Thinking about rebalancing that investment portfolio? Now that even
mutual funds have been found to ignore
the rules when it comes to the big players, where do you turn for a safe
investment? Why not try Socially
Responsible Investing (SRI)? What is SRI? It is a way to integrate your
personal vaules and social concerns into
your investment decisions. The first and easiest way to socially invest
is to screen companies or mutual funds
for their fit with your values. Positive screens include investments
because they meet your social goals in one
way or the other. Examples would be good employee relations, a record
of community investment, low
environmental impact in manufacturing processes, applying consistent and
stringent environmental and/or
human rights standards in all subsidiaries, or making safe and useful
products. Negative screens might exclude
investments that involve guns, alcohol, tobacco products, gambling,
animal testing or defense weapons. Each
investor decides for him or herself what issues to screen on.
Socially screened mutual funds will usually apply a financial screen
first, followed by the social screen. That is,
they will identify stocks that perform well, and from this list they
will select stocks that meet the social critieria
of the fund. Any investor interested in purchasing mutual fund shares
should understand how a fund's social
screen fits with its financial screen. Also, while many funds have
similarly named categories (labor relations,
environment, animal welfare), it is important to understand the
critieria they use to categorize companies
because they vary from fund to fund.
If you are interested in finding your own socially responsible companies
to invest in, it will take a little more
work, however there are a few shortcuts. You can check out which stocks
a socially responsible mutual fund
includes in its portfolio, a number of on-line investment periodicals
specialize in socially responsible investing,
or you can pick companies that subscribe to socially responsible
resolutions, like those promoted by CERES*
(Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies). One caveat -
companies are complex creatures, and
they may fit one socially responsible screen and not another. A second
caveat - companies are run by people
and people sometimes lie. It is a good idea to check to see if a
company's claims of social responsibility can be
independently verified by an NGO that specializes in this kind of
work.
The second path to SRI is through shareholder advocacy. This is
where shareholders work to influence
company policy in ways that meet socially responsible goals. For
example, investors holding 500,000 shares of
P&G* stock filed a share-holder resolution calling for the company to
purchase and market fair trade coffee. As
a result of shareholder and external pressure, P&G will purchase several
million pounds of coffee at over $1 per
pound from fair trade cooperatives and market it under its Millstone
line as "fair-trade". Long term , this will
help reduce the boom and bust cycle of coffee as a cash crop, and
introduce a level of stability into this market
that should benefit everyone, consumer as well as farmer. At the 2002
Exxon* shareholder meeting, 20% of
shareholders, including Institutional Investor Services (which
represents 700 institutional investors) voted in
favor of a resolution to reduce greenhouse gases. This was a higher
percentage than voted in favor of divestment
in South Africa, and it increases every year.
What's the bottom line? On average, socially screened mutual
funds perform at or near (above and below)
S&Ps 10-year average, which means that the companies they pick do the
same. If you are investing for the long
haul (and have gotten over the illusion that you can make a killing in
the market), socially screened, and
especially environmentally screened, stocks have distinct advantages.
Strong environmental performance
involves recycling and reusing chemicals, packaging, water and other
materials, and saving energy, all of which
cut costs both short and long term. Strategic investment to improve
compliance with future federal and state
environmental regulations can put companies in a better competitive
position once those regulations come into
effect. And mis-management of environmental risk can result in fines
and criminal sanctions that can (and have)
affected stock prices. A survey of 243 firms showed that after industry
sector growth was factored out, there
was a significant correlation between environmental performance and
return on assets. So it pays to be green.
Finally, in these heady days of corporate scandals, attention of
a company to its social performance may
be an indicator of its sense of responsibility to investors. One of the
features of socially responsible investing is
that it follows corporate practices pretty closely - it has to, to
ensure follow-through on a company's stated
goals. This means that socially responsible companies tend to have more
transparency, and that boards and
employees are expected to take more responsibility for company
decisions. This makes it much more difficult
(but not impossible!) for corporate renegades to plunder the company.
If you think about it, investing to
protect the planet could help protect your assets.
* Mention of an organization or company is not intended as an
endorsement. Do your own research!
For more on Socially Responsible Investing
Investing in Trust: Social Responsibility and Shareholder
Communications, Arthur W. Page Society -
http://www.awpagesociety.com/protected/archives/goodman.pdf
Bio Regional Quiz: What two native Missouri owl species can you
hear courting this month?
JOB OF THE MONTH: Field Assistant, Invasive Species Control
and Restoration - Audubon Society's
Starr Ranch Sanctuary; Trabuco Canyon, CA.Responsibilities: The
field assistant will be involved in a
research based project with the goal of controlling invasive artichoke
thistle and restoring native grassland/coastal
sage scrub habitat. The individual will work as a member of a field
crew to mechanically and physically remove
invasive species without the use of chemicals, perform native seed
collections and seed/plug planting, perform
experimental tests of weed removal and restoration techniques and be
involved in quantitative monitoring.
Status: Position runs from January 2004 - May 2004; Includes
Benefits and Housing. Qualifications:
Bachelor's Degree with a background in Biology, Ecology or Conservation;
must work well with people;
experience in field plant sampling desirable but not required.
Salary: $250/week; plus housing and benefits.
Application Procedure: Send cover letter, include career goals,
resume and two letters of recommendation to
Dr. Sandy DeSimone, Director of Research and Education, Starr Ranch
Sanctuary, 100 Bell Canyon Rd.,
Trabuco Canyon, CA 92679-3511; or Fax to 949-858-1013; or Email to
sdesimone@audubon.org
(FYI: Missouri communities where MTBE has been reported in drinking
water - Eureka, Camdenton, Oran,
Elsberry, New Madrid, Holland, Clearmont source:
http://www.ewg.org/issues/mtbe/20031001/systemlisting.php?stab=MO)
Special Events/Classes/Programs/Talks
MU Organization Meetings and Contact Information
Organization Meetings and Contact Information
Answer to BioRegional Quiz: Great Horned Owls are usually
solitary until December, when they form pairs
to breed. They can be found in a variety of habitats - look and listen
for them in wooded urban areas. Great
Horned Owls nest in abandoned stick nests, tree hollows, caves and cliff
ledges. Barred Owls mate for life and
are very territorial. They can be in found in wooded areas, preferably
near a water source. They nest in tree
hollows and abandoned stick nests. The Great Horned Owl's call is
--'Hoo, hoo-oo, hoo-oo' and the Barred
Owl's call is --'Who cooks for you, who cooks for you all' (you may have
to use your imagination on the latter).
Feedback - Got an opinion? If we have space, we will consider
publishing it. Submit it by email
(envstudy@missouri. edu), snail mail (Environmental Studies, 211 Lowry
, MU, Columbia MO 65211), or call
Jan Weaver to talk about it (882-7116). MU Environmental Network News
is published by MU's
Environmental Studies Initiative. All opinions expressed are the
responsibility of the editor. Any part of this
newsletter may be copied for distribution but please give us credit.
Socially Responsible Investing
by Jan Weaver
Corporate scandals increase interest in socially responsible
investments, Episcopal News Service -
http://gc2003.episcopalchurch.org/ens/archives/2002-226.htmlExtra! What energy problems will corn-based ethanol actually
solve?
One feature of the recently debated energy bill is a mandate to triple
corn-based ethanol use to 5 billion gallons by
2020. So it is reasonable to ask, what are the energy (and
environmental) benefits of corn-based ethanol? Ethanol
does have desirable environmental qualities as a fuel additive, it
reduces carbon monoxide in the winter, and reduces
toxic gas components in the summer. It is also a much safer oxygenate (a
chemical that increases fuel combustion)
than MTBE, which is being phased out. However, it speeds up evaporation
of gasoline, which contributes to
increased smog. Requiring ethanol to be added to gasoline may undercut
more effective (and economical) ways of
dealing with the specific air pollution problems a community faces.
Additionally, there are environmental problems
associated with growing corn - it is a heavy user of fertilizer and
pesticides, in drier parts of the country it requires
irrigation that depletes scarce ground water resources, and the way it
is cultivated can lead to significant soil
erosion.
Corn is "renewable" in the sense that you grow it, however, depending on
various factors, it make take more energy
to produce a gallon of ethanol than you can get out of it. When the
most up-to-date fertilizer and ethanol
conversion technology is used, and when one assumes high productivity
(bushels per acre), corn-based ethanol
produces 34% more energy (Btus per gallon) than it uses. However,
inefficient fertilizer production or ethanol
conversion, or low crop productivity, result in corn-based ethanol that
actually uses more energy to make than can
be got from burning it, as much as a third more. On the plus side, it
does have the potential to reduce dependence
on foreign oil. We can use coal and natural gas, which we have, to
produce a liquid fuel suitable for using in
vehicles so that we don't need to import as much oil.
Apparently regardless of party affiliation, farm state legislators favor
it, east and west coast legislators oppose it.
Support from farm states is due to the beneficial effect demand for
ethanol will have on corn prices. Resistance
from the coasts hinges on two issues, they don't grow corn so it will be
expensive for them to import it and add it to
their gasoline, and in some cases it might make air pollution worse.
Complicating all of this is the apparent trade
off between support for corn-based ethanol and for shielding the makers
of MTBE from lawsuits for
contaminating community water supplies.
CHRISTMAS TREE SALES: December 5-7, 8 am - 8 pm, parking lot outside
Faurot Field.
MU Forestry Club
HOLIDAY GIFT MAKING WORKSHOP: December 6 & 7, noon - 4 pm, Peace Nook
804-C East Broadway. A variety of craft-making skills and materials
will be shared, including
wreath making, glow jars, bath salts and body powder, friendship jars,
and paper arts. Center
for Sustainable Living.
WINTER HIKE: Sunday December 28, 2-4 pm, meet at Rock Bridge Memorial
State Park
Office at 2 or the Grasslands trail head at 2:15. Look for birds and
animal tracks while you
check out the grasslands in winter.
ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS COUNCIL:
http://www.missouri.edu/~jesse105/committees/pages/environmental.htm
ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES EXEC COM: 882-7116: Thursday Dec 18, 8 am, 218A
Tucker Hall
RECYCLING COMMITTEE; 882-3091: Thursday Dec 4, 8:30 pm, 185 GSB
STUDENT SIERRA CLUB: 882-7116: Wednesdays at 7:30 pm in 200 A&S, also
Wednesdays in Brady 10-2
(tabling)
NATURAL RESOURCES STUDENT COUNCIL: 1st Annual Senior Send-Off, Thursday
Dec 11, 5 pm, Foyer
ABNR
AUDUBON SOCIETY; 874-3904 / columbia-audubon.missouri.org Meet 3rd Wed
7:30 pm, USGS, 4200 New
Haven
BOONE COUNTY SMART GROWTH COALITION; http://smartgrowth.missouri.org/,
1st Wednesdays 7:15
Boone Co Govt Ctr.
CENTER FOR SUSTAINABLE LIVING; 875-0539 or
http://peaceworks.missouri.org/
CHOUTEAU GROTTO; http://chouteau.missouri.org/, Meet 1st Wed, 7 pm,
Community Room of the Boone
Electric Coop
COLUMBIA FOOD CIRCLE; 882-7463 or email hendricksonm@missouri.edu for
information.
COLUMBIA PUBLIC WORKS VOLUNTEER PROGRAMS; 874-6271 or
http://www.ci.columbia.mo.us/dept/pubw/
COMMUNITY STORMWATER PROJECT:
http://www.GoColumbiaMo.com/PublicWorks/StormWater/cswp.html
ENV EDUCATION WORKSHOPS AND CONFERENCES:
http://www.conservation.state.mo.us/teacher/workshops/
FRIENDS OF ROCK BRIDGE MEMORIAL STATE PARK; 474-7429 or
http://rockbridge.missouri.org/ Meet
4th Tuesdays, 7 pm
GREENBELT COALITION; 442-4789 or http://greenbelt.missouri.org Meet 1st
Tuesdays, 7 pm, Outdoors
Bldg, 200 Old 63 S.
MISSOURI HEARTWOOD; 443-6832 or http://www.heartwood.org/MO/ Meet
Tuesdays, 7:30 pm -1027 E.
Walnut.
MISSOURI NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY; npshawth@hotmail.com Meet every other
second Monday (Jan,
Mar, May, July, Sept, Nov) at 7:00 p.m., Unitarian Universalist Church,
2615 Shepard Blvd, Columbia, MO.
MISSOURI RIVER COMMUNITIES NETWORK; 443-0292 or
http://mrcn.missouri.org/
PEDNET COALITION; email: pednet@pednet.org or http://www.pednet.org
ROCK BRIDGE MEMORIAL STATE PARK; 449-7402 or
http://rockbridge.missouri.org
SHOW ME CLEAN STREAMS COALITION; (573) 751-4115 ext 3169 or
www.mostreamteam.org
SIERRA CLUB; 443-4401 or http://sierra.osage.missouri.org Meet 3rd
Tuesdays 7:30 pm Hillel Foundation,
1107 University Ave
WILD ONES; 499-3749 or email wildonesmo@yahoo.com,
http://wildones.missouri.org Meetings 2nd
Saturdays. Call for location