The Magazine of Corporate Responsibility

Tag Archive for ‘Climate Change’

Getting Ready for Earth Day 2013

Organizers from Earth Day Network (EDN), the non-profit group dedicated to diversifying and mobilizing the environmental movement through planning and coordinating Earth Day activities and events around the world, have chosen “The Face of Climate Change” as the theme for 2013’s celebration on April 22.

Global Warming and Water Shortages in the U.S.

Climate change promises to have a very big impact on water supplies in the United States as well as around the world. A recent study commissioned by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a leading environmental group, and carried out by the consulting firm Tetra Tech found that one out of three counties across the contiguous U.S. should brace for water shortages by mid-century as a result of human induced climate change.

Executives Optimistic Sustainability Will Be “Core Strategy” for Business

Executives responsible for sustainability and corporate social responsibility programs at large companies are overwhelmingly optimistic that those initiatives will be part of the “core strategies and operations” of global businesses in the next five years, according to a new survey. Top priorities for those companies in the year ahead are human rights and workers’ rights, climate change, and the availability and quality of water on a global basis.

Proxy Voting for Sustainability

A sustainability advocate argues that it is illogical – and quite myopic – that many large institutional investors refer to shareholder resolutions on climate change and other material issues as “special interest,” “non-routine” or involving “special circumstances.” The opposite is true, she says: if companies aren’t addressing sustainability they won’t be producing long-term value for their shareholders.

Agriculture’s Impact on the Environment

What amazes many environmental advocates to this day is how the widespread adoption of synthetic chemical pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers for use in agriculture was dubbed the “Green Revolution,” when in fact this post-World War II paradigm shift in the way we produce food has wreaked untold havoc on the environment, food quality and human health.

Investors Press Companies on U.S. Chamber Board Roles

A group of investment organizations with about $43 billion in assets under management has sent letters to 35 major companies represented on the board of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, urging company managements “to evaluate their role and to assess the risks and benefits of Board membership.”

The Health Aspects of Environmental Issues

The realization that the pesticide-laced foods we eat, the smokestack-befouled air we breathe and the petrochemical-based products we use negatively affect our quality of life is a big part of the reason so many people have “gone green” in recent years.

Opinion: U.S. Chamber of Commerce and A Failure in Governance

Many leading companies strive to follow best practices in corporate governance, demonstrating responsiveness to investors and protecting shareowner value in the process. Paradoxically – argues a leading socially responsible investment executive – some of these same companies often appear to leave their commitment to corporate governance at the doorstep when they serve on the board of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Global Dimming vs. Global Warming

Global dimming is a less well-known but real phenomenon resulting from atmospheric pollution. The burning of fossil fuels by industry and internal combustion engines, in addition to releasing the carbon dioxide that collects and traps the sun’s heat within our atmosphere, causes the emission of so-called particulate pollution—composed primarily of sulphur dioxide, soot and ash.

Execs Optimistic on CSR Initiatives, Despite Economy

Business leaders responsible for corporate social responsibility and sustainability programs expect budgets and activity for corporate initiatives in the sector to hold steady or increase despite economic uncertainty, according to a new survey. Climate change was chosen more than any other issue as either a “significant” or “very significant” priority for companies.