The article in the url below demonstrates the intellectual incoherence of the ESG 'movement' or, more accurately, the investment community that is driving it:
"Can a weapons manufacturer be considered sustainable?"
Sure it can – whatever you want. Without any coherent definition of the thing itself, the industry ties itself in knots every time it is challenged intellectually:
"Consider rare-earth miners. Companies that once pitched themselves as suppliers of elements needed for wind turbines and electric vehicles are now seen as vital for the defense sector, providing material used in F35 jet fighters and missile technology."
In effect, if there is a change that poses a threat, then all you have to do is alter the underlying justification in order to rebalance the internal logic:
"There is a longstanding argument that investing in defense can't fit with strong socially responsible corporate values. However, in recent months, market participants in both sectors say that having a strong supply of energy, minerals and technologies reduces reliance on external sources and in turn creates more resilient supply chains able to play down new threats. That means more solar, wind and batteries being made and deployed inside state borders."
The graphic in the article demonstrates the real underlying driver of this revisionist definitional discussion. Needless to say, it is not construct clarity:
This demonstrates the futility in getting caught up in any excitement around the latest acronym or buzzword (see Strategic CSR – Buzzwords and Strategic CSR – Jeans). Is the latest "persistence" or "resilience"? Whatever it is, the associated conversation is a distraction. Instead, we need to focus on identifying the most productive solutions to the problems at hand, as well as scaling the viable solutions we currently have, rather than on (re)packaging the challenge in a way that is the most acceptable (or lest offensive) to all.
Take care
David
David Chandler
Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (6e)
© Sage Publications, 2023
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Green Investors Eye Weapons Producers
By Yusuf Khan
April 22, 2025
The Wall Street Journal
Late Edition – Final
B5
