Sustainability Reporting describing the company’s environmental, social and governance business practices—co-filed with Walden Asset Management

Emerson Electric: re-filed resolution which received 34% last year. C.R. Bard: a slightly modified version of last year’s resolution was filed. After it received 28% last May, the company met informally with ICCR but then declined to move to greater transparency.

 

Hydraulic Fracturing: Community Impacts – Risk Assessment -- disclosure on the impacts of fracking on local community and the financial risks of these impacts. This resolution includes both environmental impacts to water quality, health impacts from exposure to water and air, and is broad enough to include social ills documented in fracking towns.

 

ExxonMobil: last year’s toxic chemical disclosure received a 28.2% vote Chevron: last year’s toxic chemical disclosure received a 41% vote

 

Here is a sampling of the significant press coverage after last year’s votes.

 

New: Political Spending Resolution – response to Citizens United ruling. Calls on corporations to review policies and oversight processes related to political spending and public policy, both direct and indirect including through trade associations, and present a summary report by September 2012.

 

IBM: Review and disclosure of any direct and indirect expenditures supporting or opposing candidates, for issue ads designed to affect political races, including dues and special payments made to trade associations, such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

WASHINGTON, D.C., Sep. 01 /CSRwire/ - Two leading sustainable business organizations representing 5,000 small businesses today sent a letter calling on President Obama to reject the controversial Keystone XL pipeline and, instead, invest in clean energy technologies.  

The pipeline would deliver oil from the tar sands in Canada to the Gulf of Mexico across the United States.

In their letter, Green America’s Green Business Network and The Green Chamber of Commercesaid the pipeline would further United States addiction to oil and risk disastrous new oil spills in rivers and the Ogallala aquifer. Global warming and oil spills have been seen to have an extremely detrimental effect on the economy, which affects the well-being of their businesses.

In addition to these risks, production of the 700,000 barrels of heavy crude that would travel from the tar sands every day creates a tremendous amount of greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming. Both the potential for environmentally harmful oils spills and increase in GHG emissions would be harmful to the environment, in addition to the harm to business in the United States.

The text of the letter to President Obama follows:

“We write to you on behalf of thousands of small businesses in the United States that are deeply concerned about the proposed Keystone XL pipeline. The well-being of our businesses and the economy in the United States are tied to the health of our environment. The Keystone XL pipeline will have an immensely negative impact on the environment. It would bring 700,000 barrels of heavy crude from Canadian tar sands to the US every day, furthering the US addiction to oil, and risking new oil spills in rivers and the Ogallala aquifer. The production of oil from tar sands would generate enormous greenhouse gas emissions, and create greater impacts from global warming.

The impacts of global warming -- from droughts, to floods, to extreme weather -- are bad for business in the United States. As we saw in the Gulf, oil spills also have a devastating impact on the economy. The failure to shift America away from its dependence on oil to cleaner fuels will further imperil our economy and reduce the number of green jobs we need for sustainable economic growth.

Your administration has taken bold and necessary steps to increase the green energy economy in the US. Now, we urge you to reject the Keystone XL pipeline, and further invest in clean energy technologies. It is the right decision for the US, and it is the right decision for business.”

By Dan Bacher

The Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee, in a special hearing in the State Capitol in Sacramento on July 7, passed AB 685, the Human Right to Water bill.

This landmark bill would establish in law a state policy that every Californian has a "human right to clean, affordable, and accessible drinking water for their basic human needs," according to a joint news release from the Environmental Justice Coalition for Water (EJCW) and Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC).

"After hearing moving testimony from safe water advocates and residents of California communities without access to safe drinking water, the committee voted 5-3 in favor," said Debbie Davis, Policy Director of the Environmental Justice Coalition for Water. "A broad-based coalition of faith-based, human rights, environmental, consumer rights and environmental justice groups celebrated the latest legislative victory for the human right to water package moving through the legislature."

The vote was on party lines, with the 5 Democrats present voting for the bill and the 3 Republicans voting against it. Democratic Senators Fran Pavley, Noreen Evans, Christine Kehoe, Joe Simitian and Lois Wolk voted yes, while Republican Senators Doug LaMalfa, Anthony Cannella and Jean Fuller voted no. Democratic Senator Alex Padilla was absent.

"California is one step closer to being the first state in the nation to establish this historic policy which would help everyone have access to clean, affordable water at their tap," stated Davis.

AB 685, introduced by Assemblyman Mike Eng, is the lead policy bill in package of six Human Right to Water bills. Four of the five other bills in the package -- AB 938 (V.M.Perez), AB 983 (Perea), AB 1221 (Alejo) and SB 244 (Wolk) have also won support in their house of origin and received bipartisan support in the latest round of policy committees votes, according to Davis.

"Although this latest vote was on party lines, we hope that the bill proceeds to the Senate Floor and receives bi-partisan support," said Reverend Lindi Ramsden, Executive Director of the Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry. "We have collected over 1,000 letters of support from people of a variety of political perspectives across the state from Humboldt County to San Diego County."

"While billions of dollars have been spent on water projects in California, we have still much work to do to make sure that everyone has access to clean water to drink," emphasized Ramsden.

More than 11.5 million Californians rely on water from suppliers that experienced at least one violation of State Drinking Water Standards as reported to the Department of Public Health in 2004, according to Davis. As many as 8.5 million Californians rely on supplies that experienced more than five instances of unsafe levels in a single year.

“The Human Right to Water bill passed the Legislature and was vetoed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2009,” added Davis. “We are hopeful that with Brown’s experience on California water issues, we’ll have a different outcome this year.”

Co-sponsoring organizations include the Environmental Justice Coalition for Water, Community Water Center, Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry, Food and Water Watch, California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, Southern California Watershed Alliance, Winneman Wintu Tribe, Urban Semillas, Catholic Charities Diocese of Stockton and Clean Water Action.

This bill is opposed by the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA), the Western Growers Association and several other water service providers, who contend the bill "may lead to a requirement that water agencies provide water service without consideration to affordability, thereby increasing water bills and have other unintended consequences," according to the Legislative Analysis.

While the state and federal governments continue to promote the construction of a peripheral canal ("conveyance") through the Bay Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP) to facilitate the export of northern California water to corporate agribusiness on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley and southern California water agencies, many rural and urban communities have to rely on surface and groundwater supplies contaminated by fertilizers, toxic chemicals, sewage and other pollutants.

In July 2010, the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted a resolution recognizing access to clean water and sanitation as a human right. The vote was 122 for and 0 against, with 41 countries, including the United States, abstaining. Over 884 million people throughout the word lack access to safe drinking water.

For more information, contact: Debbie Davis, EJCW, (916) 743-4406, or Shelley Moskowitz, UUSC, (857) 222-8824.

WASHINGTON, March 28, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Green America, Global Exchange and the International Labor Rights Forum are launching a brand-jamming contest in order to bring attention to Hershey's failure to crack down on child labor and other abuses in its cocoa supply chain.

Contestants may submit entries under three categories: Slogan/tagline, print advertisement, or video. These advertisements and slogans will be mock versions of Hershey's promotions, with prizes going to the most creative submissions.  For more information about how to participate in the Hershey brand-jamming contest, go to http://www.raisethebarhershey.org/take-action-hershey-brandjam-contest/.

All entries must be submitted by April 10, 2011, after which a public vote will be taken to help determine the winner. The grand prize winner will be awarded $1000 and best-in-category winners also will receive prizes, including Fair Trade Certified chocolate.  The awards will be announced on April 28, 2011, the day of Hershey's Annual General Meeting for shareholders.

Green America Fair Trade Coordinator Elizabeth O'Connell said:   "We've already had tens of thousands of U.S. consumers participate directly in various campaigns to highlight Hershey's troubling reliance on forced and child labor in West Africa.  Now, we want to get consumers directly involved in spoofing the ads of Hershey to put more heat on the company."  

Global Exchange Fair Trade Director Adrienne Fitch Frankel said: "It remains our hope that Hershey will put an end to these unconscionable labor abuses.  That day is likely to come about more quickly as even more Americans tell Hershey to clean up its chocolate mess."

ILRF Campaigns Director Tim Newman said: "Hershey lags behind the rest of the industry in failing to have any independent, third party certification for its cocoa.  More and more consumers are calling on Hershey to raise the bar and begin sourcing Fair Trade Certified cocoa."

All submissions will be eligible to be used as part of the "Raise the Bar, Hershey!" Campaign.

The "Raise the Bar, Hershey!" Campaign is spearheading actions to encourage Hershey to switch to Fair Trade Certified cocoa, which is grown under standards that prohibit the use of child and forced labor and trafficking. The cocoa industry has been plagued for years by this type of exploitation. Currently, Hershey lags behind its competitors in sourcing cocoa that has been certified by independent, third parties to meet international labor rights standards.  Fair Trade also guarantees farmers a stable, minimum price, empowering them to start to escape the cycle of poverty in conventional trade.

GREEN AMERICA is the nation's leading green economy organization. Founded in 1982, Green America (formerly Co-op America) provides the economic strategies, organizing power and practical tools for businesses and individuals to solve today's social and environmental problems. www.GreenAmerica.org.

GLOBAL EXCHANGE is a membership-based international human rights organization dedicated to promoting social, economic and environmental justice around the world. www.GlobalExchange.org

THE INTERNATIONAL LABOR RIGHTS FORUM is an advocacy organization dedicated to achieving just and humane treatment for workers worldwide. www.LaborRights.org

SOURCE Green America, Washington, D.C.

Aiming to spur greater corporate involvement in the reform of U.S. immigration policy, the Unitarian Universalist Association, along with more than 60 institutional investors, is urging the CEOs of leading American companies to speak out for immigration policy reform.

The group of investors, representing more than $145 billion, issued a letter on February 23 urging CEOs to speak out publicly in support of reform that includes a pathway to legal status for undocumented immigrants. The letter suggests that companies post their support on their websites and in other corporate publications.

The initiative was spearheaded by Tim Brennan, treasurer and chief financial officer of the UUA. He said the religious witness events in Phoenix, Ariz., in July 2010 prompted leaders of the UUA to think about how they could apply their shareholder advocacy to the immigration issue. During the July 2010 protests, more than 150 Unitarian Universalists gathered to protest Arizona’s strict anti-illegal immigration laws, and 29 people, including UUA President Peter Morales, were arrested for their civil disobedience.

Brennan convened the first meeting of the group’s original investors in September 2010. Among the original group that crafted the initiative were officials with Walden Asset Management, Mercy Investment Services, Boston Common Asset Management, and New York City Comptroller John C. Liu.

The letter, signed by representatives of labor unions, investment firms, and faith-based investors, calls immigration reform a “human rights and business imperative.” It urges companies to speak out “in favor of a comprehensive immigration policy, including a pathway for currently unauthorized immigrants to earn legal status. Recognizing the historic and ongoing importance of immigrants in creating a prosperous U.S. economy, we are deeply troubled by the contentious public debate that is stifling progress on an issue that should rise above partisanship. A successful outcome is much more likely if major corporations express publicly their strong support for immigration reform.”

The investor group was eager to use their leverage as shareholders to push reform. One option frequently employed by activist shareholders—the resolution presented at the annual general meeting—was determined to be inappropriate for this application because of SEC limitations. To address what is primarily a public policy issue, the investors believed that direct appeals to corporate CEOs would be more effective. “Getting companies to speak out on public policy can create a model for what public debate might look like,” Brennan said. “The debate has gotten irrational.”

The original working group was inspired by an effort by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whose office spearheaded the creation of the Partnership for a New American Economy, a bipartisan coalition of mayors and business leaders who are making the economic case for sensible immigration reform. “Humane, comprehensive immigration reform is necessary for New York City and the rest of our nation to remain competitive in the global marketplace,” said Liu, New York City comptroller.

In addition to being a business imperative, humane immigration policy is also a moral imperative, the signers urge. “Regardless of our faith, we share a moral responsibility to stop the suffering caused by the current immigration policy, especially to families,” said Brennan. “And as members of the investment community, we know the path to economic prosperity lies ultimately with the humane treatment of our workers.”

The letter calls effective and fair immigration reform a “shared responsibility of individuals, companies, and government.” It states that the major components of comprehensive reform should include: effective border control, employer accountability, improved processes for needed temporary and permanent workers, and a pathway to legal status for currently unauthorized residents. “We believe comprehensive reform must be developed and implemented consistent with the human rights of all concerned, value the integrity of families, and prevent immigrant workers—be they temporary or permanent—from being subjected to second-class employment standards,” the letter said.

The letter was sent to CEOs of major American companies, and it asked them to respond by March 16, to join the effort to advocate for humane immigration reform. “We call on corporate America to be a champion of sensible immigration reform,” said Heidi Soumerai, senior vice president for Walden Asset Management. “Reform is good for business, is rooted in a great source of America’s strength, and is simply the right thing to do.”

Read the original article here.