Author: Natalie Wasek

SGI Welcomes New SEC Climate Rule

SGI Welcomes New SEC Climate Rule

Natalie Wasek

The SEC issued the first ever climate-related disclosure rule earlier this week. In the 3-2 vote, commissioners adopted the rule requiring companies to disclose certain-climate related risks. This rule, which has been long awaited by investors, will require companies to disclose material climate-related risks, activities the company is taking to mitigate these risks, the Board oversight to the climate risk and mitigation, climate targets material to the business, as well as scope 1 and scope 2 emissions deemed material by the company, and reasonable attestation.

While this rule has been weakened from the proposed 2022 rule, Seventh Generation Interfaith, Inc. welcomes the final climate disclosure rule and the SEC’s consideration of our comments. SGI formally submitted one of thousands of comment letters with the proposal of the rule in 2022. In fact, the SGI comment letter was cited seven times by the SEC in the final rulemaking. This rulemaking brings the US closer in alignment to its global peers. SGI is committed to playing an active role in creating a more just and sustainable world. Investors have and will continue to seek clear, consistent, and comparable information on how companies are managing their climate- related risks and opportunities. 

We are disappointed that Scope 3 emission disclosure was omitted from the final rule as the omission will convey an incomplete picture of companies’ risk exposure. This omission means companies will not have to disclose a category of emissions that account for as much as 80-90% of total emissions in some industries. We hope that companies will provide this information to investors voluntarily. We also believe that companies that choose not to disclose Scope 3 emissions will fall and have already fallen behind peers as it will be required in  European reporting requirements under CSRD as well as California’s new disclosure laws. The new rule is a starting point, and higher achieving companies with more robust disclosure will produce greater long term value for shareholders.

Other resources on the new SEC Climate Rule:

Making progress on methane

Making progress on methane

Natalie Wasek

The United Nations Climate Summit (COP28), which took place in Dubai, recently ended with a monumental report that still falls short of necessary progress. World leaders, climate experts, at least 1,300 fossil fuel lobbyists, and one CEO of a large fossil fuel company attended the meetings. ExxonMobil CEO, Robert Woods, attended COP28, marking the first time the CEO of a large fossil fuel company attended the meetings. And sure, while Woods said the conversations  “put way too much emphasis on getting rid of fossil fuels, oil and gas” and not enough on “dealing with the emissions associated with them,” he at least was still part of the discussions. 

The long-awaited and contested COP report recognizes the need for a transition “away from fossil fuels in energy systems, in a just, orderly and equitable manner, accelerating action in this critical decade, so as to achieve net zero by 2050 in keeping with the science.”

For the first time fossil fuels were explicitly discussed and named as a cause to the climate crisis. While the report’s vague language requires more work to ensure its potential, Mindy Lubber, CEO of Ceres, sums it up nicely: 

The agreement comes at an urgent moment. Extreme weather and other climate-related catastrophes are already causing hundreds of billions of dollars in damage each year. The world is at severe risk of far greater challenges as we are on track to miss the 2030 goals of the Paris Agreement and achieve a zero emissions economy in time to prevent catastrophic climate change. At the same time, governments, businesses, and investors have a monumental opportunity to invest in secure, affordable, and reliable clean energy technology that brings enormous economic benefits and job growth.

In addition to the climate talks at COP, other commitments concerning Methane Emissions recently showed some progress. 

Methane, a highly potent climate pollutant, that is responsible for approximately one-third of current warming resulting from human activities. While ExxonMobil, the world’s second largest oil refiner, reported making great progress on its methane emissions reduction, the company was only doing so with estimated emissions, not direct measurements. Without measured data, studies have shown that companies may misallocate capital to less impactful and less cost-effective mitigation opportunities.

Immediately before COP 28 ExxonMobil, announced that it was joining OGMP 2.0, the Oil & Gas Methane Partnership. This came as shocking and exciting news after last proxy season. The Sisters of St. Francis of Dubuque, along with co-filers Benedictine Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica, Congregation des Soeurs des Saints Noms de Jesus et de Marie, and Dana Investment Advisors filed a resolution at ExxonMobil asking the company to issue a report analyzing the reliability of its methane emission disclosures. While ExxonMobil’s opposition to the resolution highlighted their participation in OGCI, Global Methane Partnership, and legal hurdles, the resolution garnered an impressive 36% vote. 

This announcement of Exxon joining OGMP 2.0 is a huge step forward because under OGMP reporting, better-quality emissions data allows operators to accurately understand and characterize methane emissions from their assets, informing a more effective mitigation strategy. 

In addition to ExxonMobil and others joining OGMP in the past few weeks, the EPA released its new methane standards which should help reduce methane emissions. EDF reported on the new rules and how they will help OGMP members comply. There’s been other methane regulation advancements in the EU, China, Australia, and Canada as well. 

The COP agreement, Methane regulation, and hopefully new SEC climate disclosure rules in 2024, there is a lot of forward momentum in the climate world. What is needed now is continued corporate action and more climate policy nationally and internationally. 

SGI members are continuing engagement on climate crisis issues such as GHG emissions, methane, the Just Transition, science based targets and climate transition action plans, as well as climate lobbying. 

There’s still much more work to be done. Next year’s COP is planned to be held in Azerbaijan, one of the birthplaces of the oil industry.

50th Anniversary Panelists Announced

50th Anniversary Panelists Announced

Natalie Wasek

On September 12th, Seventh Generation Interfaith Coalition for Responsible Investment (SGI) will celebrate fifty years of service for people and planet. Founded in 1973 by pioneers in corporate shareholder engagement, Fr. Michael Crosby, O.F.M., Cap., Sr. Alphonsa Puls, S.S.S.F., and Sr. Charlita Foxhoven, S.S.S.F., SGI members have engaged multinational corporations to promote more sustainable and just practices for five decades.

The 50th Anniversary Celebration will take place at SGI’s annual conference on Tuesday, September 12th, from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at St. Francis Parish, located at 1937 N. Vel R. Phillips Avenue, Milwaukee, WI 53212. There will also be an option to attend virtually.

While recognizing the landmark achievements of the organization under Fr. Crosby and its co-founders, the conference will also focus forward, on how Milwaukee-based SGI is working to shape better outcomes at corporations in the 2020s and beyond.

The conference will include two panel conversations and a keynote from Tim Smith of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR). The first panel will look back over SGI’s first fifty years and will be led by SGI members:

  • Dan Tretow, Director of Financial Services, School Sisters of St. Francis,
  • Barbara Jennings, CJS, Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet St. Louis,
  • Brigid Clingman, OP, Grand Rapid Dominicans,
  • Tim Dewane, Director of Shalom – Justice, Peace, & Integrity of Creation, School Sisters of Notre Dame Central Pacific Province

The second panel will discuss the evolution and future of responsible and sustainable investing. This panel will include:

In addition, Dan Tretow, the member representative for the School Sisters of St. Francis (S.S.S.F.), will receive the 2023 Fr. Mike Crosby Award. 

From SGI’s inception, Fr. Mike aided faith groups to ensure their investments reflect their beliefs and values, rather than inadvertently funding activities that conflict with those values. While smaller faith groups face particular obstacles given the complexity and challenges of investing, SGI has proven to be low cost and efficient as members implement faith-consistent investing with limited resources. SGI was the first coalition to join ICCR to enhance its shareholder advocacy for systemic change. 

SGI’s 50-year track record promoting environmental and social corporate responsibility and facilitating values-aligned investing spans many of the most urgent environmental and social issues facing people today, including climate change, economic inequality, racial justice, workplace diversity, political spending and lobbying disclosure, and executive compensation.

Please join us in celebrating 50 Years of SGI!

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CRI History: Socially Responsible Investment Coalition

CRI History: Socially Responsible Investment Coalition

Natalie Wasek

As part of our series on remembering Fr. Mike Crosby and Celebrating 50 years of SGI, we wanted to highlight the histories and growth of all of the CRIs.

The Socially Responsible Investment Coalition (SRIC) began as a dream of Sr. Francis Lorene Lange CDP in 1974. She believed that a Coalition for Responsible Investment (CRI) could be started in this region. She had worked with Fr. Mike Crosby OFM Cap to found a Texas group to work with Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR). The seed was planted but did not sprout until 1982.

Texas CRI was founded in 1982 with a number of religious congregations: Congregation of Divine Providence, Missionary Catechists of Divine Providence, School Sisters of Notre Dame, Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word—San Antonio, Texas, Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Benedictine Sisters—Boerne, Texas, The Society of St. Teresa of Jesus, Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word—Houston, Texas, and Congregation of the Holy Spirit. By 1997, Texas CRI officially changed its name to the Socially Responsible Investment Coalition (SRIC). Since that time, SRIC has grown to 19 Institutional and Associate members and a number of individual members. We continue to work to bring about responsible corporate behavior through the power of shareholder resolutions as well as corporate dialogues.

In the early years, members participated in various shareholder initiatives that included the boycott of Campbell’s Soup and Nestlé’s products and actions to end apartheid in South Africa. SRIC members documented working conditions, environmental contamination, and community issues surrounding Maquiladoras located at U.S./Mexico border. Members also raised questions with Houston Industries regarding the safety of the South Texas Nuclear Project and with DuPont and Chevron about their practices and clean-up of uranium mines.

For 40 years, as faith and values–based investors, we have a long history of shareholder advocacy on socially responsible issues as we prompt companies to act on positive outcomes for society. Some of our many SRIC initiatives include: addressing environmental pollution; advocating for state-wide Medicaid expansion; working on sustainable mining issues in Ghana, Colombia and Peru with the Faith Reflections Initiative. We have also worked nationally to generate awareness of human and sex trafficking in hotels during several Super Bowls and have spoken out on negative environmental and health impacts of fracking and methane emissions in oil and gas production. As we look towards the future, we will continue to engage corporations encouraging them to adopt more ethical and sustainable business practices and address their impacts on people and the planet.

Since 1982, SRIC has been a member of Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR). Currently, we are collaborating with ICCR members to focus on advancing worker justice, human rights, climate crisis, access to medicine, nutrition insecurity, responsible banking and finance, environmental justice and corporate governance

Thank you to Ruben Lopez and Anna Falkenberg for sharing this history with us!

For more information about SRIC, please visit: https://sric-south.org/

Celebrating 50 Years

Celebrating 50 Years

Natalie Wasek

SGI began in 1973 when our founders, Fr. Michael Crosby, O.F.M, Cap., Sr. Alphonsa Puls S.S.S.F., and Sr. Charlita Foxhoven, S.S.S.F developed principles to align the stewardship of their financial assets with Catholic Social Teaching. Now, 50 years later, SGI has grown to more than 30 member organizations and members currently engage over 60 companies, leading and participating in over 100 different engagements on issues ranging from climate change, corporate governance, food sustainability, water stewardship, health equity, and human rights.

We are excited to celebrate the work done by those before us and aim to steward the work now entrusted to us. With this, we have revamped the SGI logo to better reflect our name, the circularity of nature, and the evolution of being a catalyst for change. 

In 2015, our coalition’s name changed to Seventh Generation Interfaith Coalition for Responsible Investment. The name, Seventh Generation, is derived from the Great Law of the Iroquois to reflect the Native Americans’ love of Mother Earth and all creation. The Iroquois leaders considered the impact of their decisions on the current generation as well as for seven generations into the future. The Constitution of the Iroquois Nation contains the Great Binding Law:

In all of your deliberations in the Confederate Council, in your efforts at law making, in all your official acts, self-interest shall be cast into oblivion. Cast not over your shoulder behind you the warnings of the nephews and nieces should they chide you for any error or wrong you may do, but return to the way of the Great Law which is just and right. Look and listen for the welfare of the whole people and have always in view not only the present but also the coming generations, even those whose faces are yet beneath the surface of the ground – the unborn of the future Nation. 

Given the proud history and presence of Native Americans in our Midwestern region and their love of Mother Earth and all creation, we felt this name spoke to our Mission.

Historically Catholic, Interfaith was added to welcome institutions of all faith traditions and secular values-driven investors to be more inclusive and collaborative. By intentionally reaching out and creating opportunities for partnership, we strengthen our Mission to collectively build  just and right relationships in our community.

As SGI is celebrating its 50th anniversary, we celebrate the origin of our name which is at the heart of our Mission. Given our primarily Catholic membership, we acknowledge the deep rooted injustices which the Catholic Church and many Catholic orders have inflicted upon Indigenous peoples. We acknowledge, in Milwaukee, that we are on traditional Potawatomi, Ho-Chunk, and Menomonie homeland, and the people of Wisconsin’s sovereign Anishinaabe, Ho-Chunk, Menominee, Oneida, and Mohican nations remain present. There is much more work to do to repair relationships and give back what was unjustly taken. We recommit ourselves to our work and Mission:

Through the lens of faith and the promotion of human rights, Seventh Generation Interfaith Coalition for Responsible Investment builds a more just and sustainable world for those most vulnerable by integrating social and environmental values into corporate and investor actions.

Please join us in celebrating, now, throughout the year, and  especially on September 12th, 2023 at our annual conference.

Investors voice concern over misrepresentations within Valero’s latest SEC filing

Natalie Wasek

Miller-Howard Investments, Inc. filed an exempt solicitation regarding Valero’s misrepresentations within their latest SEC filing concerning a shareholder resolution to be voted at tomorrow’s shareholder meeting. 

The exempt solicitation reads: 

As long-term investors in Valero Energy (“Valero” or “the company”), Miller/Howard Investments, Inc. is concerned that the company’s lack of strong and comprehensive greenhouse gas targets—in contrast to peers like Phillips 66 and Marathon Petroleum Corporation—raises questions about its strategy and preparation for a low-carbon future. Further rationale is outlined by the proponent, Mercy Investment Services, in their exempt solicitation. Accordingly, we urge support for Proposal No. 5: Stockholder proposal to set different GHG emissions reductions targets (Scopes 1, 2, and 3). 

Adding to our concerns are the representations within Valero’s latest SEC filing, as laid out below:

Valero’s position in SEC filingCommentary
“ISS already rates Valero’s existing climate strategy as ‘exemplary.’”This is not true. ISS, in a section of its analysis entitled “Climate Risk Disclosure”, noted that Valero “exemplifie[d] the standard” expectations set by TCFD.  As is stated in the title, footnote, and methodology, the indicator is intended to reflect “the quality of corporate disclosure” (emphasis added). ISS said nothing about the quality of the company’s strategy itself.Fails to acknowledge that ISS recommends voting FOR Proposal No. 5.

We encourage peers to consider this in the context of all governance-related votes. Further considerations have been outlined in Mercy Investment Services’ exempt solicitation, urging votes AGAINST the re-election of director nominees Robert A. Profusek, Deborah Majoras, and Rayford Wilkins.

Beyond this, investors are increasingly concerned about Valero’s ongoing pattern of misleading assertions. 

After over four years of engagement with Valero’s management, Climate Action 100+ signatory investors sent a private letter on January 5th, 2023, to Valero’s Lead Independent Director and members of the Sustainability and Public Policy Committee to continue our good-faith dialogue and engagement on the company’s climate-related risks and opportunities. This request led to a meeting with independent directors and additional private correspondence. Throughout, the investors have consistently supported the company in any efforts to evaluate, improve, and benchmark not only its disclosures but its actions and – vitally – its strategy.

As a participant in the engagement, we were dismayed and disappointed to see the company’s publication of a response to that private correspondence from Valero’s Sustainability and Public Policy Committee chair, Deborah P. Majoras. She claimed: 

We believe the fundamental differences in our perspectives centers around how we determine the best way to reduce GHG emissions. You have expressed your preference for absolute emission reductions, which companies can achieve by closing refineries. You highlighted that several of our peers have closed refineries over the last couple of years and have targets that take advantage of those closures. However, we believe the challenges presented by the ambitions of the Paris Agreement and the energy needs of the world are not met by a narrow strategy for reducing carbon emissions.

This claim is profoundly untrue and blatantly misrepresents the motives of the investors addressed in the letter. We reference and amplify Mercy Investments in its response,

We are concerned that VLO’s Board is failing to properly exercise its risk management and oversight responsibilities of Valero’s low-carbon fuels growth strategy given the critical risks climate change poses to its business operations. Rather than engage in constructive dialogue with Mercy Investment Services or with the Climate Action 100+ engagement cohort, Valero has painted us as an unreasonable actor aiming to shut down the company’s refineries.

We encourage peers to consider these concerns on all governance-related votes. Further considerations have been outlined in Mercy Investment Services’ exempt solicitation.

Valero’s virtual stockholder Meeting will take place, tomorrow, Tuesday, May 9, 2023 at 11:00 AM, Central Time.

Contact: Natalie Wasek, [email protected] 

Find the press release here.

About Seventh Generation Interfaith CRI

Through the lens of faith and the promotion of human rights, Seventh Generation Interfaith Coalition for Responsible Investment builds a more just and sustainable world for those most vulnerable by integrating social and environmental values into corporate and investor actions.

Disclaimer

Seventh Generation Interfaith, Inc. (SGI) may share public information to promote free discussion, debate and learning among investors on socially responsible investing issues. SGI does not seek directly or indirectly the power to act as proxy for a security holder and does not furnish or otherwise request, or act on behalf of a person who furnishes or requests, a form of revocation, abstention, consent or authorization. SGI does not necessarily endorse or validate the information above and shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with use of or reliance on any information contained herein, including, but not limited to, lost profits or punitive or consequential damages. SGI does not provide investment, financial planning, legal, or tax advice. We are neither licensed nor qualified to provide any such advice. The content of our programming, publications and presentations is provided for informational and educational purposes only, and is neither appropriate nor intended to be used for the purposes of making any decisions on investing, purchases, sales, trades, or any other investment transactions.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

Natalie Wasek

Happy New Year! 

SGI is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Founded in 1973 by Michael Crosby, O.F.M., Cap., Alphonsa Puls and Charlita Foxhoven, S.S.S.F., who were pioneers in corporate shareholder engagement. SGI was the first coalition to join the Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) to enhance our shareholder advocacy for systemic change.

Our name was changed to Seventh Generation Interfaith in 2015 in reference to the Great Law of the Iroquois to reflect the Native Americans’ love of mother earth and all creation. The Iroquois leaders considered the impact of their decisions on the current generation as well as for seven generations into the future. And in 2017, SGI became an independent 501(c)3. Now, SGI sits at 35 institutional members including 30 Catholic religious orders, a Catholic  diocese, and a Catholic healthcare system, as well as three socially responsible asset management companies.

As we enter this new year, we reflect on the initiatives started by Father Mike and other pioneers:

  • Midwest Capuchins filed the first resolution with Home Products, followed by Bristol Myers and Nestle, to launch a campaign highlighting the connection between increased formula use and rising infant mortality rates in developing countries (1974). 
  • Midwest Capuchins filed the first resolution supporting indigenous rights with Shell (1975). 
  • Midwest Capuchins filed the first political spending disclosure resolution with ITT (1976). 
  • Midwest Capuchins filed the first resolution on high U.S. drug prices at SmithKline (1976). 
  • Midwest Capuchins filed a resolution with Bankers Trust for its lending to a Latin American military dictatorship (1978). 
  • Midwest Capuchins launched a campaign concerning tobacco with Philip Morris (1981).
  • Midwest Capuchins filed the first resolution concerning global warming with Exxon (1986).
  • Grand Rapids Dominicans file first resolution calling for package reduction & recycling with  General Mills (1994). 
  • Midwest Capuchins file first resolution raising concerns about human rights violations in China at Boeing (1997). 

Our impact continues to grow as more investors support our members’ work to catalyze corporate  change. In 2022, SGI member filed or co-filed 59 resolutions where, three won majority votes at annual meetings: a racial justice audit at Johnson & Johnson, a civil rights audit at Altria, and a lobbying alignment report at Gilead, and the percentage of proposals withdrawn due to productive agreements with companies was 30%. Collectively, SGI members are a part of over 130 engagements at over 70 companies on issues ranging from Greenhouse gas reduction targets to lobbying and political spending, to racial justice, and affordability and access to medicines.

With Frank Sherman’s retirement, we celebrate and thank all he has done for the growth of our organization. Frank zealously underscored that SGI is a member-led coalition, and staff now will continue to do the same. Frank worked to involve each member organization, emphasizing the impact that they are making on behalf of people and the planet. He built a culture of active membership. In this, Frank recognized that this work needs to be a whole-of-society effort.

As staff, we are energized in the new year and hope to continue to grow SGI and to advance the mission of our members. We see this year ahead of us full of challenges from those who question the relevance or even the validity of ESG, but we continue to fight for shareholder rights and engage companies on pressing issues. Our coalition is growing stronger, and our message is spreading.

There is the fundamental joy of doing this together. We often ask, “Even if you were big enough to do this alone, who would want to?” We believe that our members have been enriched making this journey together. This year is a celebration of the past 50 years of hard work and a reminder of all of the work left to be done. 

Barely Building Back Better

Barely Building Back Better

Natalie Wasek

All eyes and ears are open to learn what might be cut next from the Biden Administration’s Build Back Better Plan. News reports are fast and furious with the latest hints that come out of the room where it happens. The social policy bill initially set at $3.5 trillion is being cut to under $2 trillion resulting in a debate over what can be cut out and not be missed, and what can be decreased and still make an impact. 

This isn’t however, just about the top line cost decision, though it is being presented that way by the media. The impact on real people and society cannot be separated from this price tag. The focus has been on the cost of the bill if it passes rather than the cost to society if this doesn’t pass. 

The bill includes policies for child tax credits, paid family and medical leave, lower childcare costs, lower higher ed costs, lower prescription drug prices, clean energy and electricity, forest management, penalties for methane leaks, and programs for the formerly incarcerated, among others. Corporations are actively lobbying against the bill, in opposition to increased corporate taxes, expanded Medicare, and fees for carbon emissions. Yet businesses admit that they will benefit from the childcare, healthcare, education and climate provisions in the bill. One Senator remains firmly against the clean electricity provisions in the bill, despite the fact that his state of West Virginia is the most vulnerable to flooding due to climate change (The Daily, Oct 20, 2021). Another Senator opposes any corporate or income tax rate increase yet voted against those Trump-era tax breaks in 2017 (MSNBC, Oct 21, 2021).

SGI members had an opportunity to discuss the Build Back Better plan at our fall meeting. We discussed how SGI’s priorities align with the proposed plan and asked “if you were in Congress and had to make the decision, what would you cut from the bill?” It is not an easy question to answer, nor were we necessarily looking for our members to have the answer. Rather, we wanted our members to better understand the impact this bill could have on families, society, and the climate crisis. 

Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis put it simply when addressing attendees at our annual conference: “we have to restructure our society around the needs of the poor.” If we created this divide and allowed poverty to exist, we can restructure the economy to get rid of it. This bill, if not cut to mere scraps, could have a significant role in doing just this. 

SGI members disagree that the U.S. can’t afford the bill, and believe that the positive impact would far outweigh the monetary implications that are being argued over. This seemingly endless debate is a balancing act: weighing the impact of social safety against climate change. Paid family leave and child care, which are ways to address poverty, would make for better employees and thus be good for business. And, at this point in the game, one would think that the climate crisis should speak for itself. However, ironically, the US and 14 other countries are pledging to increase fossil fuel extraction over the next decade. 

This is all to say that the challenges the Build Back Better Plan hopes to address are not going to disappear and will only get worse. 

As investors, SGI members are engaging companies on many of these issues, stressing the importance of climate action, paid family leave, affordable drug pricing, responsible lobbying, etc. They see the importance of putting dignity to workers and individuals first and are asking companies to do the same. But we also know that these voluntary actions are not enough. It’s time for our elected officials to stand up.

Resilience: Building A Just and Equitable Economy for All – A Virtual Conference

Resilience: Building A Just and Equitable Economy for All – A Virtual Conference

Natalie Wasek

The world looks different today than it did ten years ago, than it did five years ago, and even different than it looked just last year. Like many conferences, we were forced to move our 2020 conference to a virtual format as we dealt with the effects of the pandemic. This year is no different.

We are still grappling with the “new normal” and the remnants of an out of date structure which put those who are most vulnerable, last. COVID-19 surfaced other issues that, while crucial, have previously been neglected. The exacerbation of economic and racial inequities demonstrated and accentuated the fragility of our systems, structures, and policies. The pandemic shifted the narrative around “non-essential” employees and raised awareness of the critical importance of frontline workers, such as: grocery clerks, meat processing and farmworkers, delivery drivers, and many more in maintaining business operations and in ensuring the functioning of our global economic system. Many of these workers are women and people of color and this public health crisis has demonstrated their vulnerability and the disproportionate economic and health impacts they experience.

In one week, on October 12, 2021, Seventh Generation Interfaith Coalition for Responsible Investment (SGI-CRI) will hold its annual conference, aptly titled Resilience: Building a Just & Equitable Economy for All, virtually, from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

As we begin the recovery process from the COVID-19 pandemic, we see a need and an opportunity to build a resilient society with systems and structures that are just and equitable for all. Our panel of company, investor, and labor representatives will offer their perspectives on how we can implement positive change from the learnings and challenges of 2020, dismantle systems that perpetuate gender and racial inequities, and build an economy that serves all people and ensures the dignity of all workers.

Our keynote address will be from Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis, Co-Chair of the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival. Our panel, moderated by Caroline Boden of Mercy Investment Services, will include lively discussion with a diverse group of experts:   

If you are interested in attending, and haven’t previously registered, please do so here

The webinar link and information will be sent out prior to the conference date. We hope to see you there.

Human Rights Remain a Focus

Human Rights Remain a Focus

Natalie Wasek

SGI members have been engaging mac & cheese and ketchup producer, Kraft Heinz, on issues including nutrition, deforestation, and human rights for several years. In 2019, Kraft Heinz published a Human Rights Policy after withdrawal of a shareholder resolution filed by The Capuchin Province of St. Joseph. Subsequently, after an ESG materiality assessment, Kraft Heinz ranked human rights as among the issues with the greatest impact on the company and of most importance to its stakeholders. 

The Capuchins and other SGI and ICCR members continued to engage the company on the implementation of their new policy. However, their lack of transparency and slow progress on implementing a due diligence process resulted in a low score of 21 out of 100, ranking 27 out of 43 companies on the most recent Know the Chain Benchmark, which has also identified tomatoes, cattle, and coffee being sourced by Kraft Heinz as having a high risk of human rights abuses. This was further confirmed by the Corporate Human Rights Benchmark who scored Kraft Heinz 7.5 out of 26, including 0 points on Human Rights Due Diligence. 

Given this lack of progress, SGI members filed a second proposal asking the company to complete a Human Rights Impact Assessment to “mitigate against significant operational, financial, and reputational risks associated with negative human rights impacts throughout its supply chain.” Although the company undertook a global human rights risk assessment last year, they did not publish plans to complete a due diligence process. However, they have committed to undertake third-party due diligence audits prioritizing the most problematic countries and commodities identified in its risk assessment. Kraft Heinz further acknowledged that social audits are not designed to capture sensitive labor and human rights violations such as forced labor and harassment, and their due diligence audits will engage workers in a meaningful way to determine root causes and address remediation and capacity building. Based on this commitment, shareholders withdrew the proposal.

Despite the movement that we are seeing from the company, Kraft Heinz remains one of 106 companies whom ICCR members and allies are engaging on their weak human rights policy implementation. ICCR’s Investor Alliance for Human Rights reached out to those 106 companies, including others engaged by SGI members: Kohl’s, Macy’s, Phillips 66, TJX, and Yum! Brands, about scoring 0 across the human rights due diligence indicators in the Corporate Human Rights Benchmark (CHRB) 2020 Report. 

The statement sent to each company explains that “Companies need to know and show their respect for human rights under the UN Guiding Principles for Human Rights, through public disclosure of the implementation and ongoing results of human rights due diligence processes.” Similar to corporate greenwashing, companies often rely on policies, codes of conduct, and traditional audits which have been shown to be insufficient in addressing and remediating human rights impacts.

While it is important for a company to understand their material financial risks, a holistic human rights policy requires understanding of their salient risks. These salient risks focus on the risks to people rather than the financial performance of the company. Implementing a human rights policy and doing the proper due diligence is required for a social license to operate and should not create an internal dilemma. This is about fair and just treatment of people. It is not a question of if this needs to be done; it is a question of why it has not already been done.