We will only know the answer to this question perhaps 10-20 years from now. Once we have seen if Mr. Gore's heroic communication efforts and the IPCC's in-depth studies truly created a "tipping point" or just another conscience-soothing moment of attention.

From ASSET4's perspective there truly was a noticeable change within the investment community in 2007. Just two years ago, the investors most interested in our solution were the pure SRI investors. However, in 2006 it began to change once Goldman Sachs invested in ASSET4 and began to use our solution internally and offer it through their Hudson Street Services program. In 2007 this momentum truly took off as leading investment companies like Merrill Lynch, Bank Sarasin and BNP Paribas began to incorporate the ASSET4 information into their investment processes. A final example of the growing importance of these issues to the investment community is the United Nations' Principles for Responsible Investment, which as the year closed had over 200 institutional investors as signatories representing more than $11 trillion in assets.

We will have to wait and see, if a Nobel Peace Prize was able to create a tipping point for the health and sustainability of our planet. However, I am very confident to declare, from all I see as I work with clients every day, that 2007 was truly a tipping point for the investment industry's interest in and incorporation of environmental, social and governance (ESG) information into its mainstream investment processes.

Like any tipping point, as we look back the initial effects may be rather small, especially when compared to the enormous influence created by the subprime crisis. Yet, as investment firms focus more and more on quality and long-term performance, the importance of ESG issues can only grow!