Almonds, Carbon Pricing, ESG Futures, Diversity, and Awards
Here are 5 ESG insights you might have missed this week:
Almonds Swept California Farms. Then the Water Ran Out.-
Drought-stricken farmers pull out almond orchards, scrap planting plans: ‘We’re grinding up trees as we speak’.
California’s current drought came on fast, and not long after the previous one ended, forcing some almond farmers to bulldoze thousands of acres’ worth of orchards that cannot be irrigated.
The drought, which began last year, has spread across nearly all of the western U.S. Combined with looming restrictions on groundwater usage, it is prompting a reckoning in California’s $6 billion almond industry, which grows about 80% of the world’s supply. The situation is reshaping the state’s food sector, forcing farmers to reassess which crops they will have the water to produce, and where. It is also challenging food-company executives tasked with keeping grocery store shelves filled when reservoirs or wells run dry.
Source: https://www.wsj.com/articles/almonds-swept-california-farms-then-the-water-ran-out-11625490000
Discussion Paper On Governmental Carbon-Pricing-
Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance argues for binding carbon-price corridor.
Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance calls for strengthening of carbon-pricing regulations; mechanisms to escalate binding carbon-price floor/ ceiling and suggests trebling of carbon prices by 2030 to achieve net zero, while also considering just transition.
As global asset owners in the Alliance currently responsible for 6.6 trillion US dollars on behalf of our clients and beneficiaries and jointly committed to leveraging our portfolios to limit global warming to 1.5°C, we recognise the imperative to rapidly reduce global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions over this decade. This requires increasing mandatory regulation of emissions via a carbon-pricing mechanism in a socially responsible and internationally acceptable way.
Eurex Introduces Futures On ESG Fixed Income Indexes In Cooperation With Bloomberg-
Futures to be launched on both the Euro Corporate SRI Index and the Global Green Bond Index.
The new derivatives will allow asset managers and other market participants to further adapt their investment and trading strategies to comply with ESG mandates and optimally manage the risk of ESG-driven portfolios.
They also offer the possibility of generating additional alpha via synthetic exposure to ESG fixed income indexes. These new opportunities come alongside the benefits of price transparency and regulatory compliance via the Central Limit Order Book and CCP clearing.
CFA Institute Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Code-
CFA Institute has published a draft voluntary Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Code for the United States and Canada for public consultation.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion are crucial elements in the future of the investment industry and the success of investment firms. CFA Institute recognizes that a diversity of perspectives will lead to better investor outcomes; an inclusive investment industry will better serve our diverse society.
The Code outlines six key Principles within the following categories: Pipeline, Talent Acquisition, Promotion and Retention, Leadership, Influence and Measurement.
Source: https://www.cfainstitute.org/en/ethics-standards/codes/diversity-equity-inclusion
Nordic Fund KLP Excludes 16 Companies Over Links To Israeli Settlements in West Bank-
Norway's largest pension fund KLP said it would no longer invest in 16 companies including Alstom and Motorola because of their links to Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
A 2020 United Nations report said it had found 112 companies that have operations linked to the West Bank, captured by Israel in a 1967 war and now home to around 450,000 Israelis and 3 million Palestinians.
The companies, which span telecoms, banking, energy and construction, all help facilitate Israel's presence and therefore risk being complicit in breaches of international law, and against KLP's ethical guidelines, it said in a statement.
One more thing: From Environmental Finance- The 2021 Sustainable Investment Awards.
Find the full list of winners here: https://www.environmental-finance.com/content/awards/sustainable-investment-awards-2021/winners/
Do share your comments or the content you think our community should not miss!