Green Mountain College
PA-8: Committee on Investor Responsibility

Formed in spring 2010, the Socially Responsible Investment Advisory Committee (SRIAC) recommended that the Investment Committee of the Board of Trustees approve an initial investment equal to 10% of GMC's current endowment portfolio in a socially responsible investment fund. The Board approved this investment and added an additional 5% the following year. The committee reviews our holdings with our bank on a regular basis to ensure our holdings match the socially responsible criteria required by the College. The SRIAC committee charge is as follows: Review the College’s investment portfolio and provide recommendations regarding socially responsible investment initiatives to the Investment Committee of the Board of Trustees. The SRIAC is chaired by the chief financial officer of the College and consists of up to two well-qualified students appointed by student senate and one faculty member appointed by the FCEB and approved by the provost. The committee meets to perform tasks such as reviewing quarterly returns from the investment portfolio and changes in the portfolio. On the basis of these reviews, they make recommendations to the Investment Committee of the Board of Trustees for action. These recommendations may relate to proxy voting, increased transparency of the portfolio, divestment of certain securities, or positive and negative screening of investments. The SRIAC's objective is to assist the College in making investment decisions that reflect its environmental mission. In the case that SRI returns are not equal to or exceed non-SRI returns, alternative SRI funds are suggested. The SRIAC's deliberations are guided in part by best practices in socially responsible investing, as identified by the Sustainable Endowments Institute and AASHE’s sustainability tracking and rating system’s investment section. The recommendations are made public knowledge through the College newspaper, presentations, or a branch of the College website.

Tom Mauhs Pugh, Vice President of Academic Affairs and Provost Frank Pauzé, Professor of Business and Economics, Director of the Resort and Hospitality Management Program Jim Harding, Professor of Natural Resources Management Ryan Ihrke, Director of Sustainability (Acting Chair) Todd Walker, Board of Trustee Peter Kinder, Board of Trustee Katelyn Mann, Student Merone Eckert, Student

Green Mountain College successfully completed their divestment of fossil fuel holdings in the fall of 2015 following the Board of Trustees commitment to divest in 2013. The College uses the Carbon Underground 200 compiled by Fossil Free Indexes, the criteria suggested by 350.org, as a negative screen against fossil fuel companies. The SRIAC has regular conversations with the College’s portfolio manager to ensure the fossil fuel divestment commitment is maintained and offers additional recommendations of SRI funds to evaluate for inclusion within the College’s investment holdings. In October 2015, Green Mountain College hosted the Vermont Campus Sustainability Network annual meeting focusing on responsible investing. Members of the committee coordinated the content with a focus on responsible investing, general, positive and negative screening, fossil fuel divestment, Environmental Social Governance Policies. The SRIAC committee is currently leading the effort in drafting an environmental social governance policy for the College’s holdings. The campus sustainability council is responsible for managing the College’s green revolving loan fund. In August 2016 the investment project implemented was a LED light retrofit, replacing all corridor lights in a residence hall with an expected payback of approximately 3 years.

The performance year for this credit is FY 2017.