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News Briefs |
S&P 500 Lags on Climate Disclosure, Electric Utilities Burning Economic Value Into Carbon
(02/05) Two recent reports use findings of the 2006 Carbon Disclosure Project to assess limits of transparency on climate risks and opportunities and drag on value creation at electric utilities. Proxy Votes on Sexual Orientation Nondiscrimination Draw Strong Support (02/05) Shareholder resolutions calling for equal rights for all employees at Commercial Metals and Micron highlight growing support for companies to include sexual orientation in their nondiscrimination policies. Top CEOs Address Climate Change (02/01) A collaboration between ten major US companies and four environmental organizations calls on the Federal government to quickly enact strong legislation to reduce greenhouse emissions. "Say on Pay" Highlighted in the Upcoming 2007 Proxy Season (01/30) Institutional investors band together, asking for the right to weigh in on top executive compensation packages. Inaugural Report Card Grades College Sustainability on Endowment and Campus Efforts (01/29) The Sustainable Endowments Institute study finds endowment sustainability lagging campus sustainability policies and initiatives. More News Articles
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Portfolio 21 Names its 2006 Top Ten Green Companies
Portfolio 21, a global mutual fund from Portland, OR, released its top ten money-making companies
that use environmentally conscious business strategies. Portfolio 21, created in 1999 and managed
by Progress Investment Management, invests in companies that provide services and products that
help create a sustainable society. The fund believes investors can make big returns when companies
follow business models that understand environmental constraints and risks. Portfolio 21 reported
that their top ten companies posted returns in 2006 from 41% to 131%. Vestas Wind Systems, Fuel
Systems Solutions, JM, Interface, British Land, Acciona, Ormat, Canon, Hewlett-Packard, and
Novozymes were the companies named by Portfolio 21.
Two Mutual Funds Guided by the Teachings of the Catholic Church to Merge
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan-based Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc, announced the proposed merger of
the Catholic Equity Fund into the Ave Maria Rising Dividend Fund (AVEDX). Catholic Equity Fund
shareholders still need to approve the merger although the boards of both funds have already
endorsed the move. At the end of 2006, Ave Maria Mutual Funds’ net assets totaled over $435
million. The mutual fund invests in companies that support the teachings of the Catholic Church.
Schwartz Investment Counsel is the advisor to Ave Maria Mutual Funds and Catholic Financial
Services Corporation, which is a subsidiary of the Catholic Knights of Milwaukee, WI.
Tesco CEO Pledges To Stimulate Green Consumption
On January 18 2007, Sir Terry Leahy, CEO of Tesco, Britain’s largest supermarket chain, spoke in London about
the long reaching effects of climate change. Addressing Forum for the Future and Tesco
Stakeholders, Leahy promised that Tesco would help create a low-carbon economy. Pointing out the
huge growth in sales of organic foods, Leahy said that consumers and companies could work together
towards sustainability. Making clear information available to consumers on the carbon cost of
products is one of Tesco’s goals. He announced that Tesco would track carbon use by developing a
Sustainable Consumption Institute with input from the Environmental Change Institute at Oxford
University.
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