Shareholder Votes Against Exxon and Chevron on Sustainability

What’s happening? ExxonMobil shareholders repudiated its leadership by voting in at least two new independent directors due to the way Exxon has handled climate change issues. Chevron also lost a shareholder vote and will be required to take into account its customers’ emissions when planning reductions.

Why is this important? This follows Wall Street which also is tying decarbonization to better corporate financials. Here’s who was behind the vote: “…a relatively small hedge fund called Engine No. 1. But it quickly won the backing of the three biggest U.S. pension funds, the two biggest advisory services and at least one of the three biggest fund managers. The three fund managers — BlackRock, Vanguard and State Street — hold more than 20 percent of ExxonMobil’s shares.”

How will this be important? Knock, knock. Who’s there? New Economy.

Washington Post | A bad day for Big Oil