BlackRock announced on 14 January 2020 that it would make climate change central to its investment considerations. Citing the impact climate change has on the financial sector, BlackRock released a letter to its clients detailing the changes which include: factoring ESG risk into its investment decisions, prioritising engagement with companies whose operations are in line with the UN SDGs, requiring greater transparency, and divesting from coal by mid 2020. Civil society, including enviornmental scientists and activists, celebrated the announcement but criticised that divesting from coal is not enough and that BlackRock could be harsher on companies whose operations are not in line with a carbon-neutral transition.