Dow Jones Sustainability Indices

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The Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) launched in 1999, are a family of indices evaluating the sustainability performance of thousands of companies trading publicly, operated under a strategic partnership between S&P Dow Jones Indices and RobecoSAM (Sustainable Asset Management) [1] of the S&P Dow Jones Indices. They are the longest-running global sustainability benchmarks worldwide and have become the key reference point in sustainability investing for investors and companies alike.[ citation needed ] In 2012, S&P Dow Jones Indices was formed via the merger of S&P Indices and Dow Jones Indexes. [2]

Contents

The DJSI is based on an analysis of corporate economic, environmental and social performance, assessing issues such as corporate governance, risk management, branding, climate change mitigation, supply chain standards and labor practices. The trend is to reject companies that do not operate in a sustainable and ethical manner. It includes general as well as industry-specific sustainability criteria for each of the 60 industries defined according to the Industry Classification Benchmark (ICB).

The DJSI family contains one main global index, the DJSI World, and various indexes based on geographic regions such as: Europe, Nordic, North America and Asia Pacific. [3] The DJSI also contains industry-specific indexes called "blue chip indexes". In addition, the DJSI methodology facilitates the design, development and delivery of customized sustainability indexes; e.g., indexes covering different regions, indexes covering different segments of the leading sustainability companies, indexes covering additional exclusion criteria and indexes denominated in different currencies. [4]

To be incorporated in the DJSI, companies are assessed and selected based on their long-term economic, social and environmental asset management plans. Selection criteria evolve each year and companies must continue to make improvements to their long-term sustainability plans in order to remain on the Index. Indexes are updated yearly and companies are monitored throughout the year. [4]

History

Indexes

Indexes are denominated in both US dollars and Euros and are calculated using the Laspeyres formula. All indexes that are not subsets include companies that generate revenue from alcohol, tobacco, gambling, armaments and firearms, and adult entertainment. Index components are based on free-float market capitalization and most main indexes are reviewed quarterly, excluding the world index. Customized indexes are continuously being developed and delivered to encompass different regions or individualized sections of companies to add additional exclusions when needed and to change the currencies they are denoted in.

The DJSI have been divided into various benchmarks including the World, Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, Nordic, and Korean indexes. [11]

DJSI World Index

World location map (equirectangular 180).svg
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Australia
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Austria
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Belgium
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Brazil
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Canada
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Chile
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China
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Colombia
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Denmark
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Finland
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France
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Germany
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Hong Kong
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India
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Ireland
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Italy
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Japan
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Korea
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Macao
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Malaysia
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Netherlands
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Norway
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Portugal
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Singapore
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South Africa
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Spain
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Sweden
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Switzerland
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Taiwan
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Thailand
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UK
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USA
32 countries are represented in the World Index as of December 2023. [12]

The World Index, or DJSI World, was first published in September 1999. It is based on the largest 2,500 companies in the Dow Jones Global Total Stock Market Index (DJGTSMI). It covers the top-ten percent of these companies in terms of economic, environmental, and social criteria which equals about 300 companies. The DJSI World has two subset indexes, which are the Dow Jones Sustainability Index World 80 (DJSI World 80) and the Dow Jones Sustainability Index World ex US 80 (DJSI World ex US 80). Both subsets were initially published in August 2008 and track the performance of the largest 80 companies globally in terms of sustainability, with the DJSI World ex US 80 excluding the US from the top 80. The DJSI World and its subset are all reviewed on an annual basis.

  Technology (11%)
  Telecommunications (2%)
  Health Care (9%)
  Financials (18%)
  Real Estate (5%)
  Consumer Discretionary (25%)
  Consumer Staples (6%)
  Industrials (7%)
  Basic Materials (8%)
  Energy (4%)
  Utilities (5%)

The ICB breakdown is shown here, with consumer discretionary being the most represented sector. [12]

CountryCompany [12] Sector
Australia ANZ Group Holdings Limited Financials
Australia Brambles Limited Industrials
Australia Dexus Real estate
Australia Fortescue (company) Basic materials
Australia GPT Group Real estate
Australia National Australia Bank Limited Financials
Australia Stockland Real estate
Australia Transurban Group Industrials
Australia Vicinity Centres Real estate
Australia Woodside Energy Energy
Austria OMV Aktiengesellschaft Energy
Belgium Warehouses De Pauw SA Real estate
Brazil Banco Bradesco S.A. Financials
Brazil Banco do Brasil S.A. Financials
Brazil Companhia Energética de Minas Gerais - CEMIG Utilities
Brazil Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. Financials
Brazil Itaúsa Financials
Brazil Klabin S.A. Basic materials
Brazil Lojas Renner Consumer discretionary
Brazil Rumo S.A. Industrials
Canada Canadian National Railway Company Industrials
Canada Canadian Pacific Kansas City Limited Industrials
Canada Kinross Gold Corporation Basic materials
Canada Teck Resources Limited Basic materials
Chile Falabella (retail store) Consumer discretionary
Chile Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. Basic materials
China JD.com Consumer discretionary
China Kanzhun Limited Consumer discretionary
China Tencent Holdings Limited Consumer discretionary
China WuXi AppTec Health care
China WuXi Biologics (Cayman) Inc. Health care
China Yum China Holdings, Inc. Consumer discretionary
Colombia Bancolombia Financials
Colombia Grupo Argos Basic materials
Colombia Grupo Sura Financials
Colombia Grupo Nutresa Consumer staples
Denmark Vestas Wind Systems A/S Consumer discretionary
Finland Kesko Oyj Consumer staples
Finland Neste Oyj Energy
Finland UPM-Kymmene Oyj Basic materials
Finland Valmet Oyj Consumer discretionary
France Alstom Consumer discretionary
France Arkema Basic materials
France AXA SA Financials
France bioMérieux Health care
France BNP Paribas SA Financials
France Bureau Veritas Industrials
France Carrefour SA Consumer staples
France Covivio Real estate
France Dassault Systèmes Technology
France Engie Utilities
France Kering SA Consumer discretionary
France Publicis Groupe S.A. Consumer discretionary
France Rexel Consumer discretionary
France Sanofi Health care
France Schneider Electric Consumer discretionary
France Sodexo Consumer discretionary
France TF1 Consumer discretionary
France TotalEnergies SE Energy
France Veolia Utilities
France Wendel Financials
France Worldline SA Financials
Germany Allianz SE Financials
Germany Deutsche Börse AG Financials
Germany Deutsche Post AG Industrials
Germany Deutsche Telekom AG Telecommunications
Germany GEA Group Consumer discretionary
Germany Hochtief Consumer discretionary
Germany Hugo Boss AG Consumer discretionary
Germany Infineon Technologies AG Technology
Germany Lanxess Basic materials
Germany Metro AG Consumer staples
Germany Münchener Rückversicherungs-Gesellschaft Aktiengesellschaft Financials
Germany SAP SE Technology
Germany Siemens Aktiengesellschaft Consumer discretionary
Hong Kong Link Real Estate Investment Trust Real estate
Hong Kong Swire Properties Limited Real estate
India Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Limited Health care
India Hindalco Industries Basic materials
India JSW Steel Basic materials
India Mahindra & Mahindra Limited Consumer discretionary
India Tech Mahindra Technology
India UPL Limited Basic materials
India Vedanta Limited Basic materials
Ireland Trane Technologies plc Consumer discretionary
Italy Assicurazioni Generali S.p.A. Financials
Italy Enel SpA Utilities
Italy Hera Group Utilities
Italy Intesa Sanpaolo Financials
Italy Italgas Utilities
Italy Iveco Consumer discretionary
Italy Leonardo (company) Consumer discretionary
Italy Moncler Consumer discretionary
Italy Nexi Financials
Italy Pirelli & C. S.p.A. Consumer discretionary
Italy Poste Italiane S.p.A. Financials
Italy Prysmian S.p.A. Consumer discretionary
Italy Saipem Energy
Italy Snam Utilities
Italy Terna S.p.A. Utilities
Japan Ajinomoto Co., Inc. Consumer staples
Japan ANA Holdings Industrials
Japan Bridgestone Corporation Consumer discretionary
Japan Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. Health care
Japan Dentsu Consumer discretionary
Japan Fujitsu Limited Technology
Japan Honda Motor Co., Ltd. Consumer discretionary
Japan ITOCHU Corporation Consumer discretionary
Japan Komatsu Limited Consumer discretionary
Japan Lixil Group Consumer discretionary
Japan LY Corporation Consumer discretionary
Japan Marui Financials
Japan Meiji Holdings Consumer staples
Japan Mitsubishi Chemical Group Basic materials
Japan Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. Consumer discretionary
Japan Mitsui & Co., Ltd. Consumer discretionary
Japan Nabtesco Corporation Consumer discretionary
Japan Nikon Corporation Consumer discretionary
JapanNippon Prologis REIT, Inc.Real estate
Japan Nissin Foods Consumer staples
Japan Nomura Holdings, Inc. Financials
Japan Nomura Research Institute Technology
Japan NTT Data Technology
Japan Olympus Corporation Health care
Japan OMRON Corporation Technology
Japan Ono Pharmaceutical Health care
Japan Ricoh Company, Ltd. Technology
Japan Sekisui Chemical Co., Ltd. Consumer discretionary
Japan Sekisui House Consumer discretionary
Japan Seven & i Holdings Co., Ltd. Consumer staples
Japan Shiseido Company, Limited Consumer discretionary
Japan SoftBank Corp. Telecommunications
Japan Sojitz Corporation Consumer discretionary
Japan Sumitomo Forestry Consumer discretionary
Japan Sysmex Corporation Health care
Japan Toppan Industrials
Japan Toto Ltd. Consumer discretionary
Japan Yokogawa Electric Corporation Technology
Macao Sands China Ltd. Consumer discretionary
Malaysia Petronas Basic materials
Netherlands ASML Holding N.V. Technology
Netherlands ASR Nederland Financials
Netherlands Ferrovial Consumer discretionary
Netherlands Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize N.V. Consumer staples
Netherlands NN Group Financials
Netherlands PostNL N.V. Industrials
Netherlands Randstad NV Industrials
Netherlands Signify N.V. Consumer discretionary
Norway Storebrand Financials
Portugal EDP Group Utilities
Portugal Galp Energia Energy
Republic of Korea Doosan Enerbility Consumer discretionary
Republic of Korea Hana Financial Group Inc. Financials
Republic of Korea Hyundai Engineering & Construction Consumer discretionary
Republic of Korea Hyundai Glovis Industrials
Republic of Korea Hyundai Mobis Consumer discretionary
Republic of Korea Hyundai Motor Company Consumer discretionary
Republic of Korea Hyundai Steel Basic materials
Republic of Korea Kakao Corp. Consumer discretionary
Republic of Korea KB Financial Group Inc. Financials
Republic of Korea Kia Corporation Consumer discretionary
Republic of Korea LG Electronics Inc. Consumer discretionary
Republic of Korea LG Household & Health Care Consumer discretionary
Republic of Korea Mirae Asset Securities Financials
Republic of Korea Samsung Biologics Health care
Republic of Korea Samsung C&T Corporation Consumer discretionary
Republic of Korea Samsung Electro-Mechanics Technology
Republic of Korea Samsung SDI Co., Ltd. Technology
Republic of Korea Samsung Securities Co., Ltd. Financials
Republic of Korea Shinhan Financial Group Co., Ltd. Financials
Republic of Korea SK Inc. Consumer discretionary
Republic of Korea SK Telecom Co., Ltd. Telecommunications
Republic of Korea S-Oil Energy
Singapore CapitaLand Real estate
Singapore Keppel Corporation Limited Consumer discretionary
Singapore Wilmar International Limited Consumer staples
South Africa Exxaro Energy
South Africa Gold Fields Limited Basic materials
Spain Acciona Utilities
Spain AENA Industrials
Spain Amadeus IT Group Consumer discretionary
Spain Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. Financials
Spain Banco Santander, S.A. Financials
Spain Bankinter Financials
Spain CaixaBank Financials
Spain Enagás Utilities
Spain Endesa, S.A. Utilities
Spain Grifols Health care
Spain Iberdrola Utilities
Spain Indra Sistemas Technology
Spain Inditex Consumer discretionary
Spain Merlin Properties Real estate
Spain Red Eléctrica Corporación Utilities
Sweden Billerud Basic materials
Sweden Castellum AB (publ) Real estate
Sweden EQT AB Financials
Sweden H&M Consumer discretionary
Sweden Viaplay Group Consumer discretionary
Switzerland Coca-Cola HBC AG Consumer staples
Switzerland Partners Group Financials
Switzerland Roche Holding AG Health care
Switzerland SGS S.A. Industrials
Switzerland Sonova Health care
Switzerland STMicroelectronics N.V. Technology
Switzerland Temenos AG Technology
Switzerland UBS Group AG Financials
Taiwan Advantech Co., Ltd. Technology
Taiwan ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd. Technology
Taiwan Cathay Financial Holding Co., Ltd. Financials
Taiwan Chailease Holding Company Limited Financials
Taiwan Chang Hwa Bank Financials
Taiwan China Development Financial Holding Corporation Financials
Taiwan Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd. Telecommunications
Taiwan CTBC Financial Holding Financials
Taiwan Delta Electronics Technology
Taiwan E Ink Technology
Taiwan E.SUN Commercial Bank Financials
Taiwan Far EasTone Telecommunications
Taiwan First Financial Holding Co., Ltd. Financials
Taiwan Fubon Financial Holding Co., Ltd. Financials
Taiwan InnoLux Corporation Technology
Taiwan Lite-On Technology
Taiwan Mega International Commercial Bank Financials
Taiwan Nanya Technology Corporation Technology
Taiwan President Chain Store Corporation Consumer staples
Taiwan Shin Kong Group Financials
Taiwan SinoPac Financial Holdings Company Limited Financials
Taiwan Taishin Financial Holdings Financials
Taiwan Taiwan Cooperative Bank Financials
Taiwan Taiwan Mobile Telecommunications
Taiwan Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited Technology
TaiwanThe Shanghai Commercial and Savings Bank Financials
Taiwan United Microelectronics Corporation Technology
Taiwan Vanguard International Semiconductor Corporation Technology
Taiwan WIN Semiconductors Corp. Technology
Taiwan Yuanta Securities Financials
Thailand Advanced Info Service Telecommunications
Thailand Airports of Thailand Public Company Limited Industrials
Thailand Bangkok Dusit Medical Services Health care
Thailand Central Pattana Real estate
Thailand Central Retail Corporation Consumer discretionary
Thailand CP All Consumer staples
Thailand Delta Electronics Technology
Thailand Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited Basic materials
Thailand Kasikornbank Financials
Thailand PTT Exploration and Production Energy
Thailand PTT Global Chemical Public Company Limited Basic materials
Thailand PTT Public Company Limited Energy
Thailand Siam Commercial Bank Financials
Thailand Siam Cement Group Basic materials
Thailand ThaiBev Consumer staples
United Kingdom Abrdn Financials
United Kingdom Anglo American plc Basic materials
United Kingdom Aviva plc Financials
United Kingdom CNH Industrial N.V. Consumer discretionary
United Kingdom Diageo plc Consumer staples
United Kingdom GSK plc Health care
United Kingdom Informa plc Consumer discretionary
United Kingdom International Distributions Services plc Industrials
United Kingdom Land Securities Group plc Real estate
United Kingdom Linde plc Basic materials
United Kingdom Pearson plc Consumer discretionary
United Kingdom Reckitt Benckiser Group plc Consumer discretionary
United Kingdom RELX PLC Industrials
United Kingdom Rolls-Royce Holdings plc Consumer discretionary
United Kingdom United Utilities Utilities
United Kingdom WH Smith PLC Consumer discretionary
United States Abbott Laboratories Health care
United States AbbVie Inc. Health care
United States Adobe Inc. Technology
United States Agilent Technologies, Inc. Health care
United States Alphabet Inc. Consumer discretionary
United States American Airlines Group Inc. Industrials
United States Autodesk, Inc. Technology
United States Biogen Inc. Health care
United States Cisco Systems, Inc. Technology
United States Cummins Inc. Consumer discretionary
United States CVS Health Corporation Health care
United States DaVita Inc. Health care
United States Dow Inc. Basic materials
United States eBay Inc. Consumer discretionary
United States Ecolab Inc. Basic materials
United States Edwards Lifesciences Corporation Health care
United States Elevance Health, Inc. Health care
United States Fortinet Technology
United States General Mills, Inc. Consumer staples
United States Gilead Sciences, Inc. Health care
United States Healthpeak Properties, Inc. Real estate
United States Hess Corporation Energy
United States Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. Consumer discretionary
United States Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. Real estate
United States HP Inc. Technology
United States Illumina, Inc. Health care
United States Ingersoll Rand Consumer discretionary
United States Jacobs Solutions Inc. Industrials
United States Las Vegas Sands Corp. Consumer discretionary
United States Lockheed Martin Corporation Consumer discretionary
United States Medtronic plc Health care
United States Microsoft Corporation Technology
United States Mondelez International Consumer staples
United States Moody's Corporation Financials
United States Newmont Corporation Basic materials
United States Northrop Grumman Corporation Consumer discretionary
United States Oshkosh Corporation Consumer discretionary
United States Owens Corning Consumer discretionary
United States Philip Morris International Inc. Consumer staples
United States Prologis, Inc. Real estate
United States Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Health care
United States Republic Services, Inc. Industrials
United States S&P Global Inc. Financials
United States Salesforce, Inc. Technology
United States ServiceNow, Inc. Technology
United States Snap Inc. Consumer discretionary
United States Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. Consumer discretionary
United States The Cigna Group Health care
United States The Gap, Inc. Consumer discretionary
United States The Williams Companies, Inc. Energy
United States Union Pacific Corporation Industrials
United States UnitedHealth Group Incorporated Health care
United States Waste Management, Inc. Industrials
United States Whirlpool Corporation Consumer discretionary

DJSI Europe and Eurozone Index

The Dow Jones Sustainability Europe Index covers the leading 20 percent of the largest 600 European companies in terms of sustainability from the DJGTSMI. It is subset by three different more specific indexes for the region, the main subset being the Dow Jones Sustainability Eurozone Index (DJSI Eurozone). This index tracks the financial performance of sustainability leaders in the smaller eurozone region. Both indexes were launched in August 2010 and have their own further subset. The two subsets are the Dow Jones Sustainability Europe 40 Index (DJSI Europe 40) and the Dow Jones Sustainability Eurozone 40 Index (DJSI Eurozone 40), both of which were also launched in August 2010. These track the top-40 sustainability leaders in Europe and the smaller Eurozone region. DJSI Europe and eurozone are reviewed annually as well as quarterly to maintain accuracy of the index composition while the DJSI Europe 40 and DJSI Eurozone 40 are reviewed only annually.

DJSI North America and United States Index

The Dow Jones Sustainability North American Index has a similar design as the DJSI Europe and also reviews the top-20 percent of the 600 largest companies, but in this case in North America. It was originally launched, along with its subset Dow Jones Sustainability United States Index (DJSI United States), in September 2005. Both indexes are further broken down by the Dow Jones Sustainability North America 40 Index (DJSI North America 40) and the Dow Jones Sustainability United States 40 Index (DJSI United States 40), which cover the leading 40 sustainability driven companies in North America and the United States, respectively. Both subsets, however, were not launched until August 2008, three years after the DJSI North America.

DJSI Asia Pacific Index

The Dow Jones Sustainability Asian Pacific Index (DJSI Asia Pacific) was launched at the same time as its single subset, the Dow Jones Sustainability Asia Pacific 40 Index (DJSI Asia Pacific 40), in January 2009. As of 2009, the DJSI Asia Pacific included 122 companies and captures the leading 20 percent of the top-600 companies in developed Asia Pacific Markets in terms of sustainability as derived from the DJGTSMI. DJSI Asia Pacific 40, the subset, tracks the largest 40 companies who are sustainability leaders in the Asia Pacific region.

DJSI Korea Index

The Dow Jones Sustainability Korea Index (DJSI Korea) is derived from the smallest pool of companies, tracking the most sustainable 30 percent of the largest 200 Korean companies. The DJSI Korea was launched in October 2009, along with its subset the Dow Jones Sustainability Korea 20 Index (DJSI Korea 20). As of that date, 41 companies were included in the DJSI Korea. DJSI Korea 20 encompasses the largest 20 sustainable leading companies in the region. The index encompasses a smaller region than the other indexes resulting in a higher percentage of companies analyzed and a lower number of companies that are reviewed in the subset. The DJSI Korea is also reviewed on an annual and quarterly basis, whereas the DJSI Korea 20 is reviewed annually.

Assessment

A defined set of criteria is used to assess the economic, social, and environmental opportunities of the companies that the DJSI has listed, which are chosen based on the Corporate Sustainability Assessment by RobecoSAM. Information comes from the annual RobecoSAM questionnaire (the Corporate Sustainability Assessment), company documentation, the Media and Stakeholder Analysis (an examination of media coverage, stakeholder commentaries and other publicly available sources provided by RepRisk ESG Business Intelligence), and personal contact with the companies. Industry leaders from RobecoSAM Research's Corporate Sustainability Assessment are chosen to be listed on the DJSI. [4]

Once a company is listed on the DJSI, it is monitored daily for any critical arising issues, which can lead to the exclusion of the company if deemed critical enough. Examples of events that would lead to exclusion include: commercial practices, human rights abuses, layoffs or worker disputes, or catastrophic disasters. This monitoring is supported by RepRisk, a global research firm and provider of environmental, social and governance (ESG) risk data. RepRisk screens media outlets, stakeholder groups and other publicly available sources to identify risks related to these issues. The information gathered is then systematically analyzed and quantified. If a critical event happens, the situation is analyzed by RobecoSAM for the scope in which it reaches. If large enough, the event will be analyzed further based on severity, media coverage, and crisis management. RobecoSAM analysts decide from here whether the company will be excluded from the DJSI. An assurance report is completed by Deloitte to ensure the validity of the company's information. [4]

In early 2009, an independent expert study commissioned by the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) and presented at the World Economic Forum in Davos, highlighted the SAM assessment as "the most rigorous in terms of the number of questions and depth of information requested". [13]

In 2009, SAM carried out its 11th-consecutive Corporate Sustainability Assessment, assessing more than 1,200 companies, an increase of eight percent from 2008. At the onset of DJSI's assessment criteria, SAM mainly focused on government compliance and regulations. It has evolved to embrace corporate sustainability as a key competitive advantage, taking into account nine specific criteria in addition to industry-specific criteria. Below are the criteria and weightings SAM uses to assess a company's overall score. [14]

CriteriaWeightings
  • Economic dimension: 33%
  • Environmental dimension: 33%
  • Social dimension: 33%
  • Industry criteria: 57%
  • General criteria: 43%

These weightings are approximations, and actual weightings may differ between industries. A breakdown of these dimensions is seen below. [14]

Economic dimensionWeightings in percentage
Corporate governance6.0
Risk and crisis management6.0
Codes of conduct/compliance/anti-corruption and bribery6.0
Industry-specific criteriaDepends on industry
Environmental dimensionWeightings in percentages
Environmental reporting3.0
Industry-specific criteriaDepends on industry
Social dimensionWeightings in percentages
Human-capital development5.5
Talent attraction and retention5.5
Labor practice indicators5.0
Corporate citizenship / philanthropy3.0
Social reporting3.0
Industry-specific criteriaDepends on industry

Number of invited companies in 2010: [15]

Some of the assessment criteria have varied slightly from year to year to reflect growing information about particular issues such as water related risks, brand management, corporate citizenship, risk and crisis management. Continuous improvement allows for SAM to provide both relevant and current information.

Since 1999, SAM's Corporate Sustainability Assessment has increased in number of assessed companies, number of sectors, number of questions to companies, average totally sustainability score, and weight of sector-specific criteria in percentage total weight. [16]

19992009
Number of assessed companies4681,237
Number of sectors6858
Number of questions to companies50100
Average total sustainability score (out of 100)2748
Weight of sector-specific criteria (in % of total weight)3057

Included in the most recent SAM questionnaire are more difficult to measure intangible business attributes such as innovation and customer relationship management. Questions are both directed at short-term risks and opportunities and sustainable long-term value creation. [16] The intensity of the industry-specific criteria has continuously increased. In 1999, industry-specific information accounted for only 30 percent of the overall score, while now it accounts for nearly 60 percent.

From these questionnaires, each company can be awarded one or a combination of the following status: [16]

Criticism

SAM uses four sources of information to assess corporate sustainability: company questionnaire (the Corporate Sustainability Assessment), company documentation, Media and Stakeholder Analysis, and contact with companies. [17] [18]

Information sourceWho provides themWhat type of documents
Company questionnairecompaniesSAM distributes sector-specific questionnaires to each company. Companies complete and sign the questionnaire. SAM analysts validate responses. The responses are further verified by PricewaterhouseCoopers, an external resource.
Company documentationcompaniesDocuments requested from companies include sustainability reports, environmental reports, health and safety reports, social reports, annual financial reports, special reports (e.g., on intellectual capital management, corporate governance), and all other sources of company information.
Media and stakeholder analysis RepRisk ESG Business IntelligenceA variety of third-party sources and external stakeholders, including print and online news articles, stakeholder commentaries from NGOs, governmental agencies, think tanks, social media and others, as well as other publicly assessable sources. [19] [20]
Company contactcompany and SAMDiscussions and phone conversations with company representatives.

Using self-reported data as proxies for the social or environmental effects the DJSI intends to reflect leaves the index exposed to corporate biases and additional credibility risks. It rewards companies with greatest capacity to respond to SAM's questionnaires and information requests rather than those with the best socially responsible practices. [21] Secondly, relying on self-reported data carries substantial risks since information from companies may not be completely credible. An index based on biased information often underestimates real risk factors in the listed companies' operation, even in those instances when submitted information if verified by an auditing firm such as PricewaterhouseCoopers, KPMG, etc. Ultimately, companies with challenging corporate environmental and social issues are more likely to devote public relations resources to minimize the perception of risk within their operations. In order to address some of this feedback, RobecoSAM added a Media and Stakeholder Analysis component to the annual Corporate Sustainability Assessment, in order to complement and help corroborate the questionnaire and documentation provided by the participating companies. For the MSA, RobecoSAM works with RepRisk, a global research firm specialized in risk analytics and metrics related to environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. RepRisk screens media outlets, stakeholder groups and other publicly available sources to identify risks, which are then systematically analyzed and quantified. [20]

It has been also found that in the DJSI the three dimensions of sustainability are not considered in a balanced way, being biased towards economic criteria to the disadvantage of social and environmental ones. A further bias of the DJSI is that it only includes large companies, whereas other indices include smaller companies as well. As a consequence of these limitations, a survey conducted among sustainability experts found that only 48 percent considered the DJSI as "highly trusted". [22]

Relevance of the DJSI

Studies on the DJSI

See also

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Robeco Schweiz is an international investment company with a specific focus on sustainability investments. It was founded in 1995 by Reto Ringger. The company is based in Zurich, Switzerland, and considers economic, environmental, and social criteria in its investment strategies. In addition to asset management, the company has an indexes and private equity portion of the business. In 2006 RobecoSAM introduced a division called sustainability services that provides sustainability benchmarking reports to companies. In 2001, the then-RobecoSAM became the first carbon neutral company in Switzerland.

The FTSE4Good Index Series is a series of ethical investment stock market indices launched in 2001 by the FTSE Group which reports on the performance of companies which demonstrate "strong Environmental, Social and Governance practices". A number of stock market indices are available, for example covering UK shares, US shares, European markets and Japan, with inclusion based on a range of corporate social responsibility criteria. Research for the indices is supported by the Ethical Investment Research Services (EIRIS). The index excludes companies due to their involvement in tobacco production, weapons, or coal power industry and rates companies for inclusion based environmental sustainability, relationships with stakeholders, attitudes to human rights, supply chain labour standards and the countering of bribery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thai Union Group</span> Producer of seafood-based food products

Thai Union Group PCL is a Thailand-based producer of seafood based products. It was founded in 1977, and was listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) on 22 November 1994.

Kimberly-Clark de México(KCM) is a Mexican company that engages in the manufacture and commercialization of disposable products for daily use by consumers within and away-from home in Mexico and internationally. The company's products include diapers and childcare products, feminine pads, incontinence care products, bath tissue, napkins, facial tissue, hand and kitchen towels, wet wipes and health care products. Today the company has 8 000 direct employees and over 10 thousand indirect jobs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PTT Global Chemical</span>

PTT Global Chemical, also known as PTTGC, is a petrochemical company that specializes in synthesizing olefins and aromatics. It was founded in 2011 and is a subsidiary of PTT Public Company Limited.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RepRisk</span> ESG Ratings Company in Switzerland

RepRisk AG is an environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) data science company based in Zurich, Switzerland, specializing in ESG and business-conduct risk research, and quantitative solutions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don Slager</span>

Donald W. “Don” Slager is the former Chief Executive Officer of Republic Services, Inc., in the recycling and waste services business. The Company generates $10 billion of annual revenue, has a market cap exceeding $23+ billion and operates the 7th largest vocational fleet in the nation. Don has more than 35 years of experience in the industry, starting his career as a teenager and subsequently working at all levels within the organization. He had served Republic for over 30 years. Slager retired and Jon Vander Ark was appointed the position of CEO on June 26, 2021 following a well executed succession plan.

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