ESG Links: Allocating With Purpose

Due to client demand, Ritholtz Wealth Management has created an ESG version of our classic asset allocation models, known as the Portland Portfolio. Research shows that high net worth families are increasingly interested in directing their investable assets toward companies with good records on Environmental, Social and Governance issues.

Please enjoy the below reads, curated by our in-house ESG expert, Joey Fishman. And if ESG investing is something you’d like to learn more about, talk to us here. 

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It Took the Worst of Trump to Bring Out the Best in Corporate America (WAPO)  

Wind and Solar Power are Saving Americans an Astounding Amount of Money (Vox)

Rockefeller Foundation Seeks to Expand Environmental Bonds (Bloomberg)

The Emerging Market of Green Bonds (Neighborly)

For Food-Waste Recycling is Key (MIT)

Sustainable Funds Start to Perform (Morningstar)

Some Asset Managers Ban Investments in German Carmakers (Irish Times)

Vanguard Gets More Aggressive on Corporate Climate Risk (BNA)

For Want of a Drink (Economist)

Companies Still Struggling to Quantify the Impacts of Sustainability (Ethical Corp)

Mike Bloomberg’s New Frontier For Fighting Climate Change: Coral Reefs (Forbes)

Evidence of Climate Change Abounds Amid Extreme Weather in the Pacific Northwest (WAPO)

Scott Pruitt’s Crimes Against Nature (Rollingstone)

Negative Birth Outcomes Linked to Air Pollution Exposure Early in Pregnancy (ScienceMag)

Latest Carbon Capture Projects Look Encouraging (Bloomberg)

How to Quantify Sustainability’s Impact on Your Bottom Line (HBR)

Mapping The Potential Economic Effects Of Climate Change (NPR)

Coffee Versus Climate Change (Ars Technica)

The Sustainable Exchange-Traded Universe Continues to Expand (Morningstar / Jon Hale)

California Proves That Environmental Regulations Don’t Kill Profits (Wired)

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ESG DEFINITIONS / TYPES

Examples of ESG incorporation strategies can be summarized as follows:

Positive/best-in-class: Investment in sectors, companies or projects selected for positive ESG performance relative to industry peers. This also includes avoiding companies that do not meet certain ESG performance thresholds.

Negative/exclusionary screening: The exclusion from a fund or plan of certain sectors or companies involved in activities deemed unacceptable or controversial.

ESG integration: The systematic and explicit inclusion by investment managers of ESG factors into traditional financial analysis.

Impact investing: Targeted investments, typically made in private markets, aimed at solving social or environmental problems.

Sustainability themed investing: The selection of assets specifically related to sustainability in single- or multi-themed funds.

Click here for more….http://www.ussif.org/esg

Talk to us about ESG investing here.