August 2015 – Indigenous Peoples & Impact Investing

>> Back to August 2015 Issue Introduction According to the US Census, Native American, Alaskan Natives and Pacific Islander indigenous people accounting for 1.6% of the total population. While small, the amount of investment and donations that serve this population is disproportionately even smaller. For example, well below 1% of US philanthropy goes to ‘Indian […]

[Additional information dated from 1971-2005 is in Part 1 of this compilation] The list is based on an earlier timeline created by First Peoples Worldwide (www.firstpeoples.org )   2006 – 2009 –  Joined by over a dozen investors, Boston Common Asset Management on behalf of Church of the Brethren Benefit Trust files shareholder proposals with

[Additional information dated from 2006-2015 is in Part 2 of this compilation]  The list is based on an earlier timeline created by First Peoples Worldwide (www.firstpeoples.org )   1971 –  The Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) supports the Crow Tribe’s challenge to Westmoreland Coal’s strip mining plans on its reservation. 1977 –  Indigenous Peoples

Community impact investing provides investors with the opportunity to support community economic development, revitalization, growth, and sustainability. Many investors choose to allocate a portion of their overall portfolio holdings to this high social impact asset class. Clients of Trillium Asset Management were among the first investors in Lakota Funds, a Native American community development financial

GreenMoney thanks Zoë Marieh Urness for her photographic contributions to our special August 2015 issue on “Indigenous Peoples and Impact Investing.”   Below you can read more about Zoe and find links to see her full portfolio as well as how to purchase her photos. Photographer Zoë Marieh Urness is a Tlingit Alaskan Native whose

Introduction by Steven Heim, Managing Director at Boston Common Asset Management. Investors increasingly must pay attention to Indigenous Peoples globally because of both risks to their portfolios and opportunities for lasting business partnerships.  Much of the world’s remaining biodiversity and natural resources are located on or near Indigenous lands. After centuries of marginalization and oppression

>> Back to August 2015 Issue Extractive industry projects may not be created to victimize women, but violence against women has become a major by-product of these project operations. Rampant exploitation of women happens when thousands of mostly male workers are housed in makeshift “man camps” located at the sites of company operations. For example,

>> Back to Most Read In the early 1990’s The Oneida Nation located in Wisconsin was one of the first Native Nations to formally adopt sustainable and responsible investing (SRI) policies for the Nation’s Trust investments. The policy directed its investment managers to divest from companies that harmed Native peoples or that caused significant harm

  In spite of my lack of writing prowess I have chosen to share a story that in many ways parallels one that many of us are familiar with: the story of David and Goliath. Before we follow the path of David and before we identify Goliath, I would first like to share my story.