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Bella Alvarez published JEDI Initiative Q2 Call | June 13, 2023 | 1 - 2:30 PM ET in Events & Webinars 2023-03-27 09:56:48 -0400
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Bella Alvarez published JEDI Initiative Quarterly Call Q2 in JEDI Initiative Q2 Call | June 13, 2023 | 1 - 2:30 PM ET 2023-03-27 09:55:03 -0400
JEDI Initiative Quarterly Call Q2
Register
June 13, 2023 | 1 pm ET
IEN's JEDI Initiative seeks to start the education and advocacy process for endowments to consider JEDI factors in the investment process in the following ways:
- Enhancing diversity within the university investment offices by ensuring people are not excluded deliberately or through implicit bias on the basis of race, ethnicity, or gender.
- Evaluating the performance of companies and funds with regard to diversity, equity, and inclusion in their boards, management, and staff in the investment process and engage with companies and funds to improve on these issues.
- Identifying minority-led investment managers.
- Making investments that benefit women, low-income communities, and communities of color.
- Supporting finance and investment education of diverse students to build a pipeline of talent.
We advance the conversation on this agenda through a series of educational and peer-networking activities, including events, webinars, and white papers.
IEN's Quarterly Calls are member-only conversations. If you are not an IEN member but are interested in joining these calls and becoming a member, please contact Harrison Ungar at [email protected]
If you are interested in learning more about IEN's JEDI Initiative, please contact Paris Prince at [email protected]
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Bella Alvarez published Webinar: Optimizing Shareholder Engagement with ESG Consensus Scores in Events & Webinars 2023-03-20 15:21:53 -0400
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Bella Alvarez published Webinar: Optimizing Shareholder Engagement with ESG Consensus Scores in Webinar: Optimizing Shareholder Engagement with ESG Consensus Scores 2023-03-20 15:21:47 -0400
Webinar: Optimizing Shareholder Engagement with ESG Consensus Scores
Date: May 3, 2023 at 2 pm ET
Register
With over 30,000 global publicly traded companies to cover, overburdened staff, manual processes, and lack of benchmarking tools, how do organizations effectively monitor or target fund portfolio companies for shareholder engagement?
Our discussion will revolve around how to use quantitatively structured ESG consensus scores to accomplish this important function. Valid, consistent, and comprehensive ESG engagement ratings data is critical for a proper oversight process. The application of artificial intelligence and machine learning to the consumption of ESG adherence data has provided a solution to this problem: ESG consensus ratings.
By using ESG consensus ratings, asset owners can identify those companies within a fund’s portfolio or (target lists) whose key performance indicators are aligning with an organization’s ESG goals.
Participants will learn:
- To use quantitative research to evaluate public equity portfolio alignment with fund values and ESG policies;
- To develop data driven shareholder engagement strategies and dialogues with portfolio companies;
- To track ESG performance trends and benchmarking corporate dialogues with new reporting tools and analytics;
- To obtain breakouts of each ESG metric to better understand weaknesses and strengths;
- To efficiently scale shareholder advocacy campaigns;
- To apply what they've gathered to real world use cases
Speakers
Eric Darrisaw, Senior Consultant, Hackett Group
Brian J. Greene, Senior Vice President, Zeno AN Solutions
Dale M. Neibert, Managing Director, OWL ESG, Inc.
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Bella Alvarez published Webinar: The Case for Diverse and Woman Owned Alternative GP Staking and Seeding in Events & Webinars 2023-03-15 08:16:13 -0400
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Bella Alvarez published Women's History Month Webinar: The Case for Diverse and Woman Owned Alternative GP Staking and Seeding in Webinar: The Case for Diverse and Woman Owned Alternative GP Staking and Seeding 2023-03-15 08:15:40 -0400
Women's History Month Webinar: The Case for Diverse and Woman Owned Alternative GP Staking and Seeding
March 30, 2023 | 1 pm ET
Register
The Endowment community continues showing interest in diverse, emerging, and women-owned investment enterprises as it seeks competitive returns and avenues to further ESG and DEI mission objectives. GP staking and seeding in diverse alternative asset managers is a vastly under-resourced endeavor that can support these objectives. There is a significant unmet need for diverse and women-owned alternative managers to source equity staking and seed capital for their enterprises that affords savvy and mission-oriented investors to achieve attractive long-term returns while meeting their mission objectives. This webinar will consider the opportunity set, risks, and rewards of such activity.
Participants of this webinar will learn:
- The process for identifying women owned GP firms and how to seed them
- The due diligence that goes behind that effort
- Learn the historical data supporting women owned GP financial performance.
Speakers:
- Sherrese Clarke Soares, Founder and CEO, Harbourview Equity Partners
- Jenifer B. Rizza, CFA, CAIA Trust Investment Manager, Eversource
- Tina Byles-Williams, Xponance Founder, CEO & CIO
- Lisa Hinds, Managing Director, Client Engagement & Sustainability
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Bella Alvarez published ESG & Impact Investing Forum 2023 in ESG & Impact Investing Forum 2023-03-14 14:25:00 -0400
ESG & Impact Investing Forum 2023
Today, we see an increase in companies increasing their mission-driven and communication along ESG principles, to attract a values based workforce, investor base, and like-minded consumer. Impact investing strategies are proving to be able to generate returns in line to their traditional counterparts. Over the next three decades, it is estimated that over $68+ trillion will transfer from baby boomers to Millennials. As we move to the next generation of investors, we are finding more companies aligning their beliefs, operation, and communication strategies with that of the Millennials & Gen X.
The ESG & Impact Investing Forum will look at many of the asset classes that encompass this space. We invite you to join us and meet top influencers, experienced investors, money managers, and service providers that are leading the charge in this ever growing space. Themes of defining impact investing, portfolio construction, asset class opportunities, comparing ESG vs Impact trends and the role of the investor are just a few of the stimulating topics to be covered at this event.
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Bella Alvarez published SIILK Initiative: Student-Managed Fund Stories in SIILK Education Center 2023-03-13 10:08:59 -0400
SIILK Initiative: Student-Managed Fund Stories
On our regular SIILK Network calls, a different faculty member or student presents on their work as it relates to a student-managed fund or sustainable investing focused course.
Below are recordings of each presentation. If you are interested in presenting on your work on an upcoming call please reach out to Nicole at [email protected]
- Yale University: Dwight Hall SRI Fund | October 2017
- Middlebury College: RISE (Research and Investment in Sustainable Equity) l April 2018
- Bryant University: Archway Investment Fund l May 2018
- Stanford University: Graduate School of Business Impact Fund l September 2018
- Loomis Chaffee School: ESG Fund l October 2018
- How SASB Metrics Can Be Used in Fund Analysis l November 2018
- University Impact l March 2019
- Northeastern University: NU Impact l April 2019
- University of Minnesota: Carlson Funds Enterprise l April 2019
- New York University: Impact Investing Fund l September 2019
- Emory University: Goizueta Impact Investors l October 2019
- Arizona State University: Socially Responsible Investment Fund l December 2019
- Portland State University: Impact Venture Fund l January 2020
- Bentley University: Bentley Sustainable Investment Group l February 2020
- Northeastern University: NU Impact l May 2020
- University of Utah: Impact Venture Fund l October 2021
- Student-Led Shareholder Engagement Network (SIILK Quarterly Call) | February 2023
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Bella Alvarez published Investment Governance Quarterly Call | March 15, 2023 | 2 pm ET in Investment Governance Initiative Quarterly Call | March 15, 2023 | 2 pm ET 2023-03-09 15:47:54 -0500
Investment Governance Quarterly Call | March 15, 2023 | 2 pm ET
Register
We invite IEN Members to join our first Investment Governance call of 2023 on Wednesday, March 15 at 2 pm ET!
IEN’s Investment Governance Initiative supports endowment fiduciaries in developing the tools needed to provide the leadership, stewardship, and governance to ensure their portfolios and institutions are positioned to have their investment practices reflect their mission while meeting the endowment’s risk and return objectives.
Members of the Investment Governance Initiative undertake and enable peer-to-peer connections among endowment trustees and actively serve as ambassadors for IEN.
Speakers and topics:
- Fiduciary Duty with Tiffany Reeves, Partner, Faegre Drinker
- UPMIFA and Building Diverse Investment Committees with George Suttles, Executive Director, Commonfund Institute
- Driving Financial Performance with Impact Measurement Frameworks with Kate Murray, Director - Impact Strategy & Measurement, TAS Impact
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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up: March 2, 2023 in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-03-07 12:51:43 -0500
Weekly News Round-Up: March 2, 2023
We’re excited to co-host the EarthX E-Capital Summit to inspire and catalyze action in the sustainable investing field. Apply to join investors, innovators, and industry leaders focused on the environment, sustainability, clean technology, and resilience in April.
We also want to remind IEN Members about our forthcoming Initiative calls, including for the Sustainable Retirements Initiative on Thursday, March 9 at 12 pm ET to discuss the recent DOL ESG backlash and ESG-aligned mutual funds.
In this week’s news, we share Black professionals' perspectives of the sustainable finance industry, the NACUBO-TIAA 2022 Study of Endowments, and the US Executive Office expectation to veto Congress’ vote against the DOL’s ESG rule.
Read more
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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up: February 23, 2023 in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-03-07 12:50:11 -0500
Weekly News Round-Up: February 23, 2023
Thank you to those who were able to join our SIILK Quarterly Call this afternoon. We invite members to continue to engage and build their professional network by registering for the Sustainable Retirement Initiative call scheduled for March 9 at 12 pm ET. Join us to hear from Schroders on its Impact principles and proprietary Impact framework, and from Nia Impact Capital’s new mutual fund.
In this week’s news, we share 37 black investors changing the VC industry with firms dedicated to fund diverse startup founders, Senate GOP attempts to block the DOL’s new ESG Rule, and Cambridge Associates highlights the journey from net zero policies to implementation.
Read more
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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up: February 16, 2023 in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-03-07 12:46:45 -0500
Weekly News Round-Up: February 16, 2023
We invite IEN members to register for our upcoming Initiative calls. IEN Initiatives offer a forum for its members to engage in topical conversations, build their professional networks, expertise, requests for support and develop resources to advance the field.
The SIILK Initiative, scheduled for February 23 at 2 pm ET, will feature a presentation by an emerging Student-Led Shareholder Engagement Network. Join us to learn more.In this week’s news, Carleton College divests from direct fossil fuel holdings, seven Black sustainable leaders are celebrated for their work, and Harvard Management Company releases its February 2023 Climate Report. We also share a few articles that respond to the anti-ESG sentiment to help you speak on sustainable investing in your institutions.
Read more
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Bella Alvarez published Western New England University, Bard College, and the Sierra Club Foundation Sign Sustainable Investing Retirement Pledge For Faculty and Employee Plans in IEN Press Releases 2023-03-01 10:01:32 -0500
Western New England University, Bard College, and the Sierra Club Foundation Sign Sustainable Investing Retirement Pledge For Faculty and Employee Plans
Western New England University, Bard College, and the Sierra Club Foundation Join Growing List of Colleges, Universities, Foundations, and Other Nonprofit Institutions Committing to Evaluate Sustainable Retirement Plan Options with Renewed Focus on Climate and Social Justice
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 14, 2023 – Western New England University, the Sierra Club Foundation, and Bard College have become signatories of the Intentional Endowments Network’s (IEN) Sustainable Retirements Plan Pledge. IEN’s Sustainable Retirement Plan pledge, supported by Second Nature and The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), establishes that university and nonprofit “employees deserve a range of sustainable investing retirement fund options that consider environmental, social, and governance factors, consistent with the goals of reducing risk, protecting capital, and enhancing financial returns.”
By signing this Pledge, these institutions have set the intention to review its current retirement plan fund offerings and assess the sustainable investing options currently available. Western New England University, Bard College, and the Sierra Club Foundation will also work with plan administrators to determine if there are suitable sustainable investing options for plans that take into account the best interest of the University’s beneficiaries and their retirement goals.
“The University supports this pledge as its 403(b) retirement plan currently offers a socially responsible mutual fund in its investment lineup and is committed to evaluating sustainable investment fund offerings going forward,” said Basil Stewart, V.P. for Finance and Administration at Western New England University.
“Sierra Club Foundation believes in putting our money where our mouth is when it comes to investing our assets in investments that take ESG factors and environmental sustainability into account,” said Kevin McGahan, CFO of the Sierra Club Foundation. “Sierra Club Foundation signed onto the Sustainable Retirement Plan pledge because we believe in providing our staff with investment options that help to align their values with the funds they invest in for their retirements."
Currently open for additional signers, the IEN Sustainable Retirements pledge was first adopted by Arizona State University, The ASU Foundation, Chatham University, Lewis & Clark College, and the NorthLight Foundation.
“Institutional retirement plans represent trillions in investments, and we at IEN are committed to ensuring that they offer participants options that align with the transition to a sustainable future, so retirees are not caught ‘holding the bag’ of risky investments that are not positioned for the transition to a more equitable, clean energy and low-carbon economy.”said Georges Dyer, Executive Director of IEN.
The Sustainable Retirements Pledge was first announced at IEN’s Institutional Investor Roundtable during Climate Week in September 2022, to an audience of over 100 endowment trustees, CIOs, investment staff, asset managers, investment consultants, outsourced CIOs, retirement planning experts, sustainability leaders, faculty, and nonprofit partners.
Demand for sustainable investing is increasing. There are nearly $1 trillion in assets held in 403(b) employee retirement plans. ESG assets are predicted to grow to $53 trillion by 2025, which would comprise one-third of all global assets under management. The interest in sustainable investing is also reflected in demands on investment managers, and a stronger connection between investment returns and sustainable outcomes is being established. Including sustainable investment options in 403(b) retirement plans can mitigate investment risk and yield greater economic resilience.
MEDIA CONTACT: Sorelle Ngatchou, Communications and Media Manager, [email protected]
ABOUT IEN
The Intentional Endowments Network (IEN) is a peer learning network of colleges, universities, and other mission-driven institutional investors working together to achieve their risk and return objectives through investment actions that create a thriving, sustainable economy. IEN has more than 200 network members including endowments, asset managers, investment consultants, nonprofit partners, and individuals.
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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up 2023 Summit Special Edition From The Intentional Endowments Network in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-02-10 09:54:19 -0500
Weekly News Round-Up 2023 Summit Special Edition From The Intentional Endowments Network
The IEN Team expresses its heartfelt gratitude to the 300+ individuals that joined us at the University of Miami this week for the 2023 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit!
This week's news focuses on the 2023 Summit's key takeaways and session highlights. We'll resume to our regular News Round-Up next Thursday.
Thank you again for those who were able to join us, and we look forward to sharing more details on this year's Summit soon -- including when and where we'll host the 2024 Summit.
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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up: February 2, 2023 in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-02-06 09:46:21 -0500
Weekly News Round-Up: February 2, 2023
During this Black History Month, we’ll celebrate and honor people of color by including a special section in our weekly news roundup highlighting black stories, perspectives, and opportunities in the investment industry throughout the month of February.
We also invite you to join our Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion plenary virtually at the 2023 Higher education Leadership Summit to learn how to prioritize equity in the endowment and investment process.
In this week’s news, Cambridge Associates released its biennial client survey, a climate accountability package is introduced in California, and V Square Asset Management releases its ESG trends report.
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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up: January 26, 2023 in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-02-06 09:44:17 -0500
Weekly News Round-Up: January 26, 2023
We’re excited to announce that virtual registration for the 2023 Higher Education Climate Leader Summit is now open! For those unable to attend the 2023 Summit in person, a virtual ticket will give you access to 10 live-streamed sessions, including main stage plenaries, keynotes and concurrent sessions across endowment management and sustainability leadership topics. Register and join us virtually here!
In this week’s news, we’ve welcomed Five New Sustainable Investing Leaders to our Steering Committee and released the third episode of the Beyond Carbon Podcast featuring Jeff Mindlin, CIO of Arizona State University.
Additionally, ISS ESG releases its Actionable Insights – Top ESG Themes In 2023 report, NYC pension funds file proposals with four North American Banks, and the Tipping Point Fund awards $3.2 million in grants to 16 organizations, including IEN, to advance the impact investing space.
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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up: January 19, 2023 in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-02-06 09:39:16 -0500
Weekly News Round-Up: January 19, 2023
We’d like to express our gratitude for those that were able to join this week’s webinar with Wespath. IEN Members can view the webinar recording here.If you haven’t yet, take a moment to register for the 2023 Higher Education Leadership Summit and preview the 2023 Summit’s inspiring and action oriented agenda.
In this week’s news, we’re thrilled to announce Tim Coffin as the newest member of IEN’s Net Zero Committee, and to welcome 10 student teams to the 2023 Student Corporate Engagement Challenge!
We're also sharing a call to action for investors to reaffirm their support for sustainable investing, especially at this time when the viability of ESG is being questioned. Learn more and sign on here.
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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up: January 12, 2023 in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-02-06 09:35:10 -0500
Weekly News Round-Up: January 12, 2023
There is still time to register and join higher education leaders, sustainable investing experts, and other stakeholders to advance higher education sustainability at the 2023 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit in Coral Gables, FL.
In case you missed it, register for our upcoming learning opportunity with Wespath on systemic risk and risk mitigation scheduled for next week,Tuesday, January 17 at 1 PM ET. Learn more here.
In this week’s news, the Milken Institute releases a report on inclusive capitalism for asset owners, Washington State begins to cap carbon emissions, and Church Commissioners for England creates a fund to counter the effects of slavery.
As a reminder, our offices will be closed on Monday, January 16 as we observe Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
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Bella Alvarez published IEN JEDI Initiative Quarterly Call Q1 2023 in IEN JEDI Initiative Quarterly Call Q1 2023 | March 21, 2023 | 1 PM - 2:30 PM ET 2023-01-31 15:30:57 -0500
IEN JEDI Initiative Quarterly Call Q1 2023
March 21, 2023
1 PM - 2:30 PM
Register
The JEDI Initiative seeks to start the education and advocacy process for endowments to consider JEDI factors in the investment process in the following ways:
- Enhancing diversity within the university investment offices by ensuring people are not excluded deliberately or through implicit bias on the basis of race, ethnicity, or gender.
- Evaluating the performance of companies and funds with regard to diversity, equity, and inclusion in their boards, management, and staff in the investment process and engage with companies and funds to improve on these issues.
- Identifying minority-led investment managers.
- Making investments that benefit women, low-income communities, and communities of color.
- Supporting finance and investment education of diverse students to build a pipeline of talent.
We advance the conversation on this agenda through a series of educational and peer-networking activities, including events, webinars, and white papers.
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Fall 2022 Newsletter
The energy crisis in Europe and rising energy costs heading into the winter in the U.S. remind us of the urgent need for a transition to a regenerative low-carbon economy.
Over the last few months, IEN's justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) work was included in the 2022 AASHE Anthology; we contributed to a NACUBO report that speaks to our work on supporting the next generation of sustainable investing leaders. We also launched our Sustainable Retirement Plans Pledge and the keynote speaker of our September in-person roundtable was highlighted in The GreenFin Interview: NAACP's CEO on ESG and equity's 'third act.'
We're excited to continue these conversations at our 2023 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit, taking place February 5-7, 2023, in Coral Gable, FL. Register for the Summit to further your climate, equity, and sustainable investing goals.
Lastly, our Corporate Engagement Challenge sign-up form is open for students interested in expanding their sustainable investing knowledge and network. The challenge asks students to pitch an investment in a publicly-traded company that addresses inequality and the climate crisis. Please help share the news with students you know!
Warm Regards,
The IEN Team
Spotlight: 2023 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit The 2023 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit will take place Feb 5-7, 2023 in Miami, FL! At the 2023 Summit, we will engage in conversations and hear from leaders in the field on topics including Integrating justice, equity, diversity and inclusion and net zero goals into the investment process, advocating for sustainable investing options in employee retirement plans, and driving the education and research needed to shift to a low-carbon, equitable society and economy.
Hear from inspiring speakers, including keynote speaker Rhiana Gunn-Wright, Climate Policy Director at the Roosevelt Institute and Co-Author of the Green New Deal, Doug Chau, Chief Risk Officer at University of Toronto Asset Management, Tamara Larsen, Partner at Mercer and US ESG Investments Practice Leader, and Jeff Mindlin, Chief Investment Officer at the Arizona State University Foundation.
Sponsorship opportunities are available! Sponsors of the 2023 Climate Leadership Summit will help drive the adoption of new strategies to reduce direct climate impacts of colleges and universities and inform endowment investing strategies that accelerate a just transition to a carbon-neutral economy.
To learn more about how you can showcase your leadership as a sponsor, email Harrison Ungar at [email protected]
Updates from the Network New IEN Members We're pleased to welcome the following new members to the network:
IEN Team News Yousra Bentakfa,
New IEN Sustainable Investing Intern
We’re happy to welcome a new intern to the IEN team for Fall 2022. Yousra is a student at Bunker Hill Community College, where she is working toward an associate degree in Business Administration. Upon completing this degree, She plans to transfer to UMASS of Boston to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Finance. Welcome to the team, Yousra!
Recent Webinars IEN Members can access the following recent webinars through our member-only archive:
- Voting Your Values With As You Vote | September 29, 2022
- Lunch & Learn with MSCI | August 22, 2022
Upcoming Events Please join us for our upcoming IEN events:
- Investing in a Shifting Food Supply System: Addressing the Inefficiencies That Contribute to Food Insecurity | November 16, 2022
- [MEMBER ONLY] Net Zero Portfolios Initiative Quarterly Call | IEN, Dec 1, 2022
- [Member-Only] JEDI Quarterly Working Group Call | IEN, Dec 13, 2022
- 2023 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit | IEN, Feb 5 - 7, 2023
Other Events:
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RI USA 2022 | Responsible Investor, Dec 6-7, 2022, New York
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Mission Investors Exchange 2022 National Conference | MIE, Dec 5-7, 2022, Baltimore MD
- GreenFin 2023 | GreenBiz, Jun 26 -28, 2023, New Omni Seaport, Boston, MA
Event Recap: Institutional Investor Roundtable at the Nest Summit Campus, Climate Week NYC, September This fall, IEN hosted an Institutional Investor Roundtable at The Nest Summit as a part of Climate Week NYC. The roundtable brought together higher education leaders, endowment staff, asset managers, investment consultants, and nonprofit partners for an interactive set of conversations on mission-aligned investing, including Net Zero Portfolios, JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion) sustainable investment options in retirement plans. The Roundtable participants left the half-day event inspired with practical strategies to take immediate climate action.
Participants reactions:
"I woke up this morning thinking about what an inspiring roundtable event …thank you to all at IEN for the hard work of organizing it. It was wonderful to network and learn from so many interesting and committed organizations and people.”
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"Of all my Climate Week events, the IEN afternoon stood out as being a place where investors came together to work on hard issues. I have had many follow ups and really appreciate your leadership in putting together a format that encourages real dialogue and action."
Learn more about the event including recordings of the keynote with CEO and President of the NAACP, Derrick Johnson, and three other panel conversations.
Event sponsored by: Impax Asset management, Impact Shares, Breckinridge Capital Advisor, Schroders, Entrust Global
Lead sponsor
IEN New Steering Committee Members IEN welcomes four new Steering Committee members:
George Suttles
Executive Director, Commonfund Institute at Commonfund
Geri Melchiorre
Senior Director of Investments for the University of Illinois System
Cornelia Horner
Strategic Initiatives and Communications Lead at University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)
Kunle Apampa
Head of Client Solutions & Partnership at Capricorn Investment Group
Learn more about IEN's Steering Committee members here
IEN's Focus Areas SIILK (Sustainable & Impact Investing Learning & Knowledge) Network We’re excited to have contributed to a NACUBO Report on student-managed investment funds, published in September and titled: “Student-Run Endowments, Explained.” This report builds off of summary data on student-run endowments collected over the past two years by NACUBO and TIAA, through the annual NACUBO-TIAA Study of Endowments.
The sign-up form is open for our 2023 Corporate Engagement Challenge, now in its fourth year! The Challenge invites students to pitch an investment in a publicly-traded company, and include in that recommendation a shareholder engagement strategy focused on addressing inequality and the climate crisis. Benefits to participation include access to mentorship and networking opportunities, free and discounted registration to educational workshops and industry events, presentation opportunities, and multimedia interview opportunities.
If you’re a sustainable investment professional looking for ways to support students just beginning their journey in the field, you can sign up to be a mentor for the Challenge!
This quarter we also reconvened the SIILK network for a collaborative call, featuring a presentation from NU Impact, one of the few undergraduate student-led impact investing funds in the country.
Finally, firms interested in sponsoring the Challenge can learn more about partnerships on the SIILK page and contact Nicole Torrico to set up a time to learn more.
Supported by TIAA & Federated Hermes
Sustainable Retirements: Updates from IEN’s Climate Week Roundtable at The Nest Summit in New York City In case you weren’t able to join us during Climate Week in September, or you wish to revisit the inspiring conversations, we are excited to share the video recordings of our Keynote Address and panel discussions!
We also announced the launch of our Sustainable Retirement Plans Pledge during Climate Week. The Pledge, drafted in support with Second Nature and The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), establishes that university “employees deserve a range of sustainable investing retirement fund options that consider environmental, social, and governance factors, consistent with the goals of reducing risk, protecting capital, and enhancing financial returns.”
The Pledge was first adopted by Arizona State University, The ASU Foundation, Chatham University, and Lewis & Clark College. We are excited to announce three new Pledge signatories: Bard College, NorthLight Foundation, and The Sierra Club Foundation! The Pledge remains open for additional signatories. Please share this Pledge with decision makers at your institutions, or with your clients. Institutions can sign here or contact Chris Walker at [email protected] for more information.
Read the full Guide to Sustainable Retirements here.
Supported by Natixis, Schroders, and TIAA
Net Zero Endowments This quarter saw a new net zero portoflio commitment from San Francisco State University Foundation and fossil fuel divestment commitments from the University of Washington and over 30 faith-based institutions. The University of Toronto completed its fossil fuel divestment and ramped-up ambition of it's portfolio decarbonization targets as part of it net zero portoflio goal. And Arizona State University was one of few endowments to post postitive investment returns in this year's market, crediting its sustainable investing strategy (which includes a net zero commitment) with bolstering its returns.
IEN’s Executive Director, Georges Dyer shared commented on the surge of higher education institution divestment commitments in the American Association of Colleges and Universities’ Liberal Education piece and, IEN will be launching the “Beyond Carbon” podcast in partnership with FFI Solutions will have a strong focus on Net Zero Portfolios, and also explore other ESG issues, justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion; and the role of capital and business in society.
Learn more about the Net Zero Endowments Initiative here and members are invited to register and join our [Member-Only] Net zero Initiative quarterly call scheduled for December 1 at 1:30 PM ET. Registration is open for all IEN members interested in joining these conversations.
Supported by TIAA / Nuveen, Wellington Management, ISS ESG, and Adasina Social Capital
Justice, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (JEDI) This quarter, IEN’s JEDI investing work was included in AASHE’s 2022's Anthology on Racial Equity and Social Justice.The anthology explores how racial equity, social justice, diversity and inclusion are integral to sustainability. We also joined the HBCU Business Dean's Roundtable as part of growing efforts to work with HBCUs on mission aligned investing in retirements, endowments, and student education on sustainable finance.
We continue our quarterly JEDI Working group calls to advance racial equity throughout the investment process. Our next call is scheduled for December 13th, at 1pm ET with Congressman Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO 5th District) and Robert Marchman,Senior Policy Advisor for Diversity & Inclusion at the SEC to explore diversity data disclosures at the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Learn more about the IEN’s JEDI Initiative and register for our next call.
Supported by Prime Buchholz and Global Endowment Management
Investment Governance Working Group The Investment Governance Working Group had its first quarterly meeting this fall with presentations by San Francisco State University Foundation President, Jeff Jackanicz and Mike Pearce from Cambridge Associates on their recent DEI policy integration into their Investment Policy Statement with credit given to IEN and fellow members.
Bill Burckart and Monique Aiken from The Investment Integration Project gave a thought provoking presentation on system level investing and the launch of their new SAIL Platform, and Nancy Wright from Competent Boards walked the group through best practices for board members and trustees with regard to ESG and fiduciary duty and their ESG Certificate.
If you would like to join the Steering Committee of the Investment Governance Working Group or consider sponsoring this initiative, please reach out to Harrison Ungar at [email protected].
Shareholder Engagement This Fall, we hosted a Learning Café and Webinar on As You Vote, a proxy voting platform that empowers endowments to vote their proxies in line with their ESG mandates, using a time and cost efficient platform with optional customization.
We’re continuing to support Warren Wilson College in their shareholder engagement work. You can read about their success during the 2021-2022 engagement season in this Briefing Paper, which highlights their 80% success rate in shifting corporate behavior.
Our Corporate Engagement Challenge is entering its fourth year, and we invite you to sign up to mentor a student team, and share the sign-up form with any interested students.
Featured Resources Resources from IEN Below are some recent resources from the Intentional Endowments Network and other organizations. To see more reports, articles, videos and other resources by topic, visit the resource page on our website.
From IEN’s Blog:
Other Resources from the Field - Power Transition Trends 2022 | Bloomberg Philanthropies
- The Sustainability Trends Report 2022 | Generation Investment Management
- Incentivizing Supply Chain Decarbonization Through Longer-term Investments | WBCSD
In the News IEN in the News Below is a sampling of recent news articles we've posted in our Weekly News Round-Up, ranging in topics from Sustainable, Impact and ESG Investing, Climate Risk, Science & Regulation, Sustainability in Higher Education, Divestment, Clean Energy, and more. To receive news updates directly in your inbox every Friday, manage your mailing preferences here.
IEN in the News:
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Student-Run Endowments, Explained | NACUBO, September 2022
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The GreenFin Interview: NAACP’s CEO on ESG and equity’s 'third act' | Greenbiz, September 2022
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Not-for-Profit, But for Sustainability | Mercer, September 2022
- No Sustainability Without Justice - The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, September 2022
Read more coverage of the network here.
Recent Announcements About Higher Education Endowments Aligning Their Investments with Institutional Goals Other News:
Read coverage of recent announcements by endowments and other asset owners about their progress:
- Princeton University’s Board of Trustees voted to disassociate from 90 fossil fuel companies last month, a decision that was a culmination of a two-year process that included widened net zero goals and input from stakeholders across the campus.
- San Francisco State University has updated its IPS to reflect its deepened commitments to climate and racial action, including committing to reach net-zero emissions by 2040 and divestment from fossil fuel companies by 2025. SFSU previously committed to divest from fossil fuels in 2014.
- Coventry University became the 100th UK university to divest from fossil fuels this week when it announced plans to divest its $50.4m investment portfolio of fossil fuel holdings. With this announcement, 65% of the UK’s higher education sector has made some type of fossil fuel divestment commitment.
- A board meeting of the Chicago Public School Teachers' Pension & Retirement Fund resulted in a commitment to divest from fossil fuel companies by the end of 2027. The fund also approved a resolution to engage with fossil fuel companies the fund currently has holdings in.
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