Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · 1d

By sharply reducing the number of companies reporting under Europe's sustainability disclosure rules and wiping out key supply chain information mandates, the EU is delivering a blow to progress on sustainable finance. New statement from Eurosif and 480 investors and businesses.

Omnibus: setback for sustainable finance rules, but damage control on transition plans - EUROSIF

Aleksandra Palinska, Executive Director of Eurosif, commented: “Reducing the number of in-scope companies by over 90% for sustainability reporting and by 70% for rules on transition plans and due dili...

www.eurosif.org

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · 7d

The collapse of the NZBA seems to point to a bleak period ahead for the climate transition. Yet the Rocky Mountain Institute and Europe-based Finance Watch are laying out optimistic new approaches to engagement and regulation on banks and global warming. My article in Corporate Knights.

Mark Carney's Net-Zero Banking Alliance is done. Now what?

The end of the global network could spell more bank financing of fossil fuels, or a more effective path for the energy transition

www.corporateknights.com

1

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · 21d

The demands for capital to finance solutions to the polycrisis of the Trump tariffs, climate change, international wars, and non-stop innovation will be enormous. Where will Canada get the money? Canada’s financial regulator believes Bay Street holds the key. My report in Corporate Knights.

Corporate Knights @green-economy.bsky.social · 21d

Canada’s financial industry regulator is quietly laying the ground for the country’s banks, insurance companies and pension funds to vastly increase credit and investments targeted to the current economic crisis.

Canada’s finance regulator could unlock up to $1 trillion in lending

Reforms would allow Canadian banks, insurers and pension funds to vastly increase financing to address the economic crisis

www.corporateknights.com

1 3

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Aug 28

The Net-Zero Banking Alliance is officially dead, with yesterday's announcement. Simultaneously, though, US banks have reduced their fossil lending. For Wall Street, the energy transition is "complicated." www.semafor.com/article/08/0...

Net Zero Banking Alliance Pauses Activities - ESG Today

The Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA), a UN-backed banking sector coalition dedicated to advancing global net zero goals through their financing activities, announced that it has paused its activities ...

www.esgtoday.com

1

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Aug 25

The energy transition is building momentum with banks, hedge funds, pension funds and equity investors. And this is happening as Donald Trump pushes fossil fuels and trashes renewable energy. My report in Corporate Knights. share.google/VerwWVOJshJP...

Defying Trump, banks and investors boost renewables as they recoil from fossil fuel stocks

Market forces appear to be pushing the financial sector away from fossil fuel investments

share.google

1

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Aug 15

Responsible investors in Europe are warming up to defence stocks. But not all agree with the rush into arms companies. My report in Corporate Knights. share.google/0I4PvFjPSjwa...

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Jul 29

Climate lawsuits are real. The regulators and lawmakers deciding on Canada’s national infrastructure projects need to take note. ccli.ubc.ca/landmark-leg...

Landmark legal opinion finds that Canadian directors risk lawsuits over climate and nature inaction

Canadian company directors who fail to address climate and nature risks, such as biodiversity loss, freshwater stress, or ecosystem degradation, could face legal action, according to a landmark legal ...

ccli.ubc.ca

1

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Jul 24

At over 3ºC, Canada ranks third-worst among G20 countries for its national implied global warming temperature rise. It's more than double the accepted level of 1.5ºC under the Paris Agreement. If 3ºC or more is really in the planet's future, it would be catastrophic. New data from MSCI.

Projected temperature alignment of G20 countries (Implied Temperature Rise in °C)

www.msci-institute.com

1

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Jul 8

Ontario needs to assure ArcelorMittal Dofasco it can provide affordable, abundant and clean power for its green steel project. The future of Hamilton as a major steel producer is at stake. My take in today’s Hamilton Spectator.

Hamilton Spectator @thespec1846.bsky.social · Jul 8

Green steel projects have run into a problem

Steel companies are cancelling their hydrogen initiatives. Will Dofasco's project meet the same fate?

www.thespec.com

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Jul 6

I always find it frustrating when people pit renewables against nuclear. Wind, solar and battery power can meet our immediate needs for CO2-free generation. Nuclear provides a good option for the vast power needs of the future. Let’s build both. www.theguardian.com/books/2025/j...

Can we afford to be afraid of nuclear power?

Not only is nuclear essential if we want to reach net zero – it’s the key to tackling poverty, too

www.theguardian.com

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Jul 5

This article is a romantic rumination on Canada's new nationalism. But in economic terms, here is the hard question: Can we preserve access to US markets in the short term while forging a more independent economy over the long-term. We should know in a few weeks. www.theatlantic.com/internationa...

Canada’s Terrible New Freedom

This Canada Day, Trump is fueling a very different kind of nationalism.

www.theatlantic.com

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Jul 4

Trump's domestic policy bill won't be as bad for the energy transition as originally feared. But it will slow down wind and solar energy and EV adootion. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/03/c...

How the G.O.P. Bill Will Reshape America’s Energy Landscape

www.nytimes.com

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Jun 30

The steps to transition to a clean-energy future can seem daunting. But the path is clear: ramp up investment in renewables, electric vehicles and green buildings. www.thestar.com/business/opi...

Is your firm a good corporate citizen? Top 50 report’s CEO analyzes what Canadian companies got right — and wrong

Corporations need to not only do better, but do what the science and the economics tell us is necessary, writes Corporate Knight's CEO Toby Heaps.

www.thestar.com

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Jun 18

A new report shows global banks are sharply ramping up fossil fuel financing, flying in the face of what the world needs to avoid catastrophic global warming. My piece in Corporate Knights. ://www.corporateknights.com/category-finance/banks-reverse-course-pour-more-money-into-fossil-fuels/

Banks reverse course and pour more money into fossil fuels

Clean energy is poised to pull in double the financing as oil, gas and coal, but a new report shows that big banks, especially Canadian and U.S. entities, are still betting big on fossil fuels

www.corporateknights.com

2 2

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Jun 10

Looks like Trump's policies are starting to put the brakes on the global solar industry. This doesn't mean the industry is in permanent reversal, but a significant slowdown appears to be underway. www.bloomberg.com/news/newslet...

Gloom Gathers Over Solar Companies in the US and China

Today’s newsletter comes from our team in China, where solar manufacturers and investors are gathering at the world’s largest fair for their industry in Shanghai this week. You can read more about the...

www.bloomberg.com

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Jun 9

With Mark Carney calling on Canada to become an energy superpower, there's an urgent need for corporate climate transition plans. Future growth can't come at the expense of higher emissions. Here's a plan from Business Future Pathways. www.corporateknights.com/category-fin...

A new plan to kick-start the energy transition at Canadian companies

Credible energy transition plans are vanishingly rare. Business Future Pathways has a strategy to change that.

www.corporateknights.com

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Jun 8

This is an unusual idea, but I think it will get some traction. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

Canada won’t become the 51st US state – but could it join the EU?

Donald Trump’s extraordinary threats have angered Canadians and Europeans, and the idea of a new kind of transatlantic alliance is gaining traction

www.theguardian.com

1 1 3

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Jun 5

More than 70 prominent women in Canadian finance, business and civil society have issued an urgent call to securities regulators: get back to work on mandatory corporate climate disclosure. My piece in Corporate Knights. www.corporateknights.com/category-fin...

www.corporateknights.com

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · May 24

The Hamilton Farmers Market is modernizing to enable it to play a key role in the new economy of downtown Hamilton. My take in the Spectator. #Hamont www.thespec.com/opinion/cont...

Hamilton Farmers’ Market needs rejuvenation to reflect a changing downtown

It’s crucial that the market swiftly reinvents itself for the coming wave of additional customers.

www.thespec.com

3

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · May 16

A new conception of Hamilton's economic future is emerging out of Donald Trump's destructive tariffs. Attention is turning from trade with the U.S. to east-west markets in Canada and Europe. Read all about this in my new feature in Hamilton City Magazine. hamiltoncitymagazine.ca/the-tariff-w...

The tariff war means a new normal for Hamilton businesses - Hamilton City Magazine

The wrecking ball that Donald Trump has taken to international trade has wounded relations between Hamilton businesses and their American suppliers and customers. Now they’re looking east and west to ...

hamiltoncitymagazine.ca

2

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · May 14

2/2 It's becoming clear now that the Competition Bureau must release clear guidance to enable companies to publish realistic climate targets and objective metrics without the threat of heavy penalties. The aim is to curb unrealistic climate claims, not thwart corporate ambition and transparency.

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · May 14

1/2 RBC's decision to retreat on its climate goals has kicked off an interesting debate about Canada's anti-greenwashing legislation. Here's my take in Corporate Knights.

Corporate Knights @green-economy.bsky.social · May 14

RBC says that Canada's anti-greenwashing rules are behind its decision to "retire" a goal to mobilize $500 billion in sustainable finance. The move elicited mixed responses among sustainable investors, and some welcomed the bank's rejection of greenwashing.

RBC’s climate retreat sparks debate over anti-greenwashing law

The Canadian bank says anti-greenwashing legislation forced it to curb its climate commitments. Sustainable investors aren’t convinced.

www.corporateknights.com

1 2 2

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Apr 19

Corporate Knights connects the dots, explaining how Donald Trump's tariff attacks are shaping the upcoming federal election alongside critical issues in the energy and climate transition. www.corporateknights.com/energy/clima...

What the two main parties have planned for Canada's energy future

Pierre Poilievre and Mark Carney have competing plans to get the country out of a tight spot, but it all comes down to energy infrastructure

www.corporateknights.com

Reposted by Eugene Ellmen

Art Chamberlain @artchamberlain.bsky.social · Apr 18

Looks like a safe bet given the first day of advance voting. Good sign that people realize how important this election is.

David Moscrop @davidmoscrop.com · Apr 18

I’m betting on a high-turnout election.

www.davidmoscrop.com/p/im-betting...

I'm Betting On A Higher-Turnout Election

Will voter turnout break 70% for the first time since 1988? It might.

www.davidmoscrop.com

1 1

Eugene Ellmen @eugeneellmen.bsky.social · Apr 16

Unlike the Net Zero Banking Alliance, which has removed a requirement for a 1.5ºC target in net zero plans by banks, the Science Based Targets initiative is digging in and standing by the Paris Agreement target. My piece in Corporate Knights. www.corporateknights.com/category-cli...

Climate-action group SBTi holds firm on targets for companies

The Science Based Targets initiative says corporations must set a 1.5°C target to obtain its coveted climate plan validation

www.corporateknights.com