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BlackRock, Temasek Decarbonization Fund Leads $69 Million Fundraise for Carbon Removal Startup Neustark

BlackRock, Temasek Decarbonization Fund Leads $69 Million Fundraise for Carbon Removal Startup Neustark

Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) solutions provider Neustark announced today that it has raised $69 million in an equity funding round led by Decarbonization Partners, a climate tech-focused growth equity investment partnership between BlackRock and Temasek. The company plans to use the funds to expand its team, enhance its offerings and expand geographically to meet the increasing global demand for CDR….

ECB Reports 35% Emissions Reduction in €367 Billion Corporate Bond Portfolio

ECB Reports 35% Emissions Reduction in €367 Billion Corporate Bond Portfolio

The European Central Bank (ECB) announced today the publication of a new set of climate-related financial disclosures, providing information on the carbon footprint of its portfolios and their exposure to climate risks, indicating that the carbon intensity of its €367 corporate bond portfolio has declined by 35% from 2021 to 2023. The report marks the second set of climate-related disclosures…

Morningstar Expands Social Offering with LGBTQ+ Index

The first of its kind for institutional investors, the tool was created to meet growing demand and is powered by increased data availability. Morningstar’s recently released Developed Markets LGBTQ+ Leaders Index has looked to answer growing interest from institutional investors, with social-focused products still lagging behind environmental offerings. The new index offers investors exposure to 100 large- and mid-cap companies…

Guest Post: How Can a Comprehensive Global Reporting Framework be Achieved?

Guest Post: How Can a Comprehensive Global Reporting Framework be Achieved?

By: Mark Vaessen, Partner, KPMG in the Netherlands Demand is building for a global multi-stakeholder reporting system that uses a so-called ‘double materiality’ lens to enable companies to explain both how ESG-related matters impact their business and how their business impacts the planet and society. Europe was the first and China is the most recent major economy to propose a…

Nearly 90% of Executives Want Compensation Tied to Human Sustainability Metrics: Deloitte Survey

Nearly 90% of Executives Want Compensation Tied to Human Sustainability Metrics: Deloitte Survey

More than four out of five C-Suite executives agree that they need to be more accountable on human sustainability issues in their companies, and an even higher proportion want their compensation tied to human sustainability metrics, as they face increasing pressure from stakeholders and anticipate benefits from improvements in workforce well-being, yet significant gaps exist between worker and executive perceptions…

TNFD Names New Co-Chair

Razan Al Mubarak, President of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), has joined The Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) as Co-chair, alongside David Craig. She replaces Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, who stepped down from the role in March due to the “growing demands of her responsibilities” as Deputy Executive Secretary of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the taskforce…

NATIONAL CONTACT POINTS: WHAT ARE THEY AND WHY SHOULD I CARE?

Multinational companies are facing increased pressure to ensure that they have adequate ESG-related policies in place and (more importantly) that they are implementing those policies in practice within both their business and associated supply chains via appropriate systems and controls. Companies that are found not to have implemented or adhered to those policies face increased legal and reputational risk which…

Swiss Offers Cargo Customers Carbon Removal Through Climeworks

Swiss Offers Cargo Customers Carbon Removal Through Climeworks

Swiss International Air Lines cargo division Swiss WorldCargo announced the launch of a new carbon removal offer, aimed at helping customers to reduce Scope 3 emissions by removing unavoidable emissions from the atmosphere, and to support scaling up net zero technology, through a collaboration with Direct Air Capture (DAC) carbon removal provider Climeworks. DAC technology, listed by the IEA as…

EU Invests Over $3 Billion in Clean Energy, Industrial Decarbonization Projects

EU Invests Over $3 Billion in Clean Energy, Industrial Decarbonization Projects

The European Commission announced today investments of nearly €3 billion (USD$3.2 billion) in clean energy projects in lower-income member states, with the new disbursements funded by revenues from the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS). The new disbursements were made through the EU’s Modernisation Fund. Launched in 2018, with disbursements beginning in 2021, the fund was designed to support the…

Vattenfall Signs Deal for Green Cement with Cleantech Startup Cemvision

Vattenfall Signs Deal for Green Cement with Cleantech Startup Cemvision

Sweden-based electricity and heat provider Vattenfall and low carbon cement startup Cemvision announced today a new agreement for the supply and development of cement with a reduced carbon footprint of as much as 95%. Building materials are a key source of global greenhouse gas emissions. Cement production, an ingredient in concrete, accounts for approximately 8% of global carbon dioxide emissions,…