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Registration Open for RIA F
oundation & Endowment Forum -
Toronto, October 17, 2016
Join us at Canada's first-ever foundation and endowment conference focused exclusively on responsible and impact investing. Learn how incorporating ESG factors into your organization's investment decisions can have a positive impact while managing risk and increasing long-term returns. Hear from leading foundations and endowments that have aligned their investment policies with their mission.
Early bird registration is now open
here
.
Sponsorship opportunities are here.
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2016 RIA Guide to Responsible Investment
Our 2016 Guide
is a valuable resource for investors, advisors, consultants and others who are interested in responsible investment products and services.
Download or order print copies
here
.
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RIA Membership Growth
The RIA's membership base continues to grow. Since our last newsletter, we've welcomed the following new members:
- New Sustaining Member: CIBC
- New Associate Members: Connor, Clark & Lunn (CC&L) Private Capital, Wealthsimple, CIBC Wood Gundy
- New Nonprofit Members: Ivey Foundation, SolarShare Co-operative, Canadian Environmental Grantmakers' Network
- Advisor Members: Fancy Ching, Christopher Garland, Andrew Johnson, Susan McArthur, Ian Runnalls
- Professional Members: Arnaud van Dijk, Catherine Gordon, Katharine Partridge, Clinton Schmaltz
View the full RIA Member list
here.
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RIA launches new designation
The RIA has introduced a new designation
for mutual fund advisors wishing to enhance their knowledge of responsible investment principles and products. The Responsible Investment Specialist (RIS) designation is now available to investment professionals who successfully complete the RIA's Canadian RI Fundamentals course.
See media coverage about our newest designation
here.
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RIA Insights: Deb Abbey on Corporate Governance
An investment's environmental and social impacts are among the most prominent issues that responsible investors consider when looking to invest in a company. But any RI analysis would be incomplete if it didn't incorporate a meaningful and in-depth review of a company's corporate governance.
Read RIA CEO Deb Abbey's article
here.
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RIA Launches ESG Webinar Series
The RIA launched a new webinar series in July with an overview of the
Morningstar Sustainability Rating for Funds
, featuring Jon Hale, Director of Sustainability Research at Morningstar, and Sarah Smith, Director of Institutional Relations at Sustainalytics.
A recording of the Morningstar webinar is available
here
.
Watch for announcements of future webinars in this newsletter and on our
Events page
.
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RIA Conference Wrap-Up
Many thanks to all of our sponsors, members, and partners who helped to make the 2016 RIA Conference a glowing success. Photos, slides, conference-related media and information on CE credits, are now available on the
2016 RIA conference page
.
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RI Job Postings
MSCI, Toronto
Manulife, Toronto
RBC GAM, Vancouver
CPP Investment Board, Toronto
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Canada's Newest Recipients of RI Certification
Congratulations to Canada's newest recipients of the RIA's financial designations in recognition of expertise in responsible investing:
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RI Industry News
RI market growth encourages retail investment
This article on the growth of the Canadian RI retail space features Fred Pinto from OceanRock Investments and Advisor Annette Quan. More.
AGF's Grosskopf and Kong discuss distinguishing fads from trends
Martin Grosskopf and Hyewon Kong,
portfolio managers of the AGF Global S
ustainable Growth Equity Fund, discuss their approach to RI.
More
.
Leading financial institutions still investing in cluster munitions producers
A report on explosive investments names four Canadian financial institutions on the list of 158 invested in producers of banned cluster munitions. In contrast, NEI Investments is the first Canadian financial institution named to the 'Hall of Fame' for its good practices.
More.
Pension funds back Western Sahara human rights resolution at PotashCorp
Several large Canadian pension funds voted in favour of a shareholder resolution co-filed by Meritas Jantzi Social Index Fund asking PotashCorp to report on the risks of its operations in the disputed Western Sahara region.
More.
Carney highlights financial potential of reining in carbon emissions
In
a discussion with Environment Minister Catherine McKenna at a recent Toronto Region Board of Trade event, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney pointed to opportunities for the financial sector to profit from global efforts to reduce carbon emissions. More.
Ontario pension plan touts ESG progress
While discussions continue over new requirements around ESG factors in Ontario, OPTrust has had provisions in place since 2007.
More.
The impact of Calgary's oil price crash on executive compensation
Executive compensation in Calgary's energy sector and oil and gas services sector took a significant downturn in 2015. In this article,
Michelle de Cordova shares NEI Investments' views on different approaches companies in these sectors have taken on this issue.
More
.
Kindred Credit Union recognized for community responsibility & sustainability
Kindred Credit Union was recognized with the 2016 National Credit Union Social Responsibility Award by the Canadian Credit Union Association.
More.
CoPower releases first Annual Community Report
Over the last year, CoPower's community of 70 investors collectively raised over $5 million to invest in community-scale clean energy projects such as solar rooftops or energy efficiency retrofits in Canada and the U.S. Read their report here.
BMG becomes PRI Signatory
Bullion Management Group, Inc. has committed to uphold the PRI's '6 Principles of Responsible Investment.' More
Investor Coalition Supports Business & Human Rights Benchmark
A coalition of over 80 investors, with $4.8 trillion in assets under management, has pledged support for the creation of the world's first wide-scale benchmark on companies' human rights policies, processes and practices.
More.
Report on the status of Responsible Investing in the U.S.
The US SIF Foundation has released its new report, "
The Impact of Sustainable and Responsible Investment," highlighting the state of Responsible Investing in the U.S. Download here.
European civil society groups join forces for responsible investment activism
UK-based ShareAction has joined forces with international think-tanks, campaign groups, NGOs, trade unions, and faith groups, to launch the European Responsible Investment Network (ERIN), an activist civil society movement for RI in Europe
.
More
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ESG News
Suncor Doubles Down on Oil-Sands Future
Suncor Energy Inc. is making the biggest bet on oil among the world's largest producers, notwithstanding the risk of an environmental backlash.
More.
Credit ratings agencies embrace more systematic consideration of ESG
Leading credit ratings agencies, including S&P and Moody's, are joining an initiative to look at ESG factors in a more systematic way.
More
.
Green Bonds: A Surging Market for Socially Responsible Investing
The green bond market could double in size this year, boosted by issuances fr
om China and U.S. corporations like Apple.
More
.
Google, Amazon and Apple are Forging the Future of Corporate Energy Management
As Apple and other corporations pursue new opportunities in energy managemen
t, their objectives generally include some combination of cost management, sustainability, predictable costs and resiliency.
More
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Research & Analysis
The Brexit: Assessing the ESG Implications
(Sustainalytics)
This ESG Spotlight Report examines
nine ESG issues and the likelihood of a change in the policy direction in a post-Brexit UK.
More
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Brexit Highlights the Risk of Capitalism without Inclusiveness (MSCI)
Linda-Eling Lee, Global Head of MSCI ESG Research, discusses how undercurrents from a tide of populist sentiment can influence asset prices over the long term.
More.
Preventing social and environmental dumping within international supply chains: the weak link in corporate social responsibility (Vigeo Eiris)
This new study evaluates the level of engagement demonstrated by management
of nearly 1300 companies and and the degree to which they report on the respect of international, social and environmental norms in their supply chain management.
More.
The Seven Pillars of Sustainability Leadership
(The Conference Board of Canada)
CEOs need to ramp
up communications about ESG issues even when Wall Street is more concerned with short-term financial performance like earnings per share. More.
Investor Climate Disclosure: Stitching Together Best Practices
(2 Degrees Investing Initiative)
This report looks at best practices in climate-related financial disclosure.
Download report.
Impact Donor Advised Funds (SVX, Tides Canada)
This paper looks at eight foundations that have reconfigured their donor advised funds - an emerging social finance instrument - to serve as a tool to facilitate both impact investing and grant making. More.
Engagement: Unlocking the Black Box of Value Creation
(Sustainalytics & Cass Business School)
A new study shows how engagement and ESG integration are interrelated.The findings reveal that managing the environmental and social impacts of engagement requires more attention.
More.
Investing for a Sustainable Future
(MIT Sloan Management Review)
This annual global survey of managers on corporate sustainability concludes, "I
t is time for corporate leaders to recognize that an increasing number of shareholders are (literally) invested in whether a company's ESG activities connect with its financial success." More.
The Indispensability of the Shareholder Value Corporation
(Mark T. Moore, University of Cambridge)
Most corporate law and governance scholars tend to agree that the overarching normative objective of corporate governance - and, by implication, corporate law - should be the maximization (or, at least, long-term enhancement) of shareholder wealth. More.
The Financial and Social Benefits of ESG Integration: Focus on Materiality
(Calvert Investments & George Serafeim, Harvard Business School)
This new study explores how systematic analysis of material ESG data may be able to help portfolio returns without adding additional risk. More.
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Viewpoints
Kevin Thomas: It's time for Canadian securities regulators to complete the Say on Pay picture
SHARE's Director of Shareholder Engagement discusses the limitations of Canada's regulators relying on voluntary adoption of
Say on Pay by individual firms. More.
Fred Pinto and Peter Chapman: Companies Need to do Due Diligence on Human Rights Abroad
When Potash began sourcing phosphate rock from the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara, OceanRock and SHARE filed a shareholder proposal asking the company to commission and publish a human-rights assessment of its sourcing.
More.
Eugene Ellman: $5-7 Trillion Needed Per Year for SDGs
The National Director of Oikocredit Canada discusses why investors should get behind the UN's Sustainable Development Goals.
More.
Kathy Bardswick: We Need to Ensure Canada's Financial System Remains Enviable
The president and CEO of The Co-operators Group believes Canada's financial system can be modernized to
support government mandates to meet our climate commitments.
More.
Betty-Anne Howard: Seven Outstanding Lessons I Learned... at the RIA Conference
RIA Advisor Member Betty-Anne Howard recounts her top takeaways from this year's RIA Conference in Toronto.
More.
Antonio Vives: Is Competition Between Sustainability Reporting Standards Healthy?
Competition in well-functioning markets tends to increase product innovation and quality and lower prices, but is this the case in the market for sustainability information?
More.
Jean Paul Gladu: Northern Gateway Decision Confirms Modern Expectations for Aboriginal Development Projects
Canadian business can no longer view the duty to consult as simply a legal obligation that must be met, or just another box to be ticked along the way.
More.
The Evolution of ESG: An Interview with Erika Karp
RIA Conference keynote speaker Erika Karp, founder of Cornerstone Capital Group, shares her thoughts on the current state of RI.
More.
BlackRock ViewPoint: "Exploring ESG: A Practitioner's Perspective"
The fund management giant believes that ESG issues of relevance to business performance should be integrated into fundamental company communications, publication and disclosures.
Download here.
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Products & Services
New Offerings from RIA Members
Desjardins adds three new funds to its
SocieTerra product line
The Desjardins Group has added three new investment funds: the Desjardins SocieTerra Environmental Bond Fund, the Desjardins SocieTerra Cleantech Fund and the Desjardins SocieTerra American Equity Fund, the former two being the first of their kind in Canada. More.
Wealthsimple Launches Advisors Platform
Wealthsimple, which recently introduced a series of Responsible Investment portfolios, has now launched Wealthsimple for Advisors,
allowing advisors to offer a fully digital investment management experience to smaller accounts and non-core clients.
More
.
Request for Insights: CoPower Customer Discovery Interviews
CoPower is
seeking input from their target audiences to help them improve their products and processes. Advisors willing to share their thoughts on RI and impact investing can contact Trish Nixon (trish.nixon@copower.me) to arrange a phone or in-person interview.
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Policy & Legal News
Consultation: Reviewing federal environmental assessment processes and modernizing the National Energy Board
The Government of Canada has invited public comments on an Expert Panel's Draft Terms of Reference for its Environmental Assessment Processes and the Nat
ional Energy Board Modernization.
More
.
Consultation: PEI Climate Change Mitigation Strategy
Prince Edward Island has invited public participation in developing its climate change mitigation strategy, including asking for feedback on carbon pricing models.
More.
PRI Consultation: Sustainable Financial System, Principles, Impact
This consultation has four objectives, including whether and the extent to which the PRI should use the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a framework to encourage and measure the 'real world' impact of RI activity on the environment and society.
More.
CSA Consultation Paper 33-404: Proposals to Enhance the Obligations of Advisers,
Dealers, and Representatives toward their Clients
Deadline: August 26
Comments are welcome on this proposed regulatory action aimed at enhancing the obligations of advisers, dealers and representatives toward their clients, including the taking reasonable steps to know their clients' interest in responsible investment.
More.
Signature Opportunity: PRI global statement on investor obligations and duties
The Global Statement on Investor Obligations and Duties outlines
the need for investors to take account of ESG issues in their investment processes and decision-making, and for policymakers to clarify these obligations and ensure national policies are aligned. More.
Ontario Moves To Remove Barriers Preventing Women from Attaining Top Leadership Positions
O
ntario is
encouraging Canadian issuers to set a target by next year to have 30% women on their boards, and to achieve that target within three to five years.
More
.
OECD Reviews Effectiveness of National Contact Points from 2000 to 2015
Fifteen years after the OECD created the National Contact Points as a means to further the effectiveness of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, it has conducted an analysis of this implementation mechanism's functioning and performance.
More.
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Submissions
You are invited to submit news to be considered for inclusion in RIA newsletters.
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