Exploring Environmental Social

Governance Programs
A beginning guide for learning about ESG through a CSR lens

CORPORATE SOLUTIONS
While not a new concept or strategy, Environmental Social
Governance programs are on the rise. Over the last couple of
Contents
years, as natural disasters continued to pick up in intensity and
COVID19 brought rising income and healthcare inequalities
to center stage, Corporations have increasingly been pouring 3 Down to Basics- What
is ESG and Why Does it
more focus on their own ESG measurements and practices in
Matter?
conjunction with their Corporate Social Responsibility efforts.
4 A History of How
Modern ESG Came to Be

ESG isn’t just for companies that produce products that 6 Picking Apart the Pieces

contribute to environmental concerns like plastics companies 8 Management and

or oil and gas, and it’s not just for industries that tend to be Measurement

more under the public eye as a consumer-driven and b2b 10 Perspectives on

organization. ESG can be for everyone, no matter how small or Launching an ESG
Program
large your workforce or what industry your company falls into.
The following guide is meant to be a starting place for learning 12 Why ESG is Here to Stay
a brief history of ESG and how the concept has evolved, 14 Resources
components of ESG, different measurement & management
practices and external resources (both free and paid) that you
can access to learn more.

© October 2017, Blackbaud, Inc.

This white paper is for informational purposes only. Blackbaud makes no warranties,
expressed or implied, in this summary. The information contained in this document
represents the current view of Blackbaud, Inc., on the items discussed as of the
date of this publication.

All Blackbaud product names appearing herein are trademarks or registered

trademarks of Blackbaud, Inc. The names of actual companies and products
mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

[Link] May 2021 2

 statistics that support the claim that ESG performance
Down to Basics- What is ESG and
can have positive impacts. Here are a few highlights from
Why Does it Matter? the report:
ESG stands for Environmental Social Governance, and
according to Investopedia, it is a “set of standards for a
company’s operations that socially conscious investors • On average, employers with high employee
use to screen potential investments.” satisfaction scores had scored 14% higher on ESG
performance 1
What exactly goes into each letter? Here’s a quick
breakdown: • Top employers had lower carbon emissions,
were more diverse, and made a greater effort to
Environmental: How a company interacts with the understand employee feelings 1
Environment. This area considers the environmental
• Top employers had a more diverse gender balance
impact of the products and services a company
on their board (average of 30% female leadership
produces, their supply chain, and their sustainability
compared to an average of 20%) 1
practices, including facilities management.

Social: How a company cares for its employees,

communities, and buyers. Corporate Social Responsibility
initiatives fit well into this piece of the puzzle, and ESG isn’t just having a moment, it’s making history.
Diversity & Inclusion and Racial Justice are also incredibly Assets under management in ESG funds have grown
important aspects of this topic. by almost $1 trillion between the end of Q1 2020 and
end of Q1 2021.2 As we continue to press on into 2021,
Governance: Considers how a company governs itself, these financial successes aren’t showing any sign of
conducts business, and manages against conflicts of slowing down. The markets continue to show that when
interest. businesses do well by ESG measurements, they have the
propensity to perform well financially too.
Traditionally, ESG has been used as a measurement to
determine the worth & stability of a company based References:
on its actions and performance against Environmental,
1. ESG as a Workforce Strategy
Social, and Governance metrics. If companies are doing
well in the three areas that makeup ESG, they are ‘future 2. There’s no hotter area on Wall Street than ESG with
proofing’ and ‘scandal proofing’ themselves against sustainability-focused funds nearing $2 trillion
factors that can tank their value. There are numerous
examples of companies who failed to consider ESG
impacts and faced the consequences. From oil spills,
illegal insider trading, to toxic company cultures,
failures across ESG components can negatively impact
a company’s revenues, reputation, and recruiting and
retention efforts.

On the flip side, companies that perform well against

ESG indicators realize numerous benefits. Marsh &
McLennan Advantage released a report in 2020 called
“ESG as a Workforce Strategy” that lays out numerous

[Link] May 2021 3

 weapon used by the United States Military and produced
A History of How Modern ESG
by several US-based chemical companies. Companies
Came to Be involved in the production of Agent Orange are still
While not a new concept or strategy, Environmental facing lawsuits from victims, both US veterans and
Social Governance (ESG) programs are on the rise. Over civilians from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, to this day.
the last couple of years, as natural disasters continued to
Anti-war wasn’t the only movement that took place
pick up in intensity and COVID-19 brought rising income
in the 1960s. This decade also saw the Black Power
and healthcare inequalities to center stage, Corporations
Movement, American Indian Movement, a further push
have increasingly been pouring more focus into their
for women’s rights, rights of farmworkers, and the Green
own ESG measurements and practices in conjunction
Power Movement. You can read more on the protests
with their Corporate Social Responsibility efforts.
of the 60s and 70s at American Archive of Public
The following timeline is not a completely Broadcasting’s online exhibit, “Speaking and Protesting
comprehensive representation of all events that have in America”.
shaped ESG (that would be a lot of pages!) but is a
1970 - Milton Friedman introduces his
series of events that we found to intersect well with our
Shareholder Value Theory. If you’re
understanding of corporate social responsibility. Rather
not familiar with Milton’s theory, you might remember
than a single moment in time, ESG was born out of
it being quite the buzz in the world of corporate social
actions in the business community over several decades
responsibility last year as 2020 marked 50 years since
that culminated into our modern understanding of ESG
the theory was first published in the essay “The Social
today. The timeline has links to articles about significant
Responsibility of Business is to Increase its Profits”. While
events over the last century that helped form our current
still debated, there’s a growing consensus that business
context.
strategy should not just be about profit maximization.
Companies that have a purpose that reaches beyond
profit maximization at the core of their business strategy
1950s & 1960s - Electrical and Mine Workers Unions
are seeing long-term, sustainable growth. ESG can be a
started investing pension capital in
pillar of a company’s CSR initiative.
affordable housing and health facilities.
April 22, 1970 - Inspired by anti-war movements
1960s - Anti Vietnam War protests and the
and a deep concern for the
push for peace in the United States is
environmental future of America, junior Senator Gaylord
well-known for the actions taken by University students
Nelson of Wisconsin rallied 20,000,000 (10% of America’s
and protesters, but also involved outspoken members of
population at the time!) to come together to protest
the business community. This quote, taken from the TIME
environmental destruction in what we now know as
article “Behind the Anti-War Protests that Swept America
Earth Day. The first Earth Day led to a cascade of major
in 1968”, is a good example of that.
steps towards conservation. According to [Link],
“A financial brokerage house, Paine Webber, Jackson “by the end of 1970, the first Earth Day led to the creation
& Curtis, went so far as to run an ad saying that peace of the United States Environmental Protection Agency
in Vietnam would be “the most bullish thing that could and the passage of other first of their kind environmental
happen to the stock market.” laws, including the National Environmental Education
Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act, and the
On the other side of business influence in the Vietnam Clean Air Act. Two years later Congress passed the
War was the production of Agent Orange, a chemical Clean Water Act. A year after that, Congress passed

[Link] May 2021 4

the Endangered Species Act and soon after the Federal organization that helps businesses and organizations
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act. These laws take responsibility for their impacts, by providing them
have protected millions of men, women and children with the global common language to communicate
from disease and death and have protected hundreds of those impacts.”
species from extinction.” Read more about the history of
2000 - The United National Global
Earth Day here.
Compact is launched. This pact is
1980s - The concept of ESG continues “a call to companies to align strategies and operations
to accelerate, especially around with universal principles on human rights, labour,
actions taken by the United States Government in the environment, and anti-corruption, and take actions
“Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act”, which outlawed to advance those goals”. Today, the Global Compact
any additional investment in South Africa spans signatories from 13,000+ companies across 160
countries.
Additionally, this decade saw several environmental
disasters at the hands of companies including a massive 2004 - Through the Global Compact, the
oil spill in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. This disaster in particular report “Who Cares Wins- Connecting
lead to the founding of the Coalition of Environmentally Financial Markets to a Changing World” was published
Responsible Companies, also known as CERES. in 2004 and provided guidelines for companies to
incorporate ESG into their operations.
1990 - The Domini 400 Social Index was
created, which we now know today 2011 - The Sustainability Accounting
as the MSCI KLD 400 Social Index. This index was the Standards Board (SASB) is
first of its kind to track sustainable investment through a launched to standardize sustainability accounting and
capitalization-weighted methodology. By 1994, investors measurements across 77 industries. In their words, the
had access to 26 sustainable funds, with assets of mission of SASB is “to establish and improve industry
around $1.9 Billion. specific disclosure standards across financially material
environmental, social, and governance topics that
1992 - United Nations Framework
facilitate communication between companies and
Convention on Climate Change,
investors about decision-useful information” SASB
also known as the Earth Summit, convenes in Rio De
provides great information about their framework and
Jannero and 154 countries sign into an international
other ESG frameworks on their website.
environmental treaty aimed to curb environmental
impacts across the globe. 2015 - At the United Nations Framework
Convention, the Paris Agreement
1997 - The work done in Rio De Janeiro
is brought to life, and at the United Nations General
is operationalized as the Kyoto
Assembly the Sustainable Development Goals were
Protocol, with 192 countries pledging to “committing
created. A previous iteration of the SDGs were the
industrialized countries and economies in transition to
Millennium Development Groups- you can read more
limit and reduce greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions in
about the evolution and history of both of these goals
accordance with agreed individual target”. The protocol
here.
then went into effect in 2005.
2020 - There’s no doubt that the past
In the same year, the Global Reporting Initiative was
year has accelerated the need
founded in Boston. In their own words, the “GRI (Global
for CSR and ESG. The COVID-19 pandemic brought
Reporting Initiative) is the independent, international
economic disparities to the forefront and highlight gaps

[Link] May 2021 5

in healthcare systems and access across the world. The companies should pick and choose the pieces to their
United States was forced to confront the continued own ESG puzzle that best address their strengths and
impacts of systemic racism in waves of protests and weaknesses.
dialogue that continues to shape 2021. Also in the United
For example, if you’re a software company, some
States, a contentious election highlighted voter rights
strengths of your employee base could be volunteering
and a deep divide in political beliefs. Across all of these
around coding camps for young girls and focusing on the
areas, many companies were forced by consumers
accessibility of your platform.
and investors alike to speak up, take a stand, and look
internally at their own policies and workforce and reflect If you’re a plastics manufacturer, offsetting your carbon
on their actions around diversity and inclusion and footprint and focusing on sustainability through
advancing social justice. Here’s an article that detail the volunteering and charitable partnerships that clean-ups
impacts 2020 had on ESG: Forbes- ESG Investing Came oceans and beaches would fit well within the strengths
of Age in 2020 – Millennials Will Continue to Drive it in of your company.
2021
On the flip side, it might not be the best use of resources
2021 - Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, for the plastic manufacturing workers to focus on
published his Annual Letter to volunteering to teach young girls to code, and the
Shareholders with a clear message- The time to act is software company might not be best suited to focus
now. ESG is a prominent theme throughout the letter charitable giving exclusively on beach & ocean clean ups
and Fink examines the expected and unexpected (although any company located by a coast would be well
impacts of the pandemic and how the business positioned to take care of their coastal communities!).
community can and should play a role in creating a The point is, there is nuance in every situation and it’s
better world. going to be up to you and your organization to decide
what components of ESG are most appropriate for your
company.
Picking Apart the Pieces
While the following is by no means a comprehensive
Now that we’ve defined ESG and explored a brief history
list, it is a good place to start as you develop your ESG
of the subject, let’s take a look at all of the various
initiatives. ESG programs are going to look different for
components that makeup ESG. As you can imagine,
every company and might even look different within
there are hundreds of ways to examine and measure a
your own company based on your geographic footprint.
company’s ESG efforts. The best way to picture ESG on a
Global companies should take special consideration in
company level, especially if you’re building programs for
adopting their ESG approach to meet the unique needs
the first time, is to imagine the concept like a build your
of their employees and communities across different
own puzzle.
locations and shouldn’t assume any one program will be
Just like corporate social responsibility programs, no universally appropriate.
company can do it all, nor should they. Companies
have unique strengths and weaknesses based on their
industry, customer base, geographic location, employee
base etc. No two programs will look exactly the same-

[Link] May 2021 6

• Diversity and Inclusion • Supply Chain of products • Board Diversity across age,
programs and materials gender, and race
• Benefits packages for • Waste management • Executive Leadership
employees. For parental • Water usage Diversity
benefits, how do you provide • Transparent accounting
for same-sex couples or • Pollution
individuals and how do • Energy consumption for your • Executive & Board
you provide for employees buildings compensation
pursuing adoption? • Lobbying activities
• Packaging
• Equity across all gender • Political donations
• Carbon emissions (Have
identities, race, and age. you considered factoring in • Compliance with local and
• CSR programs- both employee commute time or federal regulations
employee engagement company travel into the total • Risk Management
and more corporate-driven emissions you offset?)
giving programs • Cybersecurity
• Incorporating renewable
• Customer Satisfaction energy • Consumer privacy

• Product responsibility & • Electronic recycling • Shareholder engagement

safety programs
• Accessibility of products and • Public transportation
services incentives
• Human Rights – pay and
working conditions
• Learning and Development

[Link] May 2021 7

Management and Measurement 1. First, you’ll want to decide where this program
will primarily live within your organization.
ESG programs can be managed by a variety of different
Is there an existing team within your company
stakeholders throughout the company. As with a. that ESG management would fit well under? Some
various corporate social responsibility programs, ESG
examples: Sustainability department, Corporate
management doesn’t look uniform across all companies
Affairs, Risk & Compliance, Supply Chain, Corporate
or industries, and is highly dependent on a company’s
Social Responsibility, etc.
unique strengths, weaknesses, and ultimately desire to
improve and grow their ESG efforts. Will it be a part of an existing department, or a
b.
stand-alone team?
The industry of a company will play a big role in
shaping ESG programming and measurement. Different If ESG will be wrapped up into an existing
c.
industries will face different challenges and areas for department, will there be a dedicated resource? If
opportunity to improve. For example, the environmental not, how will you capture the responsibilities within
metrics measured by a textile company with a robust, an existing role and ensure they have the capacity
international supply chain is going to look different from to manage and measure your efforts?
a professional services firm.
2. Once you’ve decided where ESG will live
Location will also play a big factor in what a company within your organization, it’s time to round up
is required to report out on from a government the stakeholders. You’re going to need support!
perspective. In countries around the world, legislations ESG covers a huge variety of topics- no one can
have been passed at local and federal levels to limit do it all alone. Even if you only have a partially
environmental impact, protect consumers, and protect dedicated resource, cross-collaboration will be
employee rights around employment and benefits. key.
Adhering to these legal requirements and being aware of
how future legislation will impact your business should
a. Do you have top-down support?

be considered while shaping your current and future ESG i. Is your CEO and Board committed to supporting
efforts. Companies that are placing a strong emphasis these efforts, and do they understand why it’s
on ESG are likely to find it easier to adapt to shifting important? Arm them with the facts! There’s a lot
of good data that supports the claim of companies
legislation than their peers.
that do well against ESG do well financially.
Another consideration beyond industry will be company
ii. Even if you don’t have support all the way at the
size and resources. The team managing ESG at a Fortune top, is there an executive leader that can sponsor
500 company will probably look quite different from a and champion your efforts to establish an ESG
smaller business, but that doesn’t mean ESG is just for program?
large enterprises.
What other departments can you learn from and
b.
Regardless of your company size, location, and industry, lean on? Here’s a few to consider looping into your
it will be important to include all relevant stakeholders efforts:
into your ESG program planning, roll-out, and ongoing
i. Facilities Management- they probably already
management and measurement. You don’t want to
have a lot of great insights on energy consumption!
reinvent any processes that might be captured in a
different department. Here’s a few steps to consider ii. Sustainability
when creating your ESG programs:
iii. Security & Risk professionals

[Link] May 2021 8

 iv. Supply Chain Leadership i. i.e. if Social Justice and Childhood Education are
really important to your organization, consider
v. Finance- ESG ultimately can drive profits and
making those your focus areas under Social.
revenue
Figure out your steering committee. It’s possible
vi. HR- ESG can be a great driver for recruiting and d.
retention not all stakeholders involved in the planning
process will need to be routinely involved moving
vii. Diversity & Inclusion- Along with HR, this will be
forward. For the stakeholders, you do want
a crucial partner in how you incorporate caring for
employees into your program. involvement and input from on a routine basis,
establish a meeting cadence.
viii. Communications- since ESG is great for
company reputation, make sure you have someone i. One option is to have a steering committee that
on board that can help you tell your story! meets quarterly that gives high-level feedback
from a larger group of stakeholders, and then a
3. Plan and work together. Now that you know
core team that meets on a more routine basis.
what team will oversee ESG and have identified
your network of support throughout the company, Identify what you want to measure, set goals,
e.
it’s time to pick the pieces of your ESG puzzle and and establish benchmarks. ESG efforts shouldn’t
establish how the company will work together to be something you just measure once a year and
meet your objectives. forget about. Incorporating ESG goals into overall
company-wide goals can be a great way to drive
Identify what your strengths and weaknesses are,
a. common commitment and progress across the
and where your company wants to grow.
organization.
What are your peers up to? Research ESG reports
b. 4. Communicate! Letting your employees &
from other companies
customers know about your ESG commitments
i. The largest companies in your industry that
and successes is a great way to recruit and retain
perform well against ESG measures can provide
inspiration for your company’s long-term goals.
talent and business.
Educate your employees on your ESG efforts by
ii. Companies that are similar in size and industry to a.
hosting internal webinars or sending out
you can be used to benchmark your current efforts
communication.
iii. Companies that are in your geographic footprint
regardless of industry can also be a great tool in Publishing a stand-alone ESG report or wrapping
b.
evaluating what you want your programs to look your ESG measurements into your existing CSR
like. report is a great way to show your customers and
the market you’re committed.
Instead of just having Environmental, Social, and
c.
Governance be the only three pillars of your ESG By showcasing your ESG efforts, you might also
c.
program, consider creating pillars that are specific set off a chain reaction that encourages other
to your company’s goals as sub-sections under businesses local to you or in your industry to step
ESG. Narrowing your focus can help your company up to the challenge as well.
make bigger impacts in the areas that are
important to you.

[Link] May 2021 9

Measurement These frameworks require a lot of data, and it can be a
When selecting ESG criteria to measure at a company, challenge to collect and analyze all the numbers. There
are many options in the market of tools and consulting
it’s important to go beyond just capturing the
services that can help streamline ESG measurement
metric. Identifying the outcomes of these actions efforts. You might consider researching platforms that
will help ensure that the desired results are achieved. can help track various components of ESG or hiring an
Organizations can get away with a ‘check the box’ outside consultant to help develop your process.
approach to ESG but in order to realize the full benefits
of effective ESG programming, organizations need References:
to apply a forward-thinking approach that considers
1. [Link]
desired outcomes, not just inputs and outputs.
raters-2020/
Measuring your ESG efforts can be a daunting task.
There’s no one universal approach to capturing and Perspectives on Launching an ESG
measuring ESG metrics, but there are some existing
frameworks. The following is a list of some of the largest
Program
ESG rating agencies, but please note there are hundreds
INTERVIEW WITH RACHEL HUTCHISSON,
of other agencies in addition to this list:
VP, GLOBAL SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AT
BLACKBAUD
- MSCI ESG Rating
Blackbaud included an Environmental Social
- Global Reporting Initiative
Governance commitment in the 2020 Social
- Sustainability Accounting Responsibility report. What formalized approach
Standards Board did Blackbaud take to instating an Environmental
- RepRisk Social Governance (ESG) program in 2020?
Blackbaud has embraced its role as a socially responsible
- CDP
company since our earliest days as a company. Our recent
- Sustainalytics investments in ESG are the latest additions to our long-
standing focus, and they include the formation of an
- S&P Global ESG Score
ESG steering committee, establishing an ESG program
manager, formalizing board oversight, and joining the UN
The numerous rating agencies and the ways in which Global Compact. Our commitment to social responsibility
investors interpret the scores have created some has been a journey for us, which began with investments
confusion amongst corporate professionals who wish to in corporate philanthropy and employee philanthropy
report on and improve their ESG efforts. If you’re looking -- how we equip them to be Agents of Good. We continue
to dive deeper into ESG measurement and have a better to evolve how we give back as the company evolves
understanding, The Sustainability Institute has a report and, four years ago, began issuing a social responsibility
available for free- Rate the Raters 2020.1 This report helps report. ESG reporting is not clear cut, and each company
to answer “How exactly are investors using ESG data? needs to determine what is material. We have been
Which ratings do investors use the most, and how can setting up the internal mechanisms for collecting
that knowledge inform where companies focus”1 and sharing the data important to out business so we
can build on our disclosures over time. We know that
customers, employees, our communities, and investors

[Link] May 2021 10

care about our core focus on being responsible and that where they are located and who their employees are. It is
our commitment to report matters to them. good to identify peers in your industry that are ahead of
you or like you, so you can learn from them. At the same
What was important to you when forming the time, you have to do your own due diligence to figure
ESG Committee and establishing the ESG Program out what things are going to be important to measure
Manager position? and report on. It is also important to remember that you
It was important to have a dedicated person and don’t have to do everything all at once. Pick a few things
that are foundational to your business, things that you
resources behind ESG, someone with responsibility for
don’t need outside help with as a way to begin. Build
establishing and managing the project plan, doing the
and secure buy-in from the top. It’s important that ESG
research to understand how we can track key measures
is embraced as a strategic element of your company for
and data, and learning from other companies. It wasn’t
you to fully realize your vision.
realistic for us to take a step towards ESG reporting
without a dedicated project manager. It was also
important to us to have key stakeholders representing
all areas of the business on the steering committee.
The steering committee could weigh in on what would
make Blackbaud proud to report on, so that we weren’t
just looking at what outside rating agencies were saying
about ESG.

How do you see ESG continuing to grow at

Blackbaud?
We will continue to learn from other companies, to
set up processes to measure information and share it,
and to refine and identify what is most important for
us to report. Companies don’t have to report on every
single metric. We will report on what makes sense in the
context of how we operate at Blackbaud. For example,
we don’t have manufacturing plants or sell products
packaged in plastic, but those issues would be material
for another kind of company. We know we are on a
long journey where we will evolve our thinking and our
knowledge year over year.

What advice do you have for other companies

that are getting ESG programs off the ground?
There are some good resources that have come out
in the past year or two that can help companies get a
good understanding of what ESG is and why it matters.
Additionally, I would advise each company to look at
what is important to them. Every company is going to
have a different journey depending on what they do,

[Link] May 2021 11

 Internationally, the number of governments that have
Why ESG is Here to Stay
passed similar resolutions is close to 2,000 and includes
The world is facing unprecedented challenges the parliaments of many prominent nations like Ireland,
connected with environmental issues pertaining Italy, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Spain and Vatican
to climate change, clean water, ocean health and City.2
biodiversity.2 Companies need to adapt their strategies
Reputation–Don’t just check the box! Companies have
to account for these environmental challenges or
already noticed consumers’ desire to purchase products
they won’t be set tup for long-term sustainable
that are environmentally friendly. The development of
growth. As ecological concerns gain prominence
green advertising has become an important component
and consumers become increasingly aware of the
of brand messaging3, but you can’t just talk the talk. In
potential environmental implications of their purchases,
the Journal of Advertising article “Misleading Consumers
consumers will look for products and brands that
with Green Advertising? An Affect–Reason–Involvement
promote ESG. Consumers and employees are also attune
Account of Greenwashing” researchers studied two
to a corporations response and support of social justice
types of claims found in greenwashing, vague claims
and how they care for their employees, customers, and
and false claims. The researchers found that false claims
communities.
bring harm to the brand, but even the perception of
greenwashing associates negative attitudes with those
3 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD INVEST IN
brands.3
CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY INCLUDING ESG

Global Pressures – As countries around the world face

environmental challenges, your business will feel the Additionally, the 2019 Gen Z Purpose Study
pressure to meet the standards of doing business showed that 9 out of 10 say if a company makes
sustainably. In 2015 governments from around the a commitment, it should have the appropriate
world came together and agreed on the Sustainable programs and policies in place to back up that
Development Goals or SDGs. The multi-year strategy of commitment. This generation won’t take companies
the UN Global Compact is to drive business awareness at their word alone. 75% will do the research to
and action in support of achieving the SDG’s by 2030.1 see if a company is walking the talk when it takes a
Today if you visit the UN Global Compact website you stand on an issue.4
will see over 13,000 companies from 160 countries that
have joined this commitment to align business strategy
and operations with universal principles for human Companies need to invest in ways to measure and
rights, labor, environment and anti-corruption. report on how they are meeting ESG goals. Companies
that don’t uphold their reputation could lose investors,
On April 23, 2021, Hawaiian legislatures adopted a
partners and customers.
bill that declares a climate emergency. Hawaii is the
first state to declare a climate emergency and the bill Investors and consumers look for companies with CSR and
“acknowledges that an existential climate emergency ESG programs – New data shows that the most valuable
threatens humanity and the natural world, declares a market in the world, families with young children,
climate emergency, and requests statewide collaboration demands environmental responsibility and action
toward an immediate just transition and emergency towards climate change. Passion Points data from Q1
mobilization effort to restore a safe climate.” 2021 shows US parents raising children today spike 400%
on their concern for global warming and climate change.5

[Link] May 2021 12

As Gen Z enters the workforce with strong purchasing
power, they are shaping strong opinions of the world
around them.4 This includes paying attention to how
companies participate in making a change towards
addressing social and environmental issues. 94% believe
we need to come together to make progress towards
important issues.4 If your company is not participating in
social responsibility not only will they likely not purchase
from you, but they also won’t want to work for you.

From the investor point of view you can see in the

news that Blackrock issued a $7 trillion climate change
warning to the stock markets. Blackrock is known as the
world’s largest investor and the fund manager’s plan
indicates a significant change and impacts how the
investment community views action towards ESG. Ceres,
a sustainability nonprofit that works with investors on
climate change, announced a consortium of investors
managing $9 trillion in assets that have committed to
investing along with net zero carbon goals.6

References:

1. [Link]

2. [Link]
legislature-declares-climate-emergency/

3. [Link]
2018.1452652

4. Undivided 2019 Gen Z Purpose Study

5. [Link]
[Link]

6. [Link]
important-than-ever-to-win-consumers-passion-points-
data-shows-2021-04

[Link] May 2021 13

 Resources
Increasing demand for transparency from employees, consumers, and investors will continue to have impacts on how
CSR & ESG interact and expand. The following are various resources we have compiled to help further education on
the topic and stay up to date on emerging trends.

Courses: Podcasts
• edX- Conscious Capitalism • Refinitiv Sustainability Perspectives
• edX: Transforming Our World: Achieving the • MSCI’s ESG Now podcast
Sustainable Development Goals • S&P Global’s ESG Insider
• CFA Institute: Certificate in ESG Investing
• Udemy: ESG and Sustainable Investing 101
Organizations To Follow
• Blackrock – Sustainable Investing
LinkedIn Courses Available: • MSCI
• Introduction to LEED Certification • CSRhub
• Sustainability Strategies • Sustainable Brands
• The Employee’s Guide to Sustainability • Nasdaq ESG Advisory Team
• Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging for All
• Diversity and Inclusion in a Global Enterprise

Articles:
• ESG Impact is Hard to Measure – But it’s Not
Impossible
• Introducing ESG Investing: Brochure from MSCI
• The 3 trends putting pressure on companies to begin
ESG reporting

At Blackbaud, we are passionate about making the world a better place. Through our YourCause CSRconnect and
YourCause GrantsConnect products we help corporate professionals track their grantmaking, employee giving and
employee volunteering programs. We have also developed robust reporting tools to help our clients better capture
and tell the story of the impact they are making in the community, including measuring against the Sustainable
Development Goals. If you’re interested in learning more about how we can help power your company’s social good,
please contact us by emailing sales@[Link]

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