Episode 8 | Catherine Howarth - Turning shareholding into action
In this episode of The Transition Tapes, Hugh Wheelan speaks with Catherine Howarth, OBE, Chief Executive of ShareAction, the European NGO that pushes for ambitious standards in responsible investment.
Catherine also serves on the board of NEST pensions, is a member of the Financial Conduct Authority’s advisory committee on sustainable finance and of HM Treasury’s Asset Management Taskforce.
In the conversation, they discuss ShareAction’s latest campaigns and the broader debates shaping the future of responsible investment. Among the topics:
how and why ShareAction is campaigning for more pension fund mini-publics as Nest, the giant UK pension fund, carries one out itself
what ShareAction’s major shareholding voting recommendations are for 2026, and why?
the pushback on physical AGMs and why ShareAction is fighting against it
air pollution: an under-discussed issue with major public health ramifications, and tightening policy and legal frameworks
Catherine reflects on how she and her team stay motivated amid increasing ESG pushback and political headwinds.
Listen to the episode on:
🔗 Apple
She shares a selection of her favourite books, along with her Transition Tapes playlist - an eclectic mix of country, classical, folk and world music with an undercurrent of social struggle.
Don’t miss Catherine’s recommended reads, podcasts, series and her Transition Tapes playlist.
🎵 Playlist:
📚 Books:
John Steinbeck - Grapes of Wrath
John Ruskin - Unto This Last
Saul Alinsky - Rules for Radicals
Pitt-Watson, Lukomnik and Davis - The New Capitalists
David Graeber - Debt, the first 5000 years
Richard Adams - Watership Down
Timothy Snyder - On Tyranny
Stephen King - On Writing
Linda Colley - Captives: Britain, Empire and the World 1600-1850
Rohinton Mistry - A fine balance
📺 Movies:
Barry Lyndon
Trainspotting
Sentimental Value
Cyrano de Bergerac