Excerpt
Excerpt
Shareholder Activism on Sustainability Issues. George Serafeim, July 25, 2016, Paper, "A growing number of investors are now engaging companies on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, in addition to traditional executive compensation, shareholder rights, and board of directors’ topics. In 2013, nearly 40 percent of all shareholder proposals submitted to Russell 3000 companies related to ESG issues, representing a 60 percent increase since 2003 (Proxy Voting Analytics, 2014). The topics of ESG proposals are diverse, ranging from disclosure of political contributions and compliance with human rights policies, to the adoption of a climate change policy. The purpose of this paper is to test the effect that ESG proposals have on firms’ subsequent ESG performance and market valuation."