The climate impact of investors

Last registered on February 10, 2022
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
The climate impact of investors
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0008924
Initial registration date
February 10, 2022

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
February 10, 2022, 8:03 PM EST

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
Switzerland
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Julian Koelbel
Affiliation
University of St. Gallen / MIT Sloan
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Florian Heeb
PI Affiliation
University of Zurich
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2022-02-01
End date
2023-01-31
Keywords
Finance & Microfinance
Additional Keywords
Shareholder Engagement, Impact, Sustainable finance
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
We study the effect of investors on the climate strategy of listed corporations.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Heeb, Florian and Julian Koelbel. 2022. "The climate impact of investors." AEA RCT Registry. February 10. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.8924-1.0
Sponsors & Partners

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Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
We study the effect of investors on corporate climate strategy.
Intervention Start Date
2022-02-01
Intervention End Date
2023-01-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
The dependent variable indicates whether a firm has committed to register a "Science-based Climate Target" at https://sciencebasedtargets.org/companies-taking-action#table. It is a binary variable, we count both "Committed" and "Targets Set" set as TRUE, otherwise FALSE.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
In additional analyses, we analyse the treatment response in accounting variables that reflect the achievement of SBTs. These outcomes will be evaluated in February 2023, but also February 2024 to allow for effects to become visible.
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
Carbon emissions (scope 1,2,3), emission intensity (emissions scaled by size, sales, or employees or as provided by suitable data vendors), and investment in carbon-efficient technology and infrastructure.

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
Simple randomised block design with one treatment arm.
Experimental Design Details
We perform a randomised block design with one treatment arm.
Randomization Method
Randomisation was performed using a computer (R command blockRA)
Randomization Unit
Firm. The randomisation was performed within blocks (country)
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
The design does not cluster.
Sample size: planned number of observations
1227 firms
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
300 treatment firms, 927 control firms
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
IRB Approval Date
IRB Approval Number
Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials