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as you sow
US Asset Managers Have 'Significant Investments' in Nuclear Weapons and Cluster Bombs: Analysis
"Many investors, given a choice, would not want to profit from companies that manufacture weapons of mass destruction," said As You Sow's Andrew Behar.
Jul 18, 2023
Amidst what the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists calls "an exceedingly dangerous nuclear situation" facing humanity today, the largest U.S. mutual funds—which manage the retirement and other savings of tens of millions of Americans—are profiting from investments in nuclear weapons, cluster munitions, and other banned or controversial arms, an analysis by a leading shareholder advocacy group revealed Tuesday.
Measured by dollars invested, the top 25 U.S. asset managers "all earn a D grade or worse, with significant investments in arms manufacturers and major military contractors, including companies involved with nuclear weapons and controversial weapons like cluster munitions, anti-personnel landmines, incendiary weapons, and depleted uranium," Berkeley, California-based As You Sow said in its new report.
Some of the largest corporate 401(k)s like American Funds, John Hancock Funds, and Franklin Templeton Investments were among the most heavily invested in these armaments, while "fund managers that focus on sustainable investing have less exposure to military weapons, on average."
"Nearly every retirement plan has nuclear and other controversial weapons embedded in their plan."
Seven funds profiled in the analysis—Eventide Funds, Ecofin, New Alternatives, Vert Asset Management, Aspiration Funds ,Thrivent, and Kayne Anderson—held no investments in the controversial weapons.
"Many investors, given a choice, would not want to profit from companies that manufacture weapons of mass destruction," As You Sow CEO Andrew Behar said in a statement. "Yet nearly every retirement plan has nuclear and other controversial weapons embedded in their plan. Our new ratings empower investors with the tools to know what they own so they can invest their money in alignment with their values."
As You Sow's mutual fund ratings are part of the group's Weapons Free Funds investment tool, "built to help responsible investors prioritize peace and people over war and violence."
Nuclear weapons, landmines, and cluster munitions are all banned under international law. However, the United States is not a signatory to any of the bans, and none of the world's nine nuclear powers have signed the landmark Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
Common Dreams reported last month that nuclear-armed nations spent $82.9 billion on their arsenals last year, with the United States accounting for more than half of the global total, according to the Nobel Prize-winning International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons.
Meanwhile, U.S. House Republicans last week blocked a bipartisan amendment to the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act that would have banned the export of cluster munitions. This, as the Biden administration was giving final approval to transfer cluster bombs to Ukraine's military—which, like its Russian enemy, has used the weapons during the ongoing war with devastating effects.
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Insurance Giant Chubb Praised for Ban on Underwriting Arctic Refuge Drilling
While a Gwich'in Steering Committee leader said the policy "is a first for the American insurance industry and shows leadership to protect sacred lands," Chubb's board opposes climate and human rights shareholder resolutions.
Apr 10, 2023
An Indigenous organization on Monday applauded Chubb for joining global insurers and major banks in refusing to underwrite new fossil fuel development within the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.
"After the Arctic Refuge was opened for oil and gas development, we have met with and encouraged financial institutions and insurance companies to respect the people who live and thrive off this land, which we consider very sacred," explained Bernadette Demientieff, executive director of the Gwich'in Steering Committee.
"Since our first meeting, all corporate leaseholders have exited the refuge and every major U.S. and Canadian bank refuses to underwrite such projects," she said. "Chubb's policy is a first for the American insurance industry and shows leadership to protect sacred lands."
"The Gwich'in and the porcupine caribou herd depend upon Iizhik Gwats'an Gwandaii Goodlit," or the sacred place where life begins, "for our identity, our culture, and our ways of life," Demientieff added. "We and the animals we care for are intrinsically linked to this land, and we are grateful to Chubb for this policy."
\u201cGreat news from the @OurArcticRefuge--recent direct action pressure from @RAN @Public_Citizen @nychange @riseandresistny resulted in this win!\n\nWill the company rule out the North Brooklyn pipeline, Willow Project and other major US oil and gas? \n\nhttps://t.co/2WoiPO2meO\u201d— Mary Lovell (she/they) (@Mary Lovell (she/they)) 1681144344
The group pointed out Monday that though American International Group (AIG) early last month "announced a policy to not underwrite oil and gas projects in the Arctic, it was unclear whether this encompassed the Arctic Refuge," and the company "has not responded to outreach from the Gwich'in Steering Committee and allies" seeking clarification.
Chubb in late March announced new underwriting standards for oil and gas extraction projects. Along with adopting criteria for methane emissions, the company said at the time that "effective immediately, Chubb will not underwrite oil and gas extraction projects in protected areas designated by state, provincial, or national governments."
In Chubb's invitation and proxy statement for its upcoming annual general meeting, the company specifically mentions the Arctic Refuge:
Chubb has consistently been a proactive leader on climate risk management, including by being the first major insurer in the U.S. to announce a coal policy for its underwriting and investment activity in 2019; establishing an oil sands policy in 2022; adopting in 2023 a policy prohibiting underwriting oil and gas extraction projects in certain government-protected conservation areas, including the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), and we intend to develop further conservation criteria for the Arctic, mangroves, peatlands, key biodiversity areas, and recognized conservation areas that allow for resource use by the end of 2023.
That section of the statement details the Chubb board of directors' opposition to a climate-related shareholder proposal from the legal advocacy group As You Sow, filed on behalf of Warren Wilson College and co-filers Jubitz Foundation and the Meyer Memorial Trust.
As You Sow's proposal would require Chubb to issue a report disclosing medium- and long-term greenhouse gas targets for its underwriting, insuring, and investment activities in line with the 1.5°C temperature goal of the Paris climate agreement.
The company's board claims that "Chubb shares the proponent's goal of achieving a net-zero economy by 2050. We disagree that forcing Chubb to set targets related to the emissions produced by its insureds, rather than Chubb's own emissions, would advance that goal."
After the insurer unveiled its new underwriting standards in March, As You Sow president Danielle Fugere responded that "we are pleased to see Chubb begin to focus on climate and conservation-focused underwriting standards, yet question the impact these announced standards will have."
"Most large oil and gas companies have programs in place for methane-related 'leak detection and repair' and programs related to the 'elimination of non-emergency venting,'" she noted. "Whether Chubb's policy will change the actions of oil and gas companies or Chubb's own underwriting of oil and gas projects is therefore unclear."
"Chubb's own reporting will not answer that question," Fugere added. "Chubb does not currently report the greenhouse gas emissions associated with its insuring, underwriting, and investing activities so the company remains largely unaccountable to investors with regard to its climate contribution or its reduction of greenhouse gas emissions."
\u201cWe support @Chubb\u2019s new focus on climate and conservation-focused underwriting standards. However, until the insurer reports the greenhouse gas emissions associated with its activities, the company remains largely unaccountable to shareholders.\nhttps://t.co/n59iW4Jupz\u201d— As You Sow (@As You Sow) 1680534076
Liz Marin, missing and surviving Indigenous peoples director with Seeding Sovereignty, stressed last month that "Chubb is recognizing the importance of protected land in this policy, but there are so many sacred ecosystems that do not have protected area designations facing threats from oil and gas drilling. For example, it's unclear if this policy would be applicable to the recently approved Willow project on the North Slope of Alaska, which poses major risks to Iñupiaq communities and the land, water, and wildlife."
The Chubb board of directors is also encouraging shareholders to vote against a proposal from Domini Impact Investments LLC, as representative of the Domini U.S. Impact Equity Fund, that would require a report "describing how human rights risks and impacts are evaluated and incorporated in the underwriting process."
The board argues in part that "Chubb reports extensively regarding its policies and actions that implicate human rights and, therefore, complying with the proposal would be repetitive and impose an unnecessary burden on the company."
The Gwich'in Steering Committee, meanwhile, expressed support for the Domini proposal on Monday.
"We call upon investors to vote in favor of the shareholder proposal on human rights at Chubb's annual general meeting on May 17," said Demientieff. "Companies cannot divide our people from this sacred place. We must be involved in all decisions where there are impacts to our land, animals, and communities. We call on Chubb and all companies to respect our rights, including our right to free, prior, and informed consent."
In 2021, the Biden administration launched a review of its predecessor's controversial decision to open up ANWR to fossil fuel drilling. While Indigenous and climate groups welcomed that move, they continue to call for permanent regional protections. More recently, many organizations and campaigners have also criticized the current administration for approving the Willow project.
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Climate Coalition Targets Big Banks and Insurance Giants With New Shareholder Campaign
"The planet is running out of time and the banks are running out of excuses," said climate leader Bill McKibben.
Mar 01, 2023
A coalition of more than 240 advocacy groups on Wednesday launched a "Shareholder Showdown" campaign in support of shareholder resolutions urging climate action and respect for Indigenous rights at major U.S. and Canadian banks and insurance companies.
According to campaign coordinator Stop the Money Pipeline, the resolutions—which were filed by investors including the New York City and state pension funds, Sierra Club Foundation, and others—would require banks and insurance companies to "phase out their financing of companies engaged in fossil fuel expansion, report on projects that could violate Indigenous rights, use absolute emissions rather than emissions intensity targets, disclose 2030 transition plans, and hold directors accountable at banks that are not aligned with 1.5°C pathways."
The resolutions were timed to precede the companies' annual general meetings.
"This campaign is called Shareholder Showdown because we're in for a real fight—we're up against some globally powerful institutions," Arielle Swernoff, Stop the Money Pipeline's U.S. banks campaign manager, explained in an opinion piece published Wednesday by Common Dreams. "But organized people can achieve anything, and together we will stop the flow of money to fossil fuels and climate destruction."
\u201cToday we\u2019re launching our new campaign: #ShareholderShowdown! \n\nThis spring: banks + insurers will have their annual shareholder meetings, where they'll vote on resolutions needed to keep global warming below 1.5\u00b0C\u2026or decide to keep business as usual. \ud83d\udcb0\ud83d\udd25\n#StoptheMoneyPipeline\u201d— Stop the Money Pipeline (@Stop the Money Pipeline) 1677684715
Bill McKibben, co-founder of the climate group 350.org, said in a statement that "the planet is running out of time and the banks are running out of excuses—everyone from the pope to the secretary-general of the [United Nations] have called on them finally to act with clarity and conviction to help with the planet's greatest crisis, and shareholders should demand no less."
Among the resolutions filed are:
- An Indigenous rights reporting requirement filed by Sisters of St. Joseph for Peace at Citigroup;
- An absolute emissions target disclosure mandate filed by New York City Comptroller Brad Lander and three city pension systems at Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, and Royal Bank of Canada; and
- Measures filed by As You Sow requiring JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley to publicly disclose their 2030 plans for transitioning lending and investment portfolios away from fossil fuels.
"Climate change is an existential crisis that can overwhelm a person in scale and size, impossible to address," said Tara Houska of the Giniw Collective, an Indigenous women and two-spirit-led frontline resistance group fighting fossil fuel projects like Line 3 in Minnesota.
"Big bank shareholders possess an enormous amount of influence on the world's emissions," Houska added. "A roomful of people can impact the disastrous course we are currently on. No more lip service or empty greenwashing—we need action, now."
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