Screening

The practice of screening originally started as negative screens with so-called “sin” stocks, in which the investment screened out behaviors that were deemed undesirable, such as weapons development or tobacco production. More recently, the industry has embraced positive screens to identify companies that stand out as “best in class” in their industry, and therefore maintain competitive advantages over their peers.  Such investments may choose companies that incorporate progressive policies towards women, or that produce renewable energy to name a few. Screening has become very diverse, both in the subjects screened for as well as the depth of screening.

Community Investing

Community investing (CI) seeks to direct investor capital to local communities here in the US and around the world by providing financial services to low-income individuals to fund small business creation and community development services such as child care, health care and affordable housing. CI is also actively involved in education, mentoring, and other forms of support, and functions to help lower-income families and communities create more sustainable communities.  In 2001 the Community Investing Program launched a 1% or more campaign to encourage investors to commit to one percent or more of their investment dollars into community investing.  Many SRI portfolio managers now dedicate a percentage of their portfolios to this cause.

Shareholder Advocacy

Shareholder advocacy allows shareholders to dialogue with companies on issues of concern, as well as filing shareholder resolutions and proxy voting. Over the last few years, leading social issues have included sustainability and environmental reporting, corporate political contributions, global labor standards, equal employment opportunity, expensing options, board diversity, and executive pay to name a few.