ESG and Accounting: My Thoughts

The article critiques ESG accounting by comparing it to historical failures in metrics-driven decision-making, such as Robert McNamara’s Vietnam War strategy and Paul Ehrlich’s overpopulation predictions. They argue that ESG accounting lacks transactional counterparties, making benefits difficult to measure and verify. ESG’s cost-benefit analysis often ignores opportunity costs and alternative solutions like adaptation or technological advances. The push for ESG also risks greenwashing, regulatory overreach, and inefficacy in corporate behavior change.