Posts by lucidcapitalism
for better or worse, billionaires now guide climate policy
(Washington Post) They are not elected to any office. But in the fight against global warming, the world’s billionaires have more influence than many heads of state. As government struggles to move quickly to contain greenhouse gases, ultrawealthyinvestors and philanthropists are increasingly grabbing the reins, using their fortunes to guide the transition to cleaner energy toward their…
Read Morehow to use ‘negative’ thinking for positive outcomes
(Fast Company) Those of us who make things are idealistic. We see the beauty of how a new idea can change the world and we run after that vision. Sometimes, we put well-intentioned policies in place, or execute new programs, but don’t always think through all the ways they might impact customers, teams, or partners. …
Read Morevanguard quits climate alliance in blow to net zero project
(FT) Vanguard is pulling out of the main financial alliance on tackling climate change at a time when Republicans in the US have stepped up their attacks on financial institutions that they say are hostile to fossil fuels. Read more here.
Read Moresen. whitehouse: prove your ‘corporate political footprint
(GreenBiz) It’s not enough for companies to report about their financial activities and liabilities as required by law, according to Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse. Nor is it enough for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to demand, as expected soon, that businesses report about climate liabilities as well. Read more here.
Read Moreesg: it’s not ideology, it’s economics
(Forbes) A recent New York Times story looked at some of the new course offerings and concentrations at Harvard, Yale, and Wharton business schools, noting that they’re “stepping into the political arena.” The schools simply say curricula focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion and in environmental, social and governance factors are a response to shifting…
Read MoreInvestors launch new initiative to target the ‘S’ in ESG
(Financial Times) As the clean energy industry takes off – ushering in a new boom for the mining sector that serves it – it’s vital that human rights are not sidelined in the push for low-carbon power. That’s the logic behind a new collaborative initiative announced yesterday at the annual Principles for Responsible Investment conference.…
Read MoreThe Failure of the DEI-Industrial Complex
(Harvard Business Review) There’s a big, poorly kept secret in the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) industry: the actual efficacy of an uncomfortably large proportion of our “flagship” services, talking points, and interventions — unconscious bias training, racial sensitivity workshops, the “business case for diversity,” resume anonymization, and the like — is lower than many…
Read MoreDoesn’t anyone do due diligence any more?
(Financial Times) It’s been a lousy month for the reputation of professional investing. The collapse of FTX revealed that everyone from racy hedge funds to staid pension and sovereign wealth funds had been throwing money at a cryptocurrency exchange with weaker financial controls than Enron. Elizabeth Holmes was sentenced to 11 years in prison for…
Read MoreFederal Judge Orders Amazon to Stop Firing People for Organizing
(Vice) The order was a response to a petition filed by Gerald Bryson, a former Amazon employee who in 2020 was fired for protesting the company’s lack of safety protocols regarding COVID-19. Bryson worked at JFK8, the company’s Staten Island warehouse which has since become famous as the first Amazon facility to successfully unionize, earlier…
Read MoreJunk Carbon Offsets Are What Make These Big Companies ‘Carbon Neutral’
(Bloomberg) For more than a decade, Credit Suisse Group AG has claimed to be “carbon neutral” in its operations. Every gleaming office tower, every flight by an executive — all the emissions generated directly by a global banking giant are supposedly counterbalanced. A closer look at the Swiss bank’s sustainability reports tells a different story:…
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