Green Investing Help (plus Fossil Fools our April Green Biz Interview)

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Economic action for a just and sustainable planet

Dear daniel stafford, Thanks!  You did it!  You voted and exposed the worst Fossil Fools in our contest to raise awareness about business leaders and government officials whose actions do not represent an investment in our future or the health of the planet.  See below for the full list of winners and also check out our new and updated resources for greening your investments. Just like you vote with your dollars to purchase renewable energy over the Fossil Fools' coal and oil and gas, or purchase organic clothing over conventional (or any other green living choice), your investment choices also make a difference in the world.   When you support the most responsible companies with your investments, or use your shareholder clout to push less responsible companies to improve, you're voting for a greener future for people and the planet. One green investing choice you can make is to select socially responsible (SRI) mutual funds. SRI mutual funds use multiple strategies for investing in a better world.  Many screen out the very least responsible companies, and choose to invest only in companies with better records on the environment and social issues. Depending on the fund, an SRI mutual fund may choose to screen specifically to avoid or embrace a particular industry:  for example, avoiding weapons manufacturers, or embracing green energy technologies, while earning competitive returns.  We host a SRI mutual fund performance chart to our Web site to help you track the progress at some of the best funds. When you invest in mutual funds, you delegate to the fund managers the task of engaging with the companies within the fund, at which SRI funds excel.  When you invest in stocks directly, you have the opportunity to push companies to improve by participating in the shareholder proxy-voting process.  When enough shareholders (often as few as 20 percent or so) vote to push for change at a company, it gets management's attention and can catalyze change.  We've added three proxy voting charts to our Web site to help you prepare.  If you may be invested in stocks connected to the climate crisis (oil and gas companies, automobile companies, etc.) or other concerns, check our voting charts to see if you might have a chance to raise your voice and vote as a shareholder this year.  Here's to investing in the future! Alisa Gravitz Executive Director Co-op America Action: Use Your Shareholder Clout – Vote Your Proxies If you own stock in businesses connected to problems like the climate crisis, human rights abuses, or other irresponsible ways of doing business, concerned shareholders like you may have already filed resolutions to urge them to take action. Spring is the proxy season, so watch your mail or e-mail for your chance to vote for progress at companies in which you invest, in advance of the company's annual meeting. (Remember that if you invest in mutual funds, you automatically delegate your proxy voting rights to the fund managers.) As a heads-up about some of the resolutions that have already been filed this year, Co-op America (in partnership with our allies at Ceres and the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility) has prepared three proxy voting charts, sorted by issue area. Click through below to check whether you own stock in any targeted companies this year, and get ready to vote your proxies!   View our 2008 Climate Change Proxy Chart » View our 2008 Human Rights Proxy Chart »   View our 2008 Food and Water Proxy Chart » News: Fossil Fools Awards 2008 Outstanding Performance in Corporate Greenwashing: GM CEO Rick Wagoner, for his company's creation of GMNext.com, a website that promotes GM's environmental progress even as it attempted to block the efforts of California and 11 other states to reduce vehicle greenhouse gas emissions. Most Inauspicious Newcomer: Archer Daniels Midland CEO Patricia Woertz, for her company's massive contributions to global warming byyy clearing pristine rainforests around the world to produce soy and palm oil, in part for biofuels. Biofuels produced on newly cleared land result in more carbon emissions than traditional fossil fuels. Biggest Human Toll: Cargill CEO Gregory R. Page, for the agribusiness giant's displacement of communities throughout South America, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific to make way for the expansion of its massive soy and palm oil plantations. Lifetime Achievement: George Bush and Dick Cheney, for their persistent efforts to deny the reality and impacts of global climate change, promote carbon-intensive energy solutions, and block progress toward curbing climate change. And now for some good news: Cottonfield – Organic, Sweatshop-free, and Made in the USA "Before I opened Cottonfield, I worked for more than 34 years in the textile and apparel industries in Taiwan and the United States," Yeumei Shon tells Co-op America. "But the wastefulness of the clothing industry, and the environmental impact of conventional cotton farming has troubled me for a long time. One of my greatest wishes is to contribute my knowledge and experience for the benefit of my local and global community." So Yeumei started Cottonfield, an organic clothing company that proves that quality sweatshop-free clothing that is easy on the Earth can be made right here in the US. We asked Yeumei to tell us more about how she got started on her own, why organic fabrics are important, and how she stays competitive as a small green business. Read our April Green Business Interview with Yeumei Shon of Cottonfield » Resources: Our Socially Responsible Mutual Fund Performance Chart Use our chart to find a range of responsible funds. When you click through to the chart, and click on "screening and advocacy" you can find mutual funds tailored to your values:  funds that screen out companies associated with animal testing, the tobacco industry, human rights abuses, and more.  Or, you can find funds with positive screens:  those that screen in companies with responsible environmental records for example.  On the main page of the chart, you can track funds' financial progress, and you can click through on the fund names to find more information, such as account minimums, and contact information.  Visit our New SRI Mutual Fund Performance Chart »

April 2, 2008 Action · Use Your Shareholder Clout – Vote Your Proxies News · Fossil Fools Awards 2008 · Cottonfield – Organic, Sweatshop-free, and Made in the USA Resources · Our Socially Responsible Mutual Fund Performance Chart (member advertisement) (member advertisement) Looking for a way to offset your carbon emissions?  Co-op America offsets with NativeEnergy's WindBuilders program, and you can too for just pennies a day. » Join our action and tell banks to start funding clean energy now» Join Co-op America if you're not already a supporting member, to get our comprehensive Guide to Socially Responsible Investing – FREE with membership. You'll also receive our bi-monthly green living newsletter, our quarterly magazine, and a copy of our National Green Pages™. JOIN NOW »

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