Corporate Climate Lobbying in the US
The Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) has posted a new podcast highlighting findings from The Climate Accountability Scorecard: Ranking Major Fossil Fuel Companies on Climate Deception, Disclosure and Action, a Union of Concerned Scientists report. Please listen to Kathy Mulvey’s, a member of the UUA’s Socially Responsible Investing Committee and the Climate Accountability Campaign Manager […]
October Monthly Commentary
US equities sold off in October ahead of the presidential elections on November 8. The S&P 500 lost 1.8% on the month and the Russell 2000 fell 4.8% amid lackluster earnings reports. Emerging market equities eked out modest gains generated partially by continued capital inflows. International developed-market equities were in the black but currency depreciation […]
As Paris Climate Agreement Becomes International Law, Global Shift to Clean Energy Accelerating
by Christopher N. Fox, Director, Special Projects — Ceres As world leaders prepare to gather for the COP22 climate talks in Morocco, Ceres experts are blogging on low-carbon investor and company actions since the adoption of the Paris Climate Agreement and challenges that remain. Today, the Paris Agreement – the first-ever global, legally binding framework to tackle climate […]
Green Energy Surges
There’s good news on the shift from fossil fuels to renewables. According to the International Energy Agency renewables have overtaken coal as the biggest source of power capacity globally. And the change is happening so rapidly that the IEA has had to revise its forecast by 13% made just last year. Green energy still lags […]
The Value of Diversification
By Tim Brennan, Treasurer & CFO, UUA Here’s a question I get a lot: why doesn’t The UU Common Endowment Fund, LLC (UUCEF) put more of its assets into US stocks? And conversely, why keep investing in international stocks? After all, US stocks are outperforming international markets. Here’s why: the UUCEF follows an investment strategy […]
The Disease of Doubt
Concerned about the recent short-term performance, read the latest white paper from NEPC’s Chief Investment Officer, Timothy McCusker. Doubt can be a pesky thing. Once infected with it, it is hard to shake off. It makes you second guess what you thought you were sure of. It’s contagious too. And there’s no flu shot for […]
September Monthly Commentary
Equities posted modest gains in September amid oscillating investor sentiment fueled by uncertainty around potential interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. Earlier last month, Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren surprised markets with a more hawkish view regarding future interest rate increases. In response, stocks sold off but subsequently rebounded as the Fed confirmed that […]
The Climate Accountability Scorecard: Ranking Major Fossil Fuel Companies on Deception, Disclosure, and Climate Action
Today, the Union of Concerned Scientists released a new in-depth analysis scoring major fossil fuel companies on their climate actions. The Climate Accountability Scorecard: Ranking Major Fossil Fuel Companies on Deception, Disclosure, and Climate Action used 30 metrics to examine Arch Coal, BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, CONSOL Energy, ExxonMobil, Peabody Energy and Royal Dutch Shell. Significant variations […]
August Monthly Commentary
Coming on the heels of a rally in July, equities posted modest returns in August as volatility hovered around historic lows. In the US, small-cap stocks marginally outperformed large-cap equities, with the Russell 2000 returning 1.8% last month compared to the S&P 500’s 0.1% gain. Equities in developed markets also posted moderate returns. The MSCI […]
Nonprofit Organizations: Annual Audit Survival Guide
Many nonprofit organizations are recognized under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRS) and therefore considered exempt from paying federal income taxes. Despite this reprieve, federal and most state governments levy several other “taxes” on nonprofit organizations resources in the form of financial regulation, including but not limited to the dreaded annual financial statement […]