The Social Investment Organization has welcomed the UN Principles for Responsible Investment. The SIO says the Principles represent a great development in the financial industry’s integration of social and environmental issues with investment, and pledges to monitor the progress of the Canadian signatories to the Principles.

“SIO welcomes the UN Principles and believes it is a major development in the field of responsible investment,” said SIO Executive Director Eugene Ellmen, in remarks to a lecture May 16 to the Pensions at Work series in Toronto.

But he also said that it is important for the mainstream responsible investment community, the traditional socially responsible investment community and non-governmental organizations to monitor progress on these issues by the signatories.

“We also believe that without further pressure from stakeholders that this initial good start may not develop into anything further – that the normal pressures to return to business as usual will prevail.”

Ellmen said that SIO will monitor the progress of the Canadian signatories to the Principles, and plans to include some discussion on this topic in the next SIO investment review, to be published late this year.

“Over time, we’ll also look at the question of real outcomes – the actual dollar difference in investment portfolios or socially responsible behaviour by corporations that can be attributed to changes brought about by the Principles.”

For a copy of the lecture notes, visit:

http://www.socialinvestment.ca/Policy&Advocacy/presentation%20notes%20pensions%20at%20work%20051606.pdf

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