Partner Spotlight: Calvert Investments
11 November 2011
Make your investing as green as your life
Brooke Flazier
Calvert Investments
You live your life in a “green” way, but do you know what’s happening with the “green” you have invested? Corporate mismanagement, environmental disasters, climate change… sometimes it feels like the world is teetering on disaster. However, you’re coming to the San Francisco Green Festival (and making conscious choices day in and day out) because you believe that through living more sustainably, you are doing your part to make sure that the world is “Too big to fail”. But do you know that at the same time, you may be investing in companies that are working against your ideals?
As a leader in Sustainable and Responsible Investing (SRI), Calvert Investments works to combine important environmental, social, and governance criteria with sound financial analysis – seeking to create a balance between what’s important for the world at large and what’s important for your financial future.
Although not a new concept - Calvert Investments has been offering SRI investments since 1982 - SRI is catching on with many individual and institutional investors who want to align their investments with their personal values or organizational missions. These groups are looking at sustainable and “well-governed” companies as potentially powerful indicators of long-term success.
This increased focus on sustainability has already had – and will continue to have – a positive impact on our world. Today, multinational companies are leading the effort to conserve energy and reduce emissions, to increase the diversity of their employees and management teams, to maintain fair labor practices and to institute better, more transparent governance procedures. Additionally, Calvert Investments believes that as SRI becomes more mainstream, the pressure by SRI investors on companies to adhere to more stringent standards can only intensify, creating a better world for all of us now and for future generations. This broader emphasis on sustainability also fuels innovation and provides for rapid growth in industries like alternative energy, water and energy conservation. We’re even seeing movement in more traditional sectors with companies that focus on sustainability gaining a competitive edge by reducing packaging and transportation costs and developing more energy-efficient operations.
You might be asking yourself, “I know that where I invest my dollars makes a difference, but does it provide the returns that a traditional fund might?” Multiple studies have shown that over time SRI strategies perform at least as well as non-SRI. And they may even provide higher risk-adjusted returns. The thinking behind this is that companies meeting higher standards for environmental stewardship, social responsibility and governance are less vulnerable to a whole range of risks – from the accounting scandals that plagued poorly governed firms like Enron to the enormous costs of environmental clean-up incurred by BP. Many institutional investors are now actually demanding that their asset managers incorporate these factors into their due diligence, not because of the social impact of poor ESG performance, but as a way to manage and reduce investment risk. It’s also thought that as institutional demand for SRI-minded companies increases, so will their value.
With SRI, there are many types of investments that reflect different values and priorities. At Calvert Investments, we offer a variety of fund options including those:
·Developed from a set of companies that meet our criteria in seven areas related to the environment, social issues and governance. Calvert Signature® Funds
·Focused on companies and industries that are solving specific sustainability challenges such as water and alternative energy. Calvert Solution® Funds
·Seeking sustainability through greater direct company engagement.Calvert SAGE™ Funds
We also work actively to encourage companies to improve through active shareholder advocacy and company engagement. From as simple as a phone call or as formal as filing a shareholder resolution, it’s all about working on your behalf as an owner in a company to encourage change within an organization. Our hope is that through advocacy and engagement, we will better align these companies’ practices with what’s important to your ideals as an SRI investor.
As we see continued anxiety around so many world issues - such as the environment or the widening gap in the division of wealth - how and where you invest your money is becoming more important every day. At Calvert Investments, we offer investment solutions that suit your lifestyle and values, helping to create a better life for yourself, your family and the world.
To learn more, visit the Calvert Investments booth at the San Francisco Green Festival or connect at www.calvert.com.
Follow Calvert Investments today:
Calvert Investment Management, Inc., 4550 Montgomery Avenue, Bethesda, MD 20814.
For more information on any Calvert fund, please contact Calvert at 800.368.2748 for a free summary prospectus and/or prospectus. An investor should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses of an investment carefully before investing. The summary prospectus and prospectus contain this and other information. Read them carefully before you invest or send money.
Calvert mutual funds are underwritten and distributed by Calvert Investment Distributors, Inc., member, FINRA, and subsidiary of Calvert Investments, Inc. 800.368.2748
2002-2011 Green Festival®