Contacts:
Lisa MacKinnon, Trillium Asset Management (617) 423-6655
Katie Cheney, First Peoples Worldwide (540) 899-6545

February 1, 2012 — First Peoples Worldwide (FPW), a global indigenous nonprofit dedicated to strengthening Indigenous Peoples, today announced a new partnership with Trillium Asset Management.  Under the terms of the partnership, Trillium is undertaking custom research and shareholder advocacy focused on how corporate policies and programs can better protect and enhance Indigenous Peoples’ rights.

Founded in 1997 by widely acclaimed advocate Rebecca Adamson, FPW supports projects that preserve biodiversity, identify contemporary applications for traditional knowledge, mitigate the impact of climate change, and advocate free prior informed consent.

Adamson, a Cherokee, has developed creative, mutually beneficial economic models since 1970 and was just interviewed for the 2013 PBS series entitled “Women Who Make America.” Her work includes creating the first microloan fund in the United States, the first tribal investment model, a national movement for reservation land reform, and legislation that established new standards of accountability regarding federal trust responsibility for Native Americans.

First Peoples’ new small grants fund, Keepers of the Earth, makes grants directly to communities in ways that ensure capital is engaged to reflect cultural values.  It is an effective platform for donors who want 100 percent of their monies directed to some of the most remote grassroots communities in the world. FPW is the only organization worldwide that distributes global grants using the collaborative intelligence of indigenous wisdom to address contemporary challenges in areas of wealth, environment and cultural preservation.

In keeping with Rebecca’s ongoing focus on innovation, she looked to Trillium to help build a new partnership to promote Indigenous voices in the corporate boardroom.

Trillium is the oldest independent investment firm focused exclusively on Sustainable and Responsible Investing. Under this partnership, Trillium is leveraging its expertise in corporate responsibility research and advocacy as well as its deep ties within the sustainable investing community. This collaboration culminates in a FPW publication called “Corporate Engagement Strategies: Indigenous Partnerships for Best Practice Solutions.”

As part of this publication, Trillium is providing FPW with regular research updates examining best practices in corporate America and reviewing new developments in legal cases and local and national legislation.

Trillium is also helping FPW engage in broader policy discussions around corporate responsibility.  For example, Trillium helped FPW provide formal input into the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Guidelines’ next generation framework. A recent letter signed by Rebecca Adamson, and supported by Trillium, makes the case that the current GRI reporting guidelines can be significantly improved by developing indicators that more explicitly address the reporting organizations’ impact on Indigenous communities and how well companies are equipped to anticipate, forestall and mitigate negative impacts.

According to CEO Matt Patsky, “We believe Trillium Asset Management is uniquely positioned to work with First Peoples in developing cutting edge research and advocacy on Indigenous peoples’ issues. We have been integrating these issues into our investment process since our founding in 1982.”

Rebecca Adamson said of the partnership, “Our partnership with Trillium signifies one of the first genuine platforms for Indigenous grassroots voices to be heard by corporate America. Trillium’s deep understanding of research and advocacy related to corporate sustainability policies is a powerful springboard that drives grassroots voices into the boardroom.”

This partnership illustrates well Trillium’s ability to provide custom research and advocacy services on behalf of other groups of investors.  Trillium believes there may be a strong demand for such a service from a variety of investor groups.

This partnership is a natural extension of the work Trillium has undertaken for some time to address Indigenous peoples’ rights. Trillium was one of the first investment companies to explicitly reference Native American and Indigenous peoples’ rights as a specific area of focus in its sustainable investment criteria. Trillium also addresses these issues through dialogue and shareholder proposals with some of the largest companies in America.

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First Peoples Worldwide is a global development nonprofit based in Fredericksburg, VA with expertise in indigenous management principles and solutions for best practice in corporate strategies. The FPW flagship fund Keepers of the Earth links donors directly with communities all over the world by making small grants in ways that successfully apply indigenous intelligence and support economically effective platforms for positive change.

Trillium Asset Management, LLC is the oldest independent investment advisor devoted exclusively to sustainable and responsible investing. With over $950 million in assets under management, Trillium has been managing equity and fixed income investments for high net worth individuals, foundations, endowments, religious institutions, and other non-profits since 1982. A leader in shareholder advocacy and public policy work, Trillium’s goal is to deliver both impact and performance to its investors.

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The letter was sent to Alaska Air, Amazon, Boeing, Costco, Expeditors, F5 Networks, JC Penney, Keybank, McDonalds, Nordstrom, PG&E, Perkins Coie, Paccar, T-Mobile, State Farm, Safeway, REI and Walgreens. It was signed by Trillium, the Equity Foundation, the Pride Foundation, the Sustainability Group at Loring, Wolcott, Calvert Investments, the Horizons Foundation, the Unitarian Universalist Association, and the Tides Foundation.

Trillium Vice President Shelley Alpern said, “Many of the companies we are contacting have admirable LGBT workplace policies. We hope that they will act quickly to ensure that their commitment to fairness and respect for diversity are not undercut by the inability of their LGBT workforce to marry in Washington State. The states that are beginning to recognize and allow gay marriage will have an advantage in attracting and retaining a wider pool of workers.”

The marriage equality bill has been voted out of committee and is said to be on a fast track toward a full vote by Washington legislators.

The full text of the letter can be viewed here.

Since the mid-’90s, Trillium has promoted LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) workplace equality through corporate dialoge and shareholder resolutions. More information about these initiatives can be found here.

Read more here

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The Joan Bavaria Award honors unique investor, business, and NGO leaders who are working to transform the capital markets into a system that balances economic prosperity with social and environmental concerns. The winner of this year’s award will be announced at the opening reception of the 2012 Ceres Conference on Tuesday, April 24, 2012, in Boston.

Bavaria founded both Ceres and Trillium Asset Management. She passed away in 2008 after a prolonged battle with cancer.

 “Joan Bavaria was a pioneer of social investing whose vision and humanity has helped catalyze change in the capital markets to help create a more sustainable economy for a better world,” said Ceres President Mindy Lubber. “The Joan Bavaria Award honors and celebrates those individuals who are carrying out her grand vision of integrating sustainability into the capital markets for the health of the planet and its people.”

This year, Ceres and Trillium Asset Management revised its award process and will now honor only one individual with the Joan Bavaria Award. In 2011, socially responsible investing advocates Peter Kinder, co-founder and former president of KLD Research & Analytics, and William Foote, founder and CEO of Root Capital, were recipients of the Joan Bavaria Award.

“It is humbling to be associated with such a visionary and intrepid leader as Joan Bavaria, whose example set the bar for all of us who followed in her footsteps,” said Foote in his acceptance speech last year. “We [Root Capital] are honored to play a small role as part of the growing community that is realizing her vision for a social capital market that builds prosperity in underserved communities.”

Previous winners also include the Center for Political Accountability in Washington, D.C., investor advocate Tim Smith of Walden Asset Management in Boston, sustainable business school Bainbridge Graduate Institute in Washington, the research collaborative Enhanced Analytics Initiative, and activist, prize-winning historian and Global Reporting Initiative founder Bob Massie.

 For more information or to submit a nomination, visit www.ceres.org/awards/joan-bavaria-award or contact Kristin Erekson at erekson@ceres.org or 617-247-0700 x124.

The brief makes the case that, “This dual regime [of unequal recognition of marriage by the federal government] uniquely burdens administrative complexity, and regardless of our business or professional judgment forces us to discriminate against a class of our lawfully-married employees, upon whose welfare and morale our own success in part depends.”

Ten additional amicus briefs were submitted by members of Congress, academics and historians, unions, civil rights organizations, bar associations and others. For more information and to download the briefs, visit here.

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Trillium Asset Management, LLC is the oldest independent US investment firm dedicated to sustainable investing.  

Sustainability is a concept used to describe social systems — whether a family, a corporation or a society as a whole.  A social system is sustainable when it is economically vital, environmentally responsible, and socially equitable.  Each of these qualities partly depends on the other two, and all of them flourishing together and in balance are necessary for a social system to be truly sustainable. 

We agree with essential themes emerging from Occupy Wall Street (OWS). 

The rallying cry of OWS is: “We are the 99%.”  With this self-identification, participants in OWS reference the amply documented fact that over the past 30 years wealth and income have been increasingly concentrated in the hands of just 1% of the US population.  As history teaches, such extreme inequity can be socially destabilizing and economically disruptive.  It is unsustainable.  

Wall Street is the target of this protest because it is one of the most visible symbols of concentrated wealth, and because many Wall Street institutions participated in bringing the global economy to the brink of disaster. The protestors are also justifiably disappointed in our government, which has failed to resist or meaningfully regulate the corrupting influence of corporate political spending, and at our tax structure, which advantages society’s wealthiest individuals. Most Americans share these frustrations, as do we at Trillium.

As a pioneer in the field of socially responsible investment, we believe it is our duty to advocate for a market-based economy that provides opportunity for, and serves the needs of the 100% — not just the 1%. We join the call for corporations to do their part by paying their fair share of taxes, comply with the letter and the spirit of regulations designed to protect the public interest, refrain from making political contributions, and treat customers, employees and communities with dignity and respect. We call on public policymakers to respond to the clear message of their constituents that our democratic system is imperiled by accelerating social and economic inequality, and take firm measures to redress this trend. We stand at a crossroads, and the direction we must take is clear.

About Trillium Asset Management, LLC

Trillium Asset Management, LLC has for nearly 30 years acted as an agent of capitalism with a conscience, using our voice as shareholders to advocate for economic vitality, environmental responsibility and social equity among publicly held corporations around the globe.

You can download this statement here.

NEW YORK – Shareholders of AT&T Inc. have filed a proposal calling for the company “to publicly commit to operate its wireless broadband network consistent with network neutrality principles” that would maintain open access to the Internet on wireless networks.

The filing comes only weeks before implementation of new Federal Communications Commission rules on network neutrality that provide a broad exemption for wireless broadband networks – the fastest growing segment of the Internet.

AT&T has sought in the past to block shareholders from voting on network neutrality issues. A similar shareholder proposal on wireless networks was excluded from AT&T’s 2011 proxy ballot following a Securities and Exchange Commission staff ruling that net neutrality was not a “significant public policy issue.”

The latest AT&T proposal has been filed by institutional investors including the Nathan Cummings Foundation as well as individual investors including Mike D of the Beastie Boys. Unless the proposal is blocked again, it’s expected to be voted on at the company’s annual meeting in April 2012.

“Net neutrality is clearly a material issue of import for AT&T and for the whole country, which is why it’s critical that shareholders be heard,” said Farnum Brown, Chief Investment Strategist for Trillium Asset Management, LLC, an independent investment firm with more than $900 million under management, which represents some of the filers.

According to Laura Campos, director of shareholder activities at the Nathan Cummings Foundation, “This issue has important implications for both social and economic justice and long-term shareholder value. As a shareholder, the Foundation is concerned that over the longer-term, a failure to operate its wireless broadband network in accordance with the principles of network neutrality could negatively impact AT&T’s market share and damage its reputation with consumers.”

The AT&T shareholder proposal cites research by the Institute for Policy Integrity at New York University which concluded that an open Internet accounts for billions of dollars of economic value for Americans.”This economic and social value is an important factor in the growth of our economy and widely diversified investment portfolios,” the proposal states.

The proposal also notes that open Internet policies on wireless networks have particular importance for minority and economically disadvantaged communities. People of color access the Internet via cell phones at a much greater rate than their white counterparts, according to a report by the Pew Internet & American Life Project. “The digital freedoms at stake are a 21st century civil rights issue,” says Colorofchange.org, an organization representing African-Americans, which is cited by the shareholders.

The shareholder proposal calls on AT&T to proactively ensure that its wireless networks remain open and provide equal access and non-discriminatory treatment for all content.

“Maintaining the existing system of net neutrality for our mobile networks is a win-win – its good for economic growth and good for the principles of free expression that underpin our democracy – the greatest platform the world has known for sustainable economic growth,” said Jonas Kron, Deputy Director for Shareholder Advocacy at Trillium.

The shareholder initiative at AT&T was organized by Open MIC – the Open Media and Information Companies Initiative – a nonprofit organization that seeks to inform corporations’ responsible media management practices. “Net neutrality is necessary to insure competition, entrepreneurship, innovation, and free expression in the digital economy,” said Michael Connor, Open MIC’s Executive Director. “That’s why it is so important that the investor voice be heard.”

The complete text of the AT&T wireless network neutrality proposal is available on the Open MIC web site and can be downloaded here (PDF).

For more information about recent net neutrality issues, visit www.openmic.org.

The Open Media and Information Companies Initiative – Open MIC – is a non-profit organization working to promote a vibrant, diverse media ecosystem through market-based solutions. Founded in late 2006, Open MIC is a project of the Tides Center, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

For more information, contact:
Michael Connor
Executive Director
212-537-9401
mconnor@openmic.org
www.openmic.org

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Trillium joined business leaders, other SRI investors, and members of the community at a meeting on September 20th, 2011 to deliver a strong economic argument to Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick and 10 other Northeast and Mid-Atlantic Governors in favor of pursuing a regional clean fuels standard in their states.

The meeting was hosted by NESCAUM, Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management to give stakeholders a chance to discuss an economic analysis, released last month, on the regional impacts of a clean fuels standard.  The clean fuel standards require producers to gradually reduce the amount of greenhouse gasses emitted per mile traveled by mixing lower carbon fuels into their supply mix.  In addition, suppliers are allowed to determine the best way to meet the standards, including blending biofuels, reducing production emissions or purchasing credits to offset emissions.

NESCAUM’s analysis found that the impacts of a clean fuels standard, designed to reduce the carbon intensity of transportation fuels in the region by 5% to 15% over the next 10 to 15 years by replacing some gasoline and diesel with lower carbon fuels such as electricity, advanced biofuels and natural gas, could strengthen the region’s economy, help reduce emissions, enhance energy independence and reduce vulnerability to the frequent price swings in imported oil. The economic analysis also shows that a clean fuels standard could reduce regional oil consumption by up to 8.7 billion gallons annually in 2022 and beyond, saving up to $137 billion in fuel expenditures over ten years and helping to keep more money circulating in local economies.

For more information, please contact Carol Lee Rawn at Ceres at rawn@ceres.org

“A good portion of our dialogues and resolutions resulted in agreements with companies to improve policies and provide more transparency,” said Matthew Patsky, CEO of Trillium. “Both are helpful in assessing the environmental, social and governance risks and their financial impact on shareholders.”

Trillium’s ESG program addressed a wide range of concerns in 2011, including climate change and fossil fuel dependency, indigenous peoples’ rights, discrimination in the workplace, community-level impacts of industrial and energy production, and a free and open Internet.

Environmental Advocacy

Roughly half of Trillium’s engagements in 2011 focused on the environment or environmental health matters.

Concerned with the risks associated with the controversial practice of hydraulic fracturing, Trillium filed a shareholder proposal at energy company Anadarko Corporation (APC), which has a large interest in the Marcellus Shale.  “Following a productive dialogue, we withdrew a shareholder proposal when the company agreed to expand and improve its public reporting on hydraulic fracturing. There’s more to be done and we’ll continue to advocate at Anadarko and other companies for increased transparency and the safest practices,” said Shelley Alpern, Director of ESG Research and Shareholder Advocacy.

Dialogue with Costco (COST), the warehouse-style consumer products retailer, produced another constructive outcome. The company produced and released to Trillium and Green Century Funds a substantially improved seafood sustainability policy. “Costco will discontinue selling twelve wild species identified as ‘at great risk’ by the Marine Stewardship Council, up from seven,” said Susan Baker, Senior Research Analyst at Trillium. “The company is also partnering with reputable nongovernmental organizations to come into compliance with best practice standards for shrimp and salmon aquaculture.”

We were able to withdraw a shareholder proposal that we filed with food distribution company   Sysco Corporation (SYY) after the company agreed to participate in the Carbon Disclosure Project, the Carbon Disclosure Project Water Survey, and to fully develop its sustainability strategy to include areas such as water scarcity and sustainable agriculture. “We look forward to the ongoing dialogue with the company as we continue to meet with its senior executives in the months to come,” commented Jonas Kron, Director of ESG Research and Shareholder Advocacy.

Trillium also took steps to help ward off the construction of the proposed Pebble Mine in Bristol Bay Alaska. Proposed by the U.K.-based Anglo-American (AAM.SW), Pebble Mine, if built, will be the largest open pit mineral mine in North America. It would generate billions of tons of mining waste to be held behind a system of dams (equivalent to the Three Gorges dams in China) in a highly earthquake-prone area – and one that serves as the breeding grounds for the largest sockeye salmon run in the world. Currently the Environmental Protecting Agency (EPA) is reviewing the proposed mine to determine whether it should veto the project under its Clean Water Act authority. In April Trillium organized a group of shareholders representing $170 billion of assets under management to publicly issue a joint statement calling for the agency to protect this vitally important national resource.  “Within 48 hours of publication, EPA staffers in charge of the review requested a meeting with Trillium. At that meeting we had ample time to express our concerns and were pleased at how seriously they were taken,” Kron said.

 
Corporate Political Spending

In 2011, shareholders expressed their deep discomfort with corporate political spending more strongly than ever before. In the spring, forty-six percent (46%) of votes cast by Halliburton (HAL) shareholders supported our proposal for greater transparency and oversight at the energy services company, as did 44% of the vote at State Street (STT). And for the first time, a resolution of this type filed at mobile phone company Sprint Nextel (by the New York Employees Retirement System) received a majority vote.

These votes were a fitting cap to a proxy season that started early last August, when Trillium was part of a shareholder group that responded promptly to the revelation that a number of Minnesota-based companies had given substantial contributions, via a business front group, to a gubernatorial candidate with extreme anti-gay views. As protestors demonstrated at its stores, Target Corporation (TGT) became the focus of a nationwide boycott that received generous media attention during a slow news month. Within days of the initial revelations, Trillium filed shareholder resolutions at Target, Pentair (PNR), Best Buy (BBY) and 3M (MMM) calling for a review of existing political donations policies and tighter oversight of the reputation and other risks incurring from them.

“These ill-considered donations represented a betrayal of these companies’ commitment to valuing diversity, and illustrated the widening reach of corporations in the wake of Cititzens United,” said Alpern, referring to the 2010 Supreme Court decision that removed significant barriers to corporate political involvement. With the exception of 3M (where our resolution gained 31% of the vote), the resolutions were eventually withdrawn at all of the companies after they demonstrated that they had reviewed and improved their oversight of political contributions and the procedures in place for vetting potential recipients. A multiyear national shareholder campaign coordinated by the Center for Political Accountability has resulted in the adoption of best practices in politicaldisclosure by 85 companies, of which 50 are in the S&P 100.

 
Conflict Minerals

Trillium took part in a meeting with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to discuss proposed rules on conflict minerals mandated by the passage of the Dodd-Frank Financial Reform Act.  Conflict minerals are those whose proceeds finance fighting by armed groups in war-torn regions, particularly the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). “We were gratified to see several of our recommendations included in the SEC’s recently proposed new rules,” said Susan Baker. In February, Trillium was part of an investor coalition representing nearly $200 billion assets that released a statement calling on companies to condemn the use of minerals whose trade promotes the conflict in the DRC and take immediate steps to ensure that these minerals are not used in their products.

With other socially responsible and faith-based investors, Trillium also lobbied for the passage of landmark legislation in California (SB 861) that will forbid companies that do not comply with disclosure requirements under the SEC’s conflict mineral rules from bidding on state contracts for goods and services. The legislation passed the Senate on June 1 and is currently pending in committee.   

 
Internet Privacy and Freedom of Expression

CenturyLink (CTL), the nation’s third largest telecommunications company, finally owned up to its responsibilities regarding Internet privacy and freedom of expression. Trillium’s well-supported 2009 and 2010 shareholders proposals (both received about 30% of the vote) had asked the company to report on how it would avoid violating Internet users’ privacy, after it was revealed to be in business with an online advertising company that secretly monitored Internet users’ browsing activities. In exchange for the withdrawal of our resolution this year, CenturyLink agreed to incorporate privacy and freedom of expression responsibilities into its governing documents.

Trillium’s 2011 shareholder proposals on what is called “net neutrality” at AT&T (T), Verizon (VZ) and Comcast (CMCSA) were excluded from the companies’ ballots with permission from at the Securities and Exchange Commission, on the grounds that they focused on a matter of “ordinary business.”   We were pleased, however, that the SEC’s decision was roundly criticized by U.S. Senators Al Franken (D-MN) and Ron Wyden (D-OR). In March, they wrote to SEC Chairman Shapiro to object to the decision, asserting “Whether the government will preserve and protect today’s free and open Internet is the telecommunications and free speech issue of our time.”

 
LGBT Workplace Policies

In 2010, we worked with the Equity Foundation to file a shareholder proposal at Gardner Denver (GDI), asking the manufacturer to recognize sexual orientation and gender identity expression in its nondiscrimination policy; it garnered the support of 49% of shareholder votes. “To our surprise, it was necessary to re-file the proposal in 2011; the resubmission was successful in spurring the company to adopt our policy recommendation and we subsequently withdrew the proposal,” said Jonas Kron. “In contrast, Lowes Corporation (LOW) responded very positively and quickly to our request, and now its 200,000 employees are protected by an up-to-date policy that includes gender expression.”

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About Trillium Asset Management, LLC

Boston-based Trillium Asset Management, LLC is the oldest independent investment advisor devoted exclusively to sustainable and responsible investing. We believe examining environmental, social, and governance factors as an integrated part of the investment process can lower portfolio risk and help identify the best managed companies. With close to $1 billion in assets under management, we have been managing equity and fixed income investments for high net worth individuals, foundations, endowments, religious institutions, and other non-profits since 1982. A leader in shareholder advocacy and public policy work, our goal is to deliver both impact and performance to our investors.

 2011 Shareholder Proposals

Bolded items indicate a “lead filing,” where Trillium Asset Management, LLC leads a coalition of shareholder advocates; all others are where we have co-filed in collaboration with other lead filers.  

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Boston, MA – Trillium Asset Management is pleased to announce that Paul Hilton, CFA, has joined the firm as a portfolio manager. Mr. Hilton has been involved in sustainable and responsible investing for over 15 years, working on both the investment and sustainability research and advocacy sides.

“We are delighted to have Paul join Trillium. His long history as an innovator in the field of SRI augments the deep talent already in place at Trillium,” commented Matt Patsky, Trillium’s CEO.  “Paul has collaborated with Trillium staff over the years on various projects, including the co-founding of SIRAN (Social Investment Research Analyst Network, a national group of analysts working to promote dialogue with companies about corporate responsibility), and everyone looks forward to having him on the Trillium team.”

This is a very exciting time in the history of Trillium. The firm has seen significant growth in institutional and individual assets over the past year. “Trillium’s strong performance record and shareholder advocacy victories are generating increasing demand for our services.  Having another experienced portfolio manager allows us to effectively manage this growth,” said Mr. Patsky.

Mr. Hilton commented “I am very excited to join the outstanding team of SRI professionals at Trillium, to help further build the brand and expand our footprint into new channels. I also look forward to leveraging my experience integrating ESG research with financial analysis to continue to build strong portfolios for clients. Trillium is at the forefront of ESG integration, and I am thrilled to be a key member in helping to chart this evolving course.”

Prior to joining Trillium, Mr. Hilton was Vice President, Sustainable Investment Business Strategy at Calvert Investments, leading SRI product and business development, with a particular focus on the institutional and international arenas. He also previously held senior positions within Calvert’s Equities and Marketing Departments. Prior to Calvert Mr. Hilton was Portfolio Manager for Socially Responsible Investing at The Dreyfus Corporation. At Dreyfus he was responsible for social research and advocacy for the Dreyfus Premier Third Century Fund and its variable annuity counterpart, the Dreyfus Socially Responsible Growth Fund. He also served as a research analyst in the Social Awareness Investment (SAI) program at Smith Barney Asset Management, then a division of Citigroup. Paul started his career in the field of SRI as an analyst with the Council on Economic Priorities, a non-profit known for an influential consumer guidebook called “Shopping for a Better World.”

Mr. Hilton is a former Treasurer of the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP-FI) and current member and former co-chair of its Asset Management Working Group. In addition, Paul serves on the board of the Social Investment Forum. A Chartered Financial Analyst, he holds Master’s degrees in Anthropology from New York University and Education from Roberts Wesleyan College.

Paul is a frequent commentator on SRI to the news media, and has been quoted in Pensions & Investments, Investment News, Barron’s, Institutional Investor, The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, and The Village Voice. He was co-project lead on the influential UNEP-FI report of the Asset Management Working Group entitled: “Fiduciary Responsibility – Legal and Practical Aspects of Integrating Environmental, Social and Governance Issues into Institutional Investment.”

Trillium Asset Management, a pioneer and innovator in sustainable and responsible investing for three decades, manages approximately $1 billion in assets for institutions and individuals.

For more information contact Lisa MacKinnon, 617-423-6655.

Investors will cast their votes tomorrow at the annual meeting of The Home Depot (NYSE: HD) on a shareholder proposal calling on the company to prepare a diversity report. The resolution, filed by members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility requests that the report include the following:

1. A chart identifying employees according to their gender and race,

2. A summary description of any affirmative action policies and programs, and

3. A description of any policies and programs oriented specifically toward increasing the number of managers who are qualified females or minorities.

“Employment barriers persist for women and minorities. Understanding how companies break down those barriers is a shareholder issue. Companies without effective programs designed to break glass ceiling barriers can face allegations of discrimination leading to costly litigation and the erosion of shareholder value,” says Susan Baker from Trillium, the lead proponent of the resolution.

Home Depot annually files an EEO-1 report with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission but does not make the information public. Investors can’t readily access reports through the Freedom of Information Act process because of long processing times and the ability of a company to circumvent EEOC disclosure.

“Providing EEO-1 data to investors is not a financial burden to shareholders. Wal-Mart, Intel, IBM and Coca-Cola report diversity data to their shareholders and have been doing so for at least four years,” said Judy Byron, OP, spokesperson for the Camilla Madden Charitable Trust. “Home Depot provided diversity data for a very short period of time ten years ago. Now, Home Depot is lagging other major brands making it impossible to track progress on hiring, retaining and promoting women and minority employees,” added Susan Vickers, Vice President of Community Health at Catholic Healthcare West.

Home Depot recommends that shareholders vote against the proposal, maintaining that shareholders should be satisfied with descriptions of its internal programs that cover diversity issues.

“As investors, we commend the efforts Home Depot is making internally, but these programs do not obviate the need for transparency.  EEO-1 data gives investors an important tool for measuring the effectiveness of corporate diversity programs. In the absence of meaningful disclosure, investors cannot fully assess potential risks Home Depot faces, nor for that matter, identify successful diversity efforts,” concluded Susan Baker.

The lead proponent of the Home Depot proxy resolution is Trillium Asset Management Corporation.  The co-proponents include Benedictine Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica, Benedictine Sisters of Virginia, Camilla Madden Charitable Trust, Catholic Healthcare West, Clean Yield Group, Congregation of Benedictine Sisters Boerne TX, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Board of Pensions, and Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

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About Trillium Asset Management Corporation

Trillium Asset Management manages equity, balanced and fixed income portfolios for high net worth individuals, foundations, endowments, religious institutions and other non-profits.  Our investment approach emphasizes quality growth at a reasonable price, with integrated ESG (environmental, social and governance) analysis.  Trillium has offices in Boston, Durham and San Francisco.

About the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR)

Currently celebrating its 40^th year, ICCR is the pioneer coalition of active shareholders who view the management of their investments as a catalyst for change.  Its 300 member organizations with over $100 billion in AUM have an enduring record of corporate engagement that has demonstrated influence on policies promoting justice and sustainability in the world.

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In a press release, New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, trustee of the $140.6 billion New York State Common Retirement Fund (Fund), which owns 7.5 million Chevron shares worth an estimated $780 million stated, “It’s time for Chevron to face reality.  The effects of this horrific, uncontrolled pollution of the Amazon rainforest are still being felt today. Investors don’t derive any benefit from this never-ending courtroom drama.

“The entire case is looming like a hammer over shareholders’ heads.  Chevron should start fresh with a new approach that embraces environmental responsibility and risk management as part of its corporate culture. More legal proceedings will only delay the inevitable.”  

For nearly 25 years, beginning in 1964, Texaco and its joint venture partner Petroecuador dumped nearly 16 billion gallons of oil waste products into the Amazon rainforest.  The two companies also spilled nearly 17 million gallons of oil from their trans-Ecuadorian pipeline operation between 1971 and 1991 —50 percent more oil than was spilled by the Exxon Valdez crash.

The statement follows just days after Trillium submitted a complaint to the Securities and Exchange Commission requesting that staff examine whether Chevron Corp. has appropriately disclosed to its shareholders the scope and magnitude of financial and operational risk from a recent adverse legal judgment in Ecuador. In its letter, Trillium states its belief that the issues raised may have “the potential to rise to the level of materiality under the securities laws.”

In a letter sent in November 2008, DiNapoli called on Chevron’s board of directors to come to an equitable settlement in order to avoid substantial penalties in an Ecuadorian court. Chevron refused to negotiate the case, and in February 2011 the Ecuadorian Provincial Court awarded plaintiffs nearly $18 billion in compensatory and punitive damages. The Ecuadorian court judgment is the second-largest of its kind, topped only by BP’s $20 billion fund established to settle claims stemming from the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. DiNapoli is co-lead plaintiff in an ongoing class action lawsuit filed against BP last year.

Shareholder Proposal Support Remains Steady

The shareholder proposal jointly filed by Trillium and the New York State Office of the Comptroller that referred to the Ecuador litigation received about 25 percent of the vote, the company announced at the meeting. The proposal, in its second year, called for the company to appoint an independent director with environmental expertise.

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Shelley Alpern, Trillium   (617) 292-8026, x 248
Jonas Kron, Esq., Trillium   (503) 592-0864
Sanford Lewis, Esq.   (413) 549-7333

Boston, MA, May 23, 2011 – Trillium Asset Management (“Trillium”) has requested that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) undertake a staff review to examine whether Chevron Corp. has appropriately disclosed to its shareholders the scope and magnitude of financial and operational risk from a recent adverse legal judgment in Ecuador. In its letter, Trillium states its belief that the issues raised may have “the potential to rise to the level of materiality under the securities laws.”

After nearly two decades of litigation, on February 14, 2011, the Ecuadorian Provincial Court issued its final judgment in which it found Chevron liable for just over $18 billion in compensatory and punitive damages for environmental pollution by Texaco in the 1970s and 1980s. (Chevron acquired Texaco in 2001.) The judgment, now under appeal, constitutes one of the largest court judgments for environmental damage in history, comparable in size only to BP’s promised $20 billion fund to compensate victims of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Chevron has obtained a preliminary injunction from the U.S. Second District Court that purports to bar the plaintiffs and their lawyers from seeking enforcement of any judgment of the Ecuadorian court. However, the letter states, it not clear how this injunction court would protect Chevron from enforcement efforts by the plaintiffs aimed at Chevron’s assets outside the United States. Moreover, the injunction is subject to appeal.

The Trillium letter highlights the disparities between Chevron’s recent statements to shareholders those made in sworn testimony in connection with the company’s RICO suit against the plaintiffs. In its most recent annual reported, published 10 days following the judgment, the company states:

The ultimate outcome of the foregoing matters, including any financial effect on Chevron, remains uncertain. Management does not believe an estimate of a reasonably possible loss (or a range of loss) can be made in this case. …Moreover, the highly uncertain legal environment surrounding the case provides no basis for management to estimate a reasonably possible loss (or a range of loss).^[1]

However, in the RICO testimony, Chevron Deputy Comptroller Rex Mitchell stated:

Defendants’ campaign to seek seizures anywhere around the world and generate maximum publicity for such acts would cause significant, irreparable damage to Chevron. Unless it is stopped, Defendants’ announced plan to cause disruption to Chevron’s supply chain is likely to cause irreparable injury to Chevron’s business reputation and business relationships that would not be remediable by money damages.” ^[2] (emphasis added)

The Trillium letter also questions whether certain statements made to shareholders have been misleading, concerning Chevron’s opinion that the Ecuadorian courts lack jurisdiction in the case, and whether Chevron was released from liability by virtue of certain releases granted by the government of Ecuador following remedial work completed in 1998. The Trillium letter states:

Chevron is entitled to disagreements with the plaintiffs about points of contention in the lawsuit; indeed, that is why a lawsuit exists. However, some of the preceding statements, taken in aggregate, could create the misleading perception that the Ecuadorian lawsuit is fraudulent and without legal merit. The reality is that these are disputed issues on which Chevron holds a position, which is not the same as the position held by the plaintiffs or the Ecuadorian court.

In the letter’s conclusion, Trillium urged the Commission to “analyze these omissions in light of the standards governing materiality, SEC rules and guidance, and any other applicable requirements, and to take any actions the Staff deems appropriate.”

The letter was signed by Jonas Kron, Deputy Director for ESG Research and Shareholder Advocacy, and Sanford Lewis, an attorney whose practices specializes on corporate accountability. Earlier this month, Mr. Lewis released the report (co-authored with corporate responsibility consultant Simon Billenness) An Analysis of the Financial and Operational Risks to Chevron Corporation from Aguinda v. ChevronTexaco.

Related Shareholder Proposal

Trillium is a co-proponent of a related shareholder proposal filed by the New York State Office of the Comptroller that will be voted on at Wednesday’s Chevron stockholder meeting in San Ramon, CA. The proposal requests that Chevron nominate for its Board of Directors at least one independent candidate who has a high level of expertise and experience in environmental matters relevant to hydrocarbon exploration and production and who is widely recognized in the business and environmental communities as an authority in such field. Last year, the resolution received approximately 27 percent of the vote.

Related Investor Statement

In a statement expected to be released separately this week by the New York State Office of the Comptroller, a number of institutional investors in Chevron will be calling upon the company to explore a negotiated settlement with the plaintiffs.

#          #          #          #

About Trillium Asset Management

Trillium Asset Management manages equity, balanced and fixed income portfolios for high net worth individuals, foundations, endowments, religious institutions and other non-profits. Our investment approach emphasizes quality growth at a reasonable price, with integrated ESG (environmental, social, and governance) analysis. Trillium has offices in Boston, Durham and San Francisco.

[2] Declaration of Chevron Deputy Comptroller Rex Mitchell in support of Chevron Corporation Motion for a Preliminary Injunction, Filed 2/5/11, p. 4.

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May 11, 2011

OAKLAND—Socially responsible investing advocates Peter Kinder, co-founder and president until 2009 of KLD Research & Analytics, and William Foote, founder and CEO of Root Capital, were honored last night, May 10, by Ceres and Trillium Asset Management as this year’s winners of the fourth annual Joan Bavaria Awards for Building Sustainability into the Capital Markets. The announcement was made at the opening reception of the Ceres annual conference, which runs May 11-12, at the Oakland Marriott City Center in Oakland, CA.

 The Bavaria Awards are given annually to two leaders working to move the capital markets toward a system that balances economic prosperity with social and environmental concerns. Separate awards are given for recent innovation and long-term impact. Bavaria, a pioneer of social investing, founded Ceres and Trillium Asset Management before her death in 2008.

 “Peter Kinder and Willy Foote have each catalyzed new models for shifting the capital markets towards Joan Bavaria’s vision of achieving a sustainable global economy,” said Ceres President Mindy Lubber.  “We’re delighted to be honoring these extraordinary leaders whose accomplishments have sparked global change.” 

“Over the course of his career, Peter Kinder has transformed how investors integrate corporate social and environmental performance into their investment strategies,” added Trillium CEO Matt Patsky, who presented the awards. “Willy Foote and Root Capital have found new ways to deploy developed-world capital to address developing-world poverty, environmental degradation, and public health.” 

Kinder received the Bavaria Impact Award. In 1988, Kinder co-founded KLD Research & Analytics, the world’s first for-profit investment research firm dedicated to the evaluation of corporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance and practices.  KLD established the intellectual framework and metrics eventually used throughout the world to measure sustainability performance for publicly-traded companies. 

Under Kinder, KLD was responsible for a number of important “firsts” in the course of its 21-year history. Its Domini 400 Social Index (now the MSCI KLD 400) was the first equity index that was screened for ESG factors and has outperformed its benchmark since inception in 1990. The KLD index family eventually numbered more than 20, including the first ESG exchange-traded fund (ETF) in 2005. KLD also developed SOCRATES, the pioneering electronic database of ESG reports.  Before being acquired in October 2009 by RiskMetrics Group, KLD’s research and indexes fueled ESG integration into the investment decisions of 31 of the top 50 global asset managers and more than 400 other institutional clients. 

Since 1983, Kinder has co-authored three books in the field and written hundreds of articles, which have found publishers on four continents.  Now semi-retired, Kinder consults, writes (at www.TheBell.us), and serves on the boards and advisory boards of not-for-profits.  

“KLD will be remembered for how we used our voice,” said Kinder. “To make the case for socially-responsible investing – to answer its critics and win over skeptics – it was not enough to produce credible, objective research. We also had to find and grow investor constituencies and financial-sector demand for sustainability data.  Our mission was to establish the field’s credibility.” 

Foote received the Bavaria Innovation Award. In 2000, Foote founded Root Capital seeking to fill the “missing middle” of finance in developing countries – the underserved gap between microcredit and commercial financial institutions. Root Capital provides access to capital, delivers financial training and strengthens market connections to small and growing businesses – such as farmer cooperatives – that build sustainable livelihoods and transform rural communities in poor, environmentally vulnerable places. Since Root Capital’s launch, it has provided $256 million in credit to 320 small and growing businesses in 30 countries throughout Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa. 

Foote founded Root Capital after a career as a financial analyst on Wall Street in Latin American Corporate Finance, and as a journalist in Mexico and Argentina. 

“It is humbling to be associated with such a visionary and intrepid leader as Joan Bavaria, whose example set the bar for all of us who follow in her footsteps,” said Foote. “We are honored to be part of the growing community realizing her vision for capital markets that build prosperity in underserved communities around the world.”

About Ceres
Ceres is the leading coalition of investors, environmental groups and other public interest organizations working with companies to address sustainability challenges such as climate change and water scarcity. Ceres also directs the Investor Network on Climate Risk, a network of nearly 100 institutional investors with collective assets totaling nearly $10 trillion. To learn more about Ceres, please visit www.ceres.org.

About Trillium Asset Management
With a history spanning three decades, Trillium is the oldest and largest independent investment advisor focused exclusively on sustainable and responsible investing. Trillium has $1 billion in assets under management with offices in Boston, Durham and San Francisco. To learn more about Trillium, please visit http://trilliuminvest.com.

BOSTON///April 12, 2011///Nearly 30 investor organizations representing over $170 billion in assets are urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to initiate a review process under the Clean Water Act to evaluate the mine waste impacts of the proposed Pebble Mine on Alaska’s Bristol Bay watershed, which produces roughly half of the world’s commercial supply of wild sockeye salmon.

Led by Trillium Asset Management Corp. (Trillium) and Calvert Investments (Calvert), the organizations hold over 13 million shares in Anglo American plc, the UK-based mining company behind the proposed mine.

“This proposed mine has potentially devastating consequences for the people and the ecosystem of Bristol Bay,” said Jonas Kron, vice president at Trillium. “The potential impact of this project and the national importance of Bristol Bay means review under Section 404(c) of the Clean Water Act is warranted.”

“Ecosystem degradation is of serious concern to investors,” said Stu Dalheim, director of shareholder advocacy at Calvert. “A recent United Nations report showed environmental costs from global human activity equate to an estimated US$ 6.6 trillion – approximately 11% of global GDP in 2008. Responsible resource development is critical to all economic, environmental and cultural stakeholders.”

The Bristol Bay region of Alaska is the site of the largest remaining runs of wild sockeye salmon and is the home of Alaska Native people who continue the subsistence fishing and hunting traditions of their ancestors. Bristol Bay is an important economic driver for the commercial fishing, sport hunting and sport fishing industries of North America, generating $450 million in annual revenue and providing some 10,000 jobs.

Pebble Mine is a copper, gold and molybdenum mine proposed at the headwaters of the Bristol Bay Fishery Reserve by U.K.-based Anglo-American and Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd of Canada.  The combined impact and risks associated with a proposed mine in this region are unprecedented. Under current plans, the project would involve the largest open pit mine in North America, enormous toxic tailing ponds and a significant infrastructure footprint in critically important habitat. A peer reviewed 2010 risk assessment by The Nature Conservancy studied the impacts of such large-scale mining in the Bristol Bay region, and concluded that the risks to wild salmon populations are “very high,” and that it is cause for significant concern regarding the long-term abundance and sustainability of salmon in the region.

This investor statement comes on the heels of the EPA’s announcement in February in response to petitions by Bristol Bay native tribes and corporations, commercial fishermen, businesses, and others that the Agency would conduct a scientific assessment of the Bristol Bay watershed to evaluate the suitability of large-scale development in the region. Many observers see the assessment as a precursor to a full EPA 404(c) review.

Section 404(c) authorizes EPA to “prohibit, restrict, or deny the discharge of dredged or fill material at defined sites in waters of the United States (including wetlands) whenever it determines, after notice and opportunity for public hearing, that use of such sites for disposal would have an unacceptable adverse impact on one or more of various resources, including fisheries, wildlife, municipal water supplies, or recreational areas.”

For the full text of the statement go to: http://trilliuminvest.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Investor-Statement-on-the-Proposed-Pebble-Mine.pdf

The signatories to the statement include:

Advanced Investment Partners

As You Sow

Boston Common Asset Management, LLC

Calvert Investments

Catholic Health East

Christian Brothers Investment Services

Clean Yield Asset Management

Congregation of St. Basil

Domini Social Investments

Everence Financial

First Affirmative Financial Network

Goodfunds Wealth Management

Green Century Capital Management

Local Authority Pension Fund Forum

Maryknoll Sisters

Midwest Coalition for Responsible Investment

New Outlook Financial, LLC

Northwest Coalition for Responsible Investment

Pax World Management Corp.

Portfolio 21 Investments

Region VI Coalition for Responsible Investment

Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati

The Sustainability Group at Loring, Wolcott & Coolidge

Three Sisters Sustainable Investments

Tri-State Coalition for Responsible Investment

Trillium Asset Management

Unitarian Universalist Association

Walden Asset Management, a division of Boston Trust & Investment Management

Zevin Asset Management, LLC

ABOUT TRILLIUM AND CALVERT

Trillium Asset Management Corporation is the oldest and largest independent advisor devoted exclusively to sustainable and responsible investing.

Calvert Investments has been a leader in the field of sustainable and responsible investing (SRI) for over 25 years, demonstrating that investors may manage risk and enhance long-term portfolio performance by investing in well-governed, sustainable and responsible companies.

CONTACTS: Jonas Kron of Trillium at (503) 592-0864 or jkron@trilliuminvest.com or Stu Dalheim of Calvert at (301) 961-4762, Stu.Dalheim@Calvert.com or Patrick Mitchell for Calvert at (703) 276-3266 or pmitchell@hastingsgroup.com.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Twenty-four institutional investors, including Trillium Asset Management, called on oil companies doing business in Libya to halt revenue or other payments to the Libyan government. The investors have called on oil companies to place revenue payments into a Libya Recovery Fund that would cut financial support from the government while avoiding undue economic harm to civilians.

“Oil companies operating in Libya possess tremendous economic leverage and have an opportunity – and responsibility – to ensure their operations do not support the Libyan government, which has launched horrific attacks on civilian protesters,” stated Bennett Freeman, Senior Vice President for Sustainability Research and Policy at Calvert Asset Management Company.

“Investors are in a unique position to influence the management of oil companies doing business in Libya,” said Dawn Wolfe, Associate Director of Environmental, Social and Governance Research at Boston Common Asset Management. “The risks and uncertainties in that operating environment are extreme and the human rights implications vast. Companies and investors cannot stand idly by.”

The investors are members of the Conflict Risk Network (CRN), a network of nearly 100 international institutional investors, including public pension funds such as the New York State Common Retirement Fund and socially responsible investment firms such as Calvert Asset Management. CRN calls on corporate actors to fulfill their responsibility to respect human rights and to take steps that support peace and stability in areas affected by conflict.

“It would be unconscionable if revenues from Libya’s lucrative oil sector support Colonel Qaddafi’s deliberate attacks on Libyan’s citizens,” stated Melany Grout, Director of the Conflict Risk Network. “Creating a Libya Recovery Fund is a way forward that would cut support to the government while enabling civilians to benefit from their resources. And while creation of a fund will require leadership from and discussion with the UN Security Council and other relevant offices and institutions, leadership from oil firms will be instrumental.”

The strategy behind the Libya Recovery Fund is based on a proposal that Human Rights Watch submitted to the United Nations Security Council in 2007 in relation to the conflict in Darfur. Though a workable framework might be slightly different in the case of Libya, the basic premise would be that the Fund would permit both Libya and private firms to continue to export oil – and existing customers could continue to buy it – but all proceeds from such exports and all royalties and similar payments owed to the government would be paid directly to the fund, which could be administered by an independent UN-designated financial institution (such as the World Bank) that would serve as escrow agent.

For more information including a list of oil companies doing business in Libya, please see CRN’s Engagement Fact Sheet.

Background on Libya Oil Production

Oil is the primary source of revenue for the Libyan government, which relies on the resource for 95 percent of its export earnings and 80 percent of its domestic revenue. Recent reports claim a gap of several billion dollars a year between the amount of money Libya makes from its oil reserves and government spending – a shortfall some claim Col. Qaddafi claimed for personal use.

Libya, a member of OPEC, accounts for 1.7 percent of the world’s crude output. It is the world’s 17th largest producer and the third-largest in Africa. Europe receives 85 percent of Libya’s exports (32 percent Italy, 14 percent Germany, 10 percent France), and the United States and China account for 5 and 10 percent, respectively. Reuters has reported that all ports are closed.

###

About CRN:  Conflict Risk Network (CRN), http://crn.genocideintervention.net/ is a network of institutional investors, financial service providers and related stakeholders calling on corporate actors to fulfill their responsibility to respect human rights and to take steps that support peace and stability in areas affected by genocide and mass atrocities. Its goal is to increase such behavior by corporate actors, and thereby reduce conflict risk.

CRN is a project of the newly merged Genocide Intervention Network / Save Darfur Coalition (GI-NET/SDC).  The two organizations merged on November 1, 2010 to create a more powerful voice dedicated to preventing and stopping large-scale, deliberate atrocities against civilians. The organization remains committed to its work to end the crisis in Darfur and bring peace to all of Sudan as well as to end violence in other areas of mass atrocities such as Congo and Burma. The merger creates the world’s largest anti-genocide organization, with a membership base of hundreds of thousands of committed activists globally, an unparalleled nationwide student

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Target and Best Buy made contributions of $150,000 and $100,000, respectively, to MN Forward.  After the contributions were disclosed in state filings, Target in particular drew the ire of retail consumers, gay rights organizations, and those concerned with the proliferation of corporate political spending in the aftermath of the US Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision in 2010. A nationwide boycott ensued. Target’s CEO Gregg Steinhafel issued an apology, but the company did not ask for its funds to be returned.

The contributions also disturbed the company’s shareholders. Trillium Asset Management (“Trillium”), Walden Asset Management (“Walden”), the Calvert Group and Domini Social Investments, quickly filed shareholder proposals at Target, Best Buy and Pentair and 3M as well,  two other companies that gave large donations to MN Forward. Numerous shareholders joined in co-filing the resolutions, including foundations, religious investors, additional investment firms and individuals.

Trillium Files Resolution with Anadarko Petroleum to Spur More Responsible “Fracking” Practices

BOSTON – Leading U.S. investors today announced they have filed shareholder resolutions with nine oil and gas companies, pressing them to disclose their plans for managing water pollution, litigation and regulatory risks that are increasingly associated with ever-expanding natural gas hydraulic fracturing operations (also known as “fracking”) in the United States.

Resolutions were filed with many of the natural gas industry’s significant players, including ExxonMobil, Chevron, Ultra Petroleum, El Paso, Cabot Oil & Gas, Southwestern Energy, Energen, Anadarko and Carrizo Oil & Gas.

“Oil and gas firms are being too vague about how they will manage the environmental challenges resulting from fracking,” said New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, whose office filed a resolution with Cabot Oil & Gas asking for a specific plan to reduce or eliminate the hazards. “The risks associated with unconventional shale gas extraction have the potential to negatively impact shareholder value. I urge companies working in this field to share their risk mitigation and management strategies with investors and the public.”

The shareholder proposals ask companies to disclose their policies and strategies for reducing environmental and financial risks from chemicals use, water impacts and a host of other issues. The resolutions also request adoption of best management practices, such as:

* recycling and reusing waste waters;

* reducing the volumes and toxicity of chemicals;

* disclosing the chemicals used in fracturing operations; and

* assuring the integrity of well cementing through pressure testing and other methods.

Use of hydraulic fracturing, which involves high-pressure injection of water, chemicals and particles deep underground to break up shale formations and release trapped natural gas, has escalated in recent years. Oil and gas companies are increasingly turning to hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking” to unlock vast, yet previously unavailable reserves as conventional natural gas supplies have dwindled. ExxonMobil, for example recently spent $36 billion to buy shale-gas company XTO Energy while Chevron purchased Atlas Energy in a $4 billion deal.

The Energy Department recently more than doubled estimates of recoverable shale reserves to 827 trillion cubic feet, the energy equivalent of 140 billion barrels of oil. The American Petroleum Institute estimates that 60 to 80 percent of natural gas wells drilled in the next decade will require hydraulic fracturing.

Environmental risks stem largely from poor well-construction practices, which can lead to drinking water contamination, well blowouts and gas leaks, and from inadequate wastewater recycling and management practices. Concerns about water contamination incidents are growing as operations expand, creating reputational and litigation liabilities for companies.

Lawsuits have been filed against four companies over alleged water contamination in Pennsylvania.  New York State adopted a temporary moratorium on new permits for fracking. Philadelphia’s city council has urged a ban on fracking in the Delaware River Basin until environmental studies have been completed, and Pittsburgh, which sits atop gas deposits, has banned fracking within city limits.

“High profile water contamination incidents, new litigation, and public protests that include calls for moratoria on natural gas permitting all suggest sizeable and rising business risks to companies and attendant threats to shareholder value,” said Richard Liroff, executive director of the Investor Environmental Health Network (IEHN), which helped coordinate the resolutions. “Shareholders need assurance that companies are candidly disclosing these risks and are adopting best management practices to minimize them.”

Investors filing the resolutions include the New York State Comptroller (Cabot Oil & Gas, Carrizo Oil & Gas), Domini Social Investments (Southwestern Energy), As You Sow (ExxonMobil and Ultra Petroleum), Trillium Asset Management (Anadarko), Miller/Howard Investments (El Paso and Energen), and The Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia (Chevron). Cabot Oil & Gas, Carrizo Oil & Gas, El Paso, Southwestern and Ultra Petroleum are headquartered in Houston; Energen is based in Birmingham, Alabama; Anadarko in The Woodlands, Texas; Exxon Mobil in Irving Texas, and Chevron in San Ramon, California.

According to Kristina Curtis, senior vice president at Green Century Capital Management (GCCM), which coordinated the resolutions with IEHN, “It is critical that shareholders of natural gas companies understand and address the business risks associated with this type of gas drilling. Companies and regulators must ensure this development is done in a way that protects the environment, especially our drinking water, and mitigates potential financial risks”

Though investors are concerned about the bottom line impacts of hydraulic fracturing, many also contend that cleaner-burning natural gas has a critical role to play in both increasing domestic energy supplies and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and that unconventional methods like fracking make it possible for natural gas to fill that role.

“Natural gas can play a major role in meeting our nation’s near-term climate and energy challenges, but hydraulic fracturing must be done in a way that protects the environment and public health,” said Mindy S. Lubber, president of Ceres and director of the $9 trillion Investor Network on Climate Risk.  “Investors believe that companies can profitably minimize fracking’s water contamination, gas leaks and other material risks by adopting best management practices and by phasing out the most toxic chemicals.”

In the 2010 proxy season investors filed resolutions with a dozen oil and gas companies and, among those receiving resolutions, Williams began disclosing the measures it takes to ensure well integrity, described its recycling practices, and discussed “green completions” that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance profitability. Range Resources reported its recycling measures in the Marcellus Shale that have saved approximately $200,000 per well and Hess stated it is working with its suppliers to reduce the amount and toxicity of fracking fluids used.

Trillium is currently in dialogue with Anadarko concerning the details of their proposal.

To  read the resolution Trillium filed at Anadarko, click here.

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