A Risky Environment for Investment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

A Risky Environment for Investment - Essay Example Moreover, lenders, shareholders, actions groups are putting more pressure on companies to disclose information with regards to business activities that impact on the environment so that these factors could be taken into account with investment decisions. A number of initiatives have been worked out to integrate sustainability and profitability. On a global level, the United Nations has been working with businesses and industries to make their activities more environmentally sustainable - among these are the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) including the UNEP Finance Initiative, and the UN Global Compact. A notable non-UN initiative is the Equator Principles developed by banks to manage environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) issues. The launch of the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) in April 2006 was intended for pension funds (constituting about 35% of total global investments) and large institutional investors, and provides a "framework for achieving better and long-term investment returns and more sustainable markets". About 50 institutional investors from the US and Europe with a portfolio of about $4 trillion have signed on to PRI.

Book Analysis Evironmantalism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Book Analysis Evironmantalism - Essay Example Richard white view on environmentalism is that nature can act multipurpose to provide for human beings. This is evident by the fact that humans get food from the Columbian river and they generate hydroelectric power from the river. His view is the division of nature into different parts to maximize productivity and enhances development from nature. Richard White has evidently addressed with humans controlling nature to profit them, there are many consequences accompanied with it. Some people start wars claiming they own certain parts of nature and this erupts to social and political wars. This evident when the some people in Colombia tried to divert the course of the river to suit their social and political interest. This kind of actions results in struggles and oppositions about certain forms of nature. These struggles show that humans are fighting and claiming something they have not created and they do not have full rights of that natural resource. Richard perilously emphasizes th at what was supposed to happen did not happen in accordance to nature. Richard’s environmental concept is that humans can get all forms of energy from nature and use it for development purposes. This is emphasized through the generation of hydroelectric power for electricity, and the salmon fish that provide calories for human beings. He argues that the natural resources can provide the needed energy in the making of political and financial decisions that will enhance the developmental process3. Richard white addresses the misfortunes of human beings of trying to over control nature. With an aim of getting profits from nature, human beings have tried to dominate nature, which is not practical. This has resulted in conflicts between nature and human beings, as nature is not ready to conform to man’s ideas. Both nature and human begins end up becoming losers because they are unable to connect. This is because humans are trying to divide nature so as to maximizing profit thus forgetting the social values that should be upheld. Edward Abbeys Form of Environmentalist Edward Abbey’s form of environmentalist is one that advocates for the preservation and protection of the environment and natural resources. This is addressed by how the author brings out characters that are ready to protect a desert from the exploitation of developers.4 The characters in this book are in the move of stopping developers especially those who are in construction areas. These characters are stopping road buildings by destroying the equipments involved in the construction of roads. Edward is advocating for the preservation and conservation of the environment. The author has practically shown how he is ready to protect the environment fully. He is in the campaign of burning down billboards that are advertising construction projects, and he intentionally sabotages the bulldozers that are constructing roads in the quest of protecting the environment. Edward Abbey worked as a forest wanderer whose main aim was the protection of the environment and the conservation of natural resources.