“Goodness is the only investment that never fails.”
- Henry David Thoreau
Sustainable Investing:
Align your investments with your values.
Sustainable investing has gained in popularity as investors increasingly seek to align their investments with their values. This has been particularly appealing to Foundations and Endowments with a well-defined mission statement, as well as younger investors seeking transparency.
A Brief History of ESG Investing
Investors have a long history of aligning investments with personal values, but often without an expectation for return. Philanthropic actions historically have been used to support causes that match an individual’s beliefs and ideals. These actions typically come without an expectation for return on investment. Traditional investing provides the potential for return but may not necessarily align with one’s values. Sustainable investing strategies state back to the 1960s, offering investors the return potential of traditional investing and the opportunity to align investments with values.Today investors are seeking the best of both worlds: the return potential of traditional investing and the opportunity to align investments with values.
Interest in sustainable investing began to accelerate in the 2000s and jump in recent years. According to a recent study, sustainable investing assets have swelled to over $35 trillion globally in 2020. This represents more than 50% growth since 2016!