Tuesday, September 11, 2007

DJ Sustainability Indexes-Statoil hits Dow Jones top spot, CSR in Australia and The Executive Director of DJ's Indexes

It's time for the press releases and bragging rights.
Here's Statoil in Energy Current:

For the fourth year in a row, Statoil has been ranked number one among the world's oil and gas companies in the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI World). "Being ranked highest on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index shows that our systematic approach to environmental and social responsibility gives results and is appreciated by the market," said Rolf Magne Larsen, Statoil's senior vice president for country analysis and social responsibility.

"It makes us proud that our efforts are recognised - contributing to sustainable development is one of the company's core values. But we know that we must improve further - the environment and the societies in which we work will require that. This feedback will give further stimuli to continue our striving for improvements."

Twenty companies in the oil and gas sector gained a place on the DJSI World index this year, up from 11 during the previous year, reflecting the increasing attention given by leading companies in the oil and gas industry to their sustainability performance....

The value of a truly sustainable business strategy
From ScienceAlert Australia:

While corporate social responsibility (CSR) is now a part of the corporate vernacular, in many Australian companies the responsibility for CSR remains the domain of the corporate affairs department.

Unfortunately, this practice positions CSR in the corporate psyche as a communication function, unrelated to core business. Rather than being viewed as an ‘add-on’ to operations handled by the corporate office, CSR should be seen as an embodiment of the organisation’s culture and values and be embedded in all operations....MORE

Interview with John Prestbo, editor and executive director of Dow Jones Indexes:

Index Universe: What has been the most notable change in the indexing industry over the years?

Prestbo: I think it's the pace. When Dow Jones decided to make indexes a business unit it was a pretty sleepy community that we were joining. The players in it were S&P and Russell and FTSE and MSCI, and they'd been in for a while. They were kind of used to doing things their way, and it took a while to change anything that they were doing. Then we came along, Dow Jones Indexes, and our first business strategy was to license indexes for financial products. Now this happened to coincide with the realization that ETFs were kind of neat, and so we've benefited a great deal from the growth in that particular vehicle. Now, of course, practically everybody and his brother is an index provider, and competition is fierce.

Index Universe: Have any indexes from the up-and-coming index providers caught your eye?

Prestbo: Oh, yes. I think those Intellidex indexes are interesting. I even think that Rob Arnott's RAFI is interesting....

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