A new collaboration - EIG-GIVE-CIRQC - continued

Michael Pinsonneault

Who knew there was not just one but three Montreal-based, volunteer-run investment clubs devoted to responsible investing?

The three clubs – EIG, GIVE (Groupe d’investissemrent végane et éthique) and CIRQC (Club d’investissemrent responsable du Québec) – have been exploring possibilities for collaboration and recently got the ball rolling with an in-person joint event. This took the form of a panel discussion presenting key similarities and differences between the three clubs, held at Chez Ernest, a bistro in a ‘happening’ part of the Petite-Patrie area: Investing Responsibly with an Investment Club.

Une nouvelle collaboration - GIÉ-GIVE-CIRQC - A new collaboration

Investir responsablement avec un club d’investissement / Investing Responsibly with an Investment Club

En personne ! - Chez Ernest, 6596, rue Saint-Hubert - In person!

Dimanche, 12 juin à 13h / Sunday, 12 June at 1:00 pm.

[See English below]

Investir responsablement avec un club d’investissement

Venez en apprendre davantage sur l’investissement responsable et le fonctionnement des clubs d’investissement avec ce premier évènement organisé par CIRQC, GIVE et GIÉ chez Ernest. 

Sous forme de panel de discussion, l’évènement Investir responsablement avec un club d’investissement se veut une rencontre interactive, éducative et intéressante pour les non initié.e.s à la finance durable. Attention, plusieurs mythes sur l’investissement responsable risques d’être déboulonnés. 

Victory for Costco shareholders - and EIG - on climate!

 Heidi Monk

Sometimes shareholder engagement is incredibly rewarding, as when our engagement is welcomed and/or met by action. Sometimes shareholder engagement can be frustrating, as when untold hours of research and drafting and editing letters are met with little or no response. Our recent engagement with Costco was both.

Ups and downs of community investment

 Judith Bird

One of the unique things about EIG has been its commitment from the very start to have 40% of its portfolio devoted to supporting small businesses and individuals who do not have access to credit from mainstream financial institutions, aka “community investments”. The concept has been somewhat expanded over the years to include small-scale projects beneficial to society and/or to the environment, often funded by community bonds. 

While finding appropriate investments in this category is not without its challenges, EIG continues to maintain this approach as a goal more than twenty years after it was included in our 4-point mission statement.

To invest or not to invest... / Investir ou ne pas investir...

Voir français ci-dessous

That is the question members of the EIG Equities Trading Committee asked themselves when a proposal to invest in Brookfield Asset Management (BAM) obtained marginal approval from EIG members following a lively discussion on fossil fuels (see previous post, Fossil fuels: divestment vs transition). While the vote on BAM led to a positive average score of +0.34 (scoring options from +2 to -2) meaning approval in principle, it also garnered one veto, with many members weighing in, expressing concerns in their comments about the appropriateness of such an investment for EIG. Happy to see so many members engaged with investment decisions in this way, the committee gave serious thought to their opinions and ultimately decided not to invest in BAM at this time.

Seeing our investment $$ at work

The great thing about investing locally is being able to see first-hand how our investment dollars help a community improve its quality of life. EIG members had this experience recently on the occasion of a return visit to Bâtiment 7, a project owned by the non-profit Collectif 7 à Nous, in Pointe-St-Charles. Bâtiment 7 is a 90,000 square-foot former CNR maintenance building progressively being converted into a shared community space.

Fossil fuels: divestment vs transition

 A question in the minds of many responsible investors these days involves the extent to which they should divest from companies with links to the fossil fuel industry, as opposed to supporting those that are making concrete efforts to transition to a carbon-neutral society by 2050, the goal set out in the Paris Agreement. Clearly, divestment is appropriate when considering companies directly involved in fossil fuel exploration, extraction or production. But what about those that support the fossil fuel industry indirectly with, for example, financing, and transportation? Attempts to find answers to this complex question formed the theme of a recent EIG event.

Expanding local community support to Toronto

EIG has long supported communities in Quebec by investing in local microcredit organizations, which provide financing and business support to aspiring entrepreneurs who do not have access to conventional financing. 

Proactive engagement by Scotiabank

Heidi Monk

EIG has been very pleased with the responsiveness and willingness to engage by Scotiabank (see a summary of our engagement on climate change and diversity in 2021). This August Scotiabank took their engagement with EIG to a new level, by reaching out to us to offer to have a phone call where they could update us on recent progress. Two Senior Vice Presidents spent about 45 mins speaking with me on behalf of EIG: Julie Walsh, SVP, Corporate Secretary and Chief Corporate Governance Officer, Meigan Terry, SVP, Chief Communications and Social Impact Officer.

Banking on diversity

In addition to its efforts on climate change (see The role of banks in addressing climate change) EIG has also been engaging on diversity and racial equity with the two banks in its portfolio (Scotiabank and Desjardins).

There have been some encouraging developments on this front as awareness of systemic racism throughout our organizational structures has grown.

The role of banks in addressing climate change

There has been a flurry in the media this spring about climate risks for banks and their role in reaching net zero by 2050 in order to align with the Paris Agreement[i]. So what does it mean, to commit to reaching net zero?

What do we mean by "antiracist investment"?

In September 2020 EIG members who responded to a survey noted that identifying antiracist investment opportunities was a priority for the group (see Self-reflection and next steps on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion). But what exactly do we mean by “antiracist investing” and how, concretely, does committing to it affect EIG’s investment philosophy? This was the question posed by members of EIG’s Executive Committee when they pointed out that the survey did not define “antiracism” in relation to investment, and that it likely meant myriad things to the different respondents.

Self-reflection and next steps on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Racial justice, an important component of a more general movement for workplace Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), is an issue which resonates with EIG members, committed as we are to ethical investing. In September 2020 14 EIG members gathered (virtually) to discuss antiracism and reflect on how EIG can integrate it into its investing and ways of working. We discussed possible avenues for engagement, while recognizing EIG’s limited resources (as a reminder, we are a volunteer investment club, entirely member-run). As a first step, we developed a survey that was sent to all EIG members in order to prioritize actions. 

EIG members indicated that:

• The favoured course of action for EIG is to research antiracist investment opportunities.
• It is difficult to prioritise shareholder engagement, as many topics that EIG addresses are important.  Environmental issues are ranked as the most important, with labour rights and antiracism, close behind.
• Members are not particularly interested in holding a public event on antiracism.
• Members have some availability to put time into work towards racial justice at EIG.

Que signifie l'antiracisme pour le GIÉ?

Comme le dit Ibram X. Kendi, « soit nous soutenons des politiques qui conduisent à des inégalités raciales et à l'injustice […] ou bien nous soutenons des politiques et nous poussons pour des politiques qui mènent à la justice et à l'équité pour toutes et tous».

Ces dernières semaines, plusieurs articles au sujet de l'antiracisme pour les investisseurs ont été publiés (par exemple dans Fortune, Forbes, CNBC et Quartz). Dans le même ordre d'idées, un article publié dans le Financial Post donne un aperçu de la diversité (ou de son absence) dans la composition des conseils d'administration au Canada.

Tout cela me fait réfléchir à ce que l'antiracisme pourrait signifier pour le GIÉ. Dans un premier temps, j’ai jeté un coup d’œil à notre portefeuille d’investissements (investissements communautaires et placements boursiers, 30 organisations en tout) pour voir si les organisations dans lesquelles nous investissons parlent de l’antiracisme ou prennent des mesures concrètes. Les résultats de cette enquête rapide sont ci-dessous.

What does antiracism mean for EIG?

As Ibram X. Kendi puts it “We are either supporting policies that are leading to racial inequities and injustice […] or we’re supporting policies and pushing policies that are leading to justice and equity for all.”

In recent weeks several articles on what antiracism means for investors have been published (for example in Fortune, Forbes, CNBC and Quartz). In the same vein, an article published in the Financial Post gives an overview of diversity (or lack thereof) in Board membership in Canada.

All this got me thinking about what antiracism might mean for EIG. As a first step, I’ve taken a look at our investment portfolio (both community investments and equities, 30 organisations in all) to see if the organisations we invest in are thinking about antiracism or taking any concrete actions. The results of this quick survey are below.

We’re now reflecting on whether EIG should engage more actively in this issue as a group and, if so, in what way. We’ve had some ideas, which you’ll find at the end of this article, but would really like to hear your thoughts on this. Let us know what you think.

Persistence pays off in engaging with Xylem on the water privatization front

EIG made numerous attempts over the past year and a half to communicate with Matthew Latino, Director, Investor Relations, at Xylem (see earlier blog post). EIG’s persistence paid off. In October 2019, Mr Latino apologized for the lack of response to EIG’s enquiries, and provided clarification on the three points raised by EIG:

• How does Xylem support the UN Sustainable Development Goal on clean water and sanitation (SDG6)?
• What is Xylem’s position is on privatization of water?
• Has Xylem been involved in lobbying for deregulation of water supply?

The human costs of Costco

EIG has been engaging Costco on the topic of forced labour in its supply chain since February 2016. Following reports in the media on the potential abuse of workers in Costco’s supply chain in Cambodia and Thailand, EIG sent a letter expressing concern to the Executive Vice President and Chief financial officer at Costco. Despite numerous attempts on the part of EIG to solicit a response to the letter, Costco remained silent.

Silence from Xylem on the water privatization front

No news isn’t always good news. It has been about six months since we first reached out to Xylem and unfortunately we haven't received a response. EIG is always highly appreciative of responses from the companies that we engage. 

It all started in in the autumn of 2018 when some EIG members raised concerns with Xylem’s potential connection to water privatisation. This led to researching the topic and the decision to engage Xylem on the matter.

Exchanges about chocolate - EIG and Equal Exchange

You may recall that EIG got in touch with La Siembra after As You Sow reported finding heavy metals in a range of chocolate products, including some made by Equal Exchange. The finding resulted in legal notices being filed against chocolate manufacturers for failure to warn of lead and/or cadmium in their chocolate products. EIG also wrote to Equal Exchange in December 2018, asking for the company’s response to the legal notices, whether the company tests chocolate products for heavy metals and what measures are being taken to eliminate heavy metals from their chocolate products.

It took a couple of follow-ups on our end before the Chocolate Products Manager responded to us in April 2019. He noted that Equal Exchange is testing the levels of cadmium and lead in their products and also has testing done by its partners. The company is working to achieve the standards agreed to in the settlement of the case in California, and he shared these levels with us. As part of the settlement, parties agreed to fund research on how heavy metals get into cacao products and how this can be mitigated. EIG learned that this report will be made public and Equal Exchange has committed to sharing it with us (expected in May 2021).

Equal Exchange also highlighted its preoccupation around the impact of decisions in the chocolate industry on the livelihoods of small-scale farmers in regions where heavy metals occur naturally at higher levels. EIG shares this concern.

Learn more on our website.

EIG engages with companies in which it is a shareholder by writing letters to upper management on issues of concern. As investors, we feel our voices should be heard.

AGA du GIÉ / EIG AGM, 25 avril/April 25, 2019

[le français suit]

EIG AGM, 25 April 2019 at 5:30 pm

A new venue for the EIG AGM: Concordia University, Loyola Campus

Directions and Map

 *RSVP*: eig.gie.montreal@gmail.com

A light meal will be served, cost approximately $15-18 per person.

This is your chance to learn how EIG’s investments have been doing, learn more about what the EIG committees have been up to and meet face-to-face. The meeting is open to anyone interested in socially responsible investing and/or interested in joining EIG. We have 10 spaces for new members.  

This year, one of EIG’s members, Alain-Olivier Desbois, will be speaking about the new not-for-profit impact-investing platform SVX, of which he is senior advisor. See svx.ca for more information.  

The approximate schedule of the evening is as follows: 

• 5:30: arrival, food, socializing. 
• 6:15: to 7:30: AGM 
• 7:30 - 8:15: Presentation by Alain-Olivier Desbois 
• 8:15 to 9:00: dessert and socializing

Agenda  and 2018 Financial Statements

We are looking forward to seeing you on the 25th!

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AGA du GIÉ, 25 avril 2019 à 17h30

Un nouveau lieu pour l'AGA du GIÉ : Université Concordia, Campus Loyola

Directions et carte (en anglais)

*RSVP* : eig.gie.montreal@gmail.com  

Un repas léger sera servi au coût approximatif de 15-18$ par personne

C’est l’occasion de socialiser avec les membres du groupe, savoir comment vont les investissements du GIÉ et d’en savoir plus sur ce que les comités du GIÉ ont fait au cours de l’année. L’assemblée est ouverte à toute personne intéressée par l'investissement socialement responsable et / ou susceptibles de vouloir devenir membres. Nous avons 10 places pour de nouveaux membres.

Cette année, l'un des membres du GIÉ, Alain-Olivier Desbois, parlera de la nouvelle plate-forme à but non lucratif d'investissement à impact SVX, dont il est le conseiller senior. Voir svx.ca pour plus d’informations.

 L’horaire approximatif de la soirée est le suivant:

• 17h30 : arrivée, repas, discussions
• 18h15 : à 19h30: AGA
• 19h30 - 20h15 : présentation d'Alain-Olivier Desbois
• 8h15 à 21h00 : dessert et discussions. 

Ordre du jour et États financiers 2018 (en anglais)

Nous avons hâte de vous voir le 25!