Insights

All investing has impact. Here we share some insights about how and why.

An Objective Look at the EPA’s Proposed Power Plant Rule
ESG

An Objective Look at the EPA’s Proposed Power Plant Rule

Big problems require big solutions, and addressing the amount of carbon in our atmosphere is no exception. It is truly global in scale, with both significant investments and substantial economic impact an expectation whether we choose to work toward a solution or sit idle and see what happens.   We obviously don’t yet have a solution

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Protecting Value-Creation in M&A: ESG and Due Diligence
ESG

Protecting Value-Creation in M&A: ESG and Due Diligence

By now, it’s a given—investors, asset managers, corporate executives, and boards of directors know that environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors can affect a company’s financial performance and reputation (which affects financial performance). Both the persistent and growing demand among stakeholders for more ESG information and the increase in disclosure requirements in this arena reflect

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Do Retail Customers Want More ESG in their Shopping Carts
ESG

Do Retail Customers Want More ESG in their Shopping Carts?

Despite the blowback against environmental, social, and governance (ESG), studies consistently show that good ESG practices positively affect corporate profitability. But, as TriplePundit notes, it’s relatively easy to measure ESG-related cost savings (from things like improving energy efficiency or reducing employee turnover), but “assessing how sustainability efforts improve top-line growth is trickier.” In plain English, do

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ESG

ESG DATA – WHY IS THIS SO DIFFICULT?

Picture this scene: A child sits at a desk, slumped in his chair, arms crossed over his chest, a look of defeat on his face. “I can’t do these math problems,” he complains. “They’re too hard. I give up.” An adult who has been in waiting in the background steps closer and says… You can

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ESG

Is ESG Just Common Sense?

According to a new global survey of C-suite executives, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) efforts have slipped lower on corporate priority lists. The business media site edie.net (all lower-case), which serves sustainability, energy, and environmental professionals, reports that The Harris Poll surveyed more than 1,476 top-level executives in 16 countries for the second year and

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ESG

The Case for Ignoring Scope 3 Emissions

How focusing on Scope 1 and 2 emissions in the quest for better low-carbon products can create a real and meaningful pathway to net-zero. Fueled by a new generation of investors for whom ESG concerns are top priority, the number of investment products with a focus on sustainability is growing fast and the magnitude of

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ESG

What is a “Good” CSR Report?

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reports are a critical source of information for anyone interested in the actions a company is taking, and goals it has set, regarding environmental and social issues. But that doesn’t mean that most (or, from a cynic’s perspective, any) CSR reports are as helpful as they should be. We know, because

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ESG

For Consumers Who Care About Sustainability, Do “Green” Labels Actually Mean Anything?

Consumer products companies allocate a good deal of time, attention, and money to incorporate environmental and social responsibility into their business practices. They also make claims about sustainability on their product labels, social media posts, and other marketing materials. Studies show that sustainability credentials matter to many consumers, in terms of overall perceptions about a

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ESG

Why Analyzing ESG Metrics Is So Complicated

Want to analyze a public company’s financial condition? It takes about a minute to download audited financial statements that go back a number of years and use standard categories—assets, liabilities, equity, revenues, and expenses—with definitions that are reasonably well-understood (unless you get into the nuances of things like revenue recognition or accounting for property, plant

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ESG

It’s Time to Stop Politicizing “ESG”

The worst nuclear disaster in history, the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear plant meltdown, occurred because Soviet officials were certain the conditions that caused the explosion were impossible even though the exact same thing (something called Xenon poisoning) had taken place in 1983 at the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant in Lithuania, a plant with the same RBMK

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ESG

Word Choices about Sustainability and More

This title of a recent article in Reuters caught our eye: “Majority of global asset managers still not investing responsibly, ShareAction says.” The first line of the article goes on to say, “Global asset managers controlling trillions of dollars are failing to invest in a way that will protect climate, biodiversity, and people, despite efforts

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ESG

Net Zero Alliances in the Financial Sector

Alliances and initiatives can be powerful. Consider NATO, arguably the strongest, most important political alliance in the world. Global health initiatives are successfully combating diseases from AIDS to malaria to tuberculosis around the world. In the fight against climate change, a wide range of alliances and initiatives have been formed. In this article, we focus

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How can we help?

We work with all types of investment firms, corporations and fintech platforms around the world. Find out how OWL can meet your need for ESG data and analytics today.