Wall Street quietly turns tail on its sustainability commitments

illuminem summarizes for you the essential news of the day. Read the full piece on Financial Post or enjoy below:

🗞️ Driving the news: Morgan Stanley has quietly dropped its commitment to finance plastic waste cleanup, once a key element of its sustainability strategy
• The decision reflects a broader retreat from sustainability goals by Wall Street firms, partly driven by right-wing political pressure and economic concerns like inflation
• Many companies are downplaying ESG discussions, with CEOs shifting focus to AI, inflation, and geopolitics

🔭 The context: In 2019, Morgan Stanley publicly promoted its Plastic Waste Resolution but has since removed specific targets due to difficulties in data quality
• Across corporate America, ESG goals are being scaled back, as sustainability has become politically charged and companies face increasing pressure to prioritize financial performance over environmental commitments

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Retreating from sustainability commitments undermines global efforts to tackle pressing environmental issues such as plastic pollution, deforestation, and climate change
• This shift could slow the transition to a greener economy and weaken corporate accountability on environmental impacts

⏭️ What's next: As political polarization around ESG continues to grow, companies may further scale back public commitments
• However, advocates stress the need for transparency and realistic goal-setting in the transition to a low-carbon economy

💬 One quote: "It is increasingly challenging to address the nuances of complex topics like the energy transition because of the growing segregation into ideological camps," said Adam Matthews, chief responsible investment officer at the Church of England Pensions Board

📈 One stat: A survey by Bain & Co. found sustainability has dropped down the list of top priorities for CEOs, with many now focused on inflation, AI, and geopolitics

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