Here's why foundations have not acted on climate change:
, and has recently announced a 2.5% allocation within their endowment into ESG investments. Foundations benefit from regulatory independence and financial freedom, and theoretically, they should be able to transition their investments more quickly to investments that do no harm to the environment. So, why aren’t more foundations acting to move their investments?... [+]
for Barclays to stop funding new fossil fuel projects. So far there have not been protests targeting foundations. Part of the privilege that foundations also have, is that they don't have a legal obligation to publish their investments transparently. “Their only obligation is to publish an investment 'policy', which can be as short as one or two lines and can say as much or as little as they want to say,” says Draganova.
Another reason for inaction comes back to who holds the power. The climate crisis will have a disproportionate impact on the most vulnerable, yet the decision-makers of these foundations are the most privileged people you can find in the world. After all, foundations are used as vehicles for wealthy individuals and families to preserve their wealth. ... [+]Getty Images for Concordia Summit
To move towards action, foundations can start with recognizing the privileges that have been endowed on them. The report features a quote from the CEO of Lankelly Chase Foundation, with an endowment of 140 million pounds, “Arguably, the climate obligations on a foundation such as ours are pretty compelling given that our endowment has grown thanks to investments in carbon intensive industries, and given that those with our degree of freedom to act should be using that freedom.
With the United Nations Climate Conference, COP25, drawing near, it is time for foundations to rethink how they invest and to step up their leadership to tackle the climate crisis.
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