Finance : Activists

More than 120 environment and development groups have questioned the credibility of proposed World Bank funds to help the poor fight global warming, even as the UN's climate change agency broadly welcomed them.

Last month 40 developing and industrialized countries agreed on two separate multi-billion dollar funds, managed by the World Bank and regional development banks, one to help developing countries cut their contribution to climate change and the other to help them prepare better for more storms and floods.

The NGOs doubted the World Bank's qualifications to fund projects which curb carbon emissions given its history of loans to coal plants, including one this year to an Indian plant which will use the latest, cleanest boilers.

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Shareholder activists are encouraged by the high percentage of votes cast in favor of making mutual funds genocide-free.  In a second round of voting on genocide-free investing, 25% of shareholders of Fidelity’s Mid-Cap Fund, 21% of its International Discovery Fund, 22% of its Overseas Fund and 23% of its Canada Fund voted for the genocide-free investing proposal. Similarly, on March 19, 27% of shareholders of Fidelity’s Capital and Income Fund and 28% of its Select Health Care Portfolio Fund voted in favor of the proposal.  The proposal has been submitted to a wide range of other mutual funds with votes scheduled in coming months.

According to industry insiders, it is highly unusual for a social concern to receive such a high percentage of the vote, when opposed by management. Chief among the reasons for these low numbers is the large number of votes that simply follow management’s guidance, including institutional voters, “insider” voters, and many ordinary investors who reflexively check the “vote with management” box. The consistently high vote totals for genocide-free investing suggest that this proposal resonates strongly with shareholders.

More votes on the genocide-free investing proposal will take place on May 14 at shareholders’ meetings for 15 additional Fidelity funds including the $72 billion Contrafund, the $50 billion Diversified International Fund, and the $39 billion Magellan Fund.

For more information please see investorsagainstgenocide.org.

Shareholders of Fidelity’s Contra Fund will have the opportunity to vote on a shareholder proposal which asks the mutual fund giant to ensure that its investments are genocide-free.

Thanks to a recent decision by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) denying Fidelity’s “no-action” request, Fidelity will not be able to block consideration by its shareholders. Fidelity’s filing with the SEC indicates its plans to hold a shareholder meeting for its Contra Fund on March 19, 2008. The shareholder proposal for genocide-free investing has been filed with 28 of Fidelity’s mutual funds and with 30 other funds from Barclays, Franklin Templeton, T. Rowe Price, and Vanguard.

Follow the Oil Money is an interactive tool that tracks the flow of oil money into US politics.  In the 2008 presidential race,  Senator Clinton has been given $235,250, Senator McCain has been given $206,935 and Senator Obama  has been given $110,412 to find out who is financing your candidate click here.  The figures might surprise you.