On September 29, 2016 Tim Smith, Walden Asset Management’s director of ESG Shareowner Engagement, will be honored at the annual event of the Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) for his decades-long, indefatigable leadership shaping the landscape of shareholder advocacy for more just and environmentally sound business policies and practices.
Tim is the first secular recipient of the ICCR Legacy Award, a recognition of his nearly quarter-century history at the helm of ICCR as well as 16 years at Walden where he continues to demonstrate daily how shareholder leverage can be an effective vehicle for positive change.
ICCR describes Tim as having had a profound impact on the field of sustainable and responsible investing, noting:
Tim plays a valuable role in virtually every ICCR program area but has been an especially effective leader of investor engagements on climate change and on governance topics including lobbying and political spending, executive compensation and separate Chair/CEO, as well as board diversity.
Staff at Walden said, “we could not agree more.”
Tim Smith
Tim has been a tremendous voice for Walden and the flourishing Sustainable, Responsible, and Impact Investing (SRI) industry,”“We are proud of Tim for this well-deserved recognition from ICCR. Tim is a thoughtful leader with relentless drive and passion that enables him to forge constructive relationships with companies and other stakeholders in the pursuit of greater corporate responsibility and accountability,
stated Managing Director Bill Apfel. In response to hearing of the award, Tim Smith remarked:
I am personally moved to be receiving this tribute from ICCR whose dedication and work for change inevitably becomes part of who you are and what you do. My work on shareholder advocacy at Walden has been a natural outgrowth of my role at ICCR. Walden clients, both individuals and institutions, are partners who are committed to putting their investments to work to promote environmental stewardship and social responsibility. We are fortunate to continue our shared mission and history alongside religious investors within ICCR.
About Walden Asset Management: Since 1975, Walden Asset Management has specialized in managing portfolios for institutional and individual clients with a dual investment mandate: competitive financial returns and positive social and environmental impact. Walden is an industry leader in integrating ESG analysis into investment decision‐making and company engagement to strengthen ESG performance, transparency and accountability. Walden is the SRI practice of Boston Trust & Investment Management Company, a PRI signatory.
Bill Somplatsky-Jarman
Also to be honored with a Legacy Award is retiring Rev. William Somplatsky-Jarman. As staff of its Mission Responsibility Through Investment (MRTI) team in the mid-80s, Bill helped the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. develop a strategy to pressure banks doing business in South Africa to disinvest and call for the repayment of loans by the government. This launched his career in responsible investment and corporate engagement on behalf of the Church, where he advocated on a number of social and environmental issues including pushing banks on predatory lending; peacemaking; racial, social and economic justice; human rights, anti-sweatshop and labor issues; environmental responsibility including climate change, and securing women’s rights. This year, after 32 years of commitment and impact, Bill retired from his role with the Church.
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