The 1997 conference produced the Kyoto Protocol, a greenhouse gas reduction agreement, which most industrialized countries signed.  President Bill Clinton signed the Protocol, but Congress did not ratify it. In 2005, President George W. Bush rejected the agreement.  The Kyoto Protocol was set to expire this month; however, it has now been extended to 2020.  The Protocol actually set binding targets for most industrialized countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

In 2009, there was agreement that the UNFCC should take actions necessary to keep the average global temperature from rising more than 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit from the temperatures recorded just before the start of the Industrial Revolution.  Today the average global temperature is 59 degrees and the temperature not to be exceeded is 60.3 degrees. Emissions are increasing rapidly, especially among developing countries using coal, and the feasibility of the international goal to control the global temperature is questionable.

At this year’s conference, there was agreement that the richest countries should provide financial aid to the poorest nations for the “loss and damage” of climate change since the poorest countries have contributed the least to the problem and are also the most vulnerable.  However, the process for determining the amount of aid and how it will be distributed is yet to be decided.

Delegates also decided that a new international agreement will be developed by 2015 and take effect in 2020.  China and the U.S., the world’s two largest emitters of greenhouse gases, will figure prominently in the new agreement.  Although China is classified as a developing country, it is the largest emitter and soon will be the world’s largest economy.

Global emissions of carbon dioxide are at a record high and developed countries are principally responsible as a result of more than 150 years of industrial activity.  The pace and scale of actions by the international community to reduce emissions and concentrations of greenhouse gases is of great concern.

Carsten is Portfolio 21 Investments' founder and Chairman. He has 30 years of experience in socially and environmentally responsible investing.

Back in the late 70s and early 80s, social and environmental investing was just getting started.  By 1982, there were about five social and environmental mutual funds to choose from, compared to the hundreds today.  Our firm was one of the nation’s first investment managers specializing in the field.

Over the past three decades, the catalyst of growth for the social and environmental investing industry has been centered on specific themes based on current events.  In the 1980s, the South Africa divestment movement showed investors worldwide that it is possible to “vote with your dollars” and affect corporate behavior.  In 1989, the Exxon Valdez oil spill was a wake-up call to corporations and investors about environmental liability.  Since the 1990s, the environment has been the top issue for investors.  Of course, the main catalyst for growth has been competitive financial performance.

At first, environmental issues were applied to the investment process primarily as avoidance screens. Investors were looking to avoid companies with poor environmental performance.  In 1998, Portfolio 21 Investments developed one of the first approaches to positive environmental screening.  Today we have become best known for our expertise in environmental investing.

I’m very fortunate to have found a vocation with passion starting in 1982 (at an early age).  It is a gift to be surrounded by colleagues and clients who care deeply about the environment and demonstrate their concern through their actions.  It is a privilege to be celebrating my thirtieth year at Portfolio 21 Investments.

Carsten is Portfolio 21 Investments' founder and Chairman. He has 30 years of experience in socially and environmentally responsible investing.

My first SRI conference was in San Francisco in 1984. Over the past 28 years I have lost count of the SRI conferences that I’ve attended. Back in the 80s, attendance was usually about one hundred or fewer. Now these events attract several hundred from many countries. Increased interest in applying social, environmental, and governance criteria to the investment process is, in part, due to consumers and investors becoming more aware of both the risks and business opportunities of ecological limits, including climate change.

This year’s high-profile speakers include environmental leader Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., journalist David Brancaccio, author Dr. Deepak Chopra, and Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus. I first met Muhammad Yunus in the early 80s when he was just starting Grameen Bank in Bangladesh. He was visiting Oregon and I gave him a tour of an organic farm outside of Eugene. At the time I was a director of a community loan fund to assist organic farmers. Dr. Yunus went on to become known as the father of microcredit and he has founded more than 50 companies in Bangladesh.  Just this year, Fortune Magazine named him as "one of 12 greatest entrepreneurs of our time."  Dr. Yunus will be delivering the opening keynote session and is one of 16 plenary speakers. There will be 30 sessions offered including “Think Local Food: Real Prosperity Starts Here” and “America's Low Carbon Energy Breakthrough Opportunity.”

The SRI Conference is the largest annual gathering of responsible investors and investment professionals in North America.  If you are interested in learning more, please visit http://www.SRIconference.com. Portfolio 21 Investments is a sponsor every year and I’ll be there hosting our booth.

Carsten is Portfolio 21 Investments' founder and Chairman. He has more than 25 years of experience in socially and environmentally responsible investing.

It seems every few years there has been yet another label to describe the screened approach:  values driven; values based; corporate social responsibility; responsible; socially responsive; socially conscious; environmental, social, corporate governance (ESG); triple bottom line; sustainable; green; and impact investing.  Although these terms can be defined differently, in practice they are often used interchangeably, which can certainly cause confusion.

The most common terms used today are SRI, ESG, sustainable, and impact. SRI is often associated with one’s personal values.  ESG is more often associated with financial performance derived from ESG screening factors.  Sustainable investing often emphasizes the environmental screen; however, it is also widely used interchangeably with SRI and ESG.  Impact investing is the latest term and I associate it with community investing, social venture capital, and microfinance.  Again, in practice, impact investing is sometimes used interchangeably with SRI and ESG.

The only way to really define these terms is to look closely at the underlying investments and match the investment choice with your specific screened objectives.  For example, many mutual funds that fall under the category of SRI, ESG, or sustainable, invest in oil companies, which some people may not consider a sustainable approach.

Carsten is Portfolio 21 Investments' founder and Chairman. He has more than 25 years of experience in socially and environmentally responsible investing.

Bioneers is a non-profit educational organization with a focus on restoration of people and planet. The theme of the conferences is based in part on the UN Millennium Ecosystem Assessment that concluded: “Human activity is putting such strain on the natural functions of Earth that the ability of the planet’s ecosystems to sustain future generations can no longer be taken for granted.” This year, some of my favorite speakers include Dr. Gretchen Daily (Stanford University), Paul Hawken, and Bill McKibben (350.org). The long list of presenters for the three-day event is always impressive. Kenny Ausubel and Nina Simons founded Bioneers in 1990 with the understanding that, “Taking care of nature means taking care of people - and taking care of people means taking care of nature.”

If you decide to attend, hotel rooms near the venue are not easy to find and public transportation is challenging. That said, the Marin Center is the perfect location with its lake and walking trails. If you can’t make it, live broadcasts of many presentations are online and a DVD set is available each year. You can find me at the Portfolio 21 booth. Hope to see you there.

Carsten is Portfolio 21 Investments' founder and Chief Executive Officer. He has more than 25 years of experience in socially and environmentally responsible investing.

The corporation came to us from the monarchies of medieval times.  Monarchs were the conscience of the corporation and could revoke a corporate charter. The oldest existing corporation is Stora Enso, a Scandinavian basic materials company, started in 1288. Corporations were a catalyst to the expansion of European colonialism from the 1400s to 1700s. At one time the Hudson’s Bay Company controlled 15% of the North American landmass.

In the 18^th century, the authority to charter corporations was passed from monarchies to legislative and administrative bodies. However, a corporate charter could still be revoked if the corporation failed to meet the needs of the sovereign.

The United States inherited the concept of a corporation in 1776. The authors of our Constitution feared the power of corporations. Corporate law was designed to protect the public interest rather than the interests of shareholders. At that time corporate charters were closely regulated by the states and were seen as the external conscience of corporations. Beginning in the 19^th century, the states’ ability to revoke charters was limited, which granted corporations more power. Limited liability for officers, directors, and shareholders was adopted. The business of corporations became to maximize wealth for shareholders through unlimited growth. As we continually see today, this objective often comes at the expense of employees, community, and the environment.

Today there are new choices in corporate governance from benefit corporations to an L3C which is a hybrid for profit/non profit. To learn more about these innovative new corporate structures, see “The Rise of the Charitable For-Profit Entity” by Evangeline Gomez in the January issue of Forbes.

Carsten is Portfolio 21 Investments' founder and Chief Executive Officer. He has more than 25 years of experience in socially and environmentally responsible investing.

After nearly 17 years, Leslie Christian has transitioned to explore some new projects. She will be continuing her work as Chair of Upstream 21 Corporation and following her deep commitment to investing in regional economies. She will also be continuing her work on rethinking modern portfolio theory and asset allocation.

When I reflect back on Leslie’s contribution, my first thoughts are of enormous gratitude and the greatest respect for what she brought to Portfolio 21 Investments.  In 1998, Leslie and I came up with the concept to launch an investment strategy using The Natural Step principles as a foundation for our investment selection process.  At the time, sustainability was a relatively new and undefined term. While many SRI investment strategies had environmental screens, these screens were primarily used to screen out companies with poor environmental performance. We developed a comprehensive positive screening approach to selecting environmental leaders, which brings us to where we are today.

All of us at Portfolio 21 Investments are thankful for Leslie’s contribution to our success over the years and we wish her the very best in her future work.

The other big news is that John Streur has joined the Board of Directors of Portfolio 21 Investments as non-executive Chairman. John brings 25 years of investment industry and mutual fund management experience to the role, most recently as President and Trustee of The Managers Funds and CEO of Managers Investment Group, LLC. We first met John about four years ago while he was doing research on environmental investing. We were honored that he had identified us as one of the leaders in the field. When we met earlier this year it became clear that John's unique combination of depth of experience with global investment processes, along with his commitment to environmental investment principles, would make him a strong addition to our Board. We are very fortunate to welcome John to Portfolio 21 Investments.

Carsten is Portfolio 21 Investments' founder and Chief Executive Officer. He has more than 25 years of experience in socially and environmentally responsible investing.