Why It's Time for Boards to Take a Stand on Sustainability
by Dr. Bob Eccles, Chairman of ESG Quant Fund Manager, Arabesque Partners.
Originally published on Forbes.com
Executives at the world’s biggest companies, as well as those at the largest international asset owners and managers, are recognizing that “sustainability” is something that can no longer be compartmentalized in a specialist department that often has “second-class” citizenship status in the organization. Instead, material environmental, social, and governance (ESG) sustainability issues are increasingly being factored into corporate and investment strategies at the highest level. It is resulting in genuine sustainable strategies, instead of mere sustainability programs that are viewed as side shows to the company’s business. And evidence is mounting that sustainable strategies generate long-term financial returns. These strategies executed at scale by the world’s largest companies and investors will also contribute to planetary benefits, as laid out in the Sustainable Development Goals ratified by the Untied Nations in September 2015, and as committed to in the Paris COP21 climate change accords.
