Time and time again, I am disappointed to see the actively blurred lines between environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing, values-aligned investing, and impact. By conflating these concepts, investors who are intent on making a difference with their investments are often misled. Taken in by false promises of the positive change their investments can create, investors can be persuaded by impact washing to allocate assets to products or strategies that do not actively create change.
The Urgency and Disappointment of Investor Action on Russia
At the onset of Russia’s war in Ukraine, Zevin Asset Management Preside Sonia Kowal shared her perspective on the investment community’s role in enabling the crisis and offered solutions on how investors could best support Ukraine moving forward. More than seven months later, her disappointment in investors’ response to the Russian invasion persists.
Zevin Asset Management Weighs in on Russia’s War in Ukraine
Upon Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Zevin Asset Management President Sonia Kowal was quick to share her perspective on the investment community’s role in enabling the crisis, and to offer solutions on how investors could best support Ukraine moving forward. In the weeks since, Sonia, a Ukrainian-American and former Russian-equity analyst, has continued to share her insights on the situation and what investors can do to mitigate further human rights harms. Her commentary has been featured in a number of webinars, podcasts, and interviews on the subject.
Russian Aggression Puts ESG Investors to the Test
Zevin Asset Management President Sonia Kowal and Director of Sustainable Investing Marcela Pinilla break down the investor response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine:
The Investor Response to the Russian War in Ukraine
As another needless war unfolds, it’s important to consider how investors have enabled Putin over the years and the lessons to be learned from burying one’s head in the sand.
His invasion of Georgia in 2008 and then of Crimea in 2014 should have been early warning signs for asset owners and managers. Yet many responded with yawns and shrugs over the years, prioritizing profit over values by choosing to stay invested. I understand this more than most, as an ex-Russian equity analyst who saw up close the potential for making gobs of money by investing in Russian-owned businesses. On Feb. 24, when Putin invaded Ukraine again, those that remained invested had no excuse.