SfC meets ICCR: «We prefer engagement over divestment»

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ICCR
On 12 November 2024, SfC members met with ICCR CEO Josh Zinner in a webinar. 

For over 50 years, members of ICCR – a coalition of over 300 global institutional investors representing more than $4 trillion in managed assets – have leveraged their role as shareholders to call for improved performance on critical environmental and social concerns at some of the world’s most powerful companies.
The work and history of ICCR was the inspiration for the creation of SfC – Shareholders for Change in 2017.

Josh Zinner explained that ICCR ‘trusts its members to invest as they think best, with different philosophies’. We don’t look at their portfolios. Some invest in oil and gas or weapons, but have an escalation process that can lead to divestment. Others hold these stocks for advocacy purposes’. 

For ICCR the relationship with civil society is crucial. ICCR members are primarily institutional investors but civil society partners work informally with the network. ICCR holds working group meetings where its civil society allies present issues, share reports or highlight challenges,’ said Josh Zinner in the webinar. ICCR also holds bi-annual conferences where civil society allies can meet face-to-face with members, voice their concerns and present their issues directly.

A key part of ICCR’s work is ‘policy engagement‘. ‘We seek to influence legislative and regulatory issues as an institutional investor concerned with long-term impacts,’ said Zinner. For example, we submit comments to regulatory bodies such as the SEC. We also engage with companies on their lobbying activities. This helps to mitigate the risks posed by aggressive corporate political engagement that favours immediate financial gain over long-term sustainability.’ 

Commenting on the current political landscape, ICCR’s CEO pointed out that ‘significant challenges lie ahead‘. There are concerns about the weakening of shareholder rights and further legal attacks on environmental regulation. However, we will continue to actively engage with public institutions, together with other investors and civil society groups.’ 

Following the webinar, SfC and ICCR committed to formalising their collaboration and exploring opportunities for joint engagement projects.