Impact News

Paris-based financial services group Societe Generale announced today that it has achieved a series of its sustainable finance goals ahead of schedule – including its goal to facilitate €300 billion of financing for environmental and social activities between 2020 and 2025 – and unveiled a new sustainable finance target of €500 billion from 2024 to […]

Mercedes-Benz announced an update to its sustainability strategy, with the company shifting to focus on a set of six key strategic environment, social and corporate governance topics assessed to have a significant impact on the company’s stakeholders and society. The new focus areas, presented at the company’s 17th Mercedes-Benz Sustainability Dialogue, include Decarbonisation, Resource Use […]

The European Council announced that it has given final approval for the establishment of the first EU-level certification framework for permanent carbon removals, carbon farming and carbon storage in products, creating a voluntary framework aimed at craeing a certification system to quantify, monitor and verify carbon removals, and to counter greenwashing. The adoption of the […]

The EU’s financial regulators announced the release of the results of the “Fit-For-55” climate stress test, examining the resilience of banks, investment funds and the pension and insurance sectors to the transition to a low carbon economy. The stress test found that while transition risks alone are unlikely to threaten financial stability, the sector could […]

The Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM) is emerging as an essential tool in combatting climate change, providing a way for companies and individuals to offset their carbon emissions. However, today’s VCM operates in a largely unregulated space, riddled with uncertainty, lack of transparency, and questions around the quality and reliability of carbon credits. This makes the […]

Environmental data provider Iceberg Data Lab (IDL) announced the launch of a new tool, aimed at enabling investors to measure their deforestation impact of companies, or the surface of forest which is destroyed by their activity each year. The tool currently covers 3,500 listed companies in the world, producing seven sensitive raw materials – beef […]

Climate solutions platform Watershed announced that it has facilitated the purchase of sustainable aviation fuel certificates (SAFc) on behalf of customers including BlackRock, Ripple, Samsara, and Block. These certificates will be utilized by the companies to supply sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to Alaska Airlines passenger flights. In return, the companies will receive carbon offset credits […]

EU member states in the European Council announced today that they have adopted new rules to regulate ESG ratings providers, aimed at improving the reliability and comparability of ESG ratings and boosting investor confidence in sustainable financial products.

This week in ESG news: SEC fines Invesco $17.5 million over ESG investing claims; IAASB releases first sustainability reporting assurance standards; EU lawmakers delay supply chain deforestation law; Shell wins appeal against landmark climate ruling; CDP strengthens alignment of sustainability reporting platform with GRI, EU standards; IKEA invests $1.6 billion to decarbonize store heating and […]

ESG wird zunehmend konkreter, wie die Heuer-Jahreskonferenz zum Thema zeigt. Während die Neuregelungen zum CO2-Emissionshandel die flächendeckende Umsetzung der energetischen Transformation beschleunigen dürften, ist das sozial ausgerichtete Investment noch eine Nische, da viele Gebäudeeigner den Dokumentationsbedarf scheuen. Der allerdings steigt durch die CSRD-Richtlinie der EU ohnehin.

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) announced the launch of the ISO ESG Implementation Principles, a new set of guidance aimed at enabling companies globally to improve ESG integration, performance, measurement and reporting. The new principles are being released, according to ISO, as companies face increasing ESG scrutiny and a substantial increase in ESG regulations, […]

IKEA parent INGKA Group announced that it is committing €1.5 billion (USD$1.6 billion) towards the acceleration of the phasing out of the use of fossil fuels for heating and cooling its stores, with investments in energy efficiency improvements and renewable heating and cooling technology. According to INGKA Group, the new investments will contribute towards the […]

Netherlands-based international food retailer Ahold Delhaize said that it has entered into a Virtual Power Purchase Agreement (VPPA) with Spanish renewable energy company Bruc, supporting the financing and construction of a cluster of five solar power plants in Seville, Spain. Supplying 460 GWh of power per year, the VPPA will cover approximately 30% of Ahold […]