Follow This (organisation)

Last updated
Follow This
Formation2015
Founder Mark van Baal
Type Non-profit
Legal status ANBI
PurposeClimate-focused shareholder activism in the oil and gas industry
Headquarters Amsterdam, Netherlands
Area served
International
Website www.follow-this.org

Follow This is a Dutch non-profit organization and shareholder advocacy group. The organization mobilizes environmentally conscious investors by filing climate-related shareholder resolutions at the annual general meetings of major oil and gas companies. Its aim is to encourage these companies to align their emission reductions with the targets of the Paris Agreement.

Contents

History

Founded in 2015 by Mark van Baal, [1] the organization was born out of frustration over the role of oil companies and the financial sector in the climate crisis. [2] Follow This uses its rights as a minority shareholder to table resolutions that put energy transition on the agenda at oil majors. [3] [4] [5]

Breakthroughs came when international institutional investors began backing the resolutions [6] [7] and oil and gas companies, under sustained shareholder pressure, started tightening their climate ambitions. [8]

Organization

Follow This is an association based in the Netherlands, with a member base of several thousand. [9] Since 2021, it has been recognized by the Dutch Tax and Customs Administration as an official charitable organization (ANBI). [10] Funding mainly comes from philanthropic contributions and is supplemented by membership fees and donations from supporters. [11]

Impact

Oil majors

In 2018, Follow This proposed a series of resolutions for stockholders of Shell "that, if they had garnered the support of 75% of shareholders, would have required the company to take aggressive climate action." The resolutions did not pass but put pressure on Shell to commit to reducing emissions. [12]

After Follow This bought a small number of shares to force the company to set lower emission standards, ExxonMobil sued, and Follow This dropped the resolution. [13] [14] Some institutional investors collaborated with Follow This, co-filing resolutions at Shell in 2024. [15]

Controversy and Anti-ESG backlash

Follow This encountered a major legal conflict in early 2024, when ExxonMobil filed a lawsuit in Texas federal court against Follow This and Arjuna Capital, aiming to block a shareholder resolution on greenhouse gas emissions. [16] Amid a backlash on ESG proposals, Exxon pursued this litigation after the groups had withdrawn their proposal, arguing the matter could recur and seeking to restrict future filings through court orders. [17]

The move sparked widespread investor outrage. Leading institutional shareholders, including CalPERS and Norges Bank Investment Management, denounced Exxon for undermining shareholder rights. CalPERS announced plans to vote against Exxon's entire board in protest, calling the lawsuit “reckless” and “designed to punish two small groups that dared to speak truth to power”. [18] Norges Bank publicly opposed the re-election of Exxon director Joseph Hooley, citing concern over the company's “unusual and aggressive tactics”. [19] Dozens of asset owners collectively controlling trillions in assets issued statements defending shareholder democracy and urging reliance on SEC processes as the proper mechanism for resolving proxy disputes. [20]

In June 2024, the court dismissed the case against Follow This on jurisdictional grounds, and the case against Arjuna Capital was dropped after the firm committed not to refile the proposal. Follow This welcomed the ruling, warning the lawsuit could have set a dangerous precedent for future climate-focused shareholder activism. [21]

In 2025, Follow This did not file a climate resolution for the first time since 2016. [22] . The decision was attributed to legal and political pressure in the United States, including state-level actions against ESG policies by American investors. [23] Despite not filing a resolution, Follow This rallied 24% of BP shareholders to vote against the re-election of their chairman after a reversal in the oil major's climate strategy [24] .

References

  1. ↑ "Climate activist shareholders to target US oil giant Chevron". The Guardian. 20 May 2021.
  2. ↑ "Mark van Baal, luis in de pels van de oliemajors: 'Veel beleggers zitten vast in hun comfortzone'". De Tijd. 19 May 2023.
  3. ↑ "Climate resolutions shaking up Big Oil". Financial Times. 14 October 2022.
  4. ↑ "Is ESG over?". Financial Times. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
  5. ↑ "Groene aandeelhouder Mark van Baal: klimaatschade oliebedrijven negeren kost ons pensioengeld". De Telegraaf. 6 January 2025. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
  6. ↑ "Climat: 17 investisseurs demandent à TotalEnergies d'être plus ambitieux". Les Échos. 6 April 2023.
  7. ↑ "Milieugroep Follow this pakt Shell aan met 4000 miljard steun van vermogensbeheerders". De Telegraaf. 25 May 2023.
  8. ↑ "How Shell is trying to survive the climate crisis". TIME. 10 January 2020.
  9. ↑ "Shell Ordered by Dutch Court to Cut Carbon Emissions". The Wall Street Journal. 26 May 2021.
  10. ↑ "ANBI status controleren". Belastingdienst. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  11. ↑ "FAQ". Follow this. 19 May 2025. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  12. ↑ "How Shell Is Trying to Survive the Climate Crisis". TIME Magazine. 16 January 2020. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
  13. ↑ "Transcript: Is ESG over?". Financial Times. 14 October 2022.
  14. ↑ "ESG Watch: Climate activist investors were sidelined this earnings season. They'll be back". Reuters. 29 June 2022. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
  15. ↑ "Shell faces shareholder rebellion over climate activist resolution". The Guardian. 16 January 2024. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
  16. ↑ Kimball, Spencer (2024-06-17). "Judge tosses Exxon Mobil lawsuit against activist shareholder Arjuna over climate proposal". CNBC. Retrieved 2025-09-16.
  17. ↑ Exxon case against activist shareholder can proceed, Reuters, 22 May 2024
  18. ↑ CalPERS Targets Exxon Board in Protest of Shareholder Rights Suit, Barron's, 22 May 2024
  19. ↑ Norway wealth fund to oppose Exxon director over shareholder lawsuit, Reuters, 24 May 2024
  20. ↑ Asset Owners Join Forces Against ExxonMobil, NordSIP, 28 May 2024
  21. ↑ ExxonMobil drops lawsuit against Arjuna Capital, Financial Times, retrieved 6 August 2025
  22. ↑ "Climate activist shareholder group Follow this pauses big oil campaign". Reuters. 9 April 2025.
  23. ↑ "Corporate gloom". The New York Times. 14 April 2025.
  24. ↑ "BP braces for investor rebellion at first AGM since climate strategy U-turn". The Guardian. 17 April 2025.
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