National Sustainable, Responsible and Impact Investing Conference to Address Cutting Edge Issues

• By: admin
• On: 04/03/2014 09:48:03
• In: Events

WASHINGTON—US SIF:  The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment will host its fourth annual conference, “Markets, Mission and Materiality,” on May 20-21, 2014 in Washington, D.C. The conference is an opportunity to learn more about investment practices that both generate long-term competitive financial returns and have a positive impact on the environment and society, and to learn about critical issues facing the field, including:

• Millennials and Impact Investing;
• Challenges and Opportunities in Fixed Income;
• Creating Sustainable Cities;
• Global Perspectives on Sustainable Investment;
• Opportunities in Community and Impact Investing;
• Investors and Income Inequality;
• Portfolio Performance Reporting; and
• Food Security and Climate Change.   

The event will be open to the media on Tuesday, May 20, 2014 from 12:00 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. EDT and on Wednesday, May 21, 2014 from 8:40 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. EDT.

Expected conference attendees and speakers will include representatives from SRI investment management and advisory firms, research firms, financial planners and advisors, broker-dealers, community development financial institutions and asset owners such as pension funds and foundations, along with policymakers and corporate leaders. 

• Anna Bernasek, financial journalist and author;
• Tom Daschle, Former Senate Majority Leader;
• Jeffrey Hogue, Senior Director of Global CSR and Sustainability, McDonald's;
• Michael Jantzi, CEO, Sustainalytics;
• Saru Jayaraman, Co-Director and Co-Founder, Restaurant Opportunities Center;
• Erika Karp, CEO, Cornerstone Capital, Inc.;
• Will Oulton, Global Head of Responsible Investment, First State Investments;
• Dawn Rittenhouse, Director of Sustainable Development, DuPont;
• Jessica Robinson, CEO, the Association for Sustainable and Responsible Investment in Asia (ASrIA);
• William Rosenzweig, Managing Partner, Physic Ventures, LP;
• Jennifer Silberman, Vice President of Corporate Sustainability, Hilton Worldwide; and
• Laurie Spengler, President and CEO, Enclude.

Breakout session speakers include:

• Ellen Dorsey, Executive Director, Wallace Global Fund;
• Jed Emerson, Chief Impact Strategist, ImpactAssets;
• Surya Kolluri, Managing Director, Policy and Market Planning, Bank of America;
• Tom Langan, External Affairs Director – North America, Unilever;
• Ashley Orgain, Manager of Mission, Advocacy and Outreach, Seventh Generation;
• Andrea Phillips, Vice President, Goldman Sachs;
• Liesel Pritzker Simmons, Co-founder, the Blue Haven Initiative; and
• Curtis Ravenel, Global Head, Sustainability Group, Bloomberg LP.

Immediately preceding the conference, a training will be held on the Fundamentals of Sustainable and Responsible Investment, which is primarily focused on financial advisors, financial planners and consultants.  The in-person training will take place on May 20^th at the World Bank in Washington, D.C.  This event is a unique opportunity to learn about sustainable, responsible and impact investing and meet with other investment professionals in this growing field. 

The conference is sponsored by an array of companies including UBS, Boston Common Asset Management, the Kresge Foundation, McCormick, McDonald's, Morgan Stanley, Neuberger Berman, Northern Trust, Pax World Investments, TIAA-CREF, and Trillium Asset Management.  For additional sponsor information, please click here.

Additionally, the conference is offering a Student Scholarship Program, which is a special educational program of the US SIF Foundation in collaboration with its Diversity and Inclusion Initiative. The program enables seven undergraduate or graduate students who are committed to or interested in a career in sustainable investment to receive scholarships to cover the registration costs for the conference.   These scholarships are made possible through the support of Campbell Soup Company.  

For full conference agenda details, including a list of breakout sessions, please click here.

For registration information, please click here.

WHEN:                       US SIF annual conference plenaries and breakout sessions will be open to the press on Tuesday, May 20, 2014, from 12:00 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. EDT and Wednesday, May 21, 2014 from 8:40 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. EDT.

WHERE:                     Capital Hilton, 1001 16th St., NW, Washington, D.C.

TO PARTICIPATE:  Attending news organizations and reporters must RSVP by Wednesday May 14, 2014, by contacting Megan Smith of US SIF at 202-747-7820 or [email protected].  

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US SIF:  The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment (http://www.ussif.org) is the US membership association for professionals, firms, institutions and organizations engaged in sustainable and responsible investing. US 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. US 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.