Conscious Investing

Everyone is trying to find their meaning and purpose in life. We are becoming more conscious and more intentional with our decisions. Perhaps we have thought about making meaningful choices with food, lifestyle, and overall health, but when it comes to money, we often separate our purpose from our finances. How would it feel knowing that every dollar you invest is a reflection of you, as a person? It's the feeling of watching your child grow up strong and happy, or the feeling of accomplishment after a completed project. It's the peace of knowing, with every breath you take, exactly what you own in the world. In The Good Your Money Can Do, Eva Yazhari introduces her concept of impact investing and shares the story of her own mindset shift toward investing with awareness. At times philosophical and other times instructional, Eva shows you that your money has more potential than you ever thought possible.

This textbook provides the first holistic resource on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing for undergraduate and graduate programs. It provides a thorough background and history of ESG investing, as well as cutting-edge industry developments, in a way that introduces the reader to the rapidly developing field of responsible investing. Beginning with a comprehensive background of ESG investing and the development of models measuring risk and return, the book then discusses the development of ESG risks, and provides an overview of ESG rating systems. The textbook also outlines the current position of ESG investing in portfolio management through granular analysis, provides insight into common investor concerns about ESG investments, discloses qualitative theories relevant to ESG investing, and reviews literature attempting to model ESG investment performance. Finally, the authors provide readers with a foundation on the development of financial models measuring risk and return, which will be useful for measuring the performance of ESG investments. With case studies from contributors around the world, this textbook is the first of its kind to truly provide a compelling blend of quantitative and qualitative analysis supporting the incorporation of ESG investment strategies into investment portfolios. Offering an excellent overview of the growing trends in ESG investing, as well as a close analysis of ESG theories and their practical application both today and in the future, this book will be a great resource for both undergraduates and graduate students.

This survey examines the vibrant academic literature on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing. While there is no consensus on the exact list of ESG issues, responsible investors increasingly assess stocks in their portfolios based on nonfinancial data on environmental impact (e.g., carbon emissions), social impact (e.g., employee satisfaction), and governance attributes (e.g., board structure). The objective is to reduce exposure to investments that pose greater ESG risks or to influence companies to become more sustainable. One active area of research at present involves assessing portfolio risk exposure to climate change. This literature review focuses on institutional investors, which have grown in importance such that they have now become the largest holders of shares in public companies globally. Historically, institutional investors tended to concentrate their ESG efforts mostly on corporate governance (the “G” in ESG). These efforts included seeking to eliminate provisions that restrict shareholder rights and enhance managerial power, such as staggered boards, supermajority rules, golden parachutes, and poison pills. Highlights from this section: · There is no consensus on the exact list of ESG issues and their materiality. · The ESG issue that gets the most attention from institutional investors is climate change, in particular their portfolio companies’ exposure to carbon risk and “stranded assets.” · Investors should be positioning themselves for increased regulation, with the regulatory agenda being more ambitious in the European Union than in the United States. Readers might come away from this survey skeptical about the potential for ESG investing to affect positive change. I prefer to characterize the current state of the literature as having a “healthy dose of skepticism,” with much more remaining to be explored. Here, I hope the reader comes away with a call to action. For the industry practitioner, I believe that the investment industry should strive to achieve positive societal goals. CFA Institute provides an exemplary case in its Future of Finance series (www.cfainstitute.org/research/future-finance). For the academic community, I suggest we ramp up research aimed at tackling some of the open questions around the pressing societal goals of ESG investing. I am optimistic that practitioners and academics will identify meaningful ways to better harness the power of global financial markets for addressing the pressing ESG issues facing our society.

Examines the problems with globalization with regard to social standards, outsourcing, and reduced safety regulations and the impact these dramatic changes are having on society, the investor, and business in the present day around the world.

An intriguing look at the full range of value methods brought together for the first time The biggest block to success in the stock market is unconscious investing, or following the crowd without asking the right questions such as: "What is it really worth?" Even more fundamental is: "What rate of return can I confidently expect to get?" Without having the methods to answer these questions is like trying to sail a boat without a rudder. The Conscious Investor covers each of the main methods used to calculate value or return in the stock market, along with descriptions of how and when to use them, as well as their strengths and weaknesses. Interspersed throughout the methods are the timeless investment principles of Benjamin Graham and Warren Buffett. The book: Includes balance sheet methods, dividend discount methods, discounted cash flow methods, price ratio methods, and many others Explains the significance of viewing real value as a combination of a stock's price or market value and its intrinsic value Comes with free access to key functions in the author's Conscious Investor software The Conscious Investor is indispensable reading for everyone with an interest in investing in the stock market, from novices to experienced professionals. Using this book as your guide, you'll quickly discover what it takes to be a conscious investor and gain more confidence in knowing what and when to buy, when to hold, and when to sell.

More than ever, people want their money investments to reflect their personal or political leanings. But how do they find out which companies are "socially responsible?" Do these "green" investments perform as well as traditional investments? How can they protect themselves from mutual funds or 401Ks that are managed without the future in mind? All these questions and more are answered by an international expert who founded the SRI World Group, one of the largest information services on SRI. Includes detailed information about SRI, its history and where it's headed Explains the criteria used to evaluate a company's level of social responsibility Compares performance of SRI to traditional investments

In the face of the recent financial crisis there is increased focus on long-term investment strategies. This is particularly true for institutional investors who manage our retirement savings. Simultaneously there is increased demand that financial assets be invested with an understanding of long-term environmental and social sustainability. Responsible investing provides a long-term sustainable investment strategy that values environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in investment decision-making. Responsible Investing has always had a broad mandate. Put simply, it is a long-term sustainable investment strategy that seeks to reduce risk in investment portfolios through managing ESG issues in today’s corporations. The Next Generation of Responsible Investment explores this topic in an edited volume intended for those with an interest in finance and business.