The Westly Group Releases Third ESG Commitments and Report

MENLO PARK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Westly Group, one of the world’s leading sustainability-focused venture capital firms, has issued its 2022 Annual ESG Report. This year’s report includes expanded ESG data from The Westly Group’s portfolio companies as well as an overview of the diversity initiatives that the company is leading. Key highlights from this year’s report include:

• Increasing focus on good governance practices, from equal opportunity and data security policies to measuring board independence
• Expanding measurement of GHG emissions across The Westly Group’s portfolio companies & own operations (Scope 1, 2 and operational Scope 3) and creating a roadmap to net-zero financed emissions
• Spearheading diversity initiatives to improve gender and racial/ethnic representation in the venture-backed startup landscape
• Aligning with key industry partners to drive greater adoption of ESG practices in the VC asset class

“We believe continuing to prioritize responsible investment practices and collecting ESG data will help create long-term multi-stakeholder value and create a competitive advantage for both portfolio companies and venture firms. As a data-driven organization, the goal of this year’s report is to establish a baseline on environmental, social and governance metrics from multiple years. The Westly Group will use this data to drive board-level discussions on material ESG metrics for all of our portfolio companies.” – Steve Westly, Founding & Managing Partner

The Westly Group has established partnerships with leading groups helping to standardize ESG frameworks for VC. They remain active on the steering committee for VentureESG, and on the VC Working Group for Principles for Responsible Investing (PRI), a UN-supported organization that promotes sustainable investment through the incorporation of environmental, social and governance practices. The Westly Group has also joined the Venture Climate Alliance, which calls for the fund’s operational emissions and our portfolio companies.

Additionally, The Westly Group has 17 investors from the world’s leading energy, mobility, insurance, water and industrial technology companies that have committed to achieving net-zero emissions.

For more information about The Westly Group’s ESG Report, click here.

About The Westly Group

The Westly Group was founded in 2007 and invests in transformative companies focused on the digitization and sustainability of energy, mobility, buildings, industrial technology, and cybersecurity. The firm has $700M AUM across four funds. For more information on The Westly Group, please visit www.westlygroup.com