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Eurosif May 2013 Newsletter

04 May 2013

Eurosif May 2013 Newsletter

In this issue:
Call for sponsorship: Annual Event and first European SRI Symposium + Engagement study - Eurosif's first policy webinar and conference call - Call for action: Shareholder engagement case studies

Eurosif Update

Welcome Eurosif is happy to welcome EMG CSR Consultancy as a Member Affiliate. EMG is a boutique sustainability consultancy specialized in improving business performance driven by corporate and social responsibility. More information here. Eurosif is organising its first webinar and policy conference call on Tuesday, May 28, 2013 at 13.00 CEST. Eurosif’s Executive Manager, Francois Passant and Anders Nordheim, Eurosif’s Head of Research, will lead a discussion on Non - Financial Reporting and Long Term Investing. Member Affiliates are cordially invited to participate, to get an update on current policy developments and provide feedback. A separate agenda and dial-in details will be sent for the call in due time. Joint ACCA-AVIVA-EUROSIF Policy Event on Non-Financial Reporting This policy event will take place in the European Parliament under the patronage of MEPs Howitt and Baldassarre on June 4, 2013. Member Affiliates are invited to attend on a first come first served basis as the number of places are limited. Save the Date The Eurosif Annual Event combined with the first European SRI Symposium will take place this year in Brussels on September 24, 2013. Member Affiliates and SIFs are cordially invited to attend. All required details will be provided in due course. Call for action: Event sponsorship Opportunity to benefit from sponsoring Eurosif's established annual event and first European SRI Symposium in Brussels. This pan-European event provides an excellent opportunity to reach asset owners, industry professionals and EU officials, ensuring high brand visibility tailored to your requirements. Discover the full range of sponsorship opportunities, along with the benefits and reach provided. To discuss sponsorship opportunities contact: francois@eurosif.org Back to top

Eurosif Policy

On March 25, the European Commission (EC) launched the long-awaited Green Paper on the long-term financing of the European economy. Eurosif will develop a response to the paper in consultation with national SIFs and the Lobby Advisory Group. The first draft of the Eurosif response has been published on the Eurosif website in the Member Affiliate section. You can download the draft here On April 16, DG MARKT published a legislative proposalto amend the Accounting Directives on the disclosure of non-financial information by European companies. Eurosif has been actively advocating on this topic for many years and is pleased to see that some of its demands have been reflected in the proposal. Eurosif will continue to actively lobby the European institutions on this topic as the legislative process now shifts to the Parliament and the Council. On April 22, Eurosif spoke at a conference organised by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) on "Enhancing trust in European companies, improving investor confidence and facilitating long-term shareholder engagement– the role of high quality corporate governance and financial reporting”. On March 14, Eurosif presented the case for ESG at a meeting on Long-Term Investment and Pensions organised by the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS).The meeting covered the impact of Solvency II on asset allocations, the future EU-framework for personal pensions, and an update on the work on long-term investing by the Commission. For more information on key EU developments Eurosif is focusing on and Eurosif's policy actions refer to the latest edition of the EU Insider, available exclusively for our Member Affiliates. 

 

Eurosif Research

Call for action: Shareholder engagement case studies Eurosif is, in collaboration with national SIFs, preparing a study on the investor-company engagement process.Eurosif is therefore seeking 10-15 case studies on engagement to illustrate effective engagement processes and successful engagement outcomes. Member Affiliates and other parties interested in submitting a case-study should send a short outline of their proposal to research@eurosif.org no later than May 27. The study is scheduled for publication at Eurosif's European SRI Symposium in Brussels on September 24. Call for action: Study sponsorship Opportunity to sponsor Eurosif’s groundbreaking engagement study. To find out more about available sponsorship opportunities, contact: francois@eurosif.org

SIF News

FNG Sustainable Investment Market Report 2013 – Impressive market growth in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The growth trend in sustainable investments continued unabated in 2012. According to the Sustainable Investment Market Report published by Forum Nachhaltige Geldanlagen (FNG) in Berlin on May 13, Germany, Austria and Switzerland all recorded strong growth. Learn more here. FFS On May 10, FFS will held a seminar focused on private banking and SRI, featuring the Eurosif HNWI Study 2012 presentation; on May 16th FFS will promote a discussion on the role of pension funds in local development at Giornata Nazionale della Previdenza 2013. More details here. FIR New governance at French SIF: The Board is reduced to 12 members and ExCom has been abandoned. Newcomers at the Board are AG2R, La Mondiale and Préfon (Asset Owners) AXA IM (Asset Manager). Five permanent Committees are created: Advocacy, Engagement, General Public, Research, and Stakeholders Relation. Bertrand Fournier was re-elected President for 2 years. SPAINSIF The Executive Commission of Spainsif approved the 12th of March the strategic plan for 2013-2015 and it was presented to the media in April. The principal strategic goal is the promotion of the retail SRI, improving the demand and the offer of SRI retail products. More information here. Back to top

Member Affiliate News

Etica Sgr: highlights 2013 - The shareholder’s meeting approved the financial statements with a gross profit of € 425,000 and, for the first time, the distribution of a dividend per share of € 0.30. Positive net inflows (+ € 34,3 million) and growth of AUM (+ € 64,9 million). Further information here. EMG - NEW! Unique sustainability workshops & training courses 1.Get up-to-date on specific topics in the fast-moving field of sustainability 2.Understand crucial standards, guidelines and changing legislation 3.Assess and evaluate opportunities & threats relevant to your business 4.Brainstorm solutions with award-winning professionals in CSR Learn more on EMG here. MSCI and Barclays to create Global ESG Fixed Income Indices In May, MSCI Inc. a leading provider of investment decision support tools worldwide, and Barclays, publisher of leading broad market bond benchmarks, are launching a family of co-branded ESG fixed income indices. The combination of both organizations’ expertise will help institutional investors to apply ESG investment strategies to their bond portfolios. The ESG fixed income indices will be co-branded and independently marketed by both firms. MSCI and Barclays will host a series of global launch events in May / June 2013. More information here. Dexia AM’s Proxy Voting Report 2012 As responsible investor, Dexia AM paid particular attention to the corporate governance policies and practices of companies in which it invests on behalf of its clients. Dexia AM also welcomed the “Shareholder Spring” as a sign of shareholders assuming responsibility in the remuneration debate. More information here. FEE welcomed the European Commission's Proposal on disclosure of non-financial information as a step forward in the right direction. It added that Integrated Reporting is the most promising development to improve the quality of businesses' and investors' decision-making and help make our economy more sustainable and stable. More information here. New EU extractives transparency rules will be good for investors The European Parliament and the Council of Ministers reached an agreement on April 9 to introduce sweeping new rules for company accounts, including tough transparency rules for mining and energy firms. Responsible investors have for many years been engaging with countries to be more transparent about payment flows between companies and government agencies. More information here. Inrate Sustainability Breakfast in Zurich and Geneva: Active shareholders do vote - but in what? Since spring 2013, Inrate has been offering a new range of products for shareholder services. The breakfasts discussed how shareholders could raise important issues with companies, how they can execute their voting rights and how to integrate Corporate Governance into the sustainability debate. Summary and presentation here. Mercer: The third annual Global Investor Survey on Climate Change is due to close in early May with the findings report due to be launched in June. This year's survey has been circulated to members from four investor networks (IIGCC in Europe, INCR in North America, IGCC in Australia and New Zealand and the AIGCC in Asia) and will once again be analysed and compiled by Mercer. Clearer definitions for low carbon investments are a new feature this year, and the results for investment allocations in these areas should be of particular interest. The Sustainable Business Institute (SBI), publisher of the market platform www.sustainable-investment.org, has analysed the performance of app. 384 European retail funds using ESG criteria. Further information is available on the platform here.

 

 

 

Member Affiliate Research

The sustainability research of Bank Sarasin has published a new Sustainability Spotlight on desalination, a technology that is becoming increasingly important as global reserves of drinking water are drying up, while water consumption is rocketing at the same time. The study compares the different technologies available and their respective environmental impact. Free copies can be ordered from: media@sarasin.ch. Novethic has released its 10th exclusive survey of the French SRI Market showing that in 2012, SRI reached €149 billion in France. With a 29% growth over the year, the market is still buoyant. Concomitantly, Novethic has called for proposal to the 5th edition of its SRI Labelwhich is now opened to all UCITS funds. Sustainalytics releases report on Controversial Shipbreaking Sustainalytics' latest report, Controversial Shipbreaking Dismantles Investor Trust, looks at the risks associated with the most controversial forms of shipbreaking and the opportunities within the industry for responsible investors. Furthermore, the report examines the ship recycling industry and discusses the steps exposed companies can take to address the environmental and social issues related to shipbreaking. Download the full reporthere. “What are companies doing to prevent corruption?” The new study of Vigeo reveals the heterogeneous nature of the conceptions of “how to act.”It shows sector and country of origin aside, that administrative culture and the robustness of governance influence the relevance and efficiency of anti-corruption strategies. For more information

Events 5è RENCONTRE d'ACTUALITE L'ISR vers de nouvelles conquêtes 6 Juin 2013 Paris Plus d'informations ici Eurosif Member Affiliates will receive discount Geneva Forum for Sustainable Investment (GFSI) – Voxia Event 7 June 2013 Geneva More information here Free RI Europe 2013: the investor-corporate ESG Summit – Responsible Investor 11-12 June 2013 More information here Eurosif Member Affiliates will receive discount Zurich Forum for Sustainable Investment – Voxia Event 13 June 2013 Zurich More information here Free EIRIS 30th Anniversary Responsible Investment Conference & Celebration 25 September 2013 More information here 

SRI Jobs Are you interested in SRI? Eurosif is hiring: Head of EU Policy and Research. Unique opportunity to lead EU policy and research efforts of the leading pan-European Sustainable and Responsible Investment Association. More information here For details of current SRI jobs please see the jobs section of the Eurosif website. For more information. To Keep up to date with Eurosif Activities please follow us on Twitter @Eurosif

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