Eight Quaker climate activists were arrested Wednesday after protesting at Vanguard's main headquarters in Malvern, Pennsylvania. The group sought a meeting with the investment company's stewardship executive, while drawing focus to the firm's record on environmental issues.
"We still haven't seen Vanguard hold companies accountable," said Christina Tavernelli, program manager with Quakers' American Friends Society. "BlackRock has a coal-exclusion policy, while Vanguard does not."
Together, BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street manage roughly $20 trillion and vote at least 25% of shares across the S&P 500. This gives the firms an outsized influence to shape corporate behavior, according to Earth Quaker Action Team, known as EQAT, a group of climate activists based in Philadelphia.
