Dear
John,
In the 2024 proxy season, As You Sow engaged 185 companies across 12 issue areas. Even while under attack by extremist anti-shareholder forces, we achieved success at well over half those companies. Corporations took action to safeguard biodiversity and healthy ecosystems, protect our oceans from plastic pollution, develop resilient supply chains, disclose climate emissions, and ensure environmental protections and human rights are central to corporate decision making.
We’re not planning to slow down in 2025. As You Sow has been changing companies for good for over 30 years. While politics may change, the expectation that corporations will play their part in creating a more sustainable and just world does not. Read on for highlights from our 2024 Winter Newsletter (or see the full newsletter online).
Real change is made by the people who refuse to give up even when the odds seem insurmountable. While today may feel overwhelming, our vision is clearer than ever – a future where corporations are part of the solution to today’s biggest challenges. Thank you for joining us on this journey.
With appreciation, | |
| | |
Together, we have the power to shape the world
Shareholders are helping to wind down the extractive economy in favor of one that promotes corporate responsibility. We believe that if you earn the money, you
get to decide how it is invested and how to cast your proxy votes. | | |
Whether you’re invested in a workplace 401(k), an IRA, or a personal portfolio, you can shape the world you want to see. As You Sow’s tools make it easier to align your investments with your values and vote your shares.
When shareholders like you exercise your power of ownership, we can move corporations to be part of the solution. | |
| | The board reports to YOU
At a recent conference, As You Sow’s
CEO Andrew Behar explained that “the board of every public company in your portfolio reports to you. Many people don’t realize this is a core tenet of capitalism.”
Over 100 million Americans with $10 trillion in retirement savings surrender their proxy voting power to an asset manager. More than 90% of these ballots are voted in support of management. That means your shares are being used to approve climate-incompetent directors and to vote against climate transition plans.
You have the power to change that – check out My Money My Vote and As You Vote below. | | | | | | | | |
Knowledge is power: Invest Your Values toolkit
Invest Your Values analyzes 6,000 of the most commonly held U.S. mutual funds and ETFs, and more than 65 employer-offered retirement plans. It assesses funds’
performance across seven critical environmental and social issue-areas that impact investments. It’s a free online platform to help investors of all kinds – YOU – see where your money is, and make sure it’s where YOU want it to be.
And in 2025, we'll be releasing Social Justice Funds, bringing you one step closer to a more just and equitable society through responsible investing. | | | | How one motivated employee mobilized $81 billion in shareholder
power | | | | Corporate decision-making power lies not only in boardrooms, but in the hands of its employees – like Sam Gooch, program manager at Waymo, an Alphabet subsidiary. By looking up Google’s retirement plan in Invest Your Values, Sam found out that his retirement plan was filled with fossil fuel investments. | | | |
Sam presented As You Sow’s shareholder resolution at Alphabet’s Annual General Meeting, asking the critical question: “Will Alphabet protect its employees’ life savings from the economic consequences of climate change by offering sustainable alternatives?” Shareholders responded by voting over $81 billion of shareholder value in favor.
Help create more systematic change with a donation to As You Sow! | | | | | | | My Money, My Vote
Voting rights for the $10 trillion in American corporate retirement savings plans are given away to asset managers who vote in support of management over 90% of the time, often exactly opposite of their clients’ values. | | | With My Money My Vote, every item on every proxy ballot is automatically voted in alignment with each employee’s chosen policy, sending a powerful message about company culture.
The program is available to any organization. Let us know if you’re interested. | | | | | | | | If you own stock directly in
publicly-traded companies and your inbox is clogged with proxy statements, now you can vote your values easily – you can set it and forget it. | | | | | As You Vote will automatically vote responsibly and sustainably for board directors, shareholder resolutions, CEO Pay,
and every item on every proxy ballot. To sign up at no cost, visit asyouvote.org and click “Retail (Individual) Investors" | | | | In The Works: Social Justice Funds
There
is currently no credible or accessible way for shareholders to understand the social justice impact of their investments in mutual funds and ETFs. We’re working to change that, with a new Invest Your Values tool focused on justice and equity.
Social Justice Funds will apply racial justice, DEI, LGBTQ+, private prison, and gender equity lenses to 6,000 mutual funds and ETFs. We plan to release it in July 2025 –
Will you help make that possible with a donation today?
The goal is to empower investors to easily find funds with companies that are not perpetuating or contributing to
marginalization across gender, race, ethnicity, or sexual orientation. It’s a big job. | | | | | | | | | As You
Sow is the nation’s leading shareholder representative, with a 30+ year track record promoting environmental and social corporate responsibility and advancing values-aligned investing. Its issue areas include climate change, ocean plastics, toxins in the food system, biodiversity loss, racial injustice, lack of workplace diversity, and excessive executive compensation. See As You Sow’s shareholder resolution tracker. |
| | As You Sow
Main Post Office
PO Box 751
Berkeley, CA 94701 | | | | DISCLAIMER: As You Sow is not an investment advisor, nor do we provide financial planning, legal or tax advice. The content of our programming, publications and presentations is provided for informational and educational purposes only, and should not be considered as information sufficient upon which to base any decisions on investing, purchases, sales, trades, or any other investment transactions. We do not express an opinion on the future or expected value of any security or other interest and do not explicitly or implicitly recommend or suggest an investment strategy of any kind.
Copyright © 2024, All rights reserved.
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