United Nations Investor Summit on Climate Risk

by Meredith Benton, Associate Director of Social Research

A Riddle

Riddle: What do Walden staffers, New Mexico’s treasurer, the president of the AFL-CIO, the CEO of AIG, and the founder of the Skoll Foundation have in common? 

Need a hint? Add Vice President Al Gore to the mix.

Answer: This eclectic crew was at the February 14^th United Nations Investor Summit on Climate Risk. The third gathering of this biennial event brought together more than 250 organizations, representing an approximated $20 trillion in assets, all looking to better understand the role climate change might play in their investments. An extraordinary display of investor concern, the conference focused on the risks and opportunities presented by climate change and the need for greater corporate disclosure around this issue.

The morning opened with a sobering review of the science of climate change, followed by a discussion of the investment opportunities presented by energy efficiency, productivity, and clean energy. John Sweeney, president of the AFL-CIO, began the afternoon by emphasizing labor’s commitment to addressing climate change. He was followed by such notables as Abby Joseph Cohen, chief U.S. investment strategist, Goldman Sachs; Arlene Rockefeller, global equities CIO, State Street Global Advisors; Thomas DiNapoli, comptroller, State of New York; Bill Lockyer, treasurer, State of California, and Timothy Wirth, president of the United Nations Foundation. With a shared voice, each relayed the same message: Climate change is a business issue now. We need to take steps to prepare for, and ameliorate, its effects.

For those of us who have been working on climate change for years, with hopes of spreading the gospel to decisions makers like those listed above, the day was invigorating. We hope that the extensive investor focus on climate change demonstrated at this conference will help convince the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) that the time has come to issue guidance to companies about their responsibilities to provide data about their climate change policies, programs, and impacts. As was emphasized many times during the conference, the lack of clear, comparable, quantitative metrics continues to be a significant roadblock in the development of investment strategies that incorporate climate change concerns.