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Veris Wealth Partners' Michael Lent Will Become Chair of Social Investment Forum Board in 2011

 
 
Three New Board Members Added from Across the SRI World; New Members of Executive Committee Also Named

WASHINGTON--The Social Investment Forum (SIF), the national nonprofit membership association for the sustainable and socially responsible investment (SRI) industry, announced today that it has elected a new board chair, Michael Lent, CIO of Veris Wealth Partners.

At the same time, SIF added three new board members: Craig Metrick, principal and US head of responsible investment, Mercer; Matt Patsky, CEO of Trillium Asset Management and Phil Kirshman, CFA, CFP, financial advisor, Portfolio Manager Advisory and Brokerage Services, UBS Institutional Consulting. SIF also elected two new vice board chairs—Sarah Cleveland, a senior consultant with Towers Watson Investment Services; and Amy O'Brien, director of social investing at TIAA-CREF—and a new secretary, Paul Hilton, director of sustainable investment business strategy with Calvert Investments. In addition, SIF reelected Ingrid Dyott, vice president and managing director at Neuberger Berman, as its treasurer.

SIF CEO Lisa Woll said: "The Social Investment Forum is very fortunate to have elevated such a committed board member to be its new board chair, to have elected four other strong board members to the Executive Committee and to have three new board members with such diverse experience. Craig, Matt and Phil are new to our board of directors, but they are seasoned hands in the SRI industry. We are very excited to work with all of them to move forward the strategic goals of the Social Investment Forum. In 2011, we will continue to advance the field of socially responsible investing, a segment of investments under professional management that continues to grow at a more rapid pace than the rest of the investment field, according to our recently released Report on Socially Responsible Investing Trends in the United States.”

SIF Board Chair Designee Michael Lent said: “I am very honored to have been elected to serve as the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Social Investment Forum (SIF). I look forward to helping to lead the organization over the next several years as we continue to create greater public awareness of sustainable and socially responsible investing, strengthen our industry's impact in public policy, and expand our membership and capacity.”

Michael Lent is a founding principal of Veris Wealth Partners. Lent specializes in financial consulting for high net worth individuals, foundations and endowments. He has been recognized by the Calvert Foundation for his advocacy of blended value community investing and is frequently cited as a sustainable investment subject matter expert by major media outlets, including AP and Reuters. Before Veris, he was the Manager of the New York office of Progressive Asset Management. He has served on the Board of Directors of the Social Investment Forum since 2008.

The newly elected board members also bring considerable experience in the field of socially responsible and sustainable investing:

  • Phil Kirshman joined UBS Institutional Consulting in 2008, where he drew upon his considerable experience, education and commitment to SRI to help clients make the greatest possible connection between their investment portfolios and their mission-related or personal values. Kirshman began his financial services career in 1992 as a Financial Advisor with Smith Barney, after which he moved to Wachovia Securities where he was a Portfolio Manager and Associate Vice President, managing investment portfolios for institutional clients and individual families. Kirshman is a Chartered Financial Analyst and a Certified Financial Planner® professional. He is a member of the CFA Society of Colorado, the NY Society of Security Analysts, the CFA Society of Hawaii, and the Social Investment Forum, and has served on the SRI in the Rockies Conference Agenda Committee since 2007.

  • Craig Metrick consults to public, private and foundation clients on implementing responsible investment principles and mandates for Mercer. Before joining Mercer, Craig was Director of the Corporate Benchmarking Service (CBS) at the Investor Responsibility Research Center, Inc. (IRRC), which provided ESG research to institutional investors. Metrick joined Mercer in March 2006 and has more than 10 years experience working in the responsible investment industry and on issues of sustainability and corporate responsibility.

  • Matt Patsky became CEO of Trillium Asset Management Corporation in October 2009. Patsky has over 25 years of experience in investment research and investment management. He began his career at Lehman Brothers in 1984 as a technology analyst. In 1989, while covering emerging growth companies for Lehman, Mr. Patsky began to incorporate environmental, social and governance factors into his research, becoming the first sell side analyst in the United States to publish on the topic of socially responsible investing in 1994.

The rest of SIF's board members are:

  • Frank Altman, president and CEO, Community Reinvestment Fund.
  • Jan Bryan, CFP, AIF, First Affirmative Financial Network.
  • John Liechty, principal and founder, Integrated Investment Solutions.
  • Leslie Lowe, consultant, As You Sow Foundation.
  • Cliff Rosenthal, president & CEO, National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions.
  • David Sand, consultant.
  • David Wood, director, Initiative for Responsible Investment, Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.
  • Betsy Zeidman, director, Compass Program, Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights.

ABOUT THE SOCIAL INVESTMENT FORUM

The Social Investment Forum is the US membership association for professionals, firms, institutions and organizations engaged in socially responsible and sustainable investing (SRI). SIF and its members advance investment practices that consider environmental, social and corporate governance criteria to generate long-term competitive financial returns and positive societal impact. SIF's members include investment management and advisory firms, mutual fund companies, research firms, financial planners and advisors, broker-dealers, banks, credit unions, community development organizations, non-profit associations, and pension funds, foundations and other asset owners.

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