This week is climate week, with companies, investors, financiers, and policymakers descending on New York to speak about the action needed to combat climate change. Of course, climate isn’t the only environmental problem we face. The “polycrisis” speaks to the number of planetary boundaries humanity has crossed, and the need to address each of them to keep our society in a safe operating zone.
However, there is a largely forgotten issue that intersects each of these environmental issues, as well as many of the political and economic challenges that we face.
That issue is inequality.
World leaders have taken notice.
Last year, the Business Commission to Tackle Inequality (BCTI), a cross-sector, multi-stakeholder coalition of leaders and their organizations convened by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), published its report Business Action. This report emphasized the role of the private sector in addressing inequality, and the powerful reasons why businesses must act with urgency.
The BCTI highlighted that more investors, businesses, and policymakers are beginning to recognize; that the high level and structural nature of inequality around the globe represents a systemic risk that poses an existential threat to our society and economy.
The BCTI analyzes how inequality erodes trust in our political and economic systems, fueling civil unrest and polarization, constraining economic growth, and undermining our collective capacity to tackle complex global challenges. More and more of the global population sees a world in which they haven’t and feel they can’t get ahead.
This recent graphic from Credit Suisse shows that the richest 1.1% in the world control nearly half of the world’s wealth. The poorest 55% in the world control only about 1% of global wealth.
Income inequality is a systemic risk to investors, and society as well. History is replete with instances in which a narrow rich population was out of touch with the needs of the common man, such as the French Revolution. Times of increased inequality also make populist political candidates more attractive, as they offer seemingly simple solutions to a populous that sees their leaders and elites as out of touch and corrupt. These levels of equality often lead to either revolutions or times of great social change.
What to do?
If corrective action is not taken, history shows that we risk the further destabilization of our economy and our society. Governments can play a role in combating inequality by adopting policies and taxation systems that level the playing field somewhat. Investors also can play a role by directing capital to investments that mitigate inequality.
A 2022 report by The Investment Integration Project (TIIP) offers some ways to address inequality. The report, Systemic Stewardship: Investing to Address Income Inequality examines and re-defines the notion of investor stewardship to include the consideration of social and environmental systems alongside financial returns.
The report offers a six-step process for investors to tackle systemic issues, such as income inequality:
First, investors must set a system-level goal that affects their investments across all asset classes.
Next, investors must decide where to focus and commit to addressing a certain systemic issue, like income inequality.
After deciding where to focus, investors must allocate their assets accordingly.
Then, investors can extend conventional investment tools to exercise system-level influence.
Investors can further leverage advanced techniques designed specifically to manage systemic risks and rewards.
Finally, investors should evaluate their results towards their stated goals.
The issue of inequality is sometimes seen as taboo in the financial world, as many people don’t like to talk about redistributing income or raising taxes on one group to benefit another. These conversations need to be out on the table, as there is plenty of space between unfettered capitalism in which the few take all the rewards and a doctrinaire socialist system in which everyone enjoys the same rewards, regardless on their input and effort.
History shows us that inequality if left unaddressed, ends in tears and often violence. Addressing the issue head-on is a better way.
To whom is this relevant?
Companies aiming to find the correct pay balance between management and workers.
Investors interested in investing to address inequality.
Policymakers searching for ways to address the systemic risks of inequality.
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