Skip to main content
MENU
Subscribe
  • Subscribe
  • Account
  • LOGIN
  • Topics
    • Alternatives
    • Consultants
    • Coronavirus
    • Courts
    • Defined Contribution
    • ESG
    • ETFs
    • Hedge Funds
    • Industry Voices
    • Investing
    • Money Management
    • Opinion
    • Partner Content
    • Pension Funds
    • Private Equity
    • Real Estate
    • Russia-Ukraine War
    • SECURE Act 2.0
    • Special Reports
    • White Papers
  • Rankings & Awards
    • 1,000 Largest Retirement Plans
    • Top-Performing Managers
    • Largest Money Managers
    • DC Money Managers
    • DC Record Keepers
    • Largest Hedge Fund Managers
    • World's Largest Retirement Funds
    • Best Places to Work in Money Management
    • Excellence & Innovation Awards
    • WPS Innovation Awards
    • Eddy Awards
  • ETFs
    • Latest ETF News
    • Fund Screener
    • Education Center
    • Equities
    • Fixed Income
    • Commodities
    • Actively Managed
    • Alternatives
    • ESG Rated
  • ESG
    • Latest ESG News
    • The Institutional Investor’s Guide to ESG Investing
    • ESG Sustainability - Gaining Momentum
    • Climate Change: The Inescapable Opportunity
    • Impact Investing
    • 2022 ESG Investing Conference
    • ESG Rated ETFs
  • Defined Contribution
    • Latest DC News
    • DC Money Manager Rankings
    • DC Record Keeper Rankings
    • Innovations in DC
    • Trends in DC: Focus on Retirement Income
    • 2022 Defined Contribution East Conference
    • 2022 DC Investment Lineup Conference
  • Searches & Hires
    • Latest Searches & Hires News
    • Searches & Hires Database
    • RFPs
  • Performance Data
    • P&I Research Center
    • Earnings Tracker
    • Endowment Returns Tracker
    • Corporate Pension Contribution Tracker
    • Pension Fund Returns Tracker
    • Pension Risk Transfer Database
    • Future of Investments Research Series
    • Charts & Infographics
    • Polls
  • Careers
  • Events
    • View All Conferences
    • View All Webinars
    • 2022 Retirement Income Conference
    • 2022 Managing Pension Risk & Liabilities
    • 2022 WorldPensionSummit
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. ESG
September 16, 2019 12:00 AM

CalSTRS faces calls to divest from fossil-fuel investments

Arleen Jacobius
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    Fiona Ma
    California Treasurer Fiona Ma sees divestment as a reflection of the state’s values.

    CalSTRS beneficiaries, students, representatives of non-profit organizations and one trustee are urging the $241.3 billion West Sacramento-based pension plan to divest from fossil-fuel investments.

    At CalSTRS' recent investment committee meeting, a large group that included about 40 school children armed with signs, banners and stuffed animals, urged the committee to divest from fossil fuels and to add divestment as a tool in the California State Teachers' Retirement System's governance policy. Speakers, including many of the students whose comments were not broadcast by CalSTRS to protect their privacy, urged CalSTRS to divest, according to videos posted on the website of Fossil Free California.

    Jane Vosburg, a CalSTRS beneficiary and a member of the steering committee of non-profit organization Fossil Free California, also urged pension fund officials to include in its policy that it is willing to divest from fossil fuels and to use that divestment threat to persuade fossil-fuel companies to reduce C02 emissions.

    "We feel that active engagement with fossil-fuel companies should not end with discussion and talk," Ms. Vosburg said. "Divestment by CalSTRS and other large investors may be the persuasion they need to take steps to combat climate change, which threatens our fund and our very existence."

    California Treasurer Fiona Ma, a CalSTRS and CalPERS board member, is also calling on CalSTRS to divest from its investment in fossil fuels, said Mark DeSio, a spokesman for the treasurer. On Sept. 10, Ms. Ma circulated a news release from Fossil Free California highlighting Ms. Ma's support for fossil-fuel divestment.

    "Where we invest our money reflects our values, and we should be valuing a clean energy future for California. These brave and passionate students are reminding us of that," Ms. Ma said in the release.

    Mr. DeSio said in an email that Ms. Ma is starting with urging CalSTRS to divest from fossil fuels, and after that may ask the $378.4 billion California Public Employees' Retirement System, Sacramento, to also divest from fossil fuels.

    After the public comment period was over, Harry M. Keiley, investment committee chairman said that committee members talked about the issue but they disagree on the speed of change. Members of the public want CalSTRS to divest from fossil fuels today or yesterday, he said. While CalSTRS may not be divesting from fossil fuels right now, pension fund officials do care about the issue, he said.

    "CalSTRS understands that climate change poses material risks to humanity, the world economy and our investment portfolio," the pension fund said in a written statement. "CalSTRS, as part of a global coalition of investors, is currently engaging with the major fossil-fuel companies to advance a transition to a low-carbon economy."

    Pension funds officials also support public policies such as cap-and-trade, engaging with companies and investing in sustainable business while fulfilling its fiduciary duty to provide benefits to California's educators, it stated.

    Related Articles
    Asset owners struggle with divestment as ESG tool
    California treasurer calls on CalSTRS to divest from fossil fuels
    CalSTRS weighs active risk budget to better manage investments
    Recommended for You
    Mirza Baig
    Investors push companies for specific ESG actions
    Andrew Behar
    Shareholders lift up their voices at many high-profile company meetings
    California flag blackboard CalSTRS_i.jpg
    CalSTRS backs climate, human rights proposals this proxy season
    SPDR® ETF’s New Approach to Bond Liquidity
    Sponsored Content: SPDR® ETF’s New Approach to Bond Liquidity

    Reader Poll

    June 6, 2022
    SEE MORE POLLS >
    Sponsored
    White Papers
    Nearing the finish line: Ideas on end-state investing for corporate DB plans
    The Meaning of "Portfolio Intelligence"
    Credit Indices: Closing the Fixed Income Evolutionary Gap
    Forever in Style: Benchmarking with the Morningstar® Broad Style Indexes℠
    Crossroads: Politics, Inflation, & Bonds
    Is there a mid-cap gap in your DC plan?
    View More
    Sponsored Content
    Partner Content
    The Industrialization of ESG Investment
    For institutional investors, ETFs can make meeting liquidity needs easier
    Gold: the most effective commodity investment
    2021 Investment Outlook | Investing Beyond the Pandemic: A Reset for Portfolios
    Ten ways retirement plan professionals add value to plan sponsors
    Gold: an efficient hedge
    View More
    E-MAIL NEWSLETTERS

    Sign up and get the best of News delivered straight to your email inbox, free of charge. Choose your news – we will deliver.

    Subscribe Today
    July 4, 2022 page one

    Get access to the news, research and analysis of events affecting the retirement and institutional money management businesses from a worldwide network of reporters and editors.

    Subscribe
    Connect With Us
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn

    Our Mission

    To consistently deliver news, research and analysis to the executives who manage the flow of funds in the institutional investment market.

    About Us

    Main Office
    685 Third Avenue
    Tenth Floor
    New York, NY 10017-4036

    Chicago Office
    130 E. Randolph St.
    Suite 3200
    Chicago, IL 60601

    Contact Us

    Careers at Crain

    About Pensions & Investments

     

    Advertising
    • Media Kit
    • P&I Content Solutions
    • P&I Careers | Post a Job
    • Reprints & Permissions
    Resources
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • FAQ
    • P&I Research Center
    • Site map
    • Staff Directory
    Legal
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Request
    Pensions & Investments
    Copyright © 1996-2022. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • Topics
      • Alternatives
      • Consultants
      • Coronavirus
      • Courts
      • Defined Contribution
      • ESG
      • ETFs
      • Hedge Funds
      • Industry Voices
      • Investing
      • Money Management
      • Opinion
      • Partner Content
      • Pension Funds
      • Private Equity
      • Real Estate
      • Russia-Ukraine War
      • SECURE Act 2.0
      • Special Reports
      • White Papers
    • Rankings & Awards
      • 1,000 Largest Retirement Plans
      • Top-Performing Managers
      • Largest Money Managers
      • DC Money Managers
      • DC Record Keepers
      • Largest Hedge Fund Managers
      • World's Largest Retirement Funds
      • Best Places to Work in Money Management
      • Excellence & Innovation Awards
      • WPS Innovation Awards
      • Eddy Awards
    • ETFs
      • Latest ETF News
      • Fund Screener
      • Education Center
      • Equities
      • Fixed Income
      • Commodities
      • Actively Managed
      • Alternatives
      • ESG Rated
    • ESG
      • Latest ESG News
      • The Institutional Investor’s Guide to ESG Investing
      • ESG Sustainability - Gaining Momentum
      • Climate Change: The Inescapable Opportunity
      • Impact Investing
      • 2022 ESG Investing Conference
      • ESG Rated ETFs
    • Defined Contribution
      • Latest DC News
      • DC Money Manager Rankings
      • DC Record Keeper Rankings
      • Innovations in DC
      • Trends in DC: Focus on Retirement Income
      • 2022 Defined Contribution East Conference
      • 2022 DC Investment Lineup Conference
    • Searches & Hires
      • Latest Searches & Hires News
      • Searches & Hires Database
      • RFPs
    • Performance Data
      • P&I Research Center
      • Earnings Tracker
      • Endowment Returns Tracker
      • Corporate Pension Contribution Tracker
      • Pension Fund Returns Tracker
      • Pension Risk Transfer Database
      • Future of Investments Research Series
      • Charts & Infographics
      • Polls
    • Careers
    • Events
      • View All Conferences
      • View All Webinars
      • 2022 Retirement Income Conference
      • 2022 Managing Pension Risk & Liabilities
      • 2022 WorldPensionSummit