Why ESG Faces Backlash and Its Future Under Trump 2.0: QuickTake

ESG. Three letters that have inspired, confused and angered.

They stand for environmental, social and governance, and refer to a strategy where banks and investors weigh factors such as climate change and labor conditions in their financing decisions.

The term was coined about two decades ago by United Nations staffersworking with the finance industry. It became more popular after the #MeToo, racial justice and climate movements took hold when President Donald Trump was in the White House the first time around. The hope was that ESG standards would help make the world a better place, demonstrating that profit doesn’t ...