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SRI
Committee
Charter & Additional Updates
-Charter
Updates-
On April 13, 2004, in response to a request from the Committee, the Board of Trustees decided that the Committee would be permitted to make public how the Trustees voted on shareholder resolutions recommended by the Committee this year. The Trustees further stated that they would decide whether to agree to making votes public in the future on a case by case basis.
In
the summer of 2003, the Board of Trustees decided to provide
the Advisory Committee on Socially Responsible Investing with
snapshots of Barnard's investment portfolio twice a year and
no more than six months out of date. The Committee may
disseminate information in a verbal format to members of the
Barnard community as necessary. The Committee may disseminate
information in a written format to members of the Barnard
community after securing approval from the Barnard Board of
Trustees.
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Committee Charter-
-Adopted by the Barnard
Board of Trustees in the Summer of 2002-
Barnard's
Committee on Socially Responsible Investing
The
Board of Trustees authorizes the President to designate an
Advisory Committee on Socially Responsible Investing for the
purpose of advising the Trustees on the social implications
of Barnard's institutional investment program and to advise
the Board's Committee on Investments on the social and ethical
issues that arise in the management of the College's endowment.
A. Composition
The
Advisory Committee on Socially Responsible Investing shall
consist of six voting members drawn in equal numbers from
students, faculty and alumnae. Additionally, the President
of the College shall appoint one administrator who is familiar
with the College's investments to sit as a non-voting member
of the Committee. Student members of the Committee shall
serve a period of two years; faculty and alumnae members shall
serve a period of three years. Initially these terms
shall be staggered to ensure continuity in the membership
of the Committee and familiarity with investment issues.
Representatives
shall be nominated by the Student Governing Association (SGA),
the Faculty Governance and Procedures Committee (FGP) and
the Associated Alumnae of Barnard College (AABC) through each
body's standard processes of selection. Student representatives
to the Committee need not be members of the SGA, but they
must have sophomore status at the time of their selection.
At least one of the faculty representatives to the Committee
shall be tenured. The President of the College shall
approve nominations to the Committee and designate a chair
to serve during the Committee's first year. Thereafter,
the members shall elect one of their own as chair annually.
B.
Charge
The
fiduciary responsibility for the College's investments rests
solely with the College's Board of Trustees. The role of the
Advisory Committee on Socially Responsible Investing is advisory,
and it does not exercise any control or authority over the
College's investments.
As
one of its first tasks, the Committee shall develop and adopt
Principles of Socially Responsible Investment Practice.
The Committee shall endeavor to enact these Principles during
its first year of operation. These Principles may address
issues including, but not limited to, human rights, labor
practices, environmental protection, equity, diversity, discrimination,
and corporate disclosure. Insofar as possible, it shall
be developed through open, well-publicized forums and consultations
with members of the Barnard community, as well as those outside
the College with expertise in related areas.
The
Committee shall advise the Trustees on social and ethical
issues relating to investments in the College's portfolio
and recommend measures including but not limited to the voting
of proxies, portfolio screening, divestment and other shareholder
actions. Such advice shall be provided regarding industries
and corporate practices of general concern. It may also
focus on specific companies.
The
Committee shall also advise the Trustees on investments in
socially responsible corporations and funds that exemplify
social responsibility as outlined in the Committee's Principles
of Socially Responsible Investment Practice.
The
Committee shall meet at least once per semester. A meeting
may be called at the discretion of four Committee members
or in response to the petition of 50 or more members of the
Barnard community. A quorum of four Committee members
must be present for a vote to be taken. All votes cast by
the Committee shall count equally and may not be discounted
at any time, for any reason. Committee members may not vote
by proxy. Approval of an action shall require a majority
vote of the members present.
Annually,
the Committee shall present a Report of the Socially Responsible
Investment Committee's Recommendations to Trustees to the
Trustee Board's Committee on Investments. The report
shall list the resolutions considered by the Committee, and
their recommendations. Copies of the report shall be
distributed to the SGA, FGP, and the AABC. A copy shall
also be posted on the College's web site.
C. Information Dissemination
The
Committee shall gather information on current shareholder
resolutions through reports from the Investor Responsibility
Research Center ("IRRC"), the semi-annual newsletter
of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility ("ICCR"),
student and community input, and other appropriate channels. The College shall subscribe to both the IRRC and the ICCR
and forward the information provided by those subscriptions
to the Committee.
Upon
the request of the Committee, the College shall confirm whether
or not the College is aware of holding any securities issued
by any individual company identified by the Committee at that
time. It is, however, recognized that the College's
portfolio of securities is constantly changing, and that some
of the funds in which the College may invest do not provide
information regarding their individual holdings to the College.
The
Committee shall:
1. Make all Committee meeting agendas and minutes public;
2. Provide copies of the Report of the Socially
Responsible Investing Committee's Recommendations to Trustees
on the College's web site, in the Library , and in the Office
of Public Affairs.
D. Accountability and Confidentiality
The
Committee shall review this policy after the first two years
of operation and thereafter as the Committee deems necessary.
If the review results in proposed changes to the policy, the
proposed changes shall be sent to the Board of Trustees for
consideration and discussion. The College may also propose
changes to the policy.
All
members of the Committee shall, except as provided in this
document, keep all information, documents, reports and material
of any kind strictly confidential, and will use such material
solely for the purpose of carrying out the defined tasks of
the Committee.
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