Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 54.25
Liaison Sarah Fortner
Submission Date March 1, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Carleton College
PA-9: Sustainable Investment

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.07 / 4.00 Alexandra Miller
Sustainability Program Coordinator
Energy and Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Option 1: Positive Sustainability Investment 

Does the institution wish to pursue Option 1 (positive sustainability investment)?:
Yes

Total value of the investment pool:
645,654,187 US/Canadian $

Value of holdings in each of the following categories:
Value of Holdings
Sustainable industries (e.g. renewable energy or sustainable forestry) 6,456,541 US/Canadian $
Businesses selected for exemplary sustainability performance (e.g. using criteria specified in a sustainable investment policy) 0 US/Canadian $
Sustainability investment funds (e.g. a renewable energy or impact investment fund) 0 US/Canadian $
Community development financial institutions (CDFIs) or the equivalent 0 US/Canadian $
Socially responsible mutual funds with positive screens (or the equivalent) 0 US/Canadian $
Green revolving loan funds that are funded from the endowment 0 US/Canadian $

If any of the above is greater than zero, provide:

A brief description of the companies, funds, and/or institutions referenced above:
We do not have full visibility into the underlying portfolios of our funds or fund managers (several of whom likely have some investments in clean tech/renewable energy), so the value of holdings in sustainable industries is estimated at 1% of the total endowment value. We have an investment with a fund that helps finance wind project developments in exchange for a stream of future payments from the project’s revenue. This investment represents approximately 0.4% of the portfolio or $3.6 million.

Percentage of the institution's investment pool in positive sustainability investments:
1.00

Option 2: Investor Engagement 

Does the institution wish to pursue Option 2 (investor engagement)?:
Yes

Sustainable Investment Policy 

Does the institution have a publicly available sustainable investment policy?:
No

None
A copy of the sustainable investment policy:
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None
The sustainable investment policy:
While Carleton does not have a sustainable investment policy, the College aims to invest with managers whose standards of propriety, fairness, and ethical integrity align with those of the College. The College tries to select managers that will generate superior returns, but not at all costs, and make investments in a responsible manner that takes into account societal impacts.

None
Does the institution use its sustainable investment policy to select and guide investment managers?:
No

None
A brief description of how the policy is applied, including recent examples:
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Proxy Voting 

Has the institution engaged in proxy voting, either by its CIR or other committee or through the use of guidelines, to promote sustainability during the previous three years?:
Yes

None
A copy of the proxy voting guidelines or proxy record:
Proxy_voting_policy_summary.pdf

None
A brief description of how managers are adhering to proxy voting guidelines:
Carleton's investment office managers submit all votes as determined by the Carleton Responsible Investment Committee (CRIC).

Shareholder Resolutions 

Has the institution filed or co-filed one or more shareholder resolutions that address sustainability or submitted one or more letters about social or environmental responsibility to a company in which it holds investments during the previous three years?:
Yes

None
Examples of how the institution has engaged with corporations in its portfolio about sustainability issues during the previous three years:
It is required that members of Carleton’s Responsible Investment Committee (CRIC) write a letter to each corporation upon which Carleton has taken a proxy voting position. The letters call attention and explain the rationale behind Carleton’s vote. Examples of letters can be found at: https://apps.carleton.edu/governance/cric/engage/corps/ In addition to written letters, Carleton students have attended the annual meetings of corporations in its portfolio to publicly address their view on proxy issues. See this link for more information: https://apps.carleton.edu/governance/cric/articles/

Negative Screens / Divestment Efforts 

Does the institution have a publicly available investment policy with negative screens?:
No

None
A brief description of the negative screens and how they have been implemented:
---

None
Approximate percentage of the endowment that the negative screens apply to:
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Investor Networks 

Does the institution engage in policy advocacy by participating in investor networks and/or engage in inter-organizational collaborations to share best practices?:
Yes

None
A brief description of the investor networks and/or collaborations:
Carleton participates in a dialogue with several peer institutions and others to discuss various issues such as proxy voting, divestment, and ESG approaches.

Optional Fields 

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
http://apps.carleton.edu/campus/investment/

Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.