ESG in Action

Today, JPMorgan Chase released its annual ESG Report to share how were advancing sustainable development including climate action, racial equity, and an inclusive economic recovery.Climate change and inequality are two of the critical issues of our time, says Jamie Dimon, our Chairman and CEO. JPMorgan Chases efforts will help create sustainable economic development that leads to a greener planet and critical investments in underserved communities." ESG in Action Today, JPMorgan Chase released its annual ESG Report to share how we're advancing sustainable development — including climate action, racial equity, and an inclusive economic recovery. "Climate change and inequality are two of the critical issues of our time," says Jamie Dimon, our Chairman and CEO. JPMorgan Chase's efforts "will help create sustainable economic development that leads to a greener planet and critical investments in underserved communities." 1. Our Paris-aligned financing targets The world will need to invest an estimated $100–$150 trillion over the next 30 years to reach the Paris Agreement's climate goals — but we're not on track to meet them. Falling short will impact everyone, including our customers, clients, and communities.   The public and private sectors will have to work together to deploy this capital toward the creation of new low-carbon technologies and supporting infrastructure. We're working with clients and stakeholders to develop solutions and take action. Last fall, we committed to align key areas of our financing portfolio with the goals of the Paris Agreement. Now, we're taking the next big steps: We've developed Paris-aligned targets to reduce the carbon intensity in our Oil & Gas, Electric Power and Auto Manufacturing portfolios by 2030.  We're introducing Carbon CompassSM — our methodology to set targets and measure and track progress against our commitment.  We've achieved carbon neutrality across our own operations and have set new targets to reduce the environmental impact of our physical footprint, such as our buildings, branches and data centers. "This is about doing the right thing — not just saying the right thing," says Marisa Buchanan, our Global Head of Sustainability. "We're building the capacity of our business to help our clients meet their sustainability goals." 2. Deploying capital to advance sustainable development     We've just announced a new target to finance and facilitate more than $2.5 trillion over 10 years to advance climate action and sustainable development. Last year alone, we facilitated more than $220 billion in transactions, with $55 billion toward green initiatives. Now, our sights are set on: Green. $1 trillion to support climate action and accelerate the deployment of cleaner energy sources. Development finance. Mobilizing capital to advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in emerging economies. Community development. Advancing economic inclusion in developed economies, focusing on small business financing, home lending, affordable housing, education and healthcare.  "It is necessary — but not sufficient — that, as financial institutions covering the whole economy, we play our part. We hope broader developments ranging from public policy to technological advancement will move us further towards a sustainable path," says Ashley Bacon, our Chief Risk Officer. 3. A plan to improve affordable housing     Our country is facing an affordable housing crisis. Nearly 100 million people are struggling with housing costs that jeopardize their financial security.  Only 36 affordable units are available for every 100 extremely low-income renter household in the U.S. The solution is clear: more affordable housing. JPMorgan Chase is financing new affordable development and safeguarding existing housing structures, especially for Black and Latinx families facing disproportionate disparity. We've committed: $28 billion in the past decade to develop nearly 350,000 affordable housing units. $245 million over five years in philanthropic capital to help grantees create or preserve over 32,000 affordable housing units. Our $30 billion commitment to advance racial equity will expand on this important work, by financing 100,000 more affordable rental units and 40,000 mortgages for Black and Latinx households over the next five years. But we can't solve this challenge alone: "Government investment and public policy drives affordable housing development, but corporations play an important role in bringing conventional business tools to the table to complete development funding," says Alice Carr, our Head of Community Development Banking. 4. Everyone deserves a second chance     About 70 million Americans have a criminal record — and are a lot more likely to face economic obstacles because of it, like barriers to employment, professional advancement, education and housing. "This drag on earning potential weakens our economy and exacerbates inequalities that hold entire communities back," says Heather Higginbottom, our JPMorgan Chase PolicyCenter President. One way we're breaking that cycle: investing in the long-term success of people with criminal backgrounds — with employment, education, and access to financing. Our PolicyCenter supports federal and state changes to help those with a record get back to work. We supported reforms to Industry Hiring Rules to ease restrictions so people with low-risk convictions could qualify for jobs in the banking industry. We endorsed the Fair Chance Act, helping qualified workers with arrests or convictions compete for federal employment. We supported restoring Pell Grants for incarcerated people, helping them seek education in prison and boost work opportunities after. Internally, we also removed all criminal background questions from our job applications. We hired more than 2,100 people with criminal backgrounds last year — about 10% of our new hires in the U.S. "Giving more people a second chance allows businesses to step up and do their part to reduce recidivism, hire talented workers, and strengthen the economy," says Jamie Dimon. 5. "We have to hold ourselves accountable"   Making progress on environmental and social efforts — from supporting sustainable development and climate action to advancing racial equity — is important to our long-term business success.  Our firm is guided by governance processes to promote accountability. It's made better by our belief that a strong company is a diverse one. We're working to drive a culture of DEI across everything we do — from how we serve clients and develop products, to the ways we help communities and support employees. And it's advanced by the fact that earning and maintaining the trust of customers, clients and stakeholders is essential to our business. We do this by striving to maintain the highest ethical standards. "We have to hold ourselves accountable if these efforts are going to achieve their intended impact," says Brian Lamb, our Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion. "We're owning our part in this — and we're just getting started." Closing thought, from Jamie Dimon: "We continually challenge ourselves to find ways to put our business to work for the benefit of all of our stakeholders." "Today, this is frequently described as environmental, social and governance — or ESG — management. I think of it simply as the smart way to do business." Read more in our complete 2020 ESG Report. To learn more about JPMorgan Chase's approach to sustainability, please visit JPMorganChase.com/impact/sustainability If you received this email from a friend, subscribe now to receive future updates. To unsubscribe, please click here. © 2021 JPMorgan Chase & Co. | 383 Madison Avenue, New York, New York