A new index fund aims to give small investors a 'voice' to address climate change

The "dominant approach among climate-concerned investors" has traditionally been to divest from fossil-fuel stocks, writes Robinson Meyer in The Atlantic. That may be about to change.
The hedge fund Engine No. 1, which made headlines last month when it led a shareholders' revolt at ExxonMobil and helped install a few green-energy advocates on the oil giant's board, will on Tuesday launch an exchange-traded fund that will track the performance of the 500 largest public companies in the United States, the firm told Meyer.
Meyer views the ETF as an opportunity for "average investors" to follow in Engine No. 1's footsteps and voice their concerns about climate change, potentially fulfilling his hope for a fund that aims to "reshape the market not by withdrawing money from some places and investing it in others but by engaging directly with corporate leadership and using the power of shareholder voting to push boards forward."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Ideally, Meyer wants the strategy to work "in tandem" with divestment. "Divestment should, over time, make raising money more expensive for carbon-intensive oil companies," Meyer writes, while "engagement should push companies to act in a way that makes divestment less necessary." Read more at The Atlantic.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
The Week Unwrapped: Why are sinkholes becoming more common?
Podcast Plus, will Saudi investment help create the "Netflix of sport"? And why has New Zealand's new tourism campaign met with a savage reception?
By The Week UK Published
-
How Poland became Europe's military power
The Explainer Warsaw has made its armed forces a priority as it looks to protect its borders and stay close to the US
By Elizabeth Carr-Ellis, The Week UK Published
-
Quiz of The Week: 15 - 21 February
Have you been paying attention to The Week's news?
By The Week Staff Published
-
Trump's China tariffs start after Canada, Mexico pauses
Speed Read The president paused his tariffs on America's closest neighbors after speaking to their leaders, but his import tax on Chinese goods has taken effect
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Chinese AI chatbot's rise slams US tech stocks
Speed Read The sudden popularity of a new AI chatbot from Chinese startup DeepSeek has sent U.S. tech stocks tumbling
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US port strike averted with tentative labor deal
Speed Read The strike could have shut down major ports from Texas to Maine
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden expected to block Japanese bid for US Steel
Speed Read The president is blocking the $14 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel by Japan's Nippon Steel, citing national security concerns
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Why are home insurance prices going up?
Today's Big Question Climate-driven weather events are raising insurers' costs
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Judges block $25B Kroger-Albertsons merger
Speed Read The proposed merger between the supermarket giants was stalled when judges overseeing two separate cases blocked the deal
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Rupert Murdoch loses 'Succession' court battle
Speed Read Murdoch wanted to give full control of his empire to son Lachlan, ensuring Fox News' right-wing editorial slant
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Bitcoin surges above $100k in post-election rally
Speed Read Investors are betting that the incoming Trump administration will embrace crypto
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published