Altiorem

Business as usual is unsustainable. Whether you are providing advice or evaluating companies to invest in, clients are increasingly interested in how their money is invested. In this context, it is time to consider the role of business and the assumptions about what business traits make a company an attractive investment. Part 1 of a two part series outlines the five unsustainable characteristics that need to be addressed if a business is to thrive in a sustainable economy.

Expert Guides are a community-built resource for members of the Altiorem library. These guides showcase the knowledge and perspectives of thought-leaders and deepen our community’s understanding of important sustainable finance topics. The aim of sharing these insights is to create positive change and expedite practical implementation. If you would like to write an expert guide or have a question, please email info@altiorem.org. More information coming soon!

Altiorem welcomes you to the next post within a regular series where we profile the inspiring and generous people who are making Altiorem possible. We are excited to introduce our intern profile on the amazing Liam Formosa.

This paper highlights the limitations and misalignment of current business models with the objectives of a sustainable economy as defined by the Doughnut Economics model. Drawing from case studies, the report investigates how business models need to change to fit into a sustainable economy, and presents a new framework for companies and investors to assess an organisation’s alignment with a sustainable economy.

Altiorem’s backbone is our community of volunteers who summarise every piece of content that is on Altiorem. We offer our volunteers and university interns the opportunity to grow their knowledge and their profile by researching and writing about ESG issues which are published in the Australian Shareholders’ Association and The Stockbrokers and Investment Advisers Association monthly magazines. We’ve anticipated that you’ll be looking for some lite sustainable finance reading over the holidays, so we’re sharing these articles with you.

The onus to uphold human rights across opaque, dynamic, and complex supply chains is often blurred across multiple actors, creating a situation of blame shifting and inaction. However, the impact of money affects more than just financial returns. Where we choose to invest or divest goes a long way in influencing a firm’s position on human rights. Shareholder pressure or divestment are powerful tools to influence companies to consider the people deep within their value chains and is an opportunity to improve workers’ wages and conditions while mitigating financial and reputational business risks. This article looks as what modern slavery is and provides resources for retail investors to help minimise modern slavery risks in their investment portfolio.

Last month, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology confirmed that we’re up for a ‘triple dip’ La Niña. This La Niña phase is likely to have already peaked and is expected to return to normal conditions by early next year. While the occurrence of two consecutive La Niña winters in the Northern Hemisphere is common, a Southern Hemisphere ‘triple dip‘ La Niña lasting three years in a row has only happened twice since 1950. This article explains what La Niña is and what it means for investors.

Nuclear power generates 70% of energy in France, 30% in Sweden and 19% in the US. Policies aiming to phase out nuclear power in Japan and South Korea have recently been reversed while 19 countries have nuclear reactors under construction. In Australia, however, nuclear energy has been banned since 1998. Do we need to rethink nuclear?

Gender equality continues to be a key issue that companies are being called on to address with public attention focused on issues like the gender pay gap, harassment, and a lack of representation. However, like other Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) issues, some companies have been accused of overstating their progress or ‘gender washing’.

The latest ASX Investor Study noted that women comprised 45% of total new investors over the 12-month period to March 2021, highlighting a positive uptick of female shareholders in the equity market, and progress toward enhancing women’s economic empowerment.