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Pension funds plead for standardized ESG disclosures

4 years ago

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Heads of Canada’s eight largest pension funds, collectively responsible for $1.6 trillion in assets, are banding together for a rare joint request, pleading with corporations to improve their environmental, social and governance (ESG) disclosures by standardizing their reporting the data.

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Black Friday is here and for IKEA it has expanded launch of a program to buy back furniture in an effort to curb consumption. The programs are intended to discourage people from overconsuming says Jenn Keesson, sustainability manager, IKEA U.S.

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According to Just Capital, a NYC-based association that measures and promotes positive business practices, there’s one indicator the public considers most important in determining just what makes a company socially responsible: how companies invest in their workforce.

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TD Asset Management Inc. (TDAM) has become a founding institutional investor signatory to the Responsible Investment Association‘s (RIA) investor statement on diversity and inclusion which acknowledges systemic racism and its impacts on black, Indigenous communities and People of Colour.

Energy Profiles

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For the seventh consecutive year, TD Bank Group (TD) has been listed in the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index, a benchmark for environmental, social and economic performance, the only North American bank to be included in the shortlist of 25 banks.

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Bertrand Piccard of Solar Impulse Foundation said to 3,000 attendees at European Hydrogen Week: “What is so fascinating with hydrogen is the fact that it brings pioneers and innovators, it brings people who want to change the world. It’s a unique opportunity.”

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A Delta, Ohio coal plant is being replaced with state-of-the-art natural gas turbines ready for 30 per cent green hydrogen co-firing immediately. The plant is being future-proofed by Mitsubishi Power to be ready for 100 per cent green hydrogen by 2035.

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Opportunities abound for U.S. microgrids, but development lags frustrate microgrid adoption. Too many businesses and communities continue to struggle unnecessarily, with power outages. Industry leaders were asked for a call to action at the close of last week’s Microgrid 2020 Global.

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The oil and gas sector is facing increased pressure from investors, governments and civil society to show how it will help achieve the Paris Agreement objective of limiting the increase in global temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

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For the first time in history, there is the recognition that global oil demand may stop its unrelenting upward trend sooner rather than later, and instead begin to shrink. Canada’s oil industry needs to pay closer attention to remain competitive.

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Canada’s energy regulator says the country’s domestic fossil fuel consumption will have peaked in 2019 if the world continues along its trajectory of increased action on climate change through tougher policies and advancements in technology.

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Greenhouse gas concentrations climbed to a new record in 2019 and rose again this year despite an expected drop in emissions due to COVID-19 lockdowns that grounded planes, docked ships, and work from home, the World Meteorological Organization said this week.

Yardi Marketplace

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The first-ever MaRS Impact Week — five days of virtual talks, workshops and panels — will focus on technological solutions to climate change, as well as the pandemic’s impact on work and the tech sector, and the role of venture capital investment.

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Ontario is lagging behind its provincial peers in one important area: mass timber buildings. Opportunities for wood in construction, specifically through mass timber, will help address our climate and housing crises as well as assist in rebounding from pandemic-fuelled unemployment.

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The mayors of Oslo, Los Angeles, Mexico City and Budapest have pledged to halve emissions from all construction activities in their cities by 2030, in collaboration with leading companies and innovative business communities, through C40’s Clean Construction Declaration.

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If you want to predict where the renewable energy industry is headed, simply look toward the world’s largest technology companies. The tech titans — Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google and Microsoft — have long been at the forefront of corporate renewable energy procurement.

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Two First Nations groups are hoping to develop a $100 million geothermal power plant in B.C., but the project could be in jeopardy if it doesn’t receive provincial funding soon. The Clarke Lake geothermal generation plant would ultimately produce 15 MW.

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Boralex Inc. has signed a deal to buy controlling interests in seven solar power plants in the U.S. from Centaurus Renewable Energy LLC and other investors for $283 million including five solar plants in California, one each in Alabama and Indiana.

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Enel SpA plans to spend 70 billion euros ($109 billion Cdn), expanding its presence in wind and solar power in the coming decade, seeking to cement its position as the world’s largest renewable energy producer outside China.

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Hilton, an industry leader in hotels, resorts and cruise lines, earned top scores across the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI) assessment in three key areas including governance & economic, environmental and social performance for the fourth consecutive year.

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