Reported today on The Seattle Times For the full article visit:
How to get socially conscious funds into your 401(k)
If you want to make a big difference in the world using your hard-earned money, you don't have a lot of tools at your disposal if you're not extremely wealthy.
But everyday people have an untapped multimillion-dollar advocacy opportunity staring them in the face each pay period: workplace retirement plans that haven't added socially responsible investment funds.
Just 2.9% of 401(k) plans have even a single fund dedicated to environmental, social and governance issues, according to the Plan Sponsor Council of America's most recent member survey. If your retirement money is not stashed in one of these so-called ESG funds, you probably have invested in companies that extract or refine pollutants, mow down rainforests or mistreat people or animals. And that means that you're endorsing their work with your dollars.
If this makes you uncomfortable, you stand a good chance of fixing it. It's not simple or quick. But if you are resolved to, say, do something about climate change in 2020, diverting millions of dollars in retirement money from companies that warm the planet isn't a bad place to start.
So first, a bit about how things work. Someone (or a committee of people) at your employer either picks or approves the lineup of mutual funds for your retirement plan. Ask a human resources person - or the president, chief financial officer or executive director at a smaller organization - and you'll soon have a name or names. Now rally your like-minded friends (the more the better) and get ready to make your case.
Those plan's deciders answer to you, in theory - and their interests are aligned with yours, given that everyone wants to have a great plan with good choices. But this is where it starts to get complex.
Thes
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