Investing in Renewable Energy - Three Important Considera...
By Scott Hill, Clean Energy Advisors As direct investing in renewable energy becomes more common, especially investments available to a wider group of investors, it's important to remember there are three specific considerations you'll want to address first before you get into the common due diligence information we're all used to (management team, track record, financials, etc.). These three considerations are technology, development, and the off-taker. Renewable energy is advancing at an impressive rate. Universities, labs, and private companies are exploring ways to create and improve renewable and sustainable energy sources. While some of these technologies hold great promise in the future, you need to be mindful of how "proven" the technology is today. Some renewable energy technologies have enough...
Tony Cortese serves as moderator of panel discussion
On Tuesday, May 19th, 2015, WISE and BASIC, with the guidance of the Intentional Endowment Network, hosted a panel discussion in Boston focused on ESG and educational endowments in the U.S. today. Tony Cortese, Principal of the Intentional Endowment Network, moderated the panel discussion. Other panelists included Alice DonnaSelva, Consultant at Prime Buchholz & Associates, Christi Electris, Senior Associate at Croatan Institute, and Bill Jarvis, Managing Director at Commonfund Institute. In total, there were 40 participants from colleges, universities, and the investment industry. Together they explored a wide range of issues surrounding higher education endowment investments. These topics included everything from fossil fuel divestment, to ESG integration, to stakeholder action, and how to move the agenda forward in the endowment...
How Hampshire Invests
How Hampshire Invests By Jonathan Lash, President, Hampshire College There is growing debate — much of it driven by students — about the obligation of mission-driven nonprofit organizations to consider non-economic issues in their choice of investments. Society exempts us from taxation because we serve public purposes. Donors support us because they believe that doing so contributes to the common good. Each institution has its own mission, values, culture, and traditions to consider in making decisions about fiscal responsibility and moral obligation, but it is difficult to understand why an institution would refuse even to discuss the issues. For those of us engaged in education, this is no minor question: College and university endowments total more than $346 billion —...
Should MIT Divest? A Debate on Fossil Fuel Investment
Yesterday, Tony Cortese, a Principal of the Intentional Endowments Network, moderated a debate on whether or not MIT should divest of fossil fuels. Click here or on the image below to watch the full program on the MIT site. A description of the event and speakers from MIT's website: Join this event of the MIT Climate Change Conversation to learn about different facets of divestment from fossil fuel companies and explore whether MIT should divest its endowment as part of its response to climate change. Six prominent voices in the dialogue on climate change and energy will be staged as two teams that present PRO-divestment and AGAINST-divestment arguments in a classic debate format. The discussion will provide a nuanced view of...
Student Action at San Francisco State Foundation Board Me...
Students marching and carrying signs outside of the San Francisco State Foundation’s Board meeting on February 5th, 2015 had a slightly different message than most divestment protesters: “Thank You.” The demonstration was a show of student support regarding the Board’s decision in May 2013 to divest from coal and tar sands companies. Through open and respectful engagement between students, administrators, and the board, San Francisco State became the first public university to make the commitment to divest. The foundation has also voted to look into the option of divesting from all fossil fuel companies in the future. Last month, Robert Nava, President of the SFSU Foundation, spoke at the Intentionally Designed Endowment Forum at Arizona State. He told...
Living Green
David Levin published an excellent article about Anthony Cortese in the Winter 2015 Edition of the Harvard School of Public Health Magazine. The article describes Tony's passion for the environment and his subsequently extensive environmental career from being one of the first employees of the Environmental Protection Agency in 1970, to his most recent project, launching the Intentional Endowments Network this past summer. Read the article on HSPH's website: Living Green. David Levin is a Boston-based science journalist. He can be reached through his website at www.therealdavidlevin.com. Photo: Kent Dayton/ Harvard Chan -- On a clear day, the air outside Anthony Cortese’s office in downtown Boston is filled with the unmistakable smell of the ocean—a pungent, brinelike perfume that hangs in the...
U.S. SIF Trends Report 2014: Why SRI is Here to Stay
Sustainable, Responsible, and Impact (SRI)* investing is here to stay, and is only getting stronger with time. The U.S. SIF Foundation, has been tracking the industry for the past 10 years and recently published their biennial Trends Report highlighting the significant growth and advancement of the industry. According to the study, the total US-domiciled assets under management using SRI strategies increased 76 percent in the past two years, expanding from $3.74 trillion at the start of 2012 to $6.57 trillion at the start of 2014, representing nearly 18 percent of the $36.8 trillion in total assets under management. Furthermore, in the past two years, assets incorporating ESG factors have increased threefold to $4.80 trillion. What is pushing this growth? The...
The ACUPCC Summit, Risky Business & Higher Education Sust...
Last month Second Nature hosted the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) 2014 Climate Leadership Summit. More than 200 presidents, senior administrators, and sustainability champions from colleges and universities across the country attended. Among the highlights was a keynote address by Kate Gordon, Executive Director of the Risky Business project, which was spearheaded by Henry Paulson, Michael Bloomberg, and Tom Steyer. She clearly articulated what made this report unique and so important. First it was a bipartisan effort, that just focused on the facts in terms of what our best science is telling us we can expect in terms of climate impacts in various regions. To stay out of the political fray around climate change, they did not...
The ACUPCC Summit, Risky Business & Higher Education Sust...
Last month Second Nature hosted the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) 2014 Climate Leadership Summit. More than 200 presidents, senior administrators, and sustainability champions from colleges and universities across the country attended. Among the highlights was a keynote address by Kate Gordon, Executive Director of the Risky Business project, which was spearheaded by Henry Paulson, Michael Bloomberg, and Tom Steyer. She clearly articulated what made this report unique and so important. First it was a bipartisan effort, that just focused on the facts in terms of what our best science is telling us we can expect in terms of climate impacts in various regions. To stay out of the political fray around climate change, they did not...
U.S. SIF Trends Report 2014: Why SRI is Here to Stay
Sustainable, Responsible, and Impact (SRI)* investing is here to stay, and is only getting stronger with time. The U.S. SIF Foundation, has been tracking the industry for the past 10 years and recently published their biennial Trends Report highlighting the significant growth and advancement of the industry. According to the study, the total US-domiciled assets under management using SRI strategies increased 76 percent in the past two years, expanding from $3.74 trillion at the start of 2012 to $6.57 trillion at the start of 2014, representing nearly 18 percent of the $36.8 trillion in total assets under management. Furthermore, in the past two years, assets incorporating ESG factors have increased threefold to $4.80 trillion. What is pushing this growth? The...
Living Green
David Levin published an excellent article about Anthony Cortese in the Winter 2015 Edition of the Harvard School of Public Health Magazine. The article describes Tony's passion for the environment and his subsequently extensive environmental career from being one of the first employees of the Environmental Protection Agency in 1970, to his most recent project, launching the Intentional Endowments Network this past summer. Read the article on HSPH's website: Living Green. David Levin is a Boston-based science journalist. He can be reached through his website at www.therealdavidlevin.com. Photo: Kent Dayton/ Harvard Chan -- On a clear day, the air outside Anthony Cortese’s office in downtown Boston is filled with the unmistakable smell of the ocean—a pungent, brinelike perfume that hangs in the...
Student Action at San Francisco State Foundation Board Me...
Students marching and carrying signs outside of the San Francisco State Foundation’s Board meeting on February 5th, 2015 had a slightly different message than most divestment protesters: “Thank You.” The demonstration was a show of student support regarding the Board’s decision in May 2013 to divest from coal and tar sands companies. Through open and respectful engagement between students, administrators, and the board, San Francisco State became the first public university to make the commitment to divest. The foundation has also voted to look into the option of divesting from all fossil fuel companies in the future. Last month, Robert Nava, President of the SFSU Foundation, spoke at the Intentionally Designed Endowment Forum at Arizona State. He told...
Should MIT Divest? A Debate on Fossil Fuel Investment
Yesterday, Tony Cortese, a Principal of the Intentional Endowments Network, moderated a debate on whether or not MIT should divest of fossil fuels. Click here or on the image below to watch the full program on the MIT site. A description of the event and speakers from MIT's website: Join this event of the MIT Climate Change Conversation to learn about different facets of divestment from fossil fuel companies and explore whether MIT should divest its endowment as part of its response to climate change. Six prominent voices in the dialogue on climate change and energy will be staged as two teams that present PRO-divestment and AGAINST-divestment arguments in a classic debate format. The discussion will provide a nuanced view of...
How Hampshire Invests
How Hampshire Invests By Jonathan Lash, President, Hampshire College There is growing debate — much of it driven by students — about the obligation of mission-driven nonprofit organizations to consider non-economic issues in their choice of investments. Society exempts us from taxation because we serve public purposes. Donors support us because they believe that doing so contributes to the common good. Each institution has its own mission, values, culture, and traditions to consider in making decisions about fiscal responsibility and moral obligation, but it is difficult to understand why an institution would refuse even to discuss the issues. For those of us engaged in education, this is no minor question: College and university endowments total more than $346 billion —...
Tony Cortese serves as moderator of panel discussion
On Tuesday, May 19th, 2015, WISE and BASIC, with the guidance of the Intentional Endowment Network, hosted a panel discussion in Boston focused on ESG and educational endowments in the U.S. today. Tony Cortese, Principal of the Intentional Endowment Network, moderated the panel discussion. Other panelists included Alice DonnaSelva, Consultant at Prime Buchholz & Associates, Christi Electris, Senior Associate at Croatan Institute, and Bill Jarvis, Managing Director at Commonfund Institute. In total, there were 40 participants from colleges, universities, and the investment industry. Together they explored a wide range of issues surrounding higher education endowment investments. These topics included everything from fossil fuel divestment, to ESG integration, to stakeholder action, and how to move the agenda forward in the endowment...
Investing in Renewable Energy - Three Important Considera...
By Scott Hill, Clean Energy Advisors As direct investing in renewable energy becomes more common, especially investments available to a wider group of investors, it's important to remember there are three specific considerations you'll want to address first before you get into the common due diligence information we're all used to (management team, track record, financials, etc.). These three considerations are technology, development, and the off-taker. Renewable energy is advancing at an impressive rate. Universities, labs, and private companies are exploring ways to create and improve renewable and sustainable energy sources. While some of these technologies hold great promise in the future, you need to be mindful of how "proven" the technology is today. Some renewable energy technologies have enough...
How Hampshire Invests
How Hampshire Invests By Jonathan Lash, President, Hampshire College There is growing debate — much of it driven by students — about the obligation of mission-driven nonprofit organizations to consider non-economic issues in their choice of investments. Society exempts us from taxation because we serve public purposes. Donors support us because they believe that doing so contributes to the common good. Each institution has its own mission, values, culture, and traditions to consider in making decisions about fiscal responsibility and moral obligation, but it is difficult to understand why an institution would refuse even to discuss the issues. For those of us engaged in education, this is no minor question: College and university endowments total more than $346 billion —...
Investing in Renewable Energy - Three Important Considera...
By Scott Hill, Clean Energy Advisors As direct investing in renewable energy becomes more common, especially investments available to a wider group of investors, it's important to remember there are three specific considerations you'll want to address first before you get into the common due diligence information we're all used to (management team, track record, financials, etc.). These three considerations are technology, development, and the off-taker. Renewable energy is advancing at an impressive rate. Universities, labs, and private companies are exploring ways to create and improve renewable and sustainable energy sources. While some of these technologies hold great promise in the future, you need to be mindful of how "proven" the technology is today. Some renewable energy technologies have enough...
Living Green
David Levin published an excellent article about Anthony Cortese in the Winter 2015 Edition of the Harvard School of Public Health Magazine. The article describes Tony's passion for the environment and his subsequently extensive environmental career from being one of the first employees of the Environmental Protection Agency in 1970, to his most recent project, launching the Intentional Endowments Network this past summer. Read the article on HSPH's website: Living Green. David Levin is a Boston-based science journalist. He can be reached through his website at www.therealdavidlevin.com. Photo: Kent Dayton/ Harvard Chan -- On a clear day, the air outside Anthony Cortese’s office in downtown Boston is filled with the unmistakable smell of the ocean—a pungent, brinelike perfume that hangs in the...
Should MIT Divest? A Debate on Fossil Fuel Investment
Yesterday, Tony Cortese, a Principal of the Intentional Endowments Network, moderated a debate on whether or not MIT should divest of fossil fuels. Click here or on the image below to watch the full program on the MIT site. A description of the event and speakers from MIT's website: Join this event of the MIT Climate Change Conversation to learn about different facets of divestment from fossil fuel companies and explore whether MIT should divest its endowment as part of its response to climate change. Six prominent voices in the dialogue on climate change and energy will be staged as two teams that present PRO-divestment and AGAINST-divestment arguments in a classic debate format. The discussion will provide a nuanced view of...
Student Action at San Francisco State Foundation Board Me...
Students marching and carrying signs outside of the San Francisco State Foundation’s Board meeting on February 5th, 2015 had a slightly different message than most divestment protesters: “Thank You.” The demonstration was a show of student support regarding the Board’s decision in May 2013 to divest from coal and tar sands companies. Through open and respectful engagement between students, administrators, and the board, San Francisco State became the first public university to make the commitment to divest. The foundation has also voted to look into the option of divesting from all fossil fuel companies in the future. Last month, Robert Nava, President of the SFSU Foundation, spoke at the Intentionally Designed Endowment Forum at Arizona State. He told...
The ACUPCC Summit, Risky Business & Higher Education Sust...
Last month Second Nature hosted the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) 2014 Climate Leadership Summit. More than 200 presidents, senior administrators, and sustainability champions from colleges and universities across the country attended. Among the highlights was a keynote address by Kate Gordon, Executive Director of the Risky Business project, which was spearheaded by Henry Paulson, Michael Bloomberg, and Tom Steyer. She clearly articulated what made this report unique and so important. First it was a bipartisan effort, that just focused on the facts in terms of what our best science is telling us we can expect in terms of climate impacts in various regions. To stay out of the political fray around climate change, they did not...
Tony Cortese serves as moderator of panel discussion
On Tuesday, May 19th, 2015, WISE and BASIC, with the guidance of the Intentional Endowment Network, hosted a panel discussion in Boston focused on ESG and educational endowments in the U.S. today. Tony Cortese, Principal of the Intentional Endowment Network, moderated the panel discussion. Other panelists included Alice DonnaSelva, Consultant at Prime Buchholz & Associates, Christi Electris, Senior Associate at Croatan Institute, and Bill Jarvis, Managing Director at Commonfund Institute. In total, there were 40 participants from colleges, universities, and the investment industry. Together they explored a wide range of issues surrounding higher education endowment investments. These topics included everything from fossil fuel divestment, to ESG integration, to stakeholder action, and how to move the agenda forward in the endowment...
U.S. SIF Trends Report 2014: Why SRI is Here to Stay
Sustainable, Responsible, and Impact (SRI)* investing is here to stay, and is only getting stronger with time. The U.S. SIF Foundation, has been tracking the industry for the past 10 years and recently published their biennial Trends Report highlighting the significant growth and advancement of the industry. According to the study, the total US-domiciled assets under management using SRI strategies increased 76 percent in the past two years, expanding from $3.74 trillion at the start of 2012 to $6.57 trillion at the start of 2014, representing nearly 18 percent of the $36.8 trillion in total assets under management. Furthermore, in the past two years, assets incorporating ESG factors have increased threefold to $4.80 trillion. What is pushing this growth? The...