Developing a policy
The steps below outline the process of developing and implementing a Responsible Investment policy.
These steps may help you understand how the charity you support could go about adopting Responsible Investment.
It is important to bear in mind that the level of detail and sophistication required of the policy may depend upon the size and nature of the charity and its investments.
1. Gather information on
- Responsible Investment
- the charity's current investments
You may be able to raise the idea, and encourage and assist charity staff or trustees to gather information on Responsible Investment.
2. Agree to move forward
- gaining support from trustees
- agreeing why the charity should adopt Responsible Investment and what it wants to achieve
3. Develop a policy
- examining how the charity could reflect its mission in its investments
- defining social, environmental and ethical criteria
- deciding on approach to positive and negative screening, engagement and voting
Some charities may consult with their stakeholders when deciding on the issues and approaches to incorporate into investments. This is a good opportunity to feed your views into the process.
4. Implement Responsible Investment
- clarifying roles of staff, trustees and external organisations
- communicating the policy effectively
- selecting the right fund/fund manager.
5. Report and review
- reporting on investments to stakeholders
- reviewing the investment policy
- evaluating and monitoring the performance of investments (financial and other)
You may wish to examine how a charity reports on its investments and investment policy, and provide feedback on its transparency and reporting.
More details about each of these steps can be found in the charities area.
