ESG Links: Allocating With Purpose

Josh here – nice to see Joey Fishman, our in-house ESG expert, getting some local recognition in his hometown this week. Check this out:

‘Hipsters of Portland’ inspire new investment fund (Portland Business Journal)

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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The Error at the Heart of Corporate Leadership (HBR)

“Giving people money and complaining about it is not nearly as effective as not giving them money.”  (Matt Levine – Indexing and Voting; Corporate Governance)

Trump’s May End Up Being the Best Thing to Ever Happen to Environmentally and Socially Responsible Investing.  (FA MAG)

‘Eco-anxiety’ on a Massive Scale (QZ)  

How to Sell Conservatives on the Environment (Bloomberg)

Value Meets Values – The Rise of ESG Investing  (Paul Smith, President and CEO of the CFA Institute)

Sustainability Spike – More Companies Seek ESG Reportability (Forbes)

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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.