The data shows companies that recognize climate and DEI come out ahead ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

[Image alt text: As You Sow® banner with logo, image of mountains and a lake, and text saying: The nation’s leading non-profit shareholder representative, with a 30+ year track record of changing corporations for good] < [link removed] > Dear John,

Thank you for standing strong with us during this challenging time. Shareholder advocacy was put on alert by changes at the SEC in February; the facts remain the same: Corporations leading the clean energy transition continue to financially outperform fossil fuel and all-world benchmarks. In many ways, the backlash against responsible investing and a diverse workforce is only calling more attention to these critical issues.

[Image alt text: Carbon Clean 200 2024 report cover] < [link removed] >

As You Sow’s Carbon Clean 200 report demonstrates the profitability of the clean energy economy

The report examines 200 industry-leading companies which generated revenue from services and products that reduce demand for fossil fuels and water, while offering investors more than double the returns of the fossil-fuel-heavy MSCI ACWI Energy Index. They also beat the global benchmark MSCI ACWI by 30% from July 1, 2016, to January 29, 2025.

See the report < [link removed] >

Andrew Behar in Fortune Magazine: The data shows that “greater diversity leads to financial outperformance.”

[Image alt text: Fortune Magazine logo] < [link removed] >

In a recent interview by Fortune Magazine, As You Sow CEO Andrew Behar explained that despite highly publicized rollback of diversity programs from a few companies, the majority of corporations are holding strong. Here’s an excerpt:

Based on his conversations with CEOs, Behar says he isn’t particularly worried about conservative activists winning over the executives of multinational companies. “Anyone who’s looking at the data, which the companies are, comes to the conclusion that greater diversity leads to financial outperformance,” he said. “These anti-DEI resolutions have never gotten more than 2%, because they’re bad for business. [They are] trying to use big government to manipulate market forces, which is never going to work.”

Read the interview < [link removed] >

ICCR and As You Sow’s letter to the SEC

On February 18th, the shareholder rights group Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), along with As You Sow, sent a letter < [link removed] > to the Securities and Exchange Commission requesting that the Staff refrain from applying the guidance provided in SEC Staff Legal Bulletin 14M to shareholder proposals filed before the bulletin.

The SEC’s new guidance allows corporations to introduce new arguments against resolutions while restricting shareholders' ability to amend their proposals to comply with the new guidance. The letter < [link removed] > argues that this penalizes investors who followed prior guidance (SLB 14L) in good faith.

Read the letter < [link removed] >

This is a challenging time. We are more motivated than ever to come together and stand for what we believe in – a safe, just, and sustainable future in which protecting the environment and human rights is central to corporate decision-making. Thank you for standing with us.

For the future, [Image alt text: Photo of Forest Resener] [Image alt text: Signature of Forest Resener] Forest M Resener

Development Manager, As You Sow

P.S. Check out As You Sow CEO Andrew Behar’s column Fiduciary Future < [link removed] > on Impact Alpha, and the most recent article, "ISS bows to political pressure, abandons portfolio optimization for clients.” < [link removed] >

Donate < [link removed] >

As You Sow < [link removed] > 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, and lack of workplace diversity. See As You Sow’s shareholder resolution tracker < [link removed] > . < [link removed] > < [link removed] >
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