This 12-part series, produced by NousProd, takes us back over two decades, during which the financial system has undergone profound changes. Governance, corporate social and environmental responsibility, climate plans, carbon offsetting and greenwashing: the main issues related to socially responsible investment are discussed and analysed. Listen now to the first episode "Money, money, money", dedicated to the excessive remuneration of top executives.
What is the purpose of sustainable finance? What are its challenges, successes, and threats it faces? What are the rights and responsibilities of shareholders? What can they do to have a positive influence on the practices of the companies of which they co-own? How can we transform a financial system that was originally designed to maximise profit to make it more virtuous and limit its negative environmental and social impacts?
To answer these questions, the Ethos Foundation has decided to finance a series of podcasts on sustainable finance. Governance, greenwashing, corporate social or digital responsibility, diversity, carbon offsetting: "Echos" takes us on a journey through two decades of transformation of the traditional financial system towards more sustainable and responsible finance. From the Minder initiative on abusive executive pay to the ESG criteria that have become so popular in the financial industry, via the Credit Suisse debacle, it traces the thread of history to gain a better understanding of the challenges of socially responsible investment.
Produced by NousProd, a production company based in Lausanne, "Echos" is divided into 12 podcasts of 15 to 20 minutes each. Twelve episodes in which journalists Mary Vacharidis and Nicoletta Cimmino tell us a story, an event directly linked to a key issue in sustainable finance, from the early 2000s to the present day. Each episode is also an opportunity to listen to an expert (Patrick Odier, Lucie Pinson, Tariq Fancy, Mathilde Farine, etc.) share his or her experience, analysis, and vision of sustainable and responsible investment.
A distribution partnership with Le Temps and Finanz und Wirtschaft
Produced in French and German, "Echos" will be broadcast at the rate of one episode per week from Monday 12 February. It will be available on all listening platforms (Spotify, Deezer, Apple podcast, Google podcast, etc.) as well as on the websites of Le Temps (for the French-language version) and Finanz und Wirtschaft (for the German-language version).
The Ethos Foundation's desire to promote socially responsible investment and sustainable development, in line with its goals, lies at the heart of this project. “There's a lot of talk about sustainable finance these days, but few people really know what it's all about," says Rudolf Rechsteiner, Chairman of the Ethos Foundation. “Yet we are all concerned, if only because our pension funds invest our retirement money in listed companies that themselves face major environmental, social and governance issues".
By financing this podcast, the Ethos Foundation aims not only discuss the issues and challenges of sustainable finance, but also to highlight the successes and progress made in recent years thanks to the commitment of responsible investors. For us, it was essential that the podcast be produced by experienced and independent journalists," says Sebastien Dubas, Communication Manager at the Ethos Foundation. “In NousProd, which shares many of our values, we have found the ideal partner.”
The first episode, now available in French on our website and that of Le Temps and in German on our website and that of Finanz und Wirtschaft, revisits one of the historic battles of sustainable finance in Switzerland: the astronomical bonuses received by certain managers of listed companies in the early 2000s.
Enjoy your listening 🎧
