Business outraged by anti-coal campaign: Responsible investors not affected
Today’s article on the front page of the Australian Financial Review reports that coal miners are under ‘Green attack’. Coal Miners such as BHP and Rio Tinto are not happy about the approach, the latter describing it as ‘economic vandalism’. The article: http://www.afr.com/p/national/business_outraged_by_anti_coal_campaign_O09SRiOhlOTYeUJZr9CkXO What is the real issue here for investors? Capital loss? Poor returns? Whether […]
Super Secrets Unmasked: Breakthrough on Disclosure for Super funds
In breaking news today, ASIC Chairman Greg Medcraft has had an amazing insight: investors actually want to know where their money is invested!!! See: http://www.afr.com/p/national/super_secrets_unmasked_wZwYJwpcpVui15DWhY4BtJ Let’s not be concerned that Mr Medcraft is claiming an idea that Responsible Investment Advisers (such as ourselves) have been raising for decades. The fact is that this is a necessary […]
What’s Your Money up to? Invest Responsibly
We all want our superannuation and investments to be safe and earn a solid rate of return, but there are other things we care about too: You might feel passionate about the effects of climate change, the provision of affordable and accessible health care services, managing resources sustainably to meet our current needs and those […]
Meeting with Bear Grylls of Man vs Wild
Bear Grylls is an inspirational guy – he climbed Everest at age 23, after having suffered a broken back 18 months earlier. He talked about his motivation to succeed and working harder than the next bloke….but above all else, preparedness. In short, he says that being prepared is the most important thing to give you confidence in the wild. […]
Jules attends UK Ethical Investment Week #2: Occupy London
Interestingly, on my way into St Paul’s Cathedral the ‘Occupy London’ protest was raging outside on the streets. It was ironic that we were meeting for ethical and sustainable investing on the inside – it would have been wonderful to have some more engagement with the two parties who it would seem have a similar ideology. […]
Jules attends UK Ethical Investment Week #1: Blood & Gore
After jetsetting to Europe I have touched down in Perth, returning from an inspirational week in London for National Ethical Investment Week (NEIW). As a part of the event I was invited to attend a Reception at the House of Commons, hosted by Hugh Bayley MP and the UK Social Investment Forum (UKSIF). Others who attended […]
Australian Ethical visit: Coal Seam Gas divestment
We were fortunate to be able to visit Australian Ethical Investments’ Canberra office a couple of weeks ago. We also checked out a couple of Canberra commercial properties that they’ve recently invested in. Australian Ethical occupies Trevor Pearcey House, a building which they purchased and then renovated in order to achieve a ‘6 Star’ Green rating (see: http://australianethical.com.au/files/documents/other/Trevor_Pearcey_House_facts_and_figures.pdf). In […]
Julia Gillard: a not so hidden agenda on Superannuation?
Although we do our best not to comment on politics (!), this one can’t escape my incredulity. Check out this article by Mike Taylor of Money Management: http://www.moneymanagement.com.au/news/superannuation-bungle-shows-gillards-hand Not a good look when the Australian Prime Minister addresses a group as “comrades”! Julia Gillard’s Socialist background has been well documented, so I won’t detail it here, […]
Q&A: Perpetual’s Ethical SRI fund & the UN Principles for Responsible Investment
Following a recent review by Standard & Poor’s, Perpetual’s Ethical SRI Fund maintained its ‘4 star’ rating. Highlights from Standard & Poor’s Sep 2011 report include: ‘We still regard this fund as an attractive, true-to-label offering in the ethical/SRI Australian equities peer group.’ ‘We remain comfortable with the strength of Perpetual’s experienced team and its robust and […]
Julianna Baird Nominated for National Women’s Financial Advice Award
JULIANNA BAIRD Nominated for National Women’s Financial Advice Award Julianna Baird financial adviser at JustInvest Financial Planning has been nominated for the 2011 Female Excellence in Advice Award (www.afafemaleadvice.com). This Award recognises professional excellence and outstanding work in addressing the particular issues faced by many women in achieving financial security now and in the future. […]
Compare the Pair
When talking about financial advice, it all comes down to price – particularly when talking about your super fund fees. Or does it? Do you drive the cheapest car you can find? Eat the cheapest fast food? Live in the cheapest house? For most people, probably not – you make decisions based on the benefits […]
News Corp: a lesson in Corporate Governance
Today Rhett Kessler of fund manager Pengana Capital was quoted in the AFR discussing why he is buying more News Corp…ultimately he feels that the ongoing phone-hacking scandal will be a good thing for News Corp shareholders. But I question why anyone in their right mind would want to profit from such unethical behaviour? The amazing […]