All the proposals failed, but not before racking up hundreds of millions of votes between them. The whistleblower proposal, which was up for a vote two years in a row, roughly doubled in support year-over-year.
To Michael Connor, executive director of Open MIC, a nonprofit that works with sustainable funds to organize shareholder proposals, that's a sign that things are trending in the right direction. "Over time even if shareholder proposals are voted down, it doesn't mean directors don't have a fiduciary duty to worry about those issues and be concerned about them," Connor said.
Connor pointed to several recent efforts where shareholders were able to secure a majority vote after years of trying. Most recently, an activist hedge fund manager pushing for climate-friendly reform was able to replace several of ExxonMobil's board members.
"ExxonMobil was considered bulletproof," Connor said. "That's changed."