With the vote at MUFG’s AGM on June 29, we closed one of the most dynamic shareholder seasons that North America and Europe have ever seen. After years of organizing by climate activists, NGOs, and progressive investors, this season we witnessed a revolt where shareholders finally claimed their power and showed deep frustration at companies failing to change course on climate.
Several years ago this announcement would have been considered a milestone, but considering it is 2022 and Vanguard is the biggest global investor in coal with $86 billion in industry holdings, this is simply the bare minimum.
Earlier this week, Saudi Aramco announced that BlackRock led a group of investors in a $15.5 billion investment in the oil & gas major’s pipeline network. This deal gives BlackRock Real Assets and its co-investors 49% ownership in Saudi Aramco’s newly formed subsidiary, Aramco Gas Pipelines Co.
Fink said a lot at the world’s biggest climate conference (and in the weeks leading up to it). Here’s why most of it wasn’t helpful.
There’s less than a week to go until COP26, the United Nations climate conference which some are calling the most important yet. As folks across the globe make their way to Glasgow, pressure is mounting to hold the corporations that are investing in, funding, and insuring climate destruction accountable. These actions are culminating in a global day of action on Friday, October 29th.
On Tuesday, October 19th, we read the exciting news that Vanguard, the world’s second largest asset manager and a leading investor in fossil fuels and deforestation, had committed to taking impressive steps to tackle its role in the climate crisis, steps that none of its industry peers have taken.
Vanguard, the world’s largest investor in coal and one of the two largest investors in oil and gas, needs to recognize the risks posed by investing in climate destruction and commit to taking bold action on climate, now. The Vanguard’s Very Big Problem campaign is calling on Vanguard to release plans by COP26 that outline how it will rapidly decarbonize along science-based targets.
By the end of the year, we anticipate BlackRock will release its interim target goal as part of its commitment to reach net zero by 2050. This interim target will represent the pace and ambition of BlackRock’s own efforts to decarbonize its portfolio by indicating what percentage of BlackRock’s overall assets under management will be net zero aligned by 2030.
Meaning, what percentage of companies in its portfolios a) have credible transition plans which lead to absolute emissions reductions in line with a 1.5°C pathway, b) are actively working on those plans, and c) are on track to hit the 2050 global target.
Last week, BlackRock released a 2020-2021 stewardship report detailing its engagement and proxy voting over the past year. While BlackRock’s engagement and proxy voting record improved thanks to Sandy Boss’s first year as Global Head of Investment Stewardship, it must go so much further.