Investing As More Than Just Dollars and Cents

After starting a new job recently and finally getting a 401K, I have been thinking a bit about where I would like to invest my money and what the things I believe most deeply about myself and the world might have to do with that. It is worth saying at the outset that I am a long-term thinker. I think in decades rather than years and am more interested in something making it through the long haul than giving me a quick bang for my buck. Hence, I have taken a significant amount of interest in socially responsible business practices. When it came to figuring out where to put my retirement money, I naturally looked for a socially responsible investing option. SRI funds are fairly new, and even some of the most savvy businessmen still aren't quite at their A-game when it comes to the topic of which funds are good, better, and best. When I went hunting for more information on the topic a few weeks ago, I found a scattering of articles but turned up few real results from the kind of business minds that I would trust.

However, today I came across a very intriguing article on the subject of socially responsible investing, which is absolutely worth a quick read. Entitled "A Walled Garden for Capital," the article addresses the fact that both companies and investors are more readily turning to socially responsible options in light of the recent financial crisis, which has highlighted the glaringly short-term mindness of many big businesses. The mantra of these businesses?: "Why worry about the environment now; it won't really affect us...Maybe our children's children's children, but we'll be fine;" OR "Oil is making a lot of money right now, even more because it is becoming scarce, who wouldn't want to put their money there?"! Meanwhile, the public is increasingly demanding more sustainable options-options that look not just to financial bottom lines. These options, says "Walled Garden" author Hazel Henderson,

base their attractiveness to investors on a long-standing perception that financial trustworthiness, commitment to environmental and social accountability, and high levels of long-term performance tend to go together. As they grow, they could have immense impact, not just on the portfolios of their investors and the balance sheets of the companies involved, but on the financial system as a whole.

This newly-trended approach to doing business is cropping up everywhere. Take, for example the spinach I bought recently from Whole Foods: the box proudly declares that the company that sells it donates a portion of profits back to struggling children. This sort of thing, however, is more than mere trend. Things like the Whole Foods model are not just for the socially aware anymore. More and more people are realizing that if we want people to keep living on this earth, we have to look out for more than just ourselves.

Merely thinking about being socially responsible is often enough to raise a few hairs. Converting one's ways to ones that are more environmentally and socially conscious isn't always easy, and the procedure doesn't fit into a nice, simple box that can be drawn upon at a moment's notice. Instead, the process of becoming more socially responsible involves a great deal of thoughtfulness and care. Hence the rise of "the walled garden" referred to in the aforementioned article. This "garden," if you will, involves set standards that businesses have to maintain in order to stay inside the confines. They can grow and thrive, as long as they don't go outside certain boundaries. It similarly means that consumers do not have to blindly trust what companies and businesses tell them, but instead trust the word of a larger entity that is holding both businesses and investors accountable. A great example of this kind of monitoring entity is the US Green Building Council's LEED Accreditation System, which "provides building owners and operators a concise framework for identifying and implementing practical and measurable green building design, construction, operations and maintenance solutions." (USGBC website) Green buildings are popping up everywhere and showcasing some really unique features, such as green roofs, and solar-powered LED lights. And with the LEED standards in place, building something green has become much more than an idea or a cause for the sake of cause-mindedness. It has pushed builders to consider ways to make buildings more livable, and subsequently helped people think about how to thrive instead of merely survive. For a really cool look into this topic at USGBC, check out the relatively-new LEED for Neighbhorhood Development rating system.

When it comes to SRIs, sustainable practices, and eco-friendly wares, there are rules; there is right and wrong; and there is effort to look more deeply into the grey areas. Yes, this sort of thing is nothing short of business ethics. But while some may groan and gripe, today's marketplace is starting to show that this approach works-that thinking about more than profits can actually prove better for the business in the long-term than hard-nosed adherence to a single-bottom line. Myopism might have worked in the past-worked, mind you, in the sense that it got businesses through one day and to the next-, but that sort of simple-mindness just isn't going to cut it anymore. If financial upheaval is any indication of future trends, we'd best heed the warnings of those once-considered crazy hippies and start making a few changes. Instead of simply plowing forward thinking only about what is good enough for now, the time is ripe to start thinking about what is good enough for those children's children's children, all those things that can't always be quantified by mere dollars and cents, but are consequently worth infinitely more.