SRI Doesn't Have to Mean Subpar Performance

A new report released by the United Nations Environment Programme and a group of leading asset managers from around the world draws upon dozens of studies to demonstrate that investors acting responsibly do not have to sacrifice investment performance as a result. The report, Demystifying Responsible Investment Performance, focuses on an analysis by industry experts of 20 influential pieces of academic work and 10 key broker studies that explore the link between different approaches to responsible investment and investment performance.

In announcing the release of the report, Steve Falci, Senior VP & CIO–Equities, of Calvert Group Ltd. And Co-Chair of the UNEP Finance Initiative Asset Management Working Group, noted that, "A wide variety of factors such as manager skill, investment style and time period are integral to investment performance. The argument that integrating ESG factors into investment analysis and decision-making will only lead to underperformance cannot be made."