ESG?

ESG stands for Environmental Social and Governance, and refers to the three key factors when measuring the sustainability and ethical impact of an investment in a business or company. Most socially responsible investors check companies out using ESG criteria to screen investments.

It is a generic term used in capital markets and commonly used by investors to evaluate the behavior of companies, as well as determining their future financial performance.

ESG’s three central factors are:

Environmental criteria, which examines how a business performs as a steward of our natural environment, focusing on:

waste and pollution

resource depletion

greenhouse gas emission

deforestation

climate change

Social criteria, which looks at how the company treats people, and concentrates on:

employee relations & diversity

working conditions, including child labor and slavery

local communities; seeks explicitly to fund projects or institutions that will serve poor and underserved communities globally

health and safety

conflict

Governance criteria, which examines how a corporation polices itself – how the company is governed, and focuses on:

tax strategy executive remuneration

donations and political lobbying

corruption and bribery

board diversity and structure

Environmental Social and Governance are the three main factors that socially responsible investors measure when deciding whether to invest in a company. It is a generic term used in capital markets.

If you are an investor and would like to buy ESG-screened securities you should consider socially responsible mutual funds and exchange-traded funds.

Experts say that what constitutes an appropriate set of ESG criteria is subjective – it depends on what your priorities are – so you will need to do the research yourself if you really want to seek out investments that precisely match your own values.

ESG and the alternative investment world:

ESG standards are gradually becoming a significant part of the alternative investment world. ESG issues are not only important when measuring the sustainability of the non-financial impacts of investments – they may also have a material impact on the return profile and long-term risk of investment portfolios.

A recent study found that investors who choose ESG-screened investments receive a ‘double dividend’ in the form of lower risk plus a better **rate of return.