The annual member survey is one of the ways in which we assess how members are engaging with the network, what they find useful, and what priorities are emerging for this community. This post provides a snapshot of what IEN members had to say about their participation in the network.
As a peer-learning network, the annual member survey is one of the ways in which we assess how members are engaging with the network, what they find useful, and what priorities are emerging for this community. In December 2020, we designed a fourteen-question survey to get member input on what engagement with the network has looked like in the past year and what they hope to see looking ahead. Out of the 180 institution members, 20% responded to the survey and the following is what they had to say about their participation in the network. You can access the entire survey results here.
More than 60% of IEN survey respondents found IEN’s newsletters and online convenings to be helpful resources throughout the year. The weekly news round-up and quarterly newsletter are two of the key ways IEN members stay abreast of recent trends in the sustainable investing arena. The Network also offers members the opportunity to learn and have thought-provoking discussions via webinars and community conversations. Survey respondents also said they found IEN publications on the financial performance of sustainable investing, how and why to implement racial equity investing strategies, and the Intentionally Designed Endowment Roadmap to be very helpful.
The survey results also revealed that members have found value in various engagement and leadership opportunities offered by the network including participating in the Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit, writing blogs, sharing on webinars, developing reports, and joining the executive and steering committees.
In terms of priorities, survey takers recommended that the network focuses on net-zero portfolios, climate solution investing, fiduciary education, and racial equity investing. As we look ahead to plan network activities for the next three quarters of this year, we would like to remind you that these thematic recommendations are incorporated in the network's Working Groups Activities where specific themes are treated in-depth. We invite and encourage you to join your group of interest where you'll find like-minded peers to exchange knowledge and collaborate with around those topics.
Although most respondents agreed on the value that IEN’s resources and platforms provide, some pointed out that they have trouble navigating the website. It’s normal to sometimes have difficulties finding what we are looking for, similar to how we are constantly finding new things that we can do with our devices. To address this problem, we are glad to let you know that we recently refreshed and re-organized our website to make it more navigable. You can search by topic area through our Resource Library or by steps in the Roadmap to Creating an Intentionally Designed Endowment. And if you still have trouble finding something you need, know that we are an email away and always ready to help.