Green investors get timely reminder of their power
Generation spent months trying to shed light on hitherto poorly covered areas, such as emissions that occur when unlisted businesses or entities burn oil drilled by a Western major
Asset managers have a vital role in holding polluters to account. But critics often point out that focusing on companies listed on the stock market misses the carbon dioxide belched out by companies that are not listed.
New research by Generation Investment Management challenges this view. The fund manager co-founded by former US Vice President Al Gore reckons listed companies play a role in around 40% of the 57 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases emitted each year – double the level estimated by other research.
Generation spent months trying to shed light on hitherto poorly covered areas, such as emissions that occur when unlisted businesses or entities burn oil drilled by a Western major.
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The research doesn't include emissions by companies that borrow from large banks or are covered by insurers. So the percentage of global emissions that asset managers can influence could rise further. That makes it all the more important that they engage robustly with listed companies.
