This triggered increased engagement between Walden and Vanguard. This has led to Vanguard stating its intention to expand reporting on company engagement priorities such as climate change, board diversity, and corporate governance. Walden said that, “In light of ongoing conversations as well as changes in Vanguard’s voting approach, Walden withdrew the resolution that had included several individual co-filers.”

“Just as we’ve long espoused the value of engagement between institutional investors and portfolio companies, so too do we recognise the value of dialogue among investors on issues of common concern. The resolution that we’ve reached with Walden is evidence of engagement in action. Walden’s request also coincided with our plans for more comprehensive reporting on our investment stewardship activities; the first iteration of our expanded reporting will be published later this month, coincident with the annual filing of our proxy voting records. This report will feature deeper discussion of our thinking on climate risk and gender diversity on boards (as two issues on which we expect continuing focus), as well as expanded anecdotal discussion of specific engagements, voting rationale, and vote decisions.

“We appreciate the productive dialogue we’ve had with Walden on this matter, and we look forward to ongoing engagement with shareholders and portfolio companies on these and other matters of significance to long-term value that emerge over time.”