Proxy voting and shareholder resolutions
This part of the course sheds light in the proxy voting and shareholders’ resolutions mechanisms.
“ESG Integration: Accelerating Sustainable Investments in Modern Portfolios”
This course developed and offered by the FAME EU project provides insights on how to accelerate sustainable investments in modern portfolios. FAME is an embedded financial project which implements various data-driven embedded finance pilots, including pilots that deal with ESG bonds and investments. The course is destined to help financial professionals and engineers in their efforts to make informed decisions that align with their values and financial goals. The course starts by providing a solid foundation in ESG investments, ensuring that learners grasp the fundamentals of this transformative approach. It provides an overview of what ESG factors are and why they are essential in today's investment landscape. Moreover, it presents different approaches to ESG integration along with information on how to incorporate ESG factors into your financial analysis effectively. Material ESG issues are also discussed, along with quantitative and qualitative methods for assessing ESG performance. The course also provides information about ESG data and research, including information on how to evaluate the reliability and credibility of ESG data, which is a key for making informed investment choices. Furthermore, different ESG-focused investing strategies are presented along with the concepts of negative screening and exclusions, as well as positive screening and thematic investing. A dedicated part of the cost focuses on engagement and advocacy as mechanisms for driving positive change within companies. Finally, the course provides insights on how to measure and reports ESG performance, which is vital for transparency and accountability. This knowledge is provided along with best practices in ESG reporting and information about investors’ expectations for ESG disclosures.
The course consists of the following parts:
1. Introduction to ESG Investments
1.1 Understanding ESG Investments
1.2 ESG Factors
2. Integration of ESG Factors in the Investment Decision Making
2.1 Integrating ESG factors into financial analysis
2.2 ESG integration approaches
2.3 Quantitative and qualitative methods for ESG assessment
2.4 Identifying material ESG issues
3. ESG Data and Research
3.1 ESG research and ratings
3.2 Sources of ESG Data
3.3 Assessing the reliability and credibility of ESG data
4. ESG investment strategies
4.1 ESG integration in active and passive strategies
4.2 ESG-focused investing
4.3 Positive screening and thematic investing
4.4 Negative screening and exclusions
5. ESG engagement and shareholder advocacy
5.1 Collaborative initiatives for ESG improvement
5.2 Corporate engagement on ESG issues
5.3 Proxy voting and shareholder resolutions
5.4 Stewardship principles and practices
6. Measuring and reporting ESG performance
6.1 Investor expectations for ESG disclosures
6.2 Key performance indicators (KPIs) for ESG
6.3 Reporting frameworks and standards
6.4 ESG reporting best practices