'Say on Climate' Wins Shareholder Majority Vote at Booking

Shareholder demand for rigorous climate action continues to grow with another majority vote this season. As You Sow, a leading non-profit shareholder advocacy organization, filed a resolution with Booking Holdings, the world's leading provider of global online travel services, calling for a Paris compliant, net-zero transition plan and annual reporting. The proposal earned a majority vote of 56.4%, representing more than $44 billion in assets voted.

This resolution is part of a larger "Say on Climate" investor movement calling for companies to develop a net zero climate transition plan and report annually on its success. A recent study found that 20% of the world's 2,000 largest public companies have adopted net-zero commitments, representing annual sales of nearly $14 trillion. Companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, Unilever, and many others have also recently committed to become carbon neutral by 2050 or sooner and to annually report progress towards meeting these targets.

The majority vote at Bookings follows other resolutions this season calling for net-zero action from companies including 98% support at General Electric and 47% at Caterpillar. "The global shareholder movement asking for climate transition plans is moving forward at full steam," said Danielle Fugere, President of As You Sow. "Inaction by companies is no longer acceptable to shareholders, who rely on a stable global economy for portfolio returns but find it increasingly disrupted by climate impacts. The clear message is that every company must take responsibility for reducing its greenhouse gas emissions."

Shareholders voted for a climate plan from Bookings despite a recent announcement that the company planned to become carbon neutral by purchasing offsets. "This isn't surprising," said David Shugar, ESG & Climate Data Analyst at As You Sow. "We can't continue kicking the can down the road on climate. Relying on carbon offsets -- essentially asking somebody else to reduce emissions -- is no longer acceptable to investors. Company emissions must come down across the board."

As You Sow's climate transition plan resolutions refer to the CA100+ benchmark as best practice for companies in setting net-zero plans. In response to material climate risk, the Climate Action 100+ initiative, a coalition of more than 575 investors with more than $54 trillion in assets, issued a Net Zero Company Benchmark outlining metrics that create climate accountability for companies and transparency for shareholders. These indicators include short, medium, and long-term emission reduction goals in line with limiting global warming to 1.5deg Celsius and clearly defined decarbonization strategies, capital allocation alignment, policy alignment, board oversight of climate, executive compensation alignment, just transition, and other key climate indicators.