Posted on November 21, 2003

Philanthropy and Voluntarism

Despite sluggish market conditions, socially and environmentally responsible investing continues to grow. A new report from the Social Investment Forum reveals that socially screened portfolios grew 7 percent, to $2.15 trillion, between 2001 and 2003, compared with a 4 percent decline among the broader universe of professionally managed portfolios, while over the same period the number of socially responsible mutual funds increased 10 percent, to two hundred. In addition to a wealth of statistics tracking the growth of socially responsible investing, the 2003 Report on Socially Responsible Investing Trends in the United States (66 pages, PDF) discusses the scope of the movement and examines its core strategies: screening, shareholder advocacy, and community investing. The report also includes a section on global trends in the field, covering North America, Europe, and Asia.