Library | Sustainable Finance Practices
Active ownership
Active ownership is a component of effective stewardship. It refers to how investors influence the behaviour and practices of investee companies (and, where relevant, borrowers or policyholders) through engagement, proxy voting, and, where necessary, escalation. The aim is to improve ESG performance, foster long-term value creation, and ensure responsible business conduct at the company level.
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Community engagement, nature and financial materiality: An evidence review on the financial effects of engagement with indigenous peoples and local communities on nature-related issues
This Shift report reviews the financial effects of corporate engagement with Indigenous Peoples and local communities on nature-related issues. Drawing on over 1,200 cases and approximately 40 publications, it finds that engagement quality is financially material, with poor engagement linked to significant operational, legal, and reputational costs.
Time to get real: Current and future best practice for investor engagement on climate policy
This report examines how institutional investors engage on climate policy and sets out guidance for best practice. Drawing on interviews with 70+ individuals and a survey of investors representing approximately USD 33 trillion in AUM, it calls for a shift from disclosure-focused engagement towards real economy policies, and identifies three field-building priorities.
TIIP: The Investment Integration Project
TIIP develops tools and advisory services for system-level investing, helping institutional investors manage systemic risks related to climate change and inequality.
The Ocean framework: An investor guide to navigating ocean risks and opportunities
This investor guide examines ocean-related risks and opportunities across nine ocean-dependent sectors. It outlines five key drivers of ocean degradation, introduces a seven-step portfolio assessment framework, and provides sector-specific engagement guidance for fisheries, aquaculture and maritime transportation.
The Swiss investors in the ICE system
This BreakFree Suisse research note examines Swiss institutional investors — including UBS, SNB, Zurich Insurance, and others — holding billions of dollars in US ICE contractors Palantir, AT&T, Geo Group, and CoreCivic. The report argues these investments conflict with the investors' stated human rights policies and ESG commitments.
Red lines in the Abyss: Growing financier concern over deep-sea mining
This report maps 82 financial institutions — representing approximately EUR 24 trillion in combined assets — that have excluded or expressed concern over deep-sea mining. Published by Seas At Risk and the Deep Sea Mining Campaign, it charts growing financier momentum against deep-sea mining and calls for explicit exclusion policies from both financial institutions and governments.
Excessive executive compensation: Investor guidance
Published by ICCR in April 2026, this report provides investor guidance on addressing excessive executive compensation. It outlines proxy voting guidelines, pay thresholds, and stewardship frameworks to help investors challenge the growing gap between CEO and worker pay, and promote greater accountability and long-term value creation.
The benefits of access: Evidence from private meetings with portfolio firms
This paper analyses over 4,700 private meetings between a large active asset manager and portfolio firms using proprietary data from Standard Life Investments (2007–2015). Meetings transmit soft information that influences analyst recommendations and fund manager trading, generating statistically significant abnormal returns and profitable trading decisions.
Voice without influence? Global investor voting rationale disclosures in Korea
This study examines whether global institutional investors’ voting rationale disclosures influence Korean firms’ gender diversity and climate-related policies. It finds stronger investor focus on board gender diversity than climate risk, limited influence on large firms, greater impact on smaller firms’ emissions reductions, and evidence that voting rationales affect the credibility of sustainability reporting.
Beyond net zero: The rise of transition plans and what they tell investors
This Sustainable Fitch report examines the rise of corporate transition plans, driven by regulatory requirements and investor demand. It reviews six mainstream transition planning frameworks, finding alignment on core principles but variation in detail, and analyses around 40 entities, revealing strong Scope 1 and 2 targets but patchy Scope 3 commitments and limited transition revenue.
Investing in the arms race: The companies building nuclear weapons and their financiers
This report analyses 25 companies producing nuclear weapons and their financial backers. Highlighting over $1 trillion in total investments and financing from 301 institutions, it urges the financial sector to use its leverage to reject nuclear armament and make choices that benefit global security and humanity.
Socially-minded investors and corporate behavior
This report examines whether socially-minded investors influence corporate behaviour through voting, managerial incentives, or identity investing. It concludes that existing channels offer limited impact and evaluates potential legal reforms, such as binding shareholder votes and mandatory disclosures, to better align corporate actions with these investors' preferences.
2025 Water sector engagement report
Royal London Asset Management's 2025 report presents findings from a two-year engagement programme with 11 UK water utility companies across four pillars: climate change adaptation, biodiversity, affordability, and antimicrobial resistance. Nearly all companies showed improvement from baseline scores, with biodiversity recording the most notable progress.
Optional shareholder voting
This paper examines optional shareholder voting by institutional managers (IMs) using newly available SEC data on say-on-pay votes. Only 44% of IMs vote, yet their aggregate voting footprint is twice that of mutual funds. IMs use voting as a monitoring tool, with larger positions associated with greater opposition to management.
Cracking the code: Using nature data to understand the impact of the ASX200
This report analyses the nature-related impacts of Australia's ASX200 companies. It finds that utilities, energy, and materials sectors exert the highest direct environmental pressures, whereas financials and retail sectors possess significant supply chain impacts. The report advocates for TNFD-aligned disclosures and proactive investor stewardship to mitigate systemic risks.
Corporate engagement guide: Addressing deforestation in Australia
This corporate engagement guide provides institutional investors with a step-by-step pathway to address deforestation within Australia's largest listed supermarkets and banks. It evaluates the current progress of major companies and offers actionable guidance to implement robust deforestation-free commitments, safeguard financial stability, and mitigate systemic economic risks.