Key ESG Takeaways for Berkshire Hathaway
The keytakeaways are AI-generated and highlight the main contributors behind the net impact scores of Berkshire Hathaway. The insights are based on millions of scientific articles, along with the company-specific product and service portfolio.
- Berkshire Hathaway seems to create the most significant positive value in categories , , and . The positive contribution in the impact category is mostly driven by its Electricity produced with geothermal power, Electricity produced with hydropower, Electricity produced with coal, Polystyrene foam insulation, Air sealant insulation, and Private residential care for mental health products.
- On the other hand, these positive outcomes are achieved by using resources or causing negative impacts in categories , , and . The largest negative impact of Berkshire Hathaway in category seems to be driven mostly by its Gasoline busses, Oil and gas industry chemicals, Construction screws, Construction nails, Diamond jewellery, and Cast stainless steel components products.
- To improve its net impact, a company can either grow its positive impacts, or reduce its negative impacts. For example, by doubling its Educational e-learning platforms and environments business, Berkshire Hathaway would improve its net impact ratio by 1 percentage points.
BRK.A Impact Ratio
Net impact ratio represents the net impact of a company. It is defined as the (positive impacts - negative impacts) / positive impacts. The maximum value for net impact ratio is 100%, representing a theoretical company with no negative impacts. The minimum value is -∞. Net scores depend on the value sets that determine the importance of different impact categories.
+1.4%The default value set, where each category is given the same weight.
Value Sets Value sets can be used to assess how different stakeholder values or emphasis on certain values might affect the net impact ratio.
- Millennials
Value set of millennials (b. 1980 - 1999), based on Upright's annual Impact at Work survey.
- +27.1%
- Most Wanted Workforce
Value set of the most wanted workforce, based on Upright's annual Impact at Work survey.
- -16.9%
- Society First
Value set that emphasizes society impacts over other impacts.
- -2.7%
- Knowledge First
Value set that emphasizes knowledge impacts over other impacts.
- +25.1%
- Health First
Value set that emphasizes health impacts over other impacts.
- +16.2%
Berkshire Hathaway ESG Score + Net Impact Profile
Negative Impacts
(No negative impacts are considered for this impact category.)
Positive Impacts
Employing people and thus enabling them to gain financial actorship and identity in society. In this impact, we take into account people employed both directly by the company, as well as indirectly by its suppliers and customers.
Example: a company employs 700 people.
Negative Impacts
(No negative impacts are considered for this impact category.)
Positive Impacts
Contributing to joint resources via taxes paid directly by the company or indirectly by its suppliers and customers.
Example: a company pays its corporate taxes.
Negative Impacts
(No negative impacts are considered for this impact category.)
Positive Impacts
Contributing to or forming basic societal infrastructure, such as roads, sewage systems, electricity network, hospitals, schools, and pension systems. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company builds sewer systems.
Negative Impacts
Decreasing understanding among people or inciting or enabling armed conflict. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company produces firearms that are used in armed conflicts.
Positive Impacts
Increasing understanding among people or inciting or enabling peace. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company offers translation services that help people with no common language understand each other.
Negative Impacts
Decreasing racial, economic or gender equality, or violating human rights. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company uses conflict minerals to produce consumer electronics.
Positive Impacts
Increasing racial, economic or gender equality, or enforcing human rights. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company provides microloans to women in developing countries, enabling them to start a business.
Negative Impacts
(No negative impacts are considered for this impact category.)
Positive Impacts
Contributing to knowledge infrastructure and thus enabling the effective and safe creation, distribution, and maintenance of knowledge, information, and data. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company produces base stations.
Negative Impacts
(No negative impacts are considered for this impact category.)
Positive Impacts
Enabling, encouraging or practicing the creation of data, information or knowledge. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company providing preclinical research services.
Negative Impacts
Distributing untrue or misleading information, or spreading spam content that takes up space from trustworthy information and burdens human cognitive capacity. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company running fake news websites.
Positive Impacts
Distributing already existing data, information or knowledge. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company broadcasts television programs.
Negative Impacts
The opportunity cost of employing people with scarce skills and capabilities. This impact reflects the fact that oftentimes, the workforce is a company's most valuable resource. If a company reserves or utilized scarce human capital, it needs to put these resources into use and achieve something on the positive side in order to be considered net positive. In this impact, we take into account people employed both directly by the company, as well as indirectly by its suppliers and customers.
Example: a company employs 140 highly skilled programmers.
Positive Impacts
(No positive impacts are considered for this impact category.)
Negative Impacts
Causing or contributing towards the development or occurrence of physical diseases, injuries or fatalities. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company produces cigarettes which have been proven to cause lung cancer.
Positive Impacts
Treating, preventing or contributing towards the treatment or prevention of physical diseases, injuries or fatalities. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company develops and produces vaccines.
Negative Impacts
Causing or contributing towards the development of mental health problems. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company produces slot machines that cause addiction.
Positive Impacts
Treating, preventing or contributing towards the treatment and prevention of mental health problems. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company offers psychotherapy services for the treatment of depression.
Negative Impacts
(No negative impacts are considered for this impact category.)
Positive Impacts
Encouraging, enabling or providing healthy nutrition or contributing to food security. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company sells legumes, which have been proven to be a healthy source of protein and various other nutrients.
Negative Impacts
Worsening the quality of human relationships and connection. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company produces alcohol that causes aggression and violence.
Positive Impacts
Improving the quality of human relationships and connection. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company offers couple therapy services that help individuals establish and maintain healthy relationships.
Negative Impacts
Decreasing experiences of joy and sense of meaning. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company produces fashion advertisements that enforce beauty standards causing anxiety and loss of self-esteem.
Positive Impacts
Increasing experiences of joy and sense of meaning. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company produces chocolate, which makes some people feel enjoyment.
Negative Impacts
Creating greenhouse gas emissions. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company runs a factory that causes GHG emissions.
Positive Impacts
Removing or contributing towards the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, or producing or enabling products and services that create fewer GHG emissions compared to their most common alternatives. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company creates carbon-capture technology, or produces wind power.
Negative Impacts
Creating non-GHG emissions, such as land, water and air pollution. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company produces fertilizers that contain ammonia which can seep into lakes, or diesel-powered passenger cars that create particulate emissions.
Positive Impacts
Removing or contributing towards the reduction of non-GHG emissions, such as land, water and air pollution, or producing or enabling products and services that create less non-GHG emissions compared to their most common alternatives. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company produces oil spill clean-up technology.
Negative Impacts
The use of highly scarce natural resources, such as fresh water, or scarce minerals and metals. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company runs an industrial process that uses large amounts of fresh water, or produces solar panels with rare earth metal components.
Positive Impacts
Saving or increasing the amount of highly scarce natural resources, such as fresh water, and scarce minerals and metals. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company produces water desalination systems, which increase the amount of fresh drinking water available.
Negative Impacts
Destroying biodiversity or harming animal welfare. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company cuts down forests to produce palm oil, or utilises intensive animal farming to produce dairy products.
Positive Impacts
Protecting or increasing biodiversity or animal welfare. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company breeds bees which help pollinate surrounding flora.
Negative Impacts
Creating all types of waste. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company manufactures disposable plastic cups.
Positive Impacts
Treating waste and encouraging, enabling or practicing recycling or the re-use of materials. This can occur either directly through the company's core products and services, indirectly through its suppliers' operations or when its products and services are used by customers.
Example: a company treats hazardous waste, or runs a platform on which customers can sell used goods.
Upright Model Version 0.4.0
ESG Data Last Updated: March 29, 2022
About Upright's Net Impact Model
Upright's Net Impact Data quantifies the holistic value creation and impact of companies. It details both the negative and positive impacts a company has on the environment, health of people, society and knowledge, and forms a net sum of these costs and gains based on the economic costs of each impact category. The data is produced by Upright's Net Impact model, which is a mathematical model of the economy that produces continuously updated estimates of the net impact of companies by means of an information integration algorithm. The data is primarily sourced from the CORE open access database, which contains over 200 million scientific papers. Other sources of data include open databases published by the World Bank, IMF, WHO, OECD, IPCC, CDC and USDA.
Berkshire Hathaway ESG Rating - Frequently Asked Questions
How is Berkshire Hathaway doing in terms of sustainability?
According to The Upright Project, which measures holistic value creation and impact of companies, Berkshire Hathaway has a net impact ratio of 1.4%, indicating an overall positive sustainability impact. Berkshire Hathaway seems to create the most significant positive value in the categories of Taxes, Jobs, and Societal infrastructure. On the other hand, these positive outcomes are achieved by using resources or causing negative impacts in the categories of GHG emissions, Scarce human capital, and Waste. Learn more on the sustainability of Berkshire Hathaway.
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