Have you ever wondered if investing is about more than simply maximizing risk-adjusted financial returns?
What if your portfolio could help you pursue your financial goals while also reflecting your deeply held values and convictions?
At Everence, we help clients wrestle with these very questions through our distinctive stewardship investing philosophy – an approach that integrates financial discipline with faith-informed values. Some refer to this as Faith-Based Investing or Socially Responsible Investing. We see it as faithful stewardship.
How does stewardship investing work?
There are a variety of strategies, methodologies, and products available depending on your financial objectives and values orientation. While implementation can vary, stewardship investing typically includes three primary approaches:
Avoid
We seek to avoid investing in companies whose primary goods or services conflict with a shared set of values (e.g., tobacco, alcohol, adult entertainment, gambling, etc.).
Embrace
We intentionally allocate capital toward companies developing products and services that contribute to human flourishing (e.g., renewable energy, cybersecurity, medical innovation, etc.).
Engage
As shareholders, we exercise our legal rights to advocate for positive change within the companies we own – encouraging practices such as environmental stewardship, addressing systemic inequality, and combating human trafficking.
A Shift in Perspective
When we reframe investing not merely as a mechanism to grow wealth but as a means of supplying capital to organizations positively shaping the world, we begin to see our role differently. We are not simply investors. We are stewards of resources entrusted to us.
Instead of asking only about what strategy can maximize your earnings, the question becomes: What impact are your investments making? And are they aligned with the values you seek to live out?
If you’d like to explore how your portfolio can reflect both your financial goals, your values and your faith convictions, let’s talk.
