DOMINICAN ALLIANCE NEWS

Socially Responsible Investing:
'Preaching Jesus' Good News in the world of finance

Socially responsible investing is a way of 'preaching Jesus' Good News in the world of finance, according to Sister Peggy Sause, of the Columbus Dominicans.  "It allows us to use what financial power we have to urge various corporations to act more justly here in the United States and in developing countries around the world."

And for Sister Suzanne Brauer of the Eucharistic Missionaries, her participation in DACRI (Dominican Alliance Corporate Responsible Investment) is about "speaking the truth of social justice in a collective voice to some of the most powerful corporations in the country."

While socially responsible investing may seem remote from the ministry of Catholic sisters working in parishes, clinics, and schools, it is linked more closely to this day-to-day experience than one might think.  Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility ~ ICCR's ~ Sister Pat Wolf sees it as an extension of a passionate commitment to the poor, the sick, and the uneducated around the world.

Through careful stewardship of financial resources the Dominican Alliance congregations are, she says, "touching the lives of people we can't count."

Alternative investing is a type of socially responsible investing that differs in scope and intention from shareholder advocacy.  Shareholder activities are long-term strategies designed for structural change within large companies.  alternative investments allow investors to have an immediate impact on real people by providing them with immediate support for their local communities.

For example, Rhoda lives in Uganda and is successfully running a small business through which she supports and educates her children.  Her business got the boost it needed from two small loans from the Women's Village Banking Group, one for $42, the other for $57.  This micro loan organization is supported with funds from the Dominican Alliance Community Investments, an alternative portfolio managed by Calvert Foundation.

Sister Barbara Rapp, a Kentucky Dominican who helped to establish Dominican Alliance Community Investment four years ago, calls it "another way of being in ministry where our bodies can't be."  The investment program makes loans to other not-for-profits that support domestic and international micro credit, housing, and community development projects.  Each congregation's investments are managed separately and pay 0 - 3 percent return, depending on the individual congregation's needs.  Calvert Foundation designed the portfolio to match the interest of the Alliance congregations, who because of their growing relationship with the Dominicans in Zambia, requested that a portion of the funds be devoted to groups working in Africa, like the one that supports Rhoda.

"Instead of putting the money under the mattress or in the back, you can see communities transformed," says Tim Freundlich of Calvert.  "this is very personal and mission-oriented, and that speaks to faith faith-based investors."  written for the Dominican alliance by Beth Murphy, OP (Dominican of Springfield, Illinois.)

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