Sustainable Business is Big Business

Image Source: greenmuck.com

DSM is still out front in the chemicals sector of the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI) World Index this year. In the metals and mining sector, Xstrata was identified as a ‘supersector’ leader.  A further 41 companies were added to the DJSI World Index when SAM, the Zurich-based investment company focused exclusively on Sustainability Investing and Dow Jones Indexes, a leading global index provider, jointly announced last week the results of their 2011 DJSI Corporate Sustainability Assessment.

As always there are winners and losers with 23 companies coming off the Index, leaving a total of 342 firms with what is described as an unparalleled commitment to Sustainability Investing. Among the largest ten additions to this year were French bank Societe Generale, healthcare firm Medtronic and Woolworths, while Coca-Cola, Hewlett-Packard and Fujitsu were three of the largest firms to drop off the Index. While Coke dropped off the Index, competitor Pepsi joined.

The Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes were launched in 1999, becoming the first global indices to rely exclusively on sustainability metrics to track the stock performance of the leading sustainability-driven companies worldwide. Asset managers rely on these indices to provide them with reliable objective benchmarks to manage sustainability portfolios.

The Corporate Sustainability Assessment provides an in-depth analysis of economic, environmental and social criteria, such as corporate governance, water-related risks and stakeholder relations, with a special focus on industry-specific risks and opportunities.