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Jim Hartzfeld's avatar

I'm a bit late to the party on this article, Matthew. Great personas and the over-hype from each has contributed to this pendulum swing we're all feeling from green-washing to -hushing. It feels like I'm constantly trying to point out the difference between CSR/Impact Investing/Social Enterprise's focus on "sustainable values" and the risk/opportunity lenses of ESG's focus on"sustaining value creation" for a business (in this VUCA world). Yeah, it's a weak pun, but it has started a lot of heads nodding. ESG is no savior, it's just a set of new lenses/tools that can help one class of stakeholder (investors) make smarter choices based on a range of nonfinancial indicators. Look forward to meeting you later this week.

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Lisa Bougie's avatar

Like where you are headed here. How you can help is to begin moving away from the acronym.

ESG lumps disparate priorities together, each important but not necessarily served by being linked. Grouping “E,” “S,” and “G” into a single bucket oversimplifies complex, often divergent issues. Climate risk and diversity equity are not governed or measured the same way. Treating them as a singular initiative invites vague strategies and siloed execution. The term itself is part of the reason we encounter these personas.

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