Heart Rating Bond Form - Natural Investments

Heart Rating Questionnaire (Bond Funds)

Questionnaire for majority bond/fixed income mutual funds or ETFs labeled as socially responsible or ESG integrative in any way. A “Save and Continue Later” option is available at the bottom of the form. Please direct questions to the Research desk at research@naturalinvestments.com

"*" indicates required fields

Research Process and Governance

Do you have a social and sustainability research policy that is readily accessible to prospective and current shareholders?*

Do you have a social and sustainability research policy that is readily accessible to prospective and current shareholders?

Yes

Social and Sustainability Research

Who conducts social and sustainability research at your fund?

Staff

How many staff work on social and sustainability research full-time?

External resources

What external social and sustainability research resources do you use to assist your process (e.g. Sustainalytics, MSCI, Verité, Institutional Shareholder Services, etc)?

Does your ESG methodology require that companies meet the criteria of these outside research firms?

Yes

Explain

Ownership Structure

Does your firm have an alternative ownership structure or B Corp certification?

Employee-owned

Nonprofit-owned

Benefit Corporation

B Corp Certified

Other

Diverse Leadership

Does your firm have diversity in leadership?

Yes, diversity in executive team

Yes, diversity in board of directors

Yes, diversity in both executive and board levels

Diverse Portfolio Team

Does your fund have diversity in the portfolio managers and research teams?

Yes, diversity in portfolio management

Yes, diversity in research analysts

Yes, diversity in both management and research

Shareholder Advocacy

Do you engage company management in dialogue on issues of shareholder concern?*

Yes

Approximately how many such engagements do you conduct annually?

1-5

6-10

11-15

15+

Do you testify at company annual meetings?

Yes

Approximately how many company annual meetings have you testified at?

1-5

6-10

11-15

15+

Do you testify at government regulatory agencies on issues of shareholder concern?

Yes

Approximately how many government testimonies do you give annually?

1-5

6-10

11-15

15+

Community Investing

Concerning as a core aspect of your holdings or merely the cash positions.

Do you support any of the following community development investment types?

Community banks, credit unions, loan funds

CRA pools, community projects, taxable munis in low-income communities

Agency securities, SBA loans, taxable munis in moderate-income communities

Agency bonds, Sallie Mae

Conventional loans, CMOs, corporate bonds

Please indicate any other types of community development finance in which you may be involved

Avoidance Screening

Please indicate which of the following industries, issues, practices, or ethical criteria are taken into consideration when EXCLUDING companies/holdings from inclusion in your funds.

Always Excluded*

Mark those for full exclusion. Choose “Not Applicable” and continue to second column if only ESG integration and/or restrictive policies apply to the fund(s).

Alcohol

Tobacco

Gambling

Pornography

Firearms/Weapons & Defense

Nuclear Power

Serious EPA Violations

Fossil Fuels – Oil, Coal, Gas

Animal Rights/Non-testing

Board Independence

Board Diversity

Accountants’ Independence

Corporate Disclosure

Options Expense Policy

Bribery, Fraud, SEC Violations

Political Contributions Disclosure

Excessive Executive Compensation

EEO Violations

ILO Standard Omission (sweatshop or child labor)

National Labor Relations Board (violations)

For-profit Prisons

Operations in Repressive Regimes

Unsafe or Hazardous Products

Deceptive Marketing/Consumer Fraud

Offensive Images in Labeling/Marketing

Digital Data Privacy

Relocation to avoid US laws

NONE OF THE ABOVE/NOT APPLICABLE

Case-by-Case Exclusion*

Mark for criteria where companies are evaluated but only excluded on a case-by-case basis or included within certain parameters defined by policy.

Alcohol

Tobacco

Gambling

Pornography

Firearms/Weapons & Defense

Nuclear Power

Serious EPA Violations

Fossil Fuels – Oil, Coal, Gas

Animal Rights/Non-testing

Lack of Board Independence

Lack of Board Diversity Policy

Accountants’ Independence

Corporate Disclosure

Options Expense Policy

Bribery, Fraud, SEC Violations

Political Contributions Disclosure

Excessive Executive Compensation

EEO Violations

ILO Standards Omission (sweatshop or child labor)

National Labor Relations Board (findings)

For-profit Prisons

Operations in Repressive Regimes

Unsafe or Hazardous Products

Deceptive Marketing/Consumer Fraud

Offensive Images in Labeling/Marketing

Digital Data Privacy

Relocation to Avoid US Laws

NONE OF THE ABOVE/NOT APPLICABLE

Affirmative Screening

Please indicate if you INCLUDE companies/holdings in your fund based on any of the following industries, issues, practices, or ethical criteria.

Organic/Natural Foods

Holistic Medicine/Healthy Lifestyle Products

Environment-friendly Products (Recycled, Biodegradable)

Pollution Prevention

Renewable Energy

Public Transportation

Sustainability Risk Reporting (e.g. GRI, SASB)

Women & Minority Diversity Policy

Responsiveness to Shareholder Concerns

Positive Relations with Organized Labor

Employee Health & Safety

Progressive Family Benefits Policy

Sexual Orientation Policy

Supply Chain Monitoring

Positive Community Relations

Ethical Code of Conduct

Protect Indigenous Peoples’ Rights & Land

CERES/Principles for Responsible Investment Signatory

NONE OF THE ABOVE

Additional Information

Please include any additional information regarding screening criteria relevant for consideration to the Heart Rating.

Sound Investments for a prosperous planet

Heart Rating Questionnaire (Bond Funds)

Company Information

Research Process and Governance

Shareholder Advocacy

Community Investing

Avoidance Screening

Affirmative Screening