Tag: Climate change

Climate change, environment, ESG, risk management, Socially Responsible Investing, SRI

Are all ESG funds “green”?

James Cox

The question is one that is asked frequently, and recently came up in a conversation with a new client. The quick answer is no…

Even when funds are labeled “green” or “ESG” it is important to understand that these labels mean different things to different managers and investors. Some focus on corporate governance, some focus on diversity and labor issues, some focus on shareholder activism, some focus on environmental issues. It is important to look deeper into your investments to make sure they align with your expectations and demands.

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Climate change, environment, ESG, retirement, risk management, Socially Responsible Investing, SRI

Divestment From Fossil Fuels Gathers Steam

James Cox

As an investor in today’s economy, you have a say in what companies you invest in and support. By investing in a company, you are effectively voting with your dollars.

By the same token, as an investor you also have the right to purposefully refuse to invest in a specific company or industry. Perhaps you disagree with their business model or you oppose the negative impacts they are having on society. This act of withholding investment is at the core of “Divestment”.

Without access to capital markets, fossil fuel companies cannot finance their operations. As fewer buyers come in to buy shares of fossil fuel companies, the potential value of these companies decline.

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Climate change, environment, ESG, risk management, Socially Responsible Investing, SRI, Veganism

Socially Responsible Investing Grows

James Cox

“Integrity is the essence of everything successful” -Buckminster Fuller

One of the benefits of the information age is the ability to make rational judgements about companies that you invest in. To the degree that a company fails to meet an investors expectations of what is acceptable, a company or industry becomes un-investable.

“Sustainable, responsible and impact investing (SRI) is an investment discipline that considers environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) criteria to generate long-term competitive financial returns and positive societal impact.” (1)

A recent study by the US Sustainable Investment Finance Foundation revealed the tremendous growth in sustainable investing.

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Climate change, environment, ESG, risk management, Socially Responsible Investing, SRI

What Role Do Moral Values Play in Investment Selection?

James Cox

As a financial advisor, I am constantly approached by mutual fund and ETF wholesalers who are selling their investment vehicles. Yesterday I was approached by a representative who offered a vehicle that invested and looked at company fundamentals in a way that I believe is important. Before we talked, I asked if these were funds that invest based on sustainable or ESG (environmental, social, and governance) criteria.

He said, “These funds rank very highly based on ESG ratings.” And when I looked at the Morningstar ratings, they did. However, when I dug deeper several red flags jumped out at me. First, nowhere on the fund prospectus do they mention using screening for sustainability or ESG concerns. The second red flag was when I looked at existing holdings… their top holding is one of the largest US oil companies.

This to me is non-negotiable.

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Climate change, environment, Veganism

How to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

James Cox

People are becoming increasingly aware of the consequences of climate change. In October of 2018 the UN Panel on Climate Change stated we have 12 years to halt the growth of CO2 if we hope to avoid the worst possible consequences of global warming. (1) Yet following the shutdown of the global economy in 2020, the release of CO2 has accelerated. “In 2021 global energy-related CO2 emissions are projected to rebound and grow by 4.8% as demand for coal, oil and gas rebounds with the economy. The increase of over 1 500 Mt CO2 would be the largest single increase since the carbon-intensive economic recovery from the global financial crisis more than a decade ago, it leaves global emissions in 2021 around 400 Mt CO2, or 1.2%, below the 2019 peak.” (2)

The concentration of CO2 (carbon dioxide) and methane are heating the atmosphere. Atmospheric CO2 in June 2023 stands at 424/ppm… In June 2021 it stood at 418/ppm. In June 2020 the figure stood at 416/ppm. Ten years ago, in June 2011, the measure stood at 390/ppm. (3) The rate of change is accelerating…

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Climate change, environment, risk management, Socially Responsible Investing, SRI

Greta Thunberg, David Hume, “State of Nature” and Climate Change

James Cox

The climate crisis is worsening…

June 2024 was the hottest month globally in recorded history. (6)

In a speech to the Austrian World Summit in June 2021, Greta Thunberg called out global leaders for their inaction. (1)

“During this time, more and more people around the world have woken up to the climate and ecological crisis, putting more and more pressure on you, the people in power. Eventually, the public pressure was too much and you had the world’s eyes on you. So you started to act…

Not acting as in taking climate action, but acting as in role playing, playing politics, playing with words and playing with our future, pretending to take responsibility, acting as saviors as you try to convince us that things are being taken care of.

Meanwhile the gap between your rhetoric and reality keeps growing wider and wider, and since the level of awareness is so low, you almost get away with it.”

Greta Thunberg raises a crucial issue that needs to be addressed for humanity to overcome the climate crisis…

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Climate change, environment, ESG, retirement, risk management, Socially Responsible Investing, Veganism

Veganism and Climate Change

James Cox

It is becoming increasing clear that humankind is driving climate change. Increasing temperatures, disastrous weather, and sea level rise are the result of rapidly rising levels of CO2 and methane.

Recent UN reports make clear that we need to take action immediately.

“We are at a crossroads. The decisions we make now can secure a livable future. We have the tools and know-how required to limit warming,” said IPCC Chair Hoesung Lee. (1)

“Climate change is the result of more than a century of unsustainable energy and land use, lifestyles and patterns of consumption and production,” said IPCC Working Group III Co-Chair Jim Skea. 

A recent UN report specifically outlined the impact that factory farms and animal agriculture is having on the environment.

“What we eat, and how that food is produced, affects our health but also the environment. Food needs to be grown and processed, transported, distributed, prepared, consumed, and sometimes disposed of. Each of these steps creates greenhouse gases that trap the sun’s heat and contribute to climate change. About a third of all human-caused greenhouse gas emissions is linked to food.” (2)
 

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Climate change, environment, ESG, risk management, Socially Responsible Investing, SRI

Energy, Economic Trends, and Effecting Change: A Review of the Economic Superorganism

James Cox

In his book “The Economic Superorganism”, Carey King outlines a novel system to organize economic decision making and to evaluate outcomes in a Climate Changed world. People are becoming increasingly aware of the consequences of climate change. In October of 2018 the IPCC (International Panel on Climate Change) stated we have 12 years to halt the growth of CO2 if we hope to avoid the worst possible consequences of global warming. (1) The fossil fuel industry is the primary driver of CO2 growth.

In the February 2022 update of the IPCC report stated, “This report is a dire warning about the consequences of inaction,” said Hoesung Lee, Chair of the IPCC. “It shows that climate change is a grave and mounting threat to our wellbeing and a healthy planet. Our actions today will shape how people adapt and nature responds to increasing climate risks.” (4)

“The world faces unavoidable multiple climate hazards over the next two decades with global warming of 1.5°C (2.7°F). Even temporarily exceeding this warming level will result in additional severe impacts, some of which will be irreversible. People and ecosystems least able to cope are being hardest hit, said scientists.”

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Climate change, environment

First Hand Insights on Climate Change Impacts in Bangladesh: An interview with Susmita Saha

James Cox

This is an updated reprint of a 2016 interview.

In February 2022 the IPCC (International Panel on Climate Change) released a dire warning. (1) “This report is a dire warning about the consequences of inaction,” said Hoesung Lee, Chair of the IPCC. “It shows that climate change is a grave and mounting threat to our wellbeing and a healthy planet. Our actions today will shape how people adapt and nature responds to increasing climate risks.”

“The world faces unavoidable multiple climate hazards over the next two decades with global warming of 1.5°C (2.7°F). Even temporarily exceeding this warming level will result in additional severe impacts, some of which will be irreversible. People and ecosystems least able to cope are being hardest hit, said scientists.”

This nightmare is becoming all too real. In April 2022 temperatures on the Indian subcontinent have reached new highs well before the start of the summer season. (2) “Temperatures in India remain high amid ongoing heat waves that have plagued the country with dry, sweltering weather since early spring. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) stated that its March maximum temperatures were the highest in nearly a century and a quarter, and rainfall was only running about a quarter to a third of normal.”

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Climate change, environment, ESG, retirement, risk management, Socially Responsible Investing

How Will COVID19 Potentially Affect the Climate Change Debate?

James Cox

As the severity of the COVID19 pandemic became clear to leaders in China in early 2020, the Chinese Communist Party announced the quarantine of over 800 million people and effectively closed down the economy of China. One of the effects of this shutdown was a dramatic drop in carbon emissions and air pollution.

Paul Monks, professor of air pollution at the University of Leicester, predicted there will be important lessons to learn. “We are now, inadvertently, conducting the largest-scale experiment ever seen,” he said. “Are we looking at what we might see in the future if we can move to a low-carbon economy? Not to denigrate the loss of life, but this might give us some hope from something terrible. To see what can be achieved.” (1)

“What I think will come out of this is a realization – because we are forced to – that there is considerable potential to change working practices and lifestyles. This challenges us in the future to think, do we really need to drive our car there or burn fuel for that,” said Monk.

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