------------------------------------------------------------------------ Issue 10 April 2002 Online at http://unepfi.net/ebulletin PRIORITY EVENTS 1. INSEAD/UNEP FI Expert Workshop ? Sustainable Venture Finance (7, 8 June, 2002, Fontainebleau, France) 2. UNEP FI Regional Outreach Event ? Countries with Economies in Transition (CEIT) (24, 25 June - Budapest, Hungary - this event is being rescheduled from 24-26, April, 2002) MEMBER SHOWCASE 3. Two UNEP FI Members Among the World?s Top Three Socially Responsible Investment Managers ACTIVITIES 4. UNEP FI Regional Outreach Event - Africa - A Final Report (28, 29 January, 2002 ? Midrand, South Africa) 5. UNEP FI Annual Global Roundtable Meeting on Finance and Sustainability (14, 15 March, 2002 - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) EVENT WIRE 6. African Corporate Citizenship Convention (24, 25 April, 2002 - Johannesburg, South Africa) 7.OECD Conference on Financing the Environmental Dimension of Sustainable Development (24-26 April, 2002 ? Paris, France) 8. European Federation of Accountants Sustainability Conference (29 April, 2002 - Copenhagen, Denmark) 9. New Zealand Socially Responsible Investment Conference 2002 (21 May, 2002 - Auckland, New Zealand) NEWS 10. Data and Trends on SRI in Europe PRIORITY EVENT 1. INSEAD / UNEP FI Expert Workshop ? Sustainable Venture Finance 7, 8 June, 2002 ? Fontainebleau, France _____ REGISTER AT: http://unepfi.net/venture INSEAD and UNEP FI will be joined by leading practitioners and experts to answer whether and when it is profitable to invest in sustainability-oriented venture capital funds and entrepreneurial ventures. Active participation and discussion will be a focus of the conference, with extra time for networking built in. Discussion will build on applied research already undertaken by INSEAD and UNEP FI. We are currently looking for partners to assist in funding and networking. Contact the secretariat for more information. Contact UNEP FI: Jacob Malthouse, ( malthouj@unep.ch) Contact INSEAD: Anastasia O´Rourke, ( anastasia.orourke@insead.edu) 2. UNEP FI Regional Outreach Event - Economies in Transition (EiT) 24, 25 June - Budapest, Hungary _____ Please note: this event is being rescheduled from 24-26, April, 2002. The two-day roundtable conference will be the fourth in a series of UNEP FI Regional Outreach events and is designed to address the business case for sustainable development and foreign direct investment dynamics within transition economies. The conference aims to attract finance, business, and governmental and non-governmental sectors to discuss pressing issues within the finance-sustainability interface for those economies. The outcome and recommendations arrived at in Budapest will be compiled with those gained in the previous three events, and those from the UNEP FI Annual Roundtable Event (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, March 14-15, 2002), and carried forward to the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) discussions in South Africa in August. For more information on the Transition Economies event, please contact Ms. Niamh O? Sullivan (niamh.o.Sullivan@unep.ch), or see www.unepfi.net/eit. MEMBER SHOWCASE 3. Two UNEP FI Members Among the World?s Top Three SRI Managers _____ The Swedish research group MISTRA in its latest survey of socially responsible investment (SRI) in Europe has found Henderson Global Investors to be among the world?s top three managers in terms of SRI best practice. The other two champions were Norway-based Storebrand Asset Management and Trillium Asset Management in the US. Henderson and Storebrand are both long-time UNEP FI supporters. The study, covering 142 SRI products from 77 fund managers based in Europe or the US, defined 6 best practice characteristics for SRI: - triple bottom line approach - focus on best-in-class and pioneers / innovators - evaluation of sustainability opportunities and sustainability risks - intelligent screening model - qualified research team - openness and transparency in screening procedures The study also looked at the impact of using SRI criteria on investment performance and concludes that "financial returns and risk levels are not affected negatively by adding SRI criteria". Further information: The MISTRA report at http://login.returnity.com/amp-hendersen-01/MISTRA.pdf Henderson?s sustainability funds at http://www.sustainablefuturefunds.com Storebrand?s website: http://www.storebrand.com/ ACTIVITIES 4. UNEP FI Regional Outreach Event - Africa - A Final Report 28, 29 January, 2002 - Midrand, South Africa _____ On January 28th-29th 2002, UNEP FI held the third in a series of Regional Outreach events, in Midrand, South Africa, which was hosted by the DBSA (Development Bank of Southern Africa). The event was one of the first - if not the first - major international sustainability conference in South Africa for the 2002 WSSD (World Summit for Sustainable Development) year. More than 110 representatives from a variety of African countries, and from both financial and non-financial sectors, engaged in interactive dialogue relating to finance and sustainable development issues within the continent. Many participants noted that one of the most rewarding aspects of the double roundtable event was the opportunity to gain pragmatic insights from practitioners and formulate recommendations for the future of sustainability from practitioners within the African financial sector. More information at www.unepfi.net/africa Speaker presentations at http://www.unepfi.net/africa/pres.htm Contact: Ms. Niamh O?Sullivan, ( niamh.o.sullivan@unep.ch). 5. UNEP FI Annual Global Roundtable Meeting on Finance and Sustainability 14, 15 March, 2002 - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil _____ Financing a Sustainable Future: Strategies, Partnerships, and Opportunities?on the way to Johannesburg 2002 Ten years after the Earth Summit? on the road to the WSSD in Johannesburg, UNEP FI has returned to Rio de Janeiro for its 2002 Global Roundtable. The Roundtable attracted around 300 participants from all continents and provided them with an opportunity to interact with key players and global leaders in finance, insurance, and sustainability. Over the two days of the conference challenges and opportunities for sustainable finance were identified and new partnerships forged, on global as well as regional level. Plenary sessions with compelling speakers from the world?s major financial companies were balanced with interactive workshops on topics as diverse as Microfinance, Venture Capital, and Environment and Security. The well received workshops offered the opportunity to learn about innovative tools and techniques, to share best practice in sustainable finance and to engage with cutting edge issues for the finance and insurance sectors. In Rio, UNEP FI also had the pleasure to welcome KPA AB, a financial services company from Sweden, as a new signatory. Overall the Rio Roundtable was a critical stepping stone not only in our work towards the World Summit for Sustainable Development (WSSD), but also as an agenda setting event in terms of the finance community and sustainability. Messages from the Roundtable were taken to the United Nations Financing for Development Conference, which took place in Monterrey, Mexico, March 18-22, and a set of recommendations will be developed by UNEP FI members to feed into the Financing for Development Process in the run up to WSSD. UNEP FI wishes to thank the host BNDES for their excellent support in the preparations and during the event and ABN AMRO - Banco Real, CAF, Deutsche Bank and HSBC for their sponsorship and support. Presentations from the Roundtable will soon be available at www.unepfi.net/rio. For more information please contact Trevor Bowden ( trevor.bowden@unep.ch) EVENT WIRE 6. African Corporate Citizenship Convention 24, 25 April, 2002 - Johannesburg, South Africa _____ The African Institute of Corporate Citizenship (AICC) is hosting the first ever African Corporate Citizenship convention over 24, 25 April 2002. The convention will comprise four plenary sessions debating key issues around the New Partnership for Africa?s Development (NEPAD), African Corporate Citizenship, and African Challenges & Leadership for Tomorrow. In addition there will be 16 workshops for delegates to attend over the two days. AICC was also the named sponsor for the recent UNEP FI Regional Outreach Event in Midrand. For detailed information please visit www.corporatecitizenship-africa.com and follow the Convention link or contact Dan Sonnenberg at the African Institute of Corporate Citizenship (dan@aiccafrica.com) 7. OECD Conference on Financing the Environmental Dimension of Sustainable Development 24-26 April, 2002 ? Paris, France _____ Within the perspective of the preparatory process for the World Summit on Sustainable Development the OECD, together with co-operating international institutions, is organising an international conference to examine: - trends in environmental finance since Rio and key challenges for the future; - strengthening international partnerships for financing environmental dimension of sustainable development - opportunities to improve the management of domestic public environmental expenditure; - public policies and market-based initiatives for harnessing private finance for the environmental dimension of sustainable development. Find out more at: http://www.oecd.org/EN/document/0,,EN-document-680-12-no-20-26878-0,FF.h tml. Or contact: Ulrik Weuder ( ulrik.weuder@oecd.org), or Aki Yamaguchi ( aki.yamaguchi@oecd.org). 8. European Federation of Accountants Sustainability Conference 29 April, 2002 - Copenhagen, Denmark _____ The European Federation of Accountants (FEE) and its Danish member FSR are organising a European conference of corporate sustainability reporting experts. The conference will focus on the latest developments in: * Reporting * Providing Assurance * Sustainable Accounting * Corporate Reputation During the conference FEE will launch its new discussion Paper: Providing Assurance on Sustainability Reports and present this year?s European Environmental Reporting Award. It is FEE?s stated aim to discuss sustainability reporting and assurance issues with policymakers, industry, press and concerned stakeholders. This conference actively encourages multi-stakeholder dialogue and aims to promote the process of advancing the quality of sustainability reporting and assurance. For more information please contact Mr. Claus Paulsen ( cmp@fsr.dk) 9. New Zealand Socially Responsible Investment Conference 2002 21 May, 2002 - Auckland, New Zealand _____ In conjunction with its Australasian Partner EPA Victoria, UNEP FI is hosting the inaugural Socially Responsible Investment ("SRI") conference in New Zealand. This conference, to be held in Auckland, May 21, 2002, will look into the case of socially responsible investment (SRI) in New Zealand, its growth and the performance implications. More specifically speakers and participants will consider and discuss what developments are making social and environmental behaviour increasingly important determinants of companies? financial prospects. Financial planners will have the opportunity to learn how to capture their clients? non-financial objectives in a prudent investment portfolio that will achieve competitive returns. The conference will also identify ways how to combine fiduciary and financial obligations and social and environmental objectives. Keynote speakers from the international business community at the conference include Jane Nelson, International Business Leaders Forum; Dr Don Stammer, ING Australia; and Tessa Tennant, Association for Sustainable & Responsible Investment in Asia, as well as a number of excellent New Zealand and Australian presenters. To find out more please contact: Mel Hewitson, Tel: 64 9 377 9682 ( melanie.hewitson@nz.towerlimited.com) or Helen Bloustein, EPA Victoria, Tel: 61 3 9695 2687, Email: ( helen.bloustein@epa.vic.gov.au) Web address: http://www.epa.vic.gov.au/Programs/UNEP/ NEWS 10. Data and Trends on SRI in Europe _____ Avanzi and the SiRi Group, with the support of CSR Europe and Euronext, have completed an annual survey on the state of the art in "Green, Social and Ethical funds in Europe". In addition, the partners have also launched the SRI Compass ( www.sricompass.org), a web platform that provides comprehensive guidance on Socially Responsible Investing as well as detailed information on each SRI retail fund in Europe. For a free copy of the report or more information please contact: Matteo Bartolomeo, Avanzi ( bartolomeo@avanzi.org) Elena Bonfiglioli, CSR Europe ( eb@csreurope.org) _____ END Copyright 2002 - UNEP FI The UNEP FI e-bulletin is a monthly publication of the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiatives United Nations Environment Programme, Division of Technology, Industry and Economics, Economics and Trade Branch, Finance Initiatives Unit Editor: Jacob Malthouse malthouj@unep.ch Assistant Editor: Mareike Hussels mareike.hussels@unep.ch The e-bulletin is available online at http://unepfi.net/ebulletin