Accelerating the Transition Towards Sustainable Investing

This white paper from the World Economic Forum (WEF) seeks to contribute to a global transition to sustainable investing.

From the introduction to the report:

Financial markets have great transformational power to accelerate the transition towards more sustainable business practices and value creation. Recognizing this pivotal role of financial markets, the World Economic Forum has embarked upon a cross-industry initiative to stimulate the integration of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into mainstream investment analysis.

 

The report focuses on the role of asset owners and asset managers as well as of corporations, governments, accounting bodies, investment advisors and other key stakeholders. It explores the role of active corporate governance as a key factor in driving the transition. The report also looks beyond functional changes (such as adapting incentive structures across the investment value chain) to encompass also the necessary mindset changes (such as approaching sustainability issues not only from a risk and compliance perspective, but also from an opportunity and value creation perspective).