From SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE INVESTING WORKSHOP
Most investors do not know what companies they own as part of their investment portfolios holding mutual funds. That is not good. To address that problem, a group of northwest Ohio activists has spent a year putting together a two-hour workshop at BGSU. The Socially Responsible Investing Workshop will be held Tuesday, April 24, from 7:30-9:30 p.m. in room 201 in the Bowling Green State University student union.
The workshop is being hosted by: Nick Hennessey, director of BGSU Office of Sustainability; Professor Enrique Gomez del Campo, Department of Environmental Sustainability; Professor Neocles Leontis, Department of Chemistry; Josh Mudse, CFP Munn Wealth Management; and Professor Emeritus Tom Klein, English Department.
Panel members will be: Darren Munn, CFA, Chief Investment Officer, Camelot Portfolios; Owaiz Dadabhoy, Director of Islamic Investing, Saturna Capital; and Robert Huesman, CFA, CFP, Senior Investment Associate, 1919 Investment Counsel.
Socially responsible investing is a strategy that had a dramatic birth in the 1970s when investors began divesting from companies operating under South African apartheid. It has become very popular over the last three decades, considering both financial return and social and environmental good. Since 2012 such investing has grown in popularity, with a 135% increase in assets under management to $8.72 trillion. Today there are about 500 such funds.
Specifically, it’s possible to promote positive change by investing in companies advocating clean energy, social justice and environmental sustainability. Many funds give the investor the choice of what to avoid or invest in. For example, choices can include harmful industries such as fossil fuels, civilian and military weapons, tobacco, GMO producers and nuclear energy; they can also include support for companies that help the poor start businesses such as the work of micro-finance in Africa.
The three most important goals of sustainable investing are to protect the planet, protect our communities and families, and protect our portfolios.
