Alright, picture this: Trump, back in the White House, holding up a letter saying the U.S. is bailing from the Paris Agreement. Yeah, that happened. It’s 2025, and things are wild. Investors? They’re jumping ship from ESG funds. Why? Well, Trump’s doing his Trump thing—climate change? Nah. Diversity? Nope. Equity? Forget it.
ESG, what’s that again? Oh yeah, environmental, social, and governance. Fancy talk for investing based on values, like saving the planet or making sure companies are fair. But folks aren’t feeling it. In just the first few months of 2025, people pulled out a whopping $6.1 billion. And man, the quarter before that wasn’t much better.
This isn’t just a “Trump’s back” thing, though. High interest rates were already giving the green stocks a tough time. Trump just threw more fuel on the fire. First week in office, he’s like, “Paris Agreement? We’re out.” Stops subsidies for electric cars, loves fossil fuels, hates on DEI (that’s diversity, equity, and inclusion if you’re lost).
Wait, there’s more—SEC stopped standing up for climate-change disclosure rules. Inflation Reduction Act? Who knows what’s gonna happen to that. States, especially the Republican ones, are all about anti-ESG laws. It’s a mess.
But hey, it’s not all gloom and doom. ESG isn’t dead. Iovanel says it’s gonna stick around. Even if some states and Trump are anti-ESG, others, like California, are all in. Survey shows lots of folks, especially the younger crowd, are still into sustainable investing. Call it “woke capitalism” if you want, but those who believe in ESG say it’s all about long-term success.
So yeah, things are chaotic, but the ESG story isn’t over. It’s just another chapter in the ongoing saga of politics and investing. What’s next? Who knows. Stay tuned.
