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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up: April 6, 2023 in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-04-24 14:32:02 -0400
Weekly News Round-Up: April 6, 2023
We are excited to announce that we have launched registration for our 2024 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit! Take advantage of our lowest rates by registering today to join your peers in the sustainable investing space!
IEN Members can now watch the recording of last week’s webinar on “The Case for Diverse and Woman Owned Alternative GP Staking and Seeding.” We invite you to register for IEN’s upcoming learning opportunities this month and next!
First, join Align Climate Capital on April 25 at 11 am ET to learn about the impact the Inflation Reduction Act will have on climate investing. Next, Able Noser will join IEN on May 3 at 2 pm ET to illustrate how ESG consensus scores can optimize shareholder engagement.
In this week’s news, the University of Portsmouth divests from fossil fuels, the president of Impax Asset Management defends sustainable investing, and the higher ed sector examines how the anti-ESG push will affect college endowments.
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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up: March 30, 2023 in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-04-24 14:29:58 -0400
Weekly News Round-Up: March 30, 2023
The proxy season is underway. We've revamped our sign-on opportunities page with the latest proxy resolutions, voting guides and letters in support of ESG related initiatives to help you vote your proxy ballots and champion sustainable investing.
In this week’s news, Terra Alpha releases its 2022 Impact Report, the CEO of Impax says asset managers are running out of investable green assets, and the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change launched its Net Zero Engagement Initiative
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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up: March 23, 2023 in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-04-24 14:28:41 -0400
Weekly News Round-Up: March 23, 2023
We’ll be closing Women's History Month next week with an all-female-panel webinar. Register to learn why GP seeding in diverse alternative asset managers remains insufficient, and how support of these managers aligns with institutional values on March 30, at 1pm ET. Register here.
In this week’s news, the University of Manchester publishes its endowment investments climate report, the UK Universities Climate Network releases its climate report, and Ceres’ CEO Mindy Lubber speaks out against the ESG backlash.
If you haven’t yet, make sure to register to join our final initiative call of this quarter. Participants of the Net Zero initiative call will discuss how to avoid greenwashing in Net Zero commitments including practical steps on Net Zero policy implementation.
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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up: March 16, 2023 in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-04-24 14:27:27 -0400
Weekly News Round-Up: March 16, 2023
In celebration of Women’s History Month, we'll be hosting a webinar on The Case for Diverse and Woman Owned Alternative GP Staking and Seeding on March 30 at 1 pm ET. Register to learn the process for identifying women owned GP firms and how to support them.
We also invite IEN- members to sign up for our next JEDI focused initiative call on March 21 for a discussion around quantifying impact and preparing for DEI disclosure requirements. In addition, the fourth episode of Beyond Carbon podcast featuring major league baseball player Brent Suter is now available for streaming.
In this week’s news, FFI Solutions releases an updated version of its Net Zero Blueprint for Institutional Investors, Biden gives the OK for the controversial Willow Oil Drilling Project, and Larry Fink releases his annual letter.
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Bella Alvarez published Weekly News Round-Up: March 9, 2023 in Weekly News Round-Ups 2023-04-24 14:25:52 -0400
Weekly News Round-Up: March 9, 2023
We’re excited to announce that Felicia Davis has been recognized as IEN’s first Leadership Award recipient for her excellence in championing our network’s efforts to engage more HBCUs in climate justice conversations. We also invite IEN members to register for next week’s Investment Governance Initiative conversation.
In this week’s news, Vanguard faces pressure from investors, RBC moves to tie incentive compensation for CEOs to its climate strategy, and BlackRock and Rockefeller begin to set their priorities for proxy voting season.
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Bella Alvarez published IEN and Second Nature Webinar: Protect Higher Ed’s Freedom to Consider Sustainability Factors in Portfolios in Past Webinars 2023-04-24 13:15:38 -0400
IEN and Second Nature Webinar: Protect Higher Ed’s Freedom to Consider Sustainability Factors in Portfolios
May 16, 2023 | 2 PM ET
Our economy's prioritization of short-term returns over long-term value creation has exacerbated the issues of climate change, racial injustice, and widening economic inequality. Higher education institutions are making critical choices every day about how to operate in a society and economy facing multiple intersecting crises.
Colleges and universities allocate $650 billion in capital toward endowment assets and $890 billion toward retirement funds. These institutions have the power to adopt investment strategies that create an equitable, low-carbon, and regenerative society and economy. However, over the past year, there has been a concerted effort by political forces attempting to discredit the use of environmental, social and governance (ESG) information in the investment process. The turmoil has been stoked via media campaigns and state laws that ban certain investment management firms that have been vocal about the (financial and societal) value of considering issues like climate change and diversity, equity and inclusion in the investment process.
Higher education institutions are influential actors with power to drive systemic change – to benefit themselves and society as a whole. In this webinar, we will discuss why political attacks against sustainable investing are relevant to higher education, share the current sustainable investing landscape, and invite you to take action to protect higher education’s ability to consider sustainability metrics when investing endowment and retirement funds.
Recording
Slides
Speakers
Steven Rothstein, Managing Director, Ceres Accelerator for Sustainable Capital Markets, Ceres
Tim Carter, President, Second NatureGeorges Dyer, Executive Director, IEN
Brooke Barton, Vice President, Innovation & Impact Evaluation, Ceres
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Bella Alvarez published IEN JEDI Initiative Q3 2022 Call | September 9, 2022 in Past Webinars 2023-04-11 09:25:13 -0400
IEN JEDI Initiative Q3 2022 Call | September 9, 2022
September 9, 2022
This JEDI Quarterly call, led by JEDI co-chairs Dorien Nunez and Angela Outlaw-Matheny, featured presentations from leaders in the diversity and equity space in asset management. Speakers included:
- Bhakti Mirchandani, Managing Director, Responsible Investing at Trinity Church Wall Street and Co-Founder and Steering Committee Member of Institutional Allocators for Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (IADEI)
- Stephanie Westen, Investment Operations Analyst, University of Rochester
- Jamie Lu, Manager, Investments, CommonSpirit Health
- Gil Garcia, Garcia Hamilton & Associates
- Lisa Renstrom & Kate Simpson, Co-Founders at ValuesAdvisor
Recording:
Meeting Notes
IEN's JEDI Initiative is comprised of senior leaders from higher education, the investment industry, foundations, and non-profit partners. The group seeks to leverage the wide networks and expertise of the members and enable cross-sectoral collaboration to ensure that this work is championed by a diverse range of decision-makers involved in the endowment investment process.
Learn more about the JEDI Initiative on its homepage, or contact IEN's Director of JEDI, Paris Prince, at [email protected]
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Bella Alvarez published Net Zero Endowments Initiative Call | June 22, 2023 in Past Webinars 2023-04-10 15:25:15 -0400
Net Zero Endowments Initiative Call | June 22, 2023
June 22, 2023 | 1:30-3:00 pm EST
This initiative supports higher education institutions in learning about Net Zero Portfolios, making commitments, and participating in shareholder engagement efforts to get portfolio companies onto decarbonization pathways aligned with the 1.5 degree C warming target of the Paris Climate Agreement.
IEN convenes and supports endowments in learning about Net Zero Portfolios, making commitments, and participating in shareholder engagement efforts to get portfolio companies onto decarbonization pathways aligned with the 1.5 degree C warming target of the Paris Climate Agreement.
If you or your organization would like to learn more or participate in this initiative, please contact Georges Dyer at [email protected].
Recording:
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Regina Cho
Regina Cho, Investment Director, Crewcial Partners
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Bella Alvarez published IEN Webinar: How the Inflation Reduction Act Supercharges Climate Investing in Past Webinars 2023-04-05 16:54:27 -0400
IEN Webinar: How the Inflation Reduction Act Supercharges Climate Investing
April 25, 2023 | 11 AM ET
The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) is one of the most significant climate policies ever adopted by the United States with the injection of more than $360 billions of incentives to scale climate solutions. What are investors doing to capitalize on the advancement associated with the IRA, and how are they implementing solutions? These three industry professionals talked through the IRA and explored how they are maximizing this new policy tailwind with highlighted case studies.
Speakers:
Brendan Bell, Chief Operating Officer at Aligned Climate Capital
Radhika Shroff, Managing Director, Private Equity Impact Investing at Nuveen
Sydney Bopp, Partner at Boundary Stone PartnersRecording:
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Bella Alvarez published IEN Webinar: The Case for Diverse and Woman Owned Alternative GP Staking and Seeding in Past Webinars 2023-04-03 12:32:55 -0400
IEN Webinar: The Case for Diverse and Woman Owned Alternative GP Staking and Seeding
March 30, 3023
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 following:
● 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 (Moderator)
Recording:
Slides:
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Bella Alvarez published JEDI Initiative Quarterly Call Q2 in Past Webinars 2023-03-27 09:55:03 -0400
JEDI Initiative Quarterly Call Q2
June 13, 2023 | 1 pm ET
Preview the Agenda
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.
JEDI Initiative Call Recap
We held our JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion) quarterly call featuring four industry leaders' presentations on various aspects of racial equity investing. See details below
Tynesia Boyea-Robinson, President and CEO at CapEQ, presented on the The Investor Blueprint, a tool kit that outlines the full scope of what it means to invest equitably and setting the norms for all investing to be equitable.
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Kendall Bedford, Impact Fellow at SustainVC, shared her personal experience and research on DEI within the impact focused private market investing.
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George Suttles, Executive Director at the Commonfund Institute presented on the mission of the Commonfund Institute and his strategy for identifying diverse asset managers including implementation strategies.
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Monique Aiken, Managing Director at The Investment Integration Project (TIIP), shared on why and how to connect investors’ action to racial equity as an investment risk by reorienting the strategy level from a portfolio approach to a holistic approach.
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Bella Alvarez published Webinar: Optimizing Shareholder Engagement with ESG Consensus Scores in Past Webinars 2023-03-20 15:21:47 -0400
Webinar: Optimizing Shareholder Engagement with ESG Consensus Scores
May 3, 2023 at 2 pm ET
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
Recording
ESG Returns article referenced by Brian
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 ESG & Impact Investing Forum 2023 in Past IEN Events 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 Past Webinars 2023-03-09 15:47:54 -0500
Investment Governance Quarterly Call | March 15, 2023 | 2 pm ET
March 15, 2023
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
Recording:
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.