Unraveling Socially Responsible Investment Law. Regulating the Unseen Polluters - BY Benjamin J Richardson (Oxford University Press. 2008)

Abstract

This book addresses an issue that may come as a surprise to most people, that is, the involvement of financiers and investors in socially responsible practices in the projects and companies that they finance and invest in. Focus is usually on the companies who potentially have a negative impact on the environment, but are they forgetting who and what makes the wheel turn? Should the financial sector not be subjected to the same standards? Maybe not as much on their direct ecological footprint, as they are normally not regarded as the largest polluters, but certainly on the indirect side as far as concerns their involvement in the financing of development projects and operations that could have a significant negative impact on the environment. Financial institutions should not be considered innocent suppliers of capital, without knowledge of or control over the use of the capital that they provide.