As part of RiskMetrics’ involvement with the COP15 climate conference in Copenhagen, I spoke on a United Nations Environment Program Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) panel called “Construction Counts for Climate.” I represented UNEP FI’s Property Working Group (on which RMG’s Mario Lopez-Alcala has served for two years), and was joined by the Finnish Minister of Housing and other UNEP representatives.

“Construction Counts,” as the built environment is responsible for at least 40% of global CO2 emissions, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. This actually represents a great opportunity for emissions reduction, as buildings’ emissions can be reduced drastically by making better use of existing technology. COP15 participant Jens Laustsen, senior energy policy analyst (buildings) at the International Energy Agency (IEA), estimates that 75% of the energy used in most buildings can be saved.

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This week, world leaders meet in Copenhagen to coordinate their efforts to address global climate change. As summed up by a RiskMetrics fact sheet on the event, the summit’s daunting goal is to set fair, achievable emissions reduction targets for both developed and developing nations.

The Financial Times’ Martin Wolf has succinctly stated why this will be so difficult:

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[Ed. Note: In preparation for the Copenhagen summit, the KLD Blog will present some perspectives on global climate policy. The following analysis of Australia’s rejection of an emissions-credit trading scheme comes from RiskMetrics analyst Mark Barraclough. Mark is based in Sydney and researches Australian firms, with a focus on the energy and extractives sectors.

As the US and other developed-world democracies debate their own “cap and trade” schemes, the case of Australia’s Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CPRS) may prove instructive.]

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The final version of the Walker Report on corporate governance of UK banks and financial institutions was published on Nov. 26. The Prime Minister requested the report, which was issued by the Treasury. Sir David Walker chaired the report team. He is a prominent City banker who has had stints at Lloyd’s and Morgan Stanley.

The Report includes, among its recommendations (no. 17, p. 17), one that would require fund managers to adopt the Code on the Responsibilities of Institutional Investors announced by the Institutional Shareholders Committee (ISC) on Nov. 16. The Code, which Walker suggests be renamed the “Stewardship Code,” would require, among other things, that managers commit to engagement or explain why they didn’t.

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Last month, “The Economics and Politics of Corporate Social Performance” won the 2009 Moskowitz Prize. The Haas School of Business at UC-Berkeley and the Social Investment Forum (SIF) award the annual Prize to research relevant to socially responsible investing (SRI).

Prize-winning Stanford Professor David P. Baron and his team found that the “social pressure market,” through its interplay with the markets for products and equities, can reward companies for their corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices. In doing so, Baron confronts a canard that the SRI sector has disputed since its inception: “The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase its Profits.”

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This week, Congress and the Obama Administration are discussing the future of American energy policy. The outcome of these efforts is unknown, but forward-thinking investors already expect big changes in the energy sector. The markets’ preparation for a less-polluting future includes the October announcement that First Solar, a solar-power technology firm, will soon join the benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500 index.

Investors expect a bright future for First Solar, a FTSE KLD Index constituent since 2007, partly because they assume that governments will eventually tax carbon emissions. If the carbon output of producers and consumers is taxed, then the relative cost-efficiency of solar and other renewable energy sources will increase.

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In preparation for the upcoming “SRI in the Rockies” convention, the Social Investment Forum (SIF) has posted highlights of its work over the past year. One of SIF’s most valuable 2009 efforts is a framework of its “Priorities for Financial Regulatory Reform.” Among these directives is a call to overhaul credit rating agencies. An October 19 report on the role of Moody’s in the subprime mortgage debacle explains why major changes are needed.

SIF’s Reform Agenda

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As corporations have come to recognize growing interest in their environmental impact, most firms have chosen to constructively engage with the public. The “greenest” companies have reduced their energy use and the impact of their products and operations, and many others have at least claimed to do so.

Such “greenwashing” is a concern of investors who consider environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in their evaluations of corporate sustainability. But even as major firms have chosen, perhaps grudgingly, to work with their ESG stakeholders, at least one business lobby has taken a different tack.

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This week, in a statement cited at Green Inc., Nike said that it “fundamentally disagrees” with the US Chamber of Commerce’s position on climate policy. The shoe giant joins three major utilities in opposing the Chamber’s recent lobbying efforts, which include a call for a “Scopes monkey trial of the 21st century” regarding man-made climate change.

Why are some corporations so eager “to boost their green credentials,” in the words of Ann Fifield of the Financial Times? Perhaps these firms would rather defy their peers than alienate their customers – or their Senators.

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On September 16, Senator Max Baucus unveiled a newly revised federal health care reform bill. I’ll leave it to others to give the bill a thumbs-up or a Bronx cheer. I was intrigued, though, with one of its provisions: out-of-pocket spending on health insurance would be capped at 13% of household income for most Americans.

This is a recognition that the nation’s health crisis is not about cost – it’s about price.

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