculator Amy Glasmeier, as they discuss what it means to earn a living wage, what percentage of Americans are living at or below the living wage, and how companies are responding to inflation-driven wage pressures to meet their employees basic needs. The episode was recorded on Oct. 2. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

COP28 wrapped up with some noteworthy outcomes. For the first time, the summit called for a transition away from fossil fuels, which was viewed as historic by some but as insufficient by others. BI had a chance to speak about the event’s successes and shortcomings with numerous experts, including Jeff Sternberg, technical director for the office of the CTO at Google Cloud; Linda-Eling Lee, founding director and head of the MSCI Sustainability Institute; and Angela Homsi, the founder of Ignite Power. Bloomberg Intelligence’s director of ESG research Eric Kane hosts the podcast, and is joined by BI analyst Shaheen Contractor to discuss the outcomes. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.