As a UN Principles for Responsible Investment signatory, CIG works with all of its investors to adopt ESG investment strategies and ethical investment policies. CIG meets with Dioceses and endowed parishes, as well as participating in forums such as the Episcopal Parish Network, to educate Episcopal endowments as to the advantages, ethically and financially, of adopting ESG investment approaches and employing full time investment management. CIG also works with Episcopal endowments to implement proxy voting of their equity holdings. Proxy initiatives can help improve corporate sustainability and good governance.
Investment approaches:
- Custom Separate Accounts for larger endowments integrating Environmental, Social & Governance characteristics in a Multi-Asset portfolio.
- An Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Multi-Asset Fund which makes investments in equities and bonds that meet positive ethical criteria including sustainable environmental practices, responsible employment practices, and best corporate governance practices.
- A Fossil-Fuel Free Environmental, Social and Governance Multi-Asset Fund which invests using ESG criteria for equities and bonds and excludes investments in the companies with the largest fossil fuel reserves.
ESG Selection Considerations
ENVIRONMENTAL VALUES:
Companies that plan for resource efficiency and measure, manage, and disclose and actively plan and act to reduce their environmental impace. They promote solutions in Renewable and Clean Energy; Clean Transportation, Clean Water, Clean Air, Natural Resource Efficiency & Stewardship, Sustainable Food & Agriculture
- Emissions: Does the company monitor all direct and indirect emissions from its operating cycle?
- Climate change risks: is the company appropriately considering how its operations are affecting the global community?
- Water management: Does the company thing about its sustainable water usage in its business practices?
- Operational waste: is the company taking necessary steps to reduce operational waste and precautions when disposing of harmful waste?
- Biodiversity impacts: Does the company understand the ecological impacts its processes can have on local communities?
SOCIAL VALUES:
Companies that support workplace well-being, human health, worker and product safety, and inclusivity and diversity.
- Labor practices: Does the company have good employee relations, provide safe working conditions, have fair compensation practices, and promote workforce diversity?
- Customer welfare: Does the company use honest marketing tactics, provide adequate product disclosure, and guarantee product quality/safety?
- Data security and privacy: Does the company protect its intellectual property, secure its customers’ private information, and disclose how customer information is used?
GOVERNANCE VALUES:
Companies that promote shareholder engagement, fair executive compensation, board diversity, anti-bribery and corruption practices, conscientiousness regarding human rights, sensitivity toward communities in which they operate and full governance disclosure.
- Shareholder disclosure: Does the company provide accurate ant timely information to shareholders and avoid aggressive accounting practices?
- Systemic risk management: Does the governance structure have an innate focus on risk management and encourage ethical practices?
- Board of directors: Does the company’s board maintain effective practices that balance growth and profitability, include independent industry experts, separate the CEO and chair role, have practical oversight committees, consider long-term capital allocation plans, seek diversity in board composition, and implement long-term compensation packages that align management with shareholders?
- Management team: Is the management team properly incentivized by being aligned with shareholders? Has the management team been stable, which generally aligns more with long-term thinking?