COP29: What the conference offered climate activists, developing nations this year

A retrospective on what the annual climate summit offered the over 55,000 delegates and negotiators that descended onto Baku, Azerbaijan.

By Zoya Mirza • Dec. 6, 2024

Racial diversity falling among new corporate directors: Conference Board

The Securities and Exchange Commission is considering recommending a rule requiring companies to disclose more about diversity on their boards.

By Jim Tyson • Dec. 4, 2024

Explore the Trendline➔

Top 5 stories from ESG Dive

This year has shaped up to be a formative one for ESG, both on the regulatory and financial front, with the SEC’s climate disclosure rule and the battle over shareholder rights and proposal approvals.

By ESG Dive staff

Anti-ESG firm Strive launches direct indexing product

The firm said the new option will allow clients greater customization on their investments, “without regard to ESG or DEI restraints.”

By Lamar Johnson • Dec. 3, 2024

Homium’s new chief impact officer wants to build a homeownership asset class

Marcus Martin joined the sustainable homeownership financing firm earlier this month after spending the last four years leading the ESG practice for various divisions at U.S. Bank.

By Lamar Johnson • Nov. 27, 2024

Walmart joins growing list of companies rolling back DEI policies

A cultural moment all but forced employers to pivot to DEI in 2020. If the retailer's decision demonstrates anything, it is how far the pendulum has swung since then.

By Ryan Golden • Nov. 27, 2024

COP29 concludes with $300B climate finance deal critics deem as a ‘failure’

The climate summit ended with a goal to collectively provide “at least” $1.3 trillion in financing by 2035 to support climate-imperiled countries — which experts say falls short of what is actually needed.

By Zoya Mirza • Nov. 25, 2024

Investors urge Coca-Cola, Kraft Heinz, others to provide transparency on products’ health impact

Over 30 investors and asset managers asked top executives from leading food and beverage companies to annually disclose the “healthiness” of their products.

By Zoya Mirza • Nov. 21, 2024

Starbucks appoints former Mars sustainability exec as CSO

Marika McCauley Sine, who previously served as Mars’ global vice president of sustainability and chief sustainability officer, will oversee the coffee chain’s net-zero transition.

By Zoya Mirza • Nov. 20, 2024

Oil quartet including BP, Shell invest $500M in energy access, clean cooking

Equinor and Total Energies will join the companies to invest in energy and cooking solutions in Sub-Saharan Africa and South and Southeast Asia to help meet the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 7.

By Lamar Johnson • Nov. 20, 2024

Ben & Jerry’s sues parent company Unilever for stifling its stance on Gaza

The ice-cream maker said Unilever threatened to “dismantle” its independent board and sue its board members if it issued a statement calling for a “ceasefire” in the region.

By Zoya Mirza • Nov. 19, 2024

Vanguard’s updated investor proxy choice program includes anti-ESG voting option

Three new funds have been added to the program, and the firm also included an option for investors who want a “wealth-focused,” anti-ESG voting policy option.

By Lamar Johnson • Nov. 19, 2024

Trader Joe’s first unionized workers still don’t have a contract

More than two years after workers at the grocer's Hadley, Massachusetts, store voted to join Trader Joe’s United, the union has not finalized terms of their employment with the retailer, workers said.

By Sam Silverstein • Nov. 19, 2024

What COP29 entails for the global energy transition, business priorities

COP29 will be a “critical moment” in the global climate transition, further shaping the ESG landscape and motivating companies to ramp up sustainability initiatives, says Workiva’s chief sustainability officer.

By Mandi McReynolds • Nov. 13, 2024

Women’s health care benefits use linked to retention, productivity at workplace: analysis

Mental health benefits, followed by reproductive health services and maternity care, all helped reduce absences for women at work.

By Carolyn Crist • Nov. 12, 2024

Increasing sustainability and inclusivity top of mind for COP29, says summit’s chief operating officer

The Chief Operating Officer for COP29 details steps the summit’s planning committee has taken to cut emissions and ramp up accessibility at the Baku venue.

By Narmin Jarchalova • Nov. 11, 2024

How a second Trump presidency could impact DEI, employment actions

Employers are likely to see immigration raids, limitations on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, and agency chair replacements, experts at Littler predicted.

By Emilie Shumway • Nov. 6, 2024

Climate experts launch insurance nonprofit to curb natural disaster-associated risks

Insurance for Good aims to “harness risk transfer in support of social and environmental goals” and focus on improving disaster recovery within the United States.

By Zoya Mirza • Nov. 5, 2024

SEC says Vanguard can nix human rights shareholder proposals from 2025 proxy materials

The agency agreed that two sets of the firms’ funds can exclude a proposal to provide greater transparency to ensure their investments don’t “substantially contribute to genocide.”

By Lamar Johnson • Nov. 4, 2024

Election 2024: Harris, Trump present ‘diametrically opposed’ impacts on ESG

“A Harris administration would be more favorable for the interests of ESG investors whereas a Trump administration would be antagonistic,” according to Morningstar Indexes’ head of strategy.

By Lamar Johnson , Zoya Mirza • Nov. 1, 2024

New Jersey AG accuses Republic First of redlining

The failed lender originated 6% of its home loans to residents of majority-nonwhite neighborhoods between 2018 and 2022, the state found. The state filed a claim with the FDIC seeking remediation.

By Dan Ennis • Nov. 1, 2024

In the wake of increased scrutiny, ESG leaders aren’t backing down.

Amid a polarized political landscape, companies are beginning to view sustainability and corporate social responsibility through the same strategic lens.

By Sona Khosla • Oct. 31, 2024

Gender diversity on boards plateaus — but that’s not the full picture

It mirrors an ongoing trend in the diversity, equity and inclusion space, where interest and investments in equity seemed to be slowing.  

By Caroline Colvin • Oct. 29, 2024

ExxonMobil’s $816M verdict latest in series of rulings seeking environmental justice

No easing is in sight as companies face backlash for the impact their products have on the environment and public safety, a ruling shows. 

By Jennifer Paley • Oct. 28, 2024

House Democrats call on CEOs to support DEI amid increasing policy rollbacks

A group of 49 Congressional Democrats is urging senior executives of Fortune 1,000 companies to “reject division” and continue backing programs that boost diversity, equity and inclusion.

By Zoya Mirza • Oct. 18, 2024

DEI’s role in the Boeing 737 Max crash settlement case

The court wants briefs on how diversity programs at Boeing and the Justice Dept. would affect the choice of an outside compliance monitor.

By Justin Bachman • Oct. 18, 2024