Our Moment Anyone who’s been a sustainable and responsible investor for more than 30 years, long before it was popular, knows how difficult it’s been for the approach to gain mainstream acceptance. We’ve all watched with great pleasure as more and more investors have increasingly aligned their investments with their values, but it took quite …
Last year, my fellow NI advisor James Frazier wrote “Wall Street Wakes Up to SRI” on sustainable and responsible investments becoming a mainstream component of the financial services industry. Substantial asset flows into environmental, social, and governance (ESG)-labeled funds have prompted large conglomerates to buy up boutique socially responsible investing (SRI) companies in the SRI …
Our engagements with lawmakers this quarter focused on deforestation, climate change risk, and workers’ rights. We signed a collaborative investor letter facilitated by Domini Investments in support of the Fostering Overseas Rule of Law and Environmentally Sound Trade (FOREST) Act, which prohibits access to U.S. markets for commodities that originate from illegally deforested land. The …
In 2007, when I worked at The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment (US SIF)— The national association for socially responsible investing (SRI) firms and professionals—I became the staff liaison for the Investors and Indigenous Peoples Working Group (IIPWG). One of IPWG’s main campaigns at the time was asking companies and investors to pressure the …
So you have money invested with Vanguard, BlackRock, State Street, or Fidelity, and you recently heard that these Asset Managers have failed to utilize their power as large shareholders of publicly traded companies to address structural racism. You don’t want your money held at, or managed by a Company that is supporting voter suppression and …
We finally get to take some victory laps! After years battling the previous administration, we are finally seeing executive branch actions that roll back its archaic rules and guidance that clearly benefited corporations and not investors. SUCCESSES The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), for example, recently issued new guidance addressing the criteria by which shareholders …
After wrapping up another season of end-of- year requests from non-profits, it seems to make sense to take a broader look at philanthropy and charitable giving. Philanthropy in the U.S. is a massive undertaking. In 2020 Americans gave $471 billion to charitable causes. That is almost the same amount the federal government generally spends every …
It’s been a busy summer season for advocacy, and it continues to be refreshing to discover allies on Capitol Hill for the priorities of sustainable and responsible investors. SUCCESSES The EPA recently announced environmental protections under the Clean Water Act for Bristol Bay and a plan that could permanently block the development of the proposed …
The change in US administration this year has generated a palpable sense of optimism among proponents of socially responsible investing and a sustainable and just economy. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and other federal agencies have appointed new leaders whose values align with our priorities. As a result, many of the 11th-hour rules and …
Fifty years is a long time to be active in any field. For Tim Smith, his five decade career has been defined by leadership in the socially responsible investment industry. Smith co-founded the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, in 1971 and served as Executive Director from …
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