ESG – The Need to Find the Balance between Greenwashing and Greenblushing

In the transition of our socio-economic system towards a more sustainable model, is it reasonable to expect finance to play a catalytic role? In other words, how can homo economicus, in practice, rationally integrate E, S and G criteria, which, in theory, simply do not exist for him?

It is clear that a growing number of players are declaring that they are integrating ESG criteria into their portfolio construction process today. It is therefore legitimate to ask whether the commercial success of ESG investing has been accompanied by a significant improvement in the E, S and G profiles of European listed companies. If so, do we have good reason to believe that there is a causal link? If homo economicus can contribute to a better allocation of capital, and thus to a faster transition to a potentially more sustainable model, what room for manoeuvre does he have today in practice? Is it enough to save the world?

To answer these questions, Mathieu Vaissié will present the main results of two research articles to be published in the Journal of Impact and ESG Investing.

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