The Intentional Endowments Network and the Alliance for Sustainable Colorado hosted the Divestment and Sustainable Investment Forum in Denver, Colorado on Thursday and Friday, May 7-8, 2015.
Speaker and Panel Session Videos
Primer (pre-meeting reading)
This invitation-only 1.5 day Forum (Thursday morning - mid-day Friday) provided approximately 125 participants with an overview of the opportunities and challenges related to sustainable investing at:
- Colleges and universities
- Foundations and family offices
- Pension funds
- Hospitals
- Faith-based institutions
We explored the many facets of fossil fuel divestment and emerging trends in aligning investment practices with institutional mission, values, and sustainability goals.
The Forum brought investment professionals with cutting edge sustainability expertise together with senior administrators, decision makers, and key stakeholders (presidents, CEOs, trustees, CFOs, sustainability directors, students) from various mission-driven investor sectors for learning and action planning.
The format was highly interactive. Much of the program was dedicated to small group dialogue, giving participants the opportunity to share stories, ask questions, and learn from experts and peers. Facilitated action planning ensured that participants could return to their institutions prepared to take next steps, with new relationships and resources to support continued conversation, learning, and progress. We explored critical questions with experts and peers, such as:
- What does the sustainable investing landscape currently look like (tools and strategies for implementation)?
- How might sustainable investing strategies impact financial performance of the portfolio?
- How might sustainable investing impact fiduciary responsibility?
- How might endowments effectively handle stakeholder engagement strategies and foster constructive dialogue on these topics?
- How might endowments address implementation challenges related to existing investment infrastructure (e.g., commingled funds, working with investment consultants, managers, and outsourced CIOs, etc.)?
Event Sponsors:
For more information, contact Georges Dyer: georges@intentionalendowments.org