ESG

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CalPERS & CalSTRS Report Lower Than Expected Returns – Is ESG One Reason Why?

CalPERS and CalSTRS – the two largest public employee pension funds in both California and the nation –just announced their annual investment returns for the 2018-19 fiscal year.  Once again, it’s not good news for California taxpayers. Both funds reported that their respective net return of investments came in under ...
Blog

Are ESG Funds a Proxy for the Green New Deal?

After being soundly defeated in the Senate 0-57 (43 Democrats voted “present”), the Green New Deal continues to languish in the House.  Roll Call reported the following excuse from Speaker Nancy Pelosi: “I can’t say we’re going to take that and pass it because we have to go through our ...
Business & Economics

Are ESG Funds A Good, Long-Term Investment?

One of the hottest investment trends promises to do well while by doing good. This investment trend is called environmental, social, and governance investing, or ESG funds. Not all ESG funds have similar investment strategies. Some ESG funds actively invest in companies that meet specific environmental or social criteria. These ...
Business & Economics

Read Wealth Professional Story on Wayne Winegarden ESG Study

Putting a question mark on ESG fund performance by Leo Almazora An increasing number of stakeholders are buying into sustainable investments, figuratively and literally. Aside from fund providers’ growing willingness to offer values-based investment products, there’s a rising clamour from investors who want their money placed in companies with strong ESG ...
Business & Economics

New Study Finds ESG Funds Underperform Broader Investment Funds Over Long-Term

ESG funds that champion environmental and social causes have historically underperformed funds investing in the broader market over the long-term, so finds a new study released today by California-based, free-market think tank, the Pacific Research Institute. “In recent years, ESG funds have been presented to investors as socially responsible as ...
Blog

What We’re Watching – How Entrepreneurship Can Alleviate Poverty in Africa

Ben Smithwick – How Entrepreneurship Can Alleviate Poverty in Africa Magatte Wade is one of the most prominent female African entrepreneurs. In this TED Talk, Wade discusses the challenges of doing business in her native Senegal and shares her vision for how entrepreneurship can help alleviate poverty in Africa. Tim ...
Business & Economics

Watch Wayne Winegarden Speak on Proxy Advisory Firms & ESG Investing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=L-va5HLzTcs Watch PRI Senior Fellow in Business and Economics Wayne Winegarden speak at a forum in Washington, DC hosted by the Institute for Pension Fund Integrity on public pensions, proxy advisory firms, and ESG investing. Also speaking at the forum, which was moderated by Christopher Burnham, President, Institute for Pension ...
Business & Economics

Public Pension Funds’ Sole Responsibility Is To Secure The Retirement Of Public Sector Workers

State and local public pension funds are trillions of dollars in debt. Without fully accounting for the risks, state public pension funds have $1.4 trillion in unfunded liabilities (e.g. debt) according to the Pew Center’s latest estimates. Even more troubling, this debt is still growing. The sole priority of a public pension ...
Blog

Proxy Advisory Firms Are Worsening CalPERS and CalSTRS ESG Problem

My last blog post discussed the risks that ESG investing creates for CalPERS and CalSTRS. If not addressed, then both taxpayers and public employees will bear unnecessary costs and risks. Unfortunately, SEC rules are making this problem even worse. The SEC requires all institutional investors, such as CalPERS and CalSTRS, ...
Blog

The ESG Threat to California’s Pensions

California’s public pensions are in trouble. While the Pew Charitable Trusts reports that California’s current unfunded liabilities are nearly $170 billion, as I recently reported in my chartbook on California’s pension crisis, the crisis is much worse. Valuing the liabilities using a more realistic market rate, the total pension debt ...
Blog

CalPERS & CalSTRS Report Lower Than Expected Returns – Is ESG One Reason Why?

CalPERS and CalSTRS – the two largest public employee pension funds in both California and the nation –just announced their annual investment returns for the 2018-19 fiscal year.  Once again, it’s not good news for California taxpayers. Both funds reported that their respective net return of investments came in under ...
Blog

Are ESG Funds a Proxy for the Green New Deal?

After being soundly defeated in the Senate 0-57 (43 Democrats voted “present”), the Green New Deal continues to languish in the House.  Roll Call reported the following excuse from Speaker Nancy Pelosi: “I can’t say we’re going to take that and pass it because we have to go through our ...
Business & Economics

Are ESG Funds A Good, Long-Term Investment?

One of the hottest investment trends promises to do well while by doing good. This investment trend is called environmental, social, and governance investing, or ESG funds. Not all ESG funds have similar investment strategies. Some ESG funds actively invest in companies that meet specific environmental or social criteria. These ...
Business & Economics

Read Wealth Professional Story on Wayne Winegarden ESG Study

Putting a question mark on ESG fund performance by Leo Almazora An increasing number of stakeholders are buying into sustainable investments, figuratively and literally. Aside from fund providers’ growing willingness to offer values-based investment products, there’s a rising clamour from investors who want their money placed in companies with strong ESG ...
Business & Economics

New Study Finds ESG Funds Underperform Broader Investment Funds Over Long-Term

ESG funds that champion environmental and social causes have historically underperformed funds investing in the broader market over the long-term, so finds a new study released today by California-based, free-market think tank, the Pacific Research Institute. “In recent years, ESG funds have been presented to investors as socially responsible as ...
Blog

What We’re Watching – How Entrepreneurship Can Alleviate Poverty in Africa

Ben Smithwick – How Entrepreneurship Can Alleviate Poverty in Africa Magatte Wade is one of the most prominent female African entrepreneurs. In this TED Talk, Wade discusses the challenges of doing business in her native Senegal and shares her vision for how entrepreneurship can help alleviate poverty in Africa. Tim ...
Business & Economics

Watch Wayne Winegarden Speak on Proxy Advisory Firms & ESG Investing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=L-va5HLzTcs Watch PRI Senior Fellow in Business and Economics Wayne Winegarden speak at a forum in Washington, DC hosted by the Institute for Pension Fund Integrity on public pensions, proxy advisory firms, and ESG investing. Also speaking at the forum, which was moderated by Christopher Burnham, President, Institute for Pension ...
Business & Economics

Public Pension Funds’ Sole Responsibility Is To Secure The Retirement Of Public Sector Workers

State and local public pension funds are trillions of dollars in debt. Without fully accounting for the risks, state public pension funds have $1.4 trillion in unfunded liabilities (e.g. debt) according to the Pew Center’s latest estimates. Even more troubling, this debt is still growing. The sole priority of a public pension ...
Blog

Proxy Advisory Firms Are Worsening CalPERS and CalSTRS ESG Problem

My last blog post discussed the risks that ESG investing creates for CalPERS and CalSTRS. If not addressed, then both taxpayers and public employees will bear unnecessary costs and risks. Unfortunately, SEC rules are making this problem even worse. The SEC requires all institutional investors, such as CalPERS and CalSTRS, ...
Blog

The ESG Threat to California’s Pensions

California’s public pensions are in trouble. While the Pew Charitable Trusts reports that California’s current unfunded liabilities are nearly $170 billion, as I recently reported in my chartbook on California’s pension crisis, the crisis is much worse. Valuing the liabilities using a more realistic market rate, the total pension debt ...
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