Shareowner Activists Request Better Disclosure of Strategic Risks by Oil Sands Developers
Investor group led by Boston Common Asset Management in the US and FairPensions in the UK joins forces to engage with BP and Shell on disclosure of strategic risk mitigation in Canadian oil sands developments.

Connecticut AG Sues Rating Agencies for Their Role in Financial Meltdown
Lawsuit charges that Moody's and Standard & Poor's knowingly assigned inflated ratings to investments backed by sub-prime loans in order to earn lucrative fees.

More Than 60 Companies Voluntarily Adopt Annual Shareowner Votes on Executive Compensation
Companies adopting say-on-pay include many in the financial industries, and all TARP recipients mandated to do so last year; in the absence of legislation or regulations, activist shareowners file more than 70 resolutions on the issue this year.

Forced Child Labor Remains Widespread in Cotton Fields of Uzbekistan
A report from the Environmental Justice Foundation finds that up to two million children are forced into working in Uzbekistan’s cotton fields, and recommends that apparel retailers improve monitoring of their supply chains to ensure that forced labor is not a part of them.

Investors File Record Number of Shareowner Resolutions on Climate Change
Organizations that have filed resolutions addressing oil sands operations, quantitative greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets, and coal ash waste disposal, express strong support for SEC guidance on climate change disclosure.

UNEP Report Describes Urgent Need to Address E-Waste
With growth of e-waste in developing countries expected to multiply by 2020, the report identifies technologies that can increase recycling rates and generate jobs in a low-carbon economy.

Social Investors Brainstorm Responses to Citizens United
Possible actions in response to the Supreme Court decision include voluntary disclosure of corporate political spending, regulatory action by the SEC, and Congressional legislation.

MSCI Will Acquire RiskMetrics
Implications are uncertain for the ESG investment research industry, whose consolidation has been driven in large part by acquisitions by RiskMetrics.