You know by now that socially responsible investing (SRI) does make a difference in the world, but perhaps you’re wondering what kind of difference it will make in your portfolio. Will you sacrifice financial returns if you align your investments with your values?
The evidence, amassed through hundreds of studies, shows that historically, SRI investments have performed as well as or better than their conventional counterparts.
For well over a decade, financial studies have been confirming what green investors already know: that investing to support people and the environment makes financial sense.
In 2021, a study from Morgan Stanley Institute for Sustainable Investing found that in a year marked by volatility and recession, funds that focused “on environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors, across both stocks and bonds, weathered the year better than non-ESG portfolios.” The research looked at more than 3,000 mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and found that sustainable funds performed better than non-ESG funds in 2020 and 2019.
Investment research firm Morningstar published a report in 2021 finding that the returns of 69% of sustainable funds ranked in the top half of funds, and 37% in the top quartile for returns. Data from the last five years found similar results.
And even in 2007, a report by the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative analyzed academic work and key broker studies and found that SRI investment strategies had a competitive performance with non-SRI strategies.
Conclusion: You can do well by doing good with SRI.
The Green America Visa
Cut up those mega-bank credit cards and get a card issued by a community investing bank or credit union that puts its money to work helping people and the Earth.
To make it even easier for you to find such a card, Green America offers a credit card in partnership with TCM Bank, N.A. which is owned by ICBA Bancard, a subsidiary of the Independent Community Bankers of America. Every purchase on the card supports Green America’s high-impact action campaigns. The card even allows you to earn reward points!
Visit TakeChargeofYourCard.org to learn about Green America’s card and other cards that benefit environmentally and socially conscious organizations.
