Socially Responsible Investing

October 26th, 2007 • Related • Filed Under

Most of us….Ok, check that ALL of us, like to make money. What you do with that money varies from person to person, but it’s rare to come across someone that does not like making money. What happens when how you make your money doesn’t feel so good anymore?

socially responsible investing

Socially responsible investing injects morality into the money making equation. In general, socially responsible investors favor corporate practices which are environmentally responsible, support workplace diversity, and increase product safety and quality. SRI is a relatively new concept that has started to gain attention and attraction by those wanting to do well by doing good. Many investment companies are now starting to offer socially responsible mutual funds. These funds screen for what’s commonly called sin stocks, which are companies that predominately make their money by producing alcohol, tobacco or gambling products. Also defense stocks and firearm stocks are sometimes avoided. Most recently big oil companies(Exxon, British Petroleum, etc.) have become targets for socially responsible advocates.

In the news lately you may have heard about the Sudan divestiture movement. (If you are Rip Van Winkle and don’t know what’s been going on in Sudan in the past few years click here. There are several huge American companies that have made investments into a company called PetroChina which many believe are in tight with the Sudanese government that has been committing the atrocities. We encourage you to become informed about this situation and invest accordingly. Sudandivestment.org is a good place to start.

A couple of last quick points. Just because a company does good for society, does not make it a good investment. Be sure to research the company or mutual fund that you are interested to make sure it fits your investment standards before you buy. If you want more information on SRI check out the following links. Your dollars have power, make sure you use them right.

http://www.socialinvest.org/
http://www.socialfunds.com/

As always for more info check out www.urbanmoneyonline.com

(pic from treehugger.com)

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    Great info. Also see the Global Compact.
    " The Global Compact is a framework for businesses that are committed to aligning their operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, the environment and anti-corruption . As the world's largest, global corporate citizenship initiative, the Global Compact is first and foremost concerned with exhibiting and building the social legitimacy of business and markets.

    We know that business, trade and investment are essential pillars for prosperity and peace. Bit in many areas, business is too often linked with serious dilemmas - for example, exploitative practices, corruption, income equality, and barriers that discourage innovation and entrepreneurship. Responsible business practices can in many ways build trust and social capital, contributing to broad-based development and sustainable markets. "

    For a list of socially responsible corporations that have signed the Global Compact, an initiative launched under former Secretary-General Koffi Annan, go to http://www.unglobalcompact.org/ParticipantsAndS.... Current major U.S. partners include eBay Inc., Gap Inc., Microsoft Corporation, Nike Inc., Pzifer Inc., and the Coca-Cola Company.
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    PLEASE support organizations like kiva.org.
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