Call To Action for Higher Education Climate Leadership

In February 2019, higher education leaders announced a Call to Action: Guiding Principles for Accelerating Equitable and Just Climate Solutions in response to the recent scientific reports that strongly advise unprecedented action in the next decade to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Institutions are signaling for ambitious cross-sector climate solutions that advance just and equitable sustainability practices on campuses and their surrounding communities.

Developed in coordination with presidents, chancellors, and trustees from higher education institutions of the Climate Leadership Network, the joint declaration took place at the 2019 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit, an annual event hosted by Second Nature and the Intentional Endowments Network (IEN). The call provides nine guiding principles for higher education institutions to accelerate climate leadership with socially inclusive initiatives and innovative cross-sector partnerships.

Presidents, Chancellors, Trustees, and others with authority to sign on behalf of the institution are invited to do so via the Online Sign-On Form. 

Statement of Investor Commitment to Support a Just Transition on Climate Change

PRI invites investors to sign on to a statement committing to support a just transition on climate change. Investors can make an important contribution as stewards of assets, allocators of capital and as influential voices in public policy to make sure that the transition produces inclusive and sustainable development

Investor Letter on Paid Sick Time 

Deadline January 7, 2022

ICCR calls on companies to disclose their paid sick time benefits for US workers, including part-time, subcontracted, and temporary workers. More than 26 million people working in the private sector have no access to paid sick days leaving working people in the United States facing an impossible choice when they are sick: stay home and risk their economic stability or go to work and risk their health and the public’s health. Sign letter here and contact Nadira Narine at [email protected] for questions.

Sign On Opportunity Advocating for Strong Job Standards and Positive Community Impacts In the Just Transition

Deadline January 28, 2022

ICCR recognizes that the global shift to net-zero requires an unprecedented economic transformation that will impact industries, jobs, and communities and calls on companies, investors, and policymakers to ensure this just transition supports a racially and economically equitable, decarbonized economy by prioritizing “high-road” jobs, respect for human rights, positive community impacts, and the remediation of harms.Learn more and sign up here. Contact Mary Hiebert at [email protected] with any questions you may have.

Sign-on 2021 Global Investor Statement to Governments on the Climate Crisis 

Deadline: Nov 12, 2021

Investors are a key influence on policymakers and, therefore, policy engagement by long-term investors is an important extension of these investors’ responsibilities and fiduciary duties to their beneficiaries. Please sign on to the 2021 Global Investor Statement to Governments on the Climate Crisis by submitting a form here. 

SEC Request for Input on Climate Change Disclosures

Deadline: June 14, 2021

SEC Acting Chair Allison Herren Lee, on March 15, 2021, issued a request for public input on improving Commission corporate disclosure requirements relating to climate change and environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters.  Commenters were encouraged to submit empirical data and other information on the materiality, costs and benefits of such disclosures. 

This presents a unique opportunity for endowments, foundations and other institutional investors.  The comment deadline is June 14, 2021.  Instructions for making submissions and copies of comments that have already been received are available here.

IEN encourages endowments, managers, and other investors to submit their own individualized letters.  

Please visit this page for guidance on key talking points to include, as well as links to other sign-on letters and resources. 

Investor Call for Ambitious Methane Regulation for the Oil and Gas Industry

Deadline: April 28, 2021

Join ICCR and Ceres invite you to join an investor call for methane and flaring regulations at the federal level in the U.S (attached). The call aims at supporting and encouraging the Biden administration in its move to roll back and restore, then reinforce and enforce strong methane regulations for the oil and gas industry. The oil and gas sector is a significant contributor of greenhouse gas emissions through methane emissions. Methane emission is a potent greenhouse gas 84 times more powerful than carbon dioxide in its first two decades after release. Researchers estimate that methane from human sources is responsible for at least a quarter of today’s warming.

If you are interested in signing this regulation please use this Sign on form.

Find the Summary backgrounder (or Detailed backgrounder) which provides detailed information. 

Please note: The AUM info will be provided in aggregate only to the public – we will not share individual organization names or AUM. If you have any questions, please email either Clausell Stokes of Ceres ([email protected])  or Stephanie Lavallato of ICCR ([email protected]).

Sign-on Letter for CA Climate Risk Disclosure 

 Deadline: May 7, 2021

California’s SB 449 would require business entities incorporated in the state to submit a TCFD-aligned, climate-related financial report. It would lead to the first mandatory TCFD aligned reporting in the U.S. The first reports would be due by the end of 2022. Demonstration of strong support from investors will be necessary to pass SB 449. To support this bill, see the sign-on letter and the link to sign-on.  Contact Sarah Sachs ([email protected]) and Jennifer Helfrich ([email protected]) with questions.

Sign-on Letter to Support Essential Principles for SEC Climate Change Disclosure Rulemaking

Deadline: May 21, 2021

The SEC has requested public input on climate change disclosures. Strong investor support is essential to encourage the SEC to begin a rulemaking to achieve consistent, comparable disclosure. The essential principles in the sign-on statement include basing disclosure rules on the TCFD, industry-specific metrics, emissions disclosure and inclusion in financial filings. To support the SEC, you can view the letter and sign-on.  Contact Billy Gridley, Director and Investor Policy Working Group lead ([email protected]) or Randi Mail  ([email protected]) with questions.

Sign-on Letter to Support Shareholder Activism at Exxon.

Deadline: Ongoing

For many years, Exxon has ignored both the desires of its key stakeholders and the financial risks and opportunities of the transition happening in energy markets toward cleaner, more sustainable forms of energy. As You Sow is working to help form a coalition of stakeholders to weigh in on the actual (and rumored) shareholder activism at ExxonMobil to promote capital disciple and address climate change. Please sign the form at this link to join the coalition.

Statement: Investor statement on sustainable protein supply chains

Deadline: Ongoing

The FAIRR Initiative invites investors to join this collaborative engagement, which will ask 25 global food retailers and manufacturers to set time-bound commitments to grow the share of nutritious plant-based and alternative proteins in their portfolios, and moderate consumption of animal-based ingredients. This initiative's mission is to enable a transition to healthy and sustainable diets. Companies targeted in the engagement include Conagra, Costco, General Mills, Kraft Heinz, Kroger, Nestle, Unilever and Walmart. The engagement is open to all FAIRR members. To join FAIRR, please contact [email protected]. Sign on to the investor statement here.

Statement: Investor statement regarding BlackRock's proxy voting record

Deadline: Ongoing

Change Finance has facilitated a statement requesting BlackRock change its Proxy Voting Guidelines to increase support of "climate-critical" shareholder resolutions. Currently there is a large disparity between CEO Larry Fink's public statements and BlackRock's support of climate-related shareholder resolutions. This statement asks BlackRock to review and remedy these proxy voting policies. Read the investor statement, sign on, and support the petition.

Statement: Investor statement regarding the need for corporate workplace equity transparency

Deadline: Ongoing

As You Sow has facilitated a statement focused on investors' needs for greater reporting of key data on diversity and inclusion efforts. This would allow investors to assess and compare the effectiveness of companies' workplace equity programs. View the current signatory list and sign on.

Unmasking Fidelity Campaign

Deadline: Ongoing

For the last two years, the Unmaking Fidelity Coalition has been challenging Fidelity's role in funneling millions of dollars through Donor Advisor Funds (DAFs) to white supremacist, anti-Muslim, anti-Black, anti-LGBTQ, anti-immigrant organizations. Institutional investors who custody funds at Fidelity may sign on to a campaign to challenge Fidelity’s role in funding these organizations by filling out this form. 

Deadline: Ongoing 

Join investors representing more than $538 billion in assets to support publicly traded companies in ending payment of the subminimum wage to all employees. Investors in publicly traded companies have an interest in reducing material risks to their portfolio companies. However, paying a subminimum wage results both in social harm and significant business risk. Sign the statement. 

Sign-on Investor Policy Recommendations Letter to President Biden 

Deadline: January 25, 2021

The incoming Administration presents an opportunity to accelerate the growth of sustainable finance and stakeholder capitalism and address significant issues facing the country. US SIF has talked about these recommendations with members of the Biden-Harris transition team and is also focusing on incoming appointees.  US SIF invites you to sign a letter encouraging the adoption of our recommendations. We will utilize this letter over the next several months as we reach out to members of the Biden Administration after the inauguration day on January 20. Deadline: January 19. Read the letter and sign on here.  Contact Bryan McGannon with any questions. 

Statement: Investor statement calling on federal government to respond to COVID-19 crisis

Deadline: September 11, 2020

US SIF has released a statement communicating concern regarding the lack of a comprehensive federal response to the COVID-19 crisis. The statement calls for immediate action to ensure the safety of the American people, to provide a consistent and safe framework for how various parts of the economy reopen and to lay the foundation for a more just and sustainable future. Read the letter to President Trump, House Speaker Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader McConnell and sign on.

Statement: Investor Statement on Religious Coexistence

Deadline: November 30, 2020

JLens, a faith-based investor that serves as the bridge between the Jewish community and the global responsible investing area, recently released a statement calling for greater religious tolerance. According to the FBI, hate crimes motivated by religious bias or prejudice recently reached a 15-year high. Corporations have an important role to play within their workforce, in their local communities, and across their products and services in promoting religious coexistence and combating bigotry and discrimination against religious minorities. This statement requests that companies incorporate religious coexistence best practices into DEI policies. Read the statement and sign on to signal your support. 

Statement: Investors release statement of solidarity and call to action to address systemic racism

Deadline: Ongoing

A group of investors from the Racial Justice Investing (RJI) Coalition have released a statement of solidarity and call to action to address systemic racism. The statement acknowledges the roots of systemic racism and the responsibilities of the investment community, and identifies specific strategies our community can use to dismantle systemic racism. Read the full statement and sign on to signal your support.

Comment Letters to DOL: Opposing proposed rule that reduces proxy voting

Deadline: October 5, 2020

On August 31st, the Department of Labor announced a new proposed rule on proxy voting by
fiduciaries of ERISA-governed retirement plans, “Fiduciary Duties Regarding Proxy Voting and
Shareholder Rights” (proposal text). The proposed rule intends to reduce proxy voting, especially on environmental and social issues. It sets up a dynamic where ERISA funds will be encouraged not to vote most proxies or to defer to corporate management recommendations when they do vote, out of fear of becoming
subject to regulatory investigations and DOL “harassment.”

IEN members are encouraged to read US SIF's Policy Action Toolkit and Comment Letter on the proposed rule, and share your concerns with your members of Congress.

Comment letters to DOL: Opposing proposed rule that revises fiduciary standard for ERISA-governed retirement plans

Deadline: July 30, 2020

The US Department of Labor (DOL) released a proposed rulemaking on June 23, 2020 that revises the fiduciary standard for ERISA-governed retirement plans. The proposal attempts to isolate environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria from other financially material information in investments covered under ERISA and implies that all ESG criteria are non-financial.

IEN members are encouraged to submit a comment letter online, opposing the proposed rule to the DOL and to share your concerns with your members of Congress:

• Sample letter (to customize and send)
• Factsheet of supporting arguments
• US SIF's Rulemaking Toolkit

Statement: Investor statement to the business community on coronavirus response

Deadline: Ongoing

In the face of this global pandemic, we are all confronting considerable challenges, from our families and communities to our livelihoods and portfolios. Join other responsible investors in urging the business community to stand with us and take bold action to mitigate the worst threats to our society and markets. Read the full statement and sign on. 

Watch video to see the case for investor support and action throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Statement: Recommendations for the meat sector during COVID-19

Deadline: Ongoing

As meatpacking and poultry processing plants have emerged as hot spots for COVID-19, this sign on opportunity urges companies to put in place and monitor several recommendations to protect these workers. Read the full statement and sign on.

Statement: Investor statement on pharma disclosure surrounding COVID-19 vaccines

Deadline: August 4, 2020

ICCR has drafted a letter to 16 pharmaceutical companies requesting disclosure and commitments related to COVID-19 vaccines and treatments, public investment, and "commitment to the public good". You do not have to hold shares in the company to be a signatory. Read the statement and sign on.

Statement: Investors urge pharma companies to work collaboratively on Covid-19 response

Investor members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility have sent letters to the CEOs of fourteen pharmaceutical companies calling for a collaborative approach in the development of health technologies, including diagnostics, treatments and a vaccine in the global fight against COVID-19. More details here. 

Statement: Investor letter to Congress urging public country-by-country reporting (H.R. 5933/S. 1609)

Deadline: July 10, 2020

AFSCME's investor letter to Congress supports the Disclosure of Tax Havens and Offshoring Act (H.R. 5933/S. 1609), which would require country by country reporting for multinational companies. This bill would significantly increase the transparency of corporate tax practices by requiring large, publicly traded corporations to publicly disclose critical information- including profits, taxes, revenues, and tangible assets- on a country-by-country basis. Read the letter and sign on.

Statement: Investors request tobacco free media from streaming companies

Deadline: July 8, 2020

Recognizing the harmful health effects of children and teens' exposure to tobacco imagery in movies and TV shows, investors are requesting major entertainment media companies with video-on-demand services to adopt policies and practices that eliminate youth exposure. Read the letter, see appendix listing recommendations from the University of California San Francisco for Tobacco Research and Education, and sign on.

Statement: Investors call on SEC to require COVID Disclosure

Deadline: June 12, 2020

Americans for Financial Reform have sent a letter to the SEC urging the Commission to require public companies to disclose information related to their response to the pandemic. The letter calls on the SEC to institute disclosure requirements related to worker protections, executive compensation and supply chain risks, among other things, in light of the current crisis. Read the letter and sign-on here.

UPDATE to Rule 14a-8: SEC poised to enact regulations limiting shareholder rights in Spring 2020

IEN calls for its members to submit a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or members of Congress urging the SEC to not move forward with voting on the controversial proposed regulations limiting shareholder rights, especially during a time of market uncertainty due to the COVID-19 crisis. 

Write to:

Vanessa A. Countryman: Secretary, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549-1090, with reference to File No. S7-23-19

Members of Congress: Send letter to your Congressional Representatives. If you have someone who represents you on the Senate Banking Committee or the House Financial Services, please make sure to share letter with them. 

Watch video to learn how investors are taking action against SEC proposals. 

Read more about the proposed changes here and learn how you can take action. 

Statement: US SIF statement opposing proposed changes to Rule 14a-8 and proxy advisors

US SIF: The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment today shared the following statement about two proposals the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued today.  One proposal would change rule 14a-8, the regulation that spells out the rights shareholders have to raise substantive issues of concern at the annual meetings of the companies in which they invest.  The second proposal would impose additional requirements on independent proxy advisory firms that provide recommendations to investors on the voting items at the meetings of publicly traded companies.

The proposed changes to the 14a-8 rule would limit shareholders’ ability to file resolutions at the annual meetings of publicly traded companies.  Under the existing rule, the minimum stock ownership necessary to file a resolution at a corporation’s annual meeting is $2,000, which must be held for at least one year.  The SEC is proposing instead that shareholders would have to own $25,000 of the target company’s stock for at least one year (a 1,200% increase), or $15,000 for at least two years.  Smaller shareholders who own at least $2,000 but less than $15,000 worth of the company’s stock would have to wait three years to file a resolution.

The SEC also proposes to change how much support a resolution must win—measured by the percentage of the shares voted—in order to be resubmitted in subsequent years. The proposal changes these thresholds from 3 percent (first  year), 6 percent (second year) and 10 percent (third and subsequent years) to 5 percent, 15 percent and 25 percent  Moreover, proposals that win more than 25 percent (but less than 50 percent) support may be excluded in a subsequent year if the support drops by 10 percent from the previous year’s level.     

The SEC’s second proposed rule would require proxy advisory firms to give the issuers they cover the opportunity to review and comment on the proxy advice before it is issued. It would also allow issuers to include a link to the issuers’ views when proxy advice is sent to recipients.

Investor Statement of Access to Medicine Index

Deadline: Ongoing

With governments around the world struggling to limit the increasing costs of healthcare budgets, it is clear that how pharmaceutical companies manage access-to-medicine risks and opportunities is material to their investors. The Access to Medicine Index is one of the most credible sources of information about how 20 of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies manage a range of value drivers within their business, including pricing models, R&D, governance and compliance. The 6th Access to Medicine Index was published in November 2018.

The Access to Medicine Foundation invites the investor community, including college and university endowments, to sign on the Investor Statement of the Access to Medicine Index, committing to take into account the analysis generated from the Index in their ESG analysis and engagement with pharmaceutical companies. To date, 89 investors collectively managing assets in excess of USD 11 trillion have already signed the Statement.

Global Investor Statement to Governments on Climate Change

Deadline: November 22, 2019

In the run-up to the UN Secretary-General’s Climate Action Summit in September, Ceres is looking for investors to sign on to their Global Investor Statement to Governments on Climate Change. 

The statement – signed currently by a record number of investors – declares strong investor support for the Paris Agreement and the implementation of its goals. It calls on governments to:

• Achieve the Paris Agreement’s goals;
• Accelerate private sector investment into the low carbon transition; and
• Commit to improve climate-related financial reporting.

The statement was sent to the leaders of the G20 nations and re-launched publicly in advance of the G20 Summit in Osaka in June 2019. It will be updated and showcased at the UN Secretary General’s Climate Change Summit in New York in September, and will subsequently form the basis on engagements with governments in the run-up to COP25 in Santiago in December.  Your support for this statement would be a valuable addition to the significant base of existing signatories, at a key moment in the international climate negotiations.

To add your organization’s name to the statement, please complete the short form at this link: https://theinvestoragenda.org/areas-of-impact/policy-advocacy/

There is no cost to sign the statement and no further actions are required of signatories.  The statement will be signed by organization names only – not individuals (no actual signatures are needed).

This statement was drafted through a collaboration among seven groups, under the auspices of the Investor Agenda: the Asia Investor Group on Climate Change (AIGCC), CDP, Ceres, the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC), the Investor Group on Climate Change (IGCC), the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) and UNEP-FI. The statement is final, and no further changes can be made.
 
By signing the statement, you consent to your organization being listed as active under the policy advocacy focus area of the Investor Agenda.
 

In addition to signing the global investor statement, we strongly encourage you to take action in the other areas of The Investor Agenda: Investment, Corporate Engagement, and Investor Disclosure. Taking action in all four areas sends an important signal to governments that investors are being ambitious in their action on climate change and are seizing the opportunities associated with the low carbon transition.

If you have any questions or need additional information, please email Chris Fox at [email protected].

Investor Expectations on Corporate Climate Lobbying

Deadline: August 23, 2019

Add your organization's name to a list of supporters of the statement, “Investor Expectations on Corporate Lobbying on Climate Change.”

To sign your organization onto the letter, follow this link by August 23rd, 2019. 

Shareholder engagement with companies on climate lobbying has the potential to be even more impactful since the launch of the Climate Action 100+ initiative in 2018 and other important milestones including:

• An active initiative in Europe where investors addressed 55 CA100+ focus companies. Through the European Investor Expectations on Corporate Climate Lobbying, investors urged companies to pledge to ensure their climate-related lobbying was consistent with the Paris Accord and to review the climate lobbying of their trade associations;
• Over 10 European firms have committed to ensure their own public policy advocacy is consistent with the Paris Accord and review their trade associations in line with these Investor Expectations, including Shell, BP, and Equinor. In fact, Shell moved quickly on its pledge by publishing a report on 19 major global trade associations of which it is a member, ending membership in one and putting others on notice because of their climate lobbying;
• Increased public attention in the U.S. on climate lobbying -- stimulated by discussions of climate legislation at the federal and state level from New York State to Oregon;
• New York City Comptroller’s shareholder resolution at Ford and GM, as well as an investor letter to GM asking them to actively lobby in support of CAFE standards resulting in 19 auto companies writing to the US president and the State of California in support;
• Increasing active leadership by many companies to lobby positively for forwarding-looking government action on climate -- For example, Ceres helped coordinate a lobbying day by companies in Washington, DC in May with companies like BP, Johnson & Johnson, Microsoft and PepsiCo visiting members of Congress to advocate for government action and a price on carbon.

The Investor Expectations statement will go to the 47 US-based CA100+ focus companies. Each individual company letter will be sent to the CEO with copies to additional people we have been working with in the company. 

The US Investor Expectations on Climate Lobbying letter initiative is being coordinated by Ceres staff with assistance from Walden Asset Management and BNP Paribas Asset Management.

Contact Timothy Smith, Director of ESG Shareowner Engagement, Walden Asset Management [email protected] for more information. 

Letter to JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon

Deadline: June 17, 2019

The First Affirmative Financial Network invites institutional investors to sign this open letter to Mr. Jamie Dimon, CEO and Chairman of J.P. Morgan Chase regarding serious investor concerns about the bank's approach to climate change. The impetus for this campaign was generated by the Rainforest Action Network's recent report, Banking on Climate Change. 

The bank's position as the leading lender and underwriter to fossil fuel companies by a large margin, including extensive financing of companies that are investing in new reserves and fossil fuel infrastructure, is not compatible with the goals of the Paris agreement– an agreement that the bank claims to support. Mr. Dimon has also made recent statements that indicate his belief that climate change does not pose a direct risk to the financial system, a belief that is completely out of step with his peers.

The letter asks JPMorgan Chase to take action steps to ensure that the company’s financing is — as called for in the Paris Agreement — “consistent with a pathway toward low greenhouse gas emissions.”

As You Sow's Investor Statement Regarding the Need for Corporate Gender Equity Transparency

Deadline: May 3, 2019

As You Sow invites investors to sign onto the investor statement focused on increasing corporate disclosures related to gender equity. Currently, investors have a paucity of gender and workplace equity data. According to Equileap, an Amsterdam based non-profit gender research aggregator, only 37% of desired gender equality data is publicly reported. Data is lacking across 19 gender equality criteria, including the gender balance of the workforce and executive team, equal pay, parental leave, non-discriminatory hiring and promotion, and supply chain safety. Equileap's research is used to create an annual global ranking of companies leading the way in gender equity. This data set is essential to As You Sow's Gender Equality Funds. The sign-on letter encourages companies to take seriously the need to report publicly on key gender equity indicators. As You Sow will need a signatory name, your organization, and your AUM (which will only be released in aggregate). 

Investor Statement on Workplace Equity Transparency