Adding women to leadership roles, improves sustainability practices, period.
Usually we hear of gender being a climate related factor because negative changes will cause the greatest harm on the poor, and women are more likely to be poor. But two recent studies (**1,2) show that when women hold positions on corporate boards, the companies they serve are significantly more likely to address climate change issues. This is how an article by IMPAX Asset Management (Pax World Funds) summarizes the results of the Carbon Disclosure Project questionnaire that asks for the reporting of a company’s impact on several carbon related issues.
This information probably didn’t come as a surprise to Pax World with their lineup of funds that are “Investing in companies that invest in women.” These funds have a record that continually shows the positive influence of women in leadership, including the area of investment returns. Check out the Pax Ellevate Global Women’s Leadership Fund (PXWIX) to see some of these statistics.
1. Mohammed Hossain, Omar Al Farooque, Mahmood Ahmed Momin, Obaid Almotairy, “Women in the Boardroom and Their Impact on Climate Change-Related Disclosure,” Social Responsibility Journal, Oct. 2, 2017.
2. B. Charumathi and Habeebu Rahman, “Do Women on Boards Influence Climate Change Disclosures to CDP? Evidence from Large Indian Companies,” Australasian Accounting Business and Finance Journal, 2019.
Jack Schniepp is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®, ChFC®) and the owner of Cascade Financial Strategies. CFS is a registered investment advisor licensed in Oregon, California and Idaho. They specialize in socially responsible investing which integrates environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) criteria into portfolio construction.
