Registration for TBLI Asia is in its final month.  You can register now by clicking here.  We currently have all of the speaker's slots filled for TBLI Asia in Bankok. We are happy to confirm that the Minister of Energy of Thailand, H.E. Piyasvasti Amranand Ph.D, has graciously accepted to be a keynote speaker at TBLI Asia.
The other keynote speakers will be:
-Naina Kidwai, Group General Manager, Chief Executive Officer, HSBC India
-Richard Laing, CDC, Chief Executive Officer, UK
-Ashok Khosla, Founder & CEO, Development Alternatives, India 24-25 May 2007. 
You can view the conference program by clicking here.

If your organisation is currently offering or building a sustainable investment profile in Asia or Europe, then the TBLI Conference provides you with one of the few opportunities to reach the largest annual gathering of sustainable investment professionals in these regions.  Conference sponsorship provides many benefits and provides excellent opportunities to profile your organization’s leadership in this rapidly growing market for sustainable investment.  Click here to find out more about sponsorship opportunities for our upcoming conference in Bangkok, scheduled for 24-25 May 2007.  Click here to find out more about sponsorship opportunities for our upcoming conference in Paris scheduled for 15-16 November. Please contact us for more information.

Do you have cutting edge research to communicate or experience in sustainaible investment that you would like to share? We are now accepting proposals for the upcoming TBLI Conference in Paris. If you or your organization would like to submit a presentation, please go to our conference page for more details.  Registration for the conference will open in June.

What is in a name and what does that name imply in terms of ownership, strategy, politics and ideology? Thomas L. Friedman,  author of the book about globalization, 'The World is Flat', considers clean technology and green consumerism within a wider political and strategic context.  For many working in the sustainable finance arena, this is old news.  However, beyond providing a summary of these familiar and obvious issues, the article also provides a glimpse into the stauts of the mainstreaming of sustainability and environmental investments.  Free registration required to read the article online, or a PDF version can be downloaded here.

Growing Opportunity:  Entrepreneurial Solutions to Intractable Problems

by SustainAbility

'The report attempts to assess the current state of social entrepreneurship — the possibilities presented by new mindsets, the challenges entrepreneurs face in scaling their organizations and the opportunities for greater collaboration with corporations and others.'  Free download with registration.
Click here to read the whole article.


Feature articles focus on current trends and investment opportunities in the field of SRI, TBLI and Corporate Governance, offering a source of new information and insights.

Do you have an idea for an article, or would like to submit an article for publication? Please send a letter to the editor.

I fall asleep lately and something dramatic occurs. I am not sure what root causes or series of events have conspired to create this tipping point.  In this place, everywhere I look, the problems and issues seem to be reaching marvelous resolutions.  Shared values and collective benefits seem to be the common denominators. In my waking hours, I write about misbehavior or the lack of values and ethics by the private, public, and NGO sectors. Now I will focus on the whole new paradigm that comes into existence in this dream.  It is a world where we all do the ‘right thing’ when there is a collective benefit, and in this place, it is all around us:

More mergers and acquisitions would be carried out with a clear focus on sustainability and a societal focus. “Will this merger benefit all stakeholders?” they would ask. The TXU M&A by KKR and TexPacific would be the start of a whole new trend. As a bonus, the short-term shareholder value and options would not be the driver of merging two companies, rather the impact of the merger on all stakeholders and long-term value would be the key.

Agreements made with the Russian government would stand, not to be broken to meet the needs of power politics and government officials. Sakhalin would be an ‘aberration’ that wouldn't occur, ever again.

Beer brewers would stop colluding to fix beer prices in certain markets (as in the Netherlands).

Everyone that I call or email would reply promptly, all with a smile and an offer of generosity. “How can I help you?”

Dutch Pension funds would give transparency as to their investment policy, and not invest in the production of cluster bombs.

Politicians would actually say the truth and be honest as to their ambitions and they would take full accountability for their mistakes by resigning. The President of the World Bank would maintain the highest level of ethical standards and avoid the slightest hints of impropriety while fighting corruption around the world.  Attorney Generals would only work for the benefit of all citizens and if confronted with possible conflicts of interests, a full and open account would be given. Presidents would accept failure, apologize, provide restitution, resign or change course, and ask for forgiveness.

Lawyers would write one-page clear legal documents for clients and accept full liability if something goes wrong.

Grant-making foundations, like the Gates Foundation, Skoll Foundation, and Moore Foundation would all manage their money fully in line with their mission. The church, wealthy NGOs, and trade unions would also align all their wealth in line with their values and mission.

Incentives would be widespread for all those working in the financial sector to reward performance and behavior that institutionalizes sustainable finance.

Climate change would be accepted as real and we are put on a wartime footing to resolve the matter. Airlines would no longer be subsidized, but air travel would reflect its true environmental and societal impact, as would be the case with all other products and services. Airports would no longer receive political coverage to expand their power base, in order to rent office space and sell junk at the airport.

Sustainability reports would no longer used as a report for stakeholder management and investor relations, but would actually be used as the major tool for running the business and gauging its success.

Amazing how much has changed, or has it? This is world of possibilities. Our present reality might be completely different, but it should never stop us to follow our dreams.

Brand van Nijenrode, in the form of Cees Roetman and Jan van de Neut, have been my accountants for over 20 years. They have always approached relations with clients more as a family extension. “You now work with us so you are part of the family,” they say.

They always looked out for how they can best help you. I remember when I had significant financial difficulty about 15 years ago, everyone who was supposedly a friend moved away as if I was touched by the plague. Cees and Jan never did that. As long as we needed help, even if it meant they wouldn't get paid, they stood by us, did what needed to be done, and offered the support that was required.

At the same time, Cees always drove me crazy only focusing on the financial returns and not on the long-term opportunities. “The pies in the oven are not relevant until payment for them is received,” he always said. It was frustrating when I was trying to build something and was looking for some encouragement. I realize now that he was only trying to get me to focus on the continuity of the company. Anyway, I got used to it and I was shocked when he recently said, “You are doing well, congratulations!” I felt we were succeeding, but hearing it from Cees made it have more impact.

When people talk about how there should be more values and ethics in the way business operates, and there should be more humanity and trust in the approach of business, they are talking about Brand van Nijenrode.  Jan and Cees have always been who they are: no games, no shows, no dishonesty, a high level of integrity and always with an outstretched hand offering help no matter what the financial conditions. What is the most striking is that they are one of the few people that you can call and they will always find time for you and joke on the phone.

How I overlooked them as Angel of the Month is beyond me. Cees and Jan, the ultimate dream team, congratulations and I am sorry it took so long. You are both a class act and your humor and integrity show you can integrate humanity, values, and business.

We select a variety of current news items hosted at third-party websites that cover a broad range of issues from different perspectives around sustainable finance and asset management, corporate social responsibility, climate change, and corporate governance. Inclusion of a link in this newsletter does not imply an endorsement of the ideas or the opinions expressed.   Some sites require registration and links may go stale over time.  Please let us know if there is a story we should include in next month's newsletter.

As an economic system based on values other than pure monetary gain, Islamic finance tends to parallel its natural benchmark, the Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) and Sustainability industry. But the relationship between the two sectors has not yet reached its full potential. It is time to reflect on the achievements of each and start learning from each other in order to compete for the greater good.  More information available at:
Michael Gassner Consultancy Ltd.

'Beyond Grey Pinstripes is a biennial survey and ranking of business schools. Our mission is to spotlight innovative full-time MBA programs that are integrating issues of social and environmental stewardship into curricula and research.' Definitely some surprises this year in terms of newcomers and schools no longer listed in the top.  Does the survey match your experiences with these MBA programs?

'A study of the relative economics of different approaches to reducing greenhouse gas emissions offers surprising insights for policy makers and business leaders.'

'Concerns about the role and accountability of NGOs have been voiced from different quarters in recent years. Some donors, governments, corporations, and international agencies raise important questions about the effectiveness of NGO work and the legitimacy of their advocacy.'

An examination whether firms are rewarded in terms of increases in shareholder wealth for their involvement in the U.S. political system.

The outlook for sustainable investment is promising, but tenuous.  The growth of the past decade is poised to continue as long as investors, financial professionals, and corporate managers can maintain the momentum of recent trends.

This study provides an essential tool for investment analysts and policy-makers to evaluate the relative financial returns on the use of environmental capital between sectors and companies.

TBLI ASIA

BANGKOK, THAILAND

24-25 MAY 2007

Landmark Hotel

TBLI EUROPE

PARIS, FRANCE

15-16 NOVEMBER 2007

Palais Brongniart

TBLI Europe Sponsors

If you would like to post a job opening, email jobs@tbli.org. Please be sure to include an Internet link that can be posted so that interested applicants can obtain more information.

Click here to learn more about the services provided through the TBLI Academy.

With support from the International Finance Corporation and in conjunction with other IFC events in Washington that week, SFA will offer an executive leadership seminar for sustainable growth in the financial services industry. The target group is executives in banks, leasing and consumer finance companies, brokerages and microfinance institutions around the world.

Do you have an upcoming event that you would like to post in the TBLI Newsletter? Send a letter to the editor. We have limited space, so we may not be able to post all the announcements that we receive.

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