The motto of the socially responsible investing (SRI) movement is “doing well by doing good.” But what does it mean to invest responsibly in the real world? To help answer this question, labor economist Randy Barber joins GIW to provide a historical review of the rise of SRI-targeted investments and explain how trustees and investors can put their money to work in a way that will benefit the larger society without compromising investment returns.
Since 1977, Randy has been the president of the Center for Economic Organizing in Washington D.C. which provides strategic financial consulting services to a range of labor union and public sector clients. He co-authored the influential 1978 book The North Will Rise Again: Pensions, Politics and Power in the 1980s and was named in 2004 by Pensions & Investments magazine as one of the 30 most influential people in the pension industry since the passage of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act in 1974.
[podcast]http://globalinvestmentwatch.com/audio/RandyBarberInterview.mp3[/podcast]
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Concerning socially responsible investing.
I believe that when we invest in a company, or many companies in the case of a mutual fund, we share in the responsibility for the activities of those companies as well as participate in the outcomes of their corporate activities. So, anyone valuing their personal or spiritual growth has to take these things into account when investing.
Also, if everyone invests according to their personal values, then, since so many of our core values are alike — and are supportive of higher ideals — that in the long run, only companies employing these higher values will truly prosper. And there is real evidence of this now.
I advocate, teach, and write on the subject of personal values based investing — and have a popular website that has unique information which might interest you. It includes the latest global socially responsible investing news and research. My site is at http://www.investingforthesoul.com
Best wishes, Ron Robins