The SIILK Network was formed at the convergence of several conversations within and beyond the Intentional Endowments Network (IEN) around the growing interest in student-managed investment funds pursuing sustainable investing strategies, as well as the development of sustainable investing focused curriculum.
IEN is coordinating the SIILK Network to help connect stakeholders including students, faculty, administrators, trustees, and financial professionals on campuses across the country that are involved with student-managed funds and sustainable investing curriculum development. Participants share best practices, resources, curricula, and undertake other activities to support sustainable investing funds and education. The SIILK Network connects student-managed fund advisors, academics focused on sustainable investing, and students involved in student-managed funds to share best practices and resources to advance sustainable investing curriculum and strategies in each fund.
For more information, please visit SIILKnetwork.org
If you are interested in contributing to this conversation and/or joining this working group, feel free to email nicole@intentionalendowments.org or use this link to request to join the group's listserv.
Current Activities & Ways to Get Involved:
• Google Group: a listserv and collaborative space for participants to share news, resources, events, project ideas, etc. Use the following link to join the group, which will also grant access to the Group’s Google Drive and Calendar containing monthly call information: siilk-network@googlegroups.com
• Monthly Conference Calls: to share updates on developments at participating schools, and advance progress on specific projects of the group.
• Resource Sharing & Development: the group has published a toolkit on how to start a student-managed fund, and is currently developing (1) a toolkit on shareholder engagement by student funds; (2) a database of student-managed funds and how they are structured; and (3) a collection of SRI-related curriculum.
• Relationship Building, Network Building and In-Person Meetings: through the activities of SIILK, faculty, students and others are building relationships with counterparts at other institutions and identifying opportunities to connect in person at conferences such as SOCAP, The SRI Conference, and IEN events.
• Mentorship Program: for pairing students interested in sustainable investing with experts from the industry who are already active in the Intentional Endowments Network, in turn providing students with real-world experience in sustainable investing and building their professional networks with industry partners. Learn more here.
• Fellowship Program: a year-long program dedicated to benefiting the educational and career advancement of each Fellow through project work, a dedicated mentor, training, and support. Learn more here.
A Sample of Schools Actively Involved in The SIILK Network:
- Bard College
- Brown University
- Bryant University
- California State University Northridge
- Claremont McKenna College
- New York University
- Northeastern University
- Stanford Graduate School of Business
- University of Utah
- Yale University
Related Resources:
- Student-Managed Fund Stories l Ongoing Webinar Series
If you are interested in contributing to this conversation and/or joining this working group, feel free to email nicole@intentionalendowments.org or use this link to request to join the group's listserv.