WHY?
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Over $8.4 trillion in assets are held in 110 million 401(k) employee retirement plans across the United States.
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The vast majority of the Americans who rely on ERISA plans to save for retirement do not even have the option of investing with companies best oriented toward a climate-safe future.
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While the majority of retail investors want to be Paris-aligned, fewer than 3 percent of defined contribution plans offer a climate-friendly investment option.
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Roughly, the average carbon intensity by laggard U.S. banks is 126 ktCO2e/$billion (so for each $1 billion deployed, these banks generate emissions comparable to about 30,000 internal combustion engine cars running for a year).
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In February 2022, 13 of the world’s largest non-financial companies cumulatively held cash and investments that exceeded $1 trillion - these corporations’ cash and investments generate emissions at a huge scale.
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The cash holdings of U.S. companies, including Alphabet/Google, Facebook/Meta, Microsoft, and Salesforce, are their largest source of emissions; increasing total emissions by 91% - 112%, when compared to most recently reported emissions.
WHY?
WHAT?
1. Assess and disclose the climate impact of corporate cash deposits and retirement funds within a period of three years.
2. Decarbonize bank accounts and employee retirement plans, starting with a group of leading U.S. companies.
Goals
HOW?
EDUCATING
Educating companies on the climate impacts of finance
CONNECTING
Connecting companies to climate-friendly finance options (toolkits, actors, incentives, opportunities), especially with a "Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion" lens
CONVENING
Convening companies to exchange best practices, challenges, and opportunities in an off-the-record, "Impact Experience"
LEVERAGING
Leveraging non-financial companies’ collective voice, cash and retirement savings to drive positive change for climate justice
