This week, we are returning to five stories we have already covered to see what progress has been made (if any!): The Adani Group and its attempt to address a short seller report that questioned the group’s governance that led to a massive loss in market share; the United Auto Workers strikes and the continued struggle in the auto industry; the Inflation Reduction Act and the trillions of dollars of capital is supports; what the EPA’s methane rule has done for the gas industry in the US; and how Exxon has changed after having three seats of its 12 member board taken by over by Engine No. 1, an activist investor worried about carbon emissions.

Companies are increasingly setting climate targets, but who’s keeping an eye on them? Using key indicators recommended by SBTi and GFANZ, we present a framework to assess whether firms are taking the necessary steps to achieve their targets.

While the energy crisis has boosted the energy sector overall, individual company performance has varied markedly. Our analysis shows that businesses with above-average strategies to manage a low-carbon transition outperformed.

As energy prices surged, oil and gas companies reported record profits in 2022. We discuss where this profit bonanza will end up and whether any of it will help the energy industry to transition away from fossil fuels.

The world of climate emissions’ measurement and reporting continues to be a moving target, and institutional investors face a number of obstacles. We explore these challenges, the important role of regulation and the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF) standard.

Abbott Laboratories is having to answer difficult questions after the F.D.A found its Michigan plant to be “egregiously unsanitary.” The plant closed after four infants became ill and two died after consuming Abbott’s baby formula that was made at the plant leading to a national formula shortage. We discussed what happened and why product quality and safety is such a key issue in ESG analysis. Then, we discussed the Australia election results which were heavily influenced by climate change concerns.

The SEC has proposed new requirements for U.S.-listed companies to disclose information on climate-related risks. We believe the framework may represent an opportunity to facilitate the transparency and standardization of climate-related goals.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has triggered a humanitarian crisis, international sanctions and raised Europe’s geopolitical stakes. For investors, it’s shown how ESG can add deeper dimensions to their questions and decisions. Whether it’s about drilling into the relationships between Europe’s oil majors and Russia, or Facebook taking on misinformation, or the social ripples created by fleeing refugees – we’ll get into all of it and more.

To address climate change, leading real estate funds and companies around the world are setting decarbonization and net-zero targets.

It is climate week this week in New York city. So, we decided to throw a climatepalooza for you all by examining the climate plans of three companies in the most the most pollutive industries. In this episode, we give you a roadmap for the climate plans that have been coming out this week and tell you what to pay attention to as you sort through a company’s emissions reduction plan.

A record-breaking heat bubble over the Pacific Northwest reminds us of the challenges that climate change holds in store. For North American oil pipelines, grassroots campaigns are leveraging global climate concerns to drive successful opposition to new pipeline projects. And in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ally Bank’s decision to scrap overdraft fees has raised interesting questions for the age-old banking industry in a time of rising inequality.

Companies are increasingly setting “net-zero” climate targets. In this guide, we offer an analytical framework to assess decarbonization targets, including net-zero targets. We find that it is not always easy to make valid comparisons.

Reporting on Scope 3 emissions continues to raise challenges for companies and institutional investors due to poor disclosure, data incompleteness and high volatility. Yet, these indirect upstream and downstream emissions tend to represent the largest share of a company’s – or a portfolio’s – total emissions. This report highlights the importance of comparable Scope 3 estimates when managing climate change risks facing investment portfolios.