The Impact of Equity Engagement Evaluating the Impact of Shareholder Engagement in Public Equity Investing

Over the last decade, growing numbers of investors have become increasingly concerned with the environmental and social impact of their investments across asset classes. This trend has recently been driven by new waves of "impact investors" proactively seeking measurable social and environmental impact in addition to financial returns, and by "responsible investors" making commitments to engage on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues through initiatives such as the United Nations-backed Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). At the same time, engaged shareholders have had long-standing experience using "the power of the proxy" and their voices as investors to hold companies accountable for the impacts they have on employees, stakeholders, communities, and ecosystems.While investor interest in shareholder engagement has grown, our understanding of the impacts associated with engagement activities remains largely anecdotal.In 2012, an important study on Total Portfolio Activation provided a new conceptual and analytical framework for investors to pursue environmental and social impact across all asset classes commonly found in a diversified investment portfolio. Building upon the insights of Total Portfolio Activation, the Impact of Equity Engagement (IE2) initiative seeks to deepen our understanding of the nature of impact in one specific asset class—public equities— where investors' engagement activities have generated meaningful social and environmental impacts.Given the large social and environmental footprints of publicly traded corporations and the persistently high allocation to public equities in most investor portfolios, public equity investing presents a major opportunity for impact investing. Yet impact investing, as currently practiced, has concentrated primarily on smallscale direct investments in private equity and debt, where many investors perceive that social and environmental impact can be more readily observed than in publicly traded companies where ownership is intermediated, diluted, and diffused through secondary capital markets.Indeed, the nature of impact within public equity investing remains poorly understood and insufficiently documented. Because of this, many investors may be overlooking readily available opportunities for generating impact within their existing investment portfolios.To address these misperceptions and missed opportunities, the IE2 initiative is developing a more rigorous framework for documenting the impact of engagement within the public equity asset class.

Evaluation of the Impact of Music Program Participation on Students’ Musical and Academic Success, and School Engagement in the Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools: A Comprehensive Test of Pathways and Contextual Factors

Report for Metropolitan Nashville Public SchoolsThe purpose of this project was to examine the effect of participating in music on student school engagement and academic achievement in a Metropolitan Nashville Public School district. Student records for the class of 2012 (N = 6,006) in a major urban school district were collected and examined for student personal characteristics, music participation, their indicated level of school engagement, and their academic achievements. These variables were examined using Structural Equation Modeling techniques. Results indicated that the quantity of Music Participation had an important effect on both the level of School Engagement and Academic Achievement. Conclusions indicate that more music involvement was advantageous to the school system’s overall performance, and that steps being taken to engage a wider cross-section of students might well have a significant impact on the students’ academic lives.This research was funded by the MMU and MNPS

Passive Acoustic Monitoring for Bats in Support of the Coyote Wind Project, Sweet Grass County, Montana

Wind energy development in the United States has been increasing rapidly and is expected to continue to do so. There are many benefits to producing wind energy; however it is also important to understand potential negative effects and ways these impacts could be mitigated. Impacts to bats, and how to predict and mitigate impacts, are less well known than wind project impacts to birds. We conducted passive acoustic monitoring from 29 August to 6 November 2008 in Sweet Grass County, Montana, as part of pre-construction surveys for Enerfin Energy Company’s proposed Coyote Wind Project. We deployed four Anabat acoustic detectors on two portable towers at 1.5- and 20-m heights, and recorded data nightly. We used these data to evaluate bat activity over the study period; within each night; relative to wind speed; relative to temperature; and relative to instrument heights. We recorded 668 echolocation files in 3 phonic groups. Bat activity was highest between 29 August and 1 October, and within 3 hrs of sunset. Bat activity peaked at wind speeds of 2-3 m/s and dropped off with increasing wind speeds to about 8 m/s. Bats were most active at air temperatures between 5 and 20 oC. Instrument height and bat phonic group were significantly correlated. These results are generally consistent with those found by Arnett et al. (2006) in Pennsylvania. Increasing our understanding of environmental parameters and bat activity in Montana will contribute to appropriate wind project siting and mitigation

Developing state guidelines for school library media programs in Iowa: Plans for progress into the 21st century

This research project, designed for Iowa school library media specialists, principals, and state education and legislative decision-makers, provides quantitative guidelines for library media program budgets, collections, staffing and facilities in Iowa schools. Research repeatedly has shown a link between these elements of a quality school library program and higher student achievement scores. Historically, standards and guidelines have been used to improve school library media programs. Modeled after previous guidelines developed in Iowa, this project is entitled Plans for Progress into the 21st Century. The literature review of this research project also offers an extensive look at the impact of school library media programs on academic achievement as well as a historic view of state and national guidelines and surveys, and evidence of their role in education

Plans for progress into the 21st century: A guide to planning for school library media programs

The purpose of this handbook is to provide guidance to school administrators, school boards, general faculty and library media staff in developing and maintaining strong library media programs in the state of Iowa

Blood Lead Testing Guideline Development for a Public Health Department

A lack of consistent, evidence-based practices for blood lead testing of children existed in a local public health department (LHD). No known blood lead level is safe, and toxicity can result in behavioral and cognitive impairments. The purpose of this project was to develop and analyze a clinical practice guideline to establish blood lead testing procedures in the LHD to improve testing procedures and enhance future testing within the jurisdiction. The RE-AIM framework was used to address the reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, and maintenance of the clinical practice guideline. Five experts evaluated the guideline using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation instrument. The assessment results indicated 96.4% agreement across all domains. The experts agreed unanimously to recommend adoption of the clinical practice guideline. Implementation of the guideline might advance nursing practice and patient care in the LHD through incorporation of evidence-based practices. Implementation might also lead to early identification of lead-burdened children and may provide the opportunity for treatment to mitigate cognitive and behavioral deficits related to lead toxicity, thereby improving child health and decreasing related health care costs. Engagement of the clinical practice guideline will support positive social change through the empowerment of public health nurses to provide optimal care to a population of children at risk of deleterious and long-term side effects of lead exposure

Reframing the Discourse on Work-Life Balance in the Digital Age

This paper reframes our understanding of the discourse on work-life balance (WLB) from a global perspective, where life on the four income levels (from bottom of the wealth to top of the wealth) is equally considered. Based on a systematic literature review, our initial insights are that WLB of workers in the highest economic sectors has received significant attention from scholars and practitioners in the west, while the global rest and those in other economic sectors, which represents the majority of the world’s population, has almost entirely been overlooked. We argue for a new understanding of WLB that addresses the needs of all people across the globe, regardless of their economic status or geographic position, and independent of their formal or informal work contexts. In our future work, we aim to address how disparities in: (1) agency and dependence; (2) privacy and exposure; (3) connection and disconnection; and (4) formality and informality can affect people\u27s dignity, equality, and healthy environments

Targeting Hispanic Immigrants with Food Safety Communications

Hispanics are the largest minority population in the United States, according to the 2000 U.S. Census, and the fastest growing. If they are immigrants, they are often dealing with cultural issues as well as new technological applications and social systems. The need for education programs and dissemination of food safety information to this growing segment of the population is evident. This study sought to determine the group’s knowledge of food safety and its primary channels for receiving such information. A questionnaire was developed and translated into Spanish. Face-to-face data collection facilitated by a trusted community partner proved to be a successful means of collecting data from this audience, who are often difficult to reach and may be unwilling to speak with people associated with government. Specific areas of lack of knowledge emerged. The respondents struggled most with questions about proper handling of leftovers containing meat, accurate water temperature for washing and rinsing dishes, handling frozen foods, and defrosting meat. From the attitude questions, the authors found that the target group felt food safety was important, was more threatened in food service outlets than in the home, and was overemphasized. The channel used most frequently and trusted most was television

Panel IV Discussion (Part2): The Future of 1st Amendment Protections: Examining the Use of Brutality on those Fighting Against Violence

The 1st Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances”. 35 Texas Constitution, Article I, Section 27, states, “The citizens shall have the right, in a peaceable manner, to assemble together for their common good.’’ What constitutes peaceful protest and limitations on such speech has been questioned for decades. Law enforcement agencies have, over the years, used various means of restricting free speech and peaceful assembly. Recall, during the civil rights movement of the 1960s, snarling dogs and high-powered water hoses were used in addition to other brutal physical attacks and excessive use of force on adults and children alike. This presentation examined current jurisprudence surrounding these issues. It questions what the future of the First Amendment right to protest does and should looks like while affirming the need to defend this critical right in protecting democracy. It further demonstrates the need to expand the constitutional protection for peaceful protestors as it relates to racial and social justice