The network appreciates the continued engagement of Leadership Level member the California State University Foundation.

Investors and Companies Push Clean Energy to the Tipping Point | Greenbiz

• As the cost of the climate crisis escalates, more investors are recognizing that their fiduciary duties require them to engage in shareholder oversight and engagement on climate risk. A wide range of investor groups, from state pension funds to religious institutions to major philanthropic foundations, are engaging with companies on climate risks and opportunities. This article summarizes recent examples and their impact on corporate behavior.

UNSW Partially Divests from Fossil Fuel Industry | Honi Soit

• The University of New South Wales (UNSW) has significantly reduced the amount it invests in fossil fuel industries, conceding to years of pressure from student activists in the Fossil Free UNSW campaign. Between 2017 and 2018, “investments in companies that directly own fossil fuel reserves reduced from $29.5 million to $16.2 million,” according to UNSW’s sustainability policy.

European Investment Bank Plots Ban on Fossil Fuel Lending | BusinessGreen

• The European Investment Bank is considering halting all lending to fossil fuel energy projects, under a draft energy lending policy. The draft strategy suggests an end to funding projects reliant on fossil fuels by 2020, in a bid to place the bank at the leading edge of the low-carbon transition. 

Over-subscribed $100 Million Issuance by Low Income Investment Fund Signals High Institutional Investor Demand for Sustainable Bonds | Yahoo Finance

• The Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) just completed its inaugural public debt offering with a $100 million Sustainability Bond issuance, drawing significant interest from leading institutional investors. The offering was ten times oversubscribed, allowing LIIF to obtain attractive pricing, demonstrating the growing demand for quality investments that support social and environmental impact. The successful issuance signals confidence in the financial strength and high impact of LIIF, one of the nation’s leading nonprofit community development financial institutions (CDFIs). The offering included 7-year and 10-year bonds, which will be used to finance vital community development projects across the country. Hear directly from LIIF's CFO at IEN's ESG & Community Impact Investing Roundtable on September 6!

Impact Investing: How to Invest for Market-Rate Return and Measurable Impact at Large Scale | City University of London

• Faculty and research fellows share their findings from an in-depth study on the question “How did TriLinc Global Impact Fund manage to consistently generate market rate returns and measurable social and environmental impacts at scale?”, highlighting the critical factors they uncovered.

BlackRock Lost $90bn Investing in Fossil Fuel Companies, Report Finds | The Guardian

• A report from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis has found that BlackRock has eroded the value of its $6.5tn funds by betting on oil companies that were falling in value and by missing out on growth in clean energy investments. BlackRock has denied responsibility for its fossil fuel investments because the majority of its funds track investment indices which are controlled by third parties, meaning it does not choose individual companies to back. A spokesman for BlackRock said the asset-manager offered clients the option to invest in environmentally and socially responsible funds as well. These funds made up 0.8% of BlackRock’s total portfolio.

Institutional Investors Have More Power than Governments to Shape Climate Future | Forbes

• The Principles for Responsible Investment and other analysis suggests that added scrutiny by investors is working, with companies responding with improved ESG - and financial - performance. Investors are also calling on the SEC to do more to improve companies’ climate-related disclosures.

Green Funds Are Ignoring Zero Carbon: Here's How to Fix It | Citywire

• This opinion piece argues that, despite the growing sense of urgency around tackling climate change, not enough sustainable fund managers are challenging company boards on their net zero carbon emissions policies; the author proposes a Net Zero Carbon 10 target to better align investment policies to the requirement for carbon-neutrality, rather than just emissions reduction.

Investing Capital for Sustainable Impact Takes Centre Stage in Nigeria | This Day

• This article summarizes the discussion at a conference on “Investing Impact Capital in Nigeria,” including a keynote from Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission on improving the regulatory environment for sustainable investing, the launch of Green Bonds Issuance Rules and a Green Bonds Market Development Programme, sustainability disclosure guidelines issued by the Nigerian Stock Exchange, and trends in sustainable real estate investing.

Greenwish: The Wishful Thinking Undermining the Ambition of Sustainable Business, by Duncan Austin | Preventable Surprises

• This post discusses the idea that ‘greenwish’ – the earnest hope that voluntary sustainability efforts are much closer to achieving the necessary change than they really are – is our sector’s key challenge today.

How Pacific Life Lost Its Bet on Socially Minded Millennials | Los Angeles Times

• In 2017, Pacific Life Insurance Co. introduced a socially conscious, online investing platform, Swell Investing, tailored to thirtysomethings eager to use their assets to make the world a better place. Those investors proved more expensive and rare than the company thought: though people in their 20s and 30s say they’re eager to invest in line with their values, the average millennial has a net worth of just $8,000, a Deloitte study found in May. The cohort is heavier on debt than other generations and most of their assets are held in 401(k)s, IRAs and real estate. Some of Swell’s biggest accounts were IRA rollovers, but most accounts were small.

Changing the Conversation: Redefining How Companies Engage Investors on Sustainability | CPA Journal

• This article reflects on the role CFOs, CPAs, and other financial professionals must play in bridging the gap between what investors need to know about sustainability, and what companies provide, drawing on the lessons of Ceres’ recent report “Change the Conversation: Redefining How Companies Engage Investors on Sustainability.”

Best Practice Principles for Providers of Shareholder Voting Research & Analysis 2019 | Best Practices Principles Group

• The BPPG aims to educate global stakeholders about the role and key features of shareholder voting research and analysis service providers within the investment process; to advocate for the interests of research service users and providers worldwide; and to encourage high industry standards of good practice, independence and transparency. 

Investor Engagement & Sustainable Investing | Directors and Boards

• Many major asset owners now pursue a strategy of direct investor engagement to ensure that sustainability is a priority for the management and boards of directors of the companies they invest in. Several studies demonstrate the financial benefits of company engagement, including research at the London Business School that found it can improve profitability for investors as measured by returns on assets. By contrast, companies where engagement objectives had not been met saw no change in return on assets.

Investors Struggling to Win Fund Firms’ Support on ESG Proposals | Bloomberg Law

• Investors are gaining more of a social conscience, but their enthusiasm isn’t always being shared by money managers. About 51% of the 465 proposals in 2017 focused on social and environment issues, according to a report issued July 29 by the Investment Company Institute, up from 22% in 2003, the first year covered in the study. Additional coverage of the report notes that the mutual fund industry voted with management 94% of the time during the 2017 proxy voting season.

Sponsors, Participants' Views Differ on ESG Options – Study | Pensions & Investments

• Retirement plan sponsors and participants differ in their views on the importance of ESG investment options in defined contribution plans, according to research by American Century Investments. It will be interesting to track employee sentiment in the future and compare their interest in ESG choices down the road as individuals become more familiar with the term; currently more than 80% of participants want some assistance from their employers in making retirement savings choices.

Integrating ESG Options into Higher Ed Retirement Plans | Intentional Endowments Network

• View the slides and recording of this webinar featuring Samantha Stephens from Mirova, an affiliate of Natixis Investment Managers, and Sarah Bratton from Schroders and learn how to get involved in a new IEN initiative designed to support institutions to integrate ESG options into their retirement plans

One Year into the PhilaImpact Fund, a Look at Impacts | Generocity

• Pedro Ramos, president and CEO of the Philadelphia Foundation, and Don Hinkle-Brown, president and CEO of Reinvestment Fund, say the PhilaImpact Fund’s achievements "make it clear that donors and investors in our region are committed to increasing the vitality of our region through community investment." The unique hybrid model provides two paths to support community development in the region: a direct investment offered by Reinvestment Fund and a tax-deductible donor advised fund through the Philadelphia Foundation. It is deliberately structured as a partnership between two strong anchor institutions with a flexible product to match risk appetites. It offers appropriate investment levels, a regional connection that investors can feel, targeted asset classes, and meaningful metrics.

ESG & Community Impact Investing Roundtable 2019 | Intentional Endowments Network, September 6, 2019, Berkeley, CA

Beef Giant Looks to Go Green with $500 Million Foreign-Bond Sale | Bloomberg

• The world’s second-largest beef supplier is tapping the market for bonds aimed at protecting the environment as meat companies face growing criticism for contributing to climate change. Brazil’s Marfrig Global Foods SA, with operations spanning South America and the U.S., is selling as much as $500 million in so-called transition bonds, an instrument that could help less-than-green firms including oil companies, coal miners and agricultural businesses.

Can Sustainable Bonds Save the World? | Kiplinger

• The number of sustainable bond funds has grown quickly as investors recognize the potential credit implications of climate change, product safety and other ESG risks. There were 58 taxable sustainable bond funds at the end of 2018, up from 34 a year earlier, according to investment research firm Morningstar, and they cover the fixed-income waterfront from ultra-short-term to emerging markets bonds. Tilting a fixed-income portfolio toward bonds that score well on ESG measures generally leads to higher returns, according to a 2018 report by Barclays.

The Persistence of Black College Students | Stanford Social Innovation Review

• A new study adds important context to the challenge of black college students graduating at lower rates than their white peers. While analysis showed that lower levels of academic and financial resources on the part of the black students cause most of the remaining disparity in graduation rates, it looked beyond that conventional wisdom and found that students’ agency matters: students are shaping their higher education outcomes, and the study found black students making more “mobility-enhancing decisions,” giving college the opportunity to affect black students’ trajectories in a bigger way.

Lone Women in Boardroom Are Likeliest to Be Stretched for Time | Bloomberg

• Women director candidates serve on more boards than men, though plenty of female board candidates remain, an advocacy group says. Research by Bloomberg Intelligence found that lone female directors served on an average of 1.4 boards, the busiest of all classes of directors, describing the phenomenon as “ovHERboardedness.”

The Last All-Male Board in the S&P 500 Finally Added a Woman | Bloomberg

• The final stretch of progress has been slow. In 2000, about 86% of S&P 500 companies had at least one women on their board. The last 14% of companies have taken almost 20 years to close the gap. Shareholder advocates still say it is ideal to have at least three female directors. Big investors like BlackRock Inc. and State Street say board diversity is linked to better returns and in the past few years have begun to ask male-dominated boards to explain themselves.

Want to Add Trillions to the Global Economy? Back Female Founders | Thomson Reuters Foundation News

• Helping women start their own businesses could immediately increase global economic output by as much as $5 trillion, about the size of Japan's economy, said a new study by consulting firm Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women, which found there are more male than female entrepreneurs in almost every country. Unequal access to finance is one of the key factors holding women back, with companies founded or co-founded by women averaging $935,000, less than half the $2.1 million invested in companies started by men.

‘Gender Lens’ ETFs Seek to Promote Workplace Diversity | Financial Times

• Assets in gender lens investing (including mutual funds, equality bonds, as well as ETFs) grew by 85 per cent to $2.4bn in the 12 months to June 2018, according to Veris Wealth Partners. The firm predicts gender lens investment will grow to $20bn by 2023.

Boston Trust/Walden Awarded Top PRI Scores | PR Newswire

• Boston Trust & Investment Management Company, including its sustainable, responsible, and impact investing practice (and IEN member) Walden Asset Management, has been awarded top scores in the most recent Principles for Responsible Investment assessment report as of year-end 2018. Since 2016 Boston Trust/Walden has received an A+ score for "Listed Equity Active Ownership," a recognition of its commitment to encourage more sustainable business practices through dialogue, shareholder proposals, and proxy voting.

UN Ethical Investment Body Awards A+ Rating to Dublin-based KBI for Third Year | Business Post

• Dublin-headquartered asset manager KBI Global Investors has been awarded an A+ rating for responsible investment by the UN supported Principles for Responsible Investment.

Meet The Berkshire Hathaway Of Impact Investing | Forbes

• This article profiles i(x) investments, a four-year-old company leveraging finance for socially- and environmentally-driven companies, and its recent Entrepreneurs Impact Summit.

Morgan Stanley Launches New Tool to Let Advisors, Investors Measure Sustainable Investing Goals | CNBC

• Morgan Stanley is launching a new tool to help its wealth management clients identify their sustainable investing goals and track how well their portfolios match those priorities. Morgan Stanley Impact Quotient draws from big data and other analytic data sources to track sustainable investing performance alongside other traditional metrics like returns and risk.

Schroders Grows Impact Investing Strategy with Majority Stake in BlueOrchard | Pensions & Investments

• Schroders has acquired a majority stake in Swiss impact investor BlueOrchard for an undisclosed sum. BlueOrchard, a Zurich-based investor with $3.5 billion in assets under management, offers impact investment strategies for credit, private equity and sustainable infrastructure asset classes.

Announcing the Formation of the Sustainable Finance Group | Goldman Sachs

• Citing “increasing opportunities [across our businesses] to deliver leading sustainability and impact investing expertise to our clients across a broad range of growth themes,” Goldman Sachs announced the formation of the Sustainable Finance Group. This group will be responsible for partnering with our businesses to better serve our clients, drive innovation and capture emerging opportunities as sustainable growth becomes more top of mind for investors, institutions and companies around the world.

Ex-Corporate Lawyer’s Idea: Rein In ‘Sociopaths’ in the Boardroom | New York Times

• A former partner at the law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett proposes that every company devise a set of ethical rules to be part of their bylaws, a move that would potentially open them up to shareholder lawsuits should they fail to stick to those rules. Such bylaws would address companies’ relationships with employees; with the communities in which they produce and sell; with customers; as well as their effects on the environment and on future generations.

A New American Capitalism Cares About More than Just Profits | Chicago Sun Times

• This opinion piece observes that a new kind of capitalism seems to be emerging, one in which companies value communities, the environment and workers just as much as profits.

The Making of a Democratic Economy: A Conversation with Economist Marjorie Kelly | Uprise RI

• In a new book, Marjorie Kelly and her co-writer Ted Howard, both with The Democracy Collaborative, outline seven principles towards an economy that serves the common good. These principles are community, inclusion, place, good work, democratic ownership, sustainability and ethical finance. Kelly maintains that the first principle of our present system is capital bias.

The US Just Had Its First Hearing in Congress on ESG Issues. What’s Next on the Agenda? | Brink News

• This article summarizes proposed legislative approaches to improving ESG disclosures and the global context for these discussions.

ESMA Urges ESG Transparency for Credit Ratings but No Requirement | Pensions & Investments

• Credit-rating agencies could be more transparent in how they consider ESG factors but should not be required to use them, the European Securities and Markets Authority said in new technical advice.

Rising Temperatures Will Put 1 billion More People at Risk of Infectious Disease, Morgan Stanley warns | CNBC

• Rising global temperatures could put an additional 1 billion people at risk of contracting an infectious disease by the year 2080, Morgan Stanley analysts warned in a research report released this week. There will be one big beneficiary from this trend: biopharma companies. The market to treat these tropical diseases is currently valued at about $500 billion, according to estimates from the firm, and Morgan Stanley anticipates that an additional ”$125 billion in incremental vaccinations” will be needed to fight off the additional cases.

How Climate Change Could Trigger the Next Global Financial Crisis | Atlantic

• In this interview, Adam Tooze, a history professor at Columbia University, discusses whether climate change could really cause another global crash, how to think about climate policy in history, and what the U.S. Federal Reserve could do to decarbonize the economy.

Extreme Ice Melt in Greenland Threatens Coastal Communities Across the World, Scientists Warn | CNBC

• The historic heatwave that scorched Europe last week has moved to Greenland, where it’s expected to melt away 12 billion tons of water from the ice sheet and irreversibly raise sea levels across the world. Greenland is the biggest contributor to sea level rise, which threatens to destroy property value in coastal regions, displace residents and eventually impact global markets.

Steel giants put value at risk, says climate report | Steel Times International

• A new report by CDP, analysing a US$259bn grouping of the world’s 20 largest steelmakers, has found that the steel sector is failing to reduce emissions at the rate required to keep global warming below 2°C – putting, on average, 14% of the companies’ potential value at risk.

Apple, Amazon Going Big On Solar | Yahoo Finance

• The increased push for solar technology is being seen as evidence of corporate America’s continued interest in renewable energy, combatting climate change and the importance of ESG investing.

From Environmental Leader to ‘Worst Company in the World’ | New York Times

• After receiving praise from environmental advocates for committing to protect the environment, Cargill now faces intense pressure for failing to live up to those commitments. Greenpeace questioned the company’s commitment to ending deforestation in Brazil, shortly before Mighty Earth released a scathing 7,000-word condemnation of Cargill, which criticized the company for pollution and meat contamination, as well as deforestation.

Hard-to-abate No More? BHP, Cargill Set New Visions for Decarbonisation | Edie

• Mining and metals giant BHP and agri-food multinational Cargill have unveiled ambitious new decarbonisation targets, in a sign that hard-to-abate sectors are beginning to bolster their climate ambitions.

Markets and Technology May Hold Out the Real Green New Deal | Forbes

• This two-part opinion piece (see part two here) argues that private investments hold greater promise than government spending to address the climate crisis and shift the economy toward an “inclusive capitalism” framework grounded in sustainability.

All Public Universities Get Private Money, but Some Get Much More Than the Rest | Jacksonville Journal Courier

• In this opinion piece, a professor of higher education management and finance conducting research about the private donations that help fund public universities, expresses concern that this practice is making the richest public universities richer. The rest face fewer choices as many of these schools are being forced to stretch their budgets thin and cut academic programs and, in extreme cases, scholarships.

Penn State Gets a New CIO | Chief Investment Officer

• Penn State’s $4 billion endowment has found a new chief investment officer: Joe Cullen will replace John Pomeroy on September 16, leaving his CIO role at the Montana Board of Investments. He has held that title at the $18 billion fund since 2015. Pomeroy, Penn State’s chief of 17 years, retired last December. His successor will be the institution’s second CIO. Deputy CIO Sonali Dalal had been the acting head during the interim. Penn State’s asset mix was 24% US equity, 22% international equity, 20% private equity and venture capital, 14% diversifying and private credit, 12% fixed income, and 8% real assets as of December 31, 2018.

Amherst College Moves Endowment Office to Boston, Mount Holyoke Considering Boston or New York, Report Says | MassLive

• Amherst College is moving the staff that manages its $2.9 billion endowment to Boston at the request of its newly hired chief investment officer. And Mount Holyoke College nearby in South Hadley is hiring its first chief investment officer and considering establishing its investment management operation in either New York City or Boston. Williams College in the Berkshires already has its endowment office in Boston, as does Dartmouth College of New Hampshire.

University of Bridgeport and Vermont’s Marlboro College Will Merge | Hartford Courant

• The University of Bridgeport is merging with Marlboro College, a small liberal arts college in rural Vermont. Leaders of both schools said they plan to join forces beginning spring of 2020, describing the move as a way to create a sustainable future for New England liberal arts colleges while expanding educational opportunities for students. Many small liberal arts colleges in New England with small endowments have struggled financially since the economic recession of 2008.

Harvard Students Are Demanding More Than Divestment From Prison Profiteers | The Nation

• In this opinion piece, organizers with the Harvard Prison Divestment Campaign argue for reinvestment into funding the recruitment of black prospective students to the campus, developing a living-learning residence community for black students, and implementing mandatory coursework on diversity and race and ethnicity for the entire student body. Students across the country, including at the University of Florida, the University of Chicago, and MIT, are making similar demands, under the collective banner of Freedom Campus.

(Listen) Is Divestment Key To Our Climate Future? | Connecticut Public Radio

• Yale University has a $29 billion endowment, one of the largest in the world. The endowment invests in many things including fossil fuel companies. This doesn’t sit well with some Yale students and faculty who are concerned about climate change. They’ve called on the school to divest that money from oil, coal, and gas companies. Their protests have led to five dozen arrests in recent months. Meanwhile, similar movements have been taking place at schools across the country. This hour, we ask: What exactly is divestment? And what are its broader implications for our climate future?

Fossil Fuel Divestment versus Institutional Neutrality: A North Carolina Test Case | National Review

• This opinion piece explores whether the recent decision by the University of North Carolina Asheville to divest a portion of its endowment from fossil fuels is in conflict with principles of “institutional neutrality” on political questions.

• Support the next generation of sustainable investors: the SIILK Network is growing!  Contact Nicole to learn more about sponsorship opportunities to support this evolving group.
• Become a Sponsor of the Community Impact Investing Roundtable (Berkeley, CA, September 6, 2019)
• Become a Sponsor of the 2020 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit (Atlanta, GA, February 23-25, 2020)
• Community Online Conversation for IEN Members: The conversations provide an opportunity for IEN members to connect with peers and experts about important topics and trends related to endowment management and sustainable investing. Participation is limited to IEN members who are working in a consulting or decision-making capacity on endowment portfolios. For more details, please email erina@intentionalendowments.org
• Join a working group on Integrating ESG Options into Higher Ed Retirement Plans

IEN Events:

ESG & Community Impact Investing Roundtable 2019 | Intentional Endowments Network, September 6, 2019, Berkeley, CA

2020 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit | Intentional Endowments Network and Second Nature, February 23-25, 2020, Atlanta, GA. Provide input to shape the agenda here, or propose a session topic here!

Other Events:

2019 Opportunity Zone Expo New York and Chicago | Opportunity Zone Expo, August 9, 2019, New York, NY and August 12, 2019, Chicago, IL. Interested members should contact kaede@intentionalendowments.org to receive a $50 discount link for IEN Member registration.

RISE Community Forum on Racial Justice & Climate Change | Return on Investment & Social Equity, August 22, 2019, 4 - 6:30pm, San Francisco, CA

2019 Family Office Impact Summit | United Nations, September 5, 2019, New York, NY. Family office members of IEN are eligible for discounted registration.

Getting Gender Smart: Impact Investing with a Gender Lens | Duke Fuqua School of Business, September 9-11, 2019, Durham, North Carolina

Financing the Future: The Global Climate Divest-Invest Summit | Divest Invest, Fossil Free SA, Global Catholic Climate Movement, GreenFaith, PACJA, Shine, Wallace Global Fund, and 350, September 10-11, 2019, Cape Town, South Africa

Impact Investing: Driving Social Purpose Through Measurable Investment Returns | Skytop Strategies, September 17, 2019, Boston, MA. Interested members should contact nicole@intentionalendowments.org to access a 15% off registration IEN Member discount code.

Sustainable Investment Forum North America 2019 | UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative, September 25, 2019, New York, NY (Climate Week)

GIIN Investor Forum | GIIN, October 2-3, 2019, Amsterdam, Netherlands. Interested members should contact hannah@intentionalendowments.org to access a 15% off registration IEN Member discount code.

Color of Education Summit | Public School Forum of NC, The Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity, and Policy Bridge at Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy, October 26, 2019, Raleigh, NC

2019 AASHE Conference & Expo: Co-Creating a Sustainable Economy | AASHE, October 27-30, 2019, Spokane, WA

21st Annual Endowment and Foundation Forum | Opal, November 7-8, 2019, Boston, MA

2nd Impact Summit America | Phenix Capital, November 14, 2019, New York, NY. Asset owner IEN members are eligible for complementary registration.

GreenBiz 20 | GreenBiz, February 4-6, 2020, Phoenix, AZ

Croatan Forum 2020 | Croatan Institute, April 27-29, 2020, Durham, NC