Article originally published by The Guardian -by Miguel Santisteve and Will Martindale- A new study of listed companies shows a high presence of investors signed up to the Principles for Responsible Investment - what if they were to speak with one voice on sustainability? Far from ignoring issues such as the impact of climate change or the growth in social inequalities, there is a growing movement within the financial community to respond to these challenges by fostering responsible investments and businesses where long-term thinking is prioritised. According to recent research led by Miguel Santisteve, more than one-third of capital invested by asset managers in publicly-traded companies is
Climate change campaigners have welcomed the recent decision from AMP Capital, a Sydney-based asset manager with US$30bn equity assets under management, to exclude companies with a material exposure to the most intensive fossil fuels from its Responsible Investment Leaders (RIL) fund range. The investor reacted to client demand by amending the funds’ charter to ensure they avoid firms with more than 20% exposure to a range of fossil fuel factors. According to recent models developed by the Carbon Tracker initiative, only 20% of the total fossil fuel reserves can be burnt in the next decades if climate warming is to be kept under 2°C, therefore keeping emission under 450ppm. Climate change ex
Recent geopolitical turmoil and weaker-than-expected corporate earnings can quickly turn market sentiment negative and bring our focus too much into the "here and now." With that, we risk losing track of long-term value creation and sustainable profit growth. Inevitably, focusing the attention on short-term factors tends to disregard long-term outcomes. But what lessons can we learn beyond the world of fast money movers? By putting too much emphasis on short-term returns, investors contribute to what Dominic Barton at McKinsey calls "quarterly capitalism," casting a negative influence on a company's strategy. In Barton's 2011 article "Capitalism for the Long Term," he expresses that short-te
