Public Endorsement of SRI from Israeli Ambassador

March 16th, 2008 | Categories: News | Tags: , , , , , , ,
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Following Bibi Netanyahu’s lead, Salai Meridor is now the latest Israeli government official proposing divestment from companies who are doing business with Iran. As reported first by JTA in an article titled: “What can you do about Iran? Use the phone, Meridor says“, March 11th, 2008, the Israeli Ambassador to the US, Salai Meridor is proposing that Israelis and Americans alike contact their pension fund managers to ensure that none of the companies they invest in are doing business with Iran. It boggles the mind why such a simple, yet effective step against the genocidal regime in Iran is not being taken by more public figures in Israel. The only reason I can think of for the slow uptake of Iran Divestment lobbying is that politicians and the public in Israel are not fully aware of the tremendous impact their investments have on our world. The phrase “if you can’t see, it it doesn’t exist” is particularly applicable to the silent world of the capital markets. While its the major financial institutions like Goldman Sachs, CitiGroup and others who take the limelight, its the ordinary Joe whose money they are playing with. Isn’t it about time all the Joe’s in the world stand up and take a stand?

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Investment in Israel’s Pythagoras Solar Marks Turning Point for Cleantech

February 22nd, 2008 | Categories: News · Cleantech | Tags: , , ,
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Over the past twelve months there have been several Israeli Cleantech deals, however the recent $10M investment in Israel’s Pythagros Solar marks a landmark in the Israeli Cleantech investment arena. Several characteristics of this investment and company are indications of this:

1. Size: The size of the deal is significant enough to demonstrate a major commitment of local VCs to Cleantech. Some of Israel’s leading VC firms are involved in this investment, including Israel Cleantech Ventures, Pitango Venture Capital and Evergreen Venture Partners.

2. Management: The management team is made up of experienced entrepreneurs from leading Israeli hi-tech companies, like Checkpoint Software Technologies Ltd.

3. Technology: The science on which the company’s technology is based has received international recognition from Scientific American as one of the top 50 most significant science breakthroughs in 2007.

4. Multi-disciplinary approach: The company seems to be taking an integrated approach, combining various disciplines such as optic design, semiconductor processes, materials science, and mass manufacturing techniques to come up with a solution rather than one product.

With energy crises riddling the world from South Africa and Brazil to Europe and the US, there are many opportunities for companies such as Pythagoras Solar and Infinia Corporation - who recently raised $50M - to achieve massive scale.

The word out on the street is unclear: some say solar is over crowded and valuations are sky high,while others say that solar is the one area that has been historically under-invested and has the most potential for major gains in efficiency and to compete with conventional energy sources, so that the current valuations are still quite reasonable. Time will only tell who is right.

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A Review of Israel Ministry of Finance SRI Position Paper

February 10th, 2008 | Categories: News · SRI · Israel | Tags: , , , ,
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Last week, I received an email from the Israeli Ministry of Finance of great significance. The email announced the publishing of a policy paper by a division within the Ministry to consider the implications of Socially Responsible Investing. This email quietly has the potential to change the way Israeli society views the capital markets. Currently the capital markets are viewed by Israelis as the unbridled ability to maximize profits with little concern for society’s well being or ethical standards. Little debate has taken place on this topic and sadly many efforts to raise the topic has resulted in the hijacking of the debate by corporate interests rather than an open balanced debate by all sectors of the Israeli public. I propose that people who have any concern for the well being of Israeli society ought to turn their attention to SRI as a tool for moderating values in Israeli society. As this paper proposes, having legislation enacted that allow ethical and moral considerations to be considered by a fund manager is the foundation on which our society’s economy shall reflect our desire for a just and good society. Without this legislative foundation we are very close to economic anarchy.

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Israel’s First GRI Compliant Social Responsibility Report

May 1st, 2007 | Categories: CSR | Tags: , ,
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Bank Leumi recently published the first ever GRI compliant social responsibility report by an Israeli company. It is significant that a Bank has adopted such a forward looking CSR policy since traditionally the banking sector has been slow to hop onto the CSR bandwagon. Bank Leumi’s report is actually the second CSR report  by an Israeli company and the second CSR Report by an Israeli bank. The first was published by Israel Discount Bank Ltd. last year albeit not GRI compliant.

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Why ESG Reporting Has Reached a Tipping Point

April 25th, 2007 | Categories: CSR | Tags: , , ,
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The Social Investment Research Analysts Network (SIRAN) and KLD Research & Analytics, Inc. announced the findings of their annual report on environmental and social performance reporting of US companies at the Ceres Conference 2007 today in Boston.

The study shows that nearly half (49) of US companies in the Standard & Poors (S&P) 100 Index are now disclosing information about their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance. From an Israeli perspective the significance of this milestone demonstrates that it’s time for Israeli companies to start gearing up for a new wave of regulations and standards on the horizon.

Companies such as Bank Leumi and Israel Discount Bank Ltd. have taken the lead in reporting their ESG performance. This study confirms my conviction that Israel is amongst the leading countries in the Global CSR movement.

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Water Is The Way To Go

April 10th, 2007 | Categories: Cleantech · Israel | Tags: ,
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With all the hype about Cleantech lately its not easy to separate hot air from real stuff. Neverthless the search for solving some of the world’s most pressing issues will ensure Cleantech is not simply a passing fad but rather a sustainable investment theme. As in any game it will be those people with the knoweldge, experience and skill set who will come out in front. Israel has missed the clean energy wave or will at least need to play catch up with its European, Chinese and North American competitors.

However the water sector is another story. Israel has had a 50 year head start on the rest of the world. The recent high level delegation of Israel’s leading water industry experts to Australia proved that Israel truly can add value and assist the global community in managing their water problems.  As always the winners will have to keep their eye on the ball, ensure business fundamentals are there and persevere. Good luck to us all!

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