Burgess COMMENTARY

Peter Burgess

http://charts.ussif.org/mfpc/

This is a list of funds that are investing in impact oriented stocks

Meet The Staff

Lisa Woll, CEO

As our CEO, Lisa leads US SIF and the US SIF Foundation's overall direction and sits, ex-officio, on all board committees. If you would like to suggest a possible partnership or alliance for US SIF, request a staff member to speak at your event, or become more involved in the organization's activities contact Lisa. Lisa has been the CEO of US SIF and the US SIF Foundation since 2006, and has been responsible for strategic planning, developing a robust policy presence, expansion and diversification of funding, launching our national conference and creating the Center for Sustainable Investment Education. Prior to US SIF, Lisa was executive director of the International Women's Media Foundation, an organization focused on press freedom and expansion of women’s role in the media. During her tenure, the IWMF played a significant role in re-orienting the way journalism training was carried out on the issues of HIV-AIDS, malaria and TB in several African media organizations. Lisa also spent a decade working on children’s human rights. She was the director of the first international study to look at the impact of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and directed the Washington, DC office of Save the Children. She is a member of the Advisory Council of the Children’s Rights Division of Human Rights Watch. Lisa's early career focused on domestic social policy and began in the New York City Human Resources Administration as an Urban Fellow and the US Congress as a legislative assistant. Lisa is the founder of Suited for Change, a Washington, DC-based nonprofit organization that provides professional clothing and ongoing career education to low-income women who have completed job training programs and are seeking employment. She was a founding board member and former president of the board of The Women's Alliance, a national membership organization of community organizations that increase the employability of low-income women. She was also Board President of Women’s Voices for the Earth, a national environmental health organization based in Montana. She has written and spoken widely on human rights and development, as well as leadership. She is a board member of the Children's Environmental Health Network and the founder, with her teenage son, of Advantage Ethiopia: Kids' Tennis and Education Initiative. In 2001, Lisa was named a Washingtonian of the Year by Washingtonian Magazine in recognition of her pioneering role with Suited for Change. She has received numerous other awards and has volunteered on other nonprofit boards and commissions. Lisa holds a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Illinois and a master’s degree in public policy and women's studies from George Washington University. She spent 1990 – 1991 in Melbourne, Australia, as a Fulbright Fellow. Lisa is energized daily by the opportunity to be part of the leadership team advancing the vital work of sustainable and responsible investors.

Meg Voorhes, Director of Research and Operations

Meg heads up our research department and leads the production of our biennial, flagship report, Sustainable and Responsible Investing Trends in the United States. Contact Meg with questions about this and other research US SIF is conducting. Meg also manages US SIF’s finances, so if you have questions about US SIF’s annual report or financial statements, please contact her. Prior to joining the US SIF staff, Meg directed environmental, social and governance research for RiskMetrics Group’s Financial Research and Analysis division. There, her duties included editing Corporate Social Issues Reporter, a monthly journal, and heading the firm’s Sustainability Task Force. For much of her career at the Investor Responsibility Research Center (IRRC), which the Institutional Shareholder Service unit of RiskMetrics Group acquired in 2005, Meg specialized in issues related to multinational investment in South Africa. From 1990 through 1996, she directed IRRC’s Southern Africa Service. In 1997, Meg was tapped to direct IRRC’s Social Issues Service, where she coordinated the organization’s research on the environmental, human rights and other social issues raised by shareholders at U.S. companies. She co-edited the 1998 book, The Sweatshop Quandary: Corporate Responsibility on the Global Frontier. From 2001 through 2003, Meg served as a judge for Social Accountability International’s Corporate Conscience Award. She served on the board of US SIF from 2006 to 2008 and on Wesleyan University's Committee on Investor Responsibility from 2010 to 2012. She is a graduate of Wesleyan University and earned a Master of International Public Policy degree from the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. Back to Top

Alya Kayal, Director of Programs and Policy

Alya’s responsibilities on public policy include interacting with congressional offices, regulatory agencies and other organizations working on policy priorities; working on the implementation of financial reform, budget and appropriations issues at key federal agencies; monitoring environmental, social and governance issues; and keeping US SIF members informed on policy and programs, among other things. Alya is also involved in all program staff activities related to the various US SIF working groups. If you have any specific questions about US SIF’s work on public policy, Center for Sustainable Investment Education or programs, please contact her. Before joining US SIF in June 2011, Alya managed corporate sustainability research and analysis at Calvert Investments, Inc. She focused on human rights, international labor issues in the global supply chains, as well as corporate impact on the rights of Indigenous Peoples. Alya has also served on the Steering Committee of the International Working Group (IWG) of US SIF. She was a member of the Stakeholder Council of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and a member of the Investment Subcommittee of the Advisory Committee on International Economic Policy (ACIEP) where she promoted reforms of the US National Contact Point under the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. Prior to her career at Calvert, she worked at the US Department of Labor on an international child labor report that identified countries and industries that used child labor in the export of manufactured products from industry or mining to the United States. Alya has also worked on a special project for the U.S. Information Agency and the Soros Foundation on the status of independent media in Eastern Europe and the states of the former Soviet Union. In 1992, she worked as an aide to the U.S. expert member of the UN Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities. While there, she drafted several human rights resolutions and assisted in the negotiations on complex political and human rights issues with representatives from various countries. Alya has written and published numerous articles on human rights issues, including on the 44th session of the UN Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities. Alya earned a JD from the University of Minnesota Law School and a BA in Sociology and International Communications from Rutgers University.

Sylvia Panek, Assistant Director of Operations & Development

Sylvia manages the day-to-day needs of US SIF’s technical operations and development work. If you are experiencing problems with US SIF’s website or electronic discussion groups, or have specific questions regarding activities or participation in any of US SIF’s working groups, please contact Sylvia. Sylvia obtained a Sustainability MBA in Green Development and Urban Planning at Marylhurst University, as well as a dual BS in International Business and Marketing with Honors at Ilinois State University. Sylvia worked at the Nonprofit Financial Center in Chicago, an organization focused on educating and assisting nonprofit organizations to operate with security on limited budgets. In 2005, she joined the socially responsible investment division at Green America, an organization devoted to a sustainable economy and planet. Sylvia joined US SIF in 2007 and is currently the Assistant Director of Operations and Development, which includes management of the US SIF's Community Investment Working Group. Back to Top

Megan Smith, Public Affairs & Events Associate

Megan Smith PhotoMegan's primary responsibilities include managing US SIF’s day-to-day communications and events work. If you have specific questions about any of US SIF’s social media channels, the US SIF website or press releases, as well as the US SIF Annual Conference, please contact her. Before joining US SIF, Megan interned with the US Department of State and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. She also served as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar in Cordoba, Spain from 2007-2008. Megan holds a bachelor’s degree from the College of William and Mary, where she double majored in Government and Economics, and a master’s degree in International Affairs from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland. Back to Top

Supap Jitta, Membership & Administrative Manager

Supap’s responsibilities include membership management and services, financial administration, and Board support. Membership questions regarding the annual membership renewals, invoices, enrollment procedures and benefit programs can be directed to her. Supap holds an MBA from the George Washington University and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Earlham College in Indiana. Prior to joining US SIF, she worked as an intern at an investment bank in Philadelphia, an English teacher in Japan, and a Club and District Support coordinator at Rotary International in Illinois.

Farzana Hoque, Research and Programs Associate

Farzana's primary responsibilities are researching, writing, and data collection to support the production of US SIF publications and reports. She also assists with other writing projects, including education program materials and policy materials. She is the staff liaison for two working groups: the Sustainable Investment Research Analyst Network and the International Working Group. During the first four years of her career at the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association (EMPEA), she gained a strong interest in the investment industry and the positive impacts that investors and companies can make. Since then, she has worked closely with sustainable and impact investing, with a focus on environmental issues and clean energy investments. After EMPEA, she researched climate change challenges and opportunities for advisory projects at Asian Tiger Capital Partners in Dhaka, Bangladesh. While at the Small Enterprise Assistance Funds Ventures Management, a private equity fund financed by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), she supported a sustainable investment in a Bangladesh-based solar power company. In her most recent position at Growth Markets, Inc., she was responsible for gathering data across asset classes and researching specific topics, such as ESG and global sustainable investment trends. In 2011, she co-authored a business case study with the IFC titled “How to Value Returns on Sustainability Investments in Emerging and Frontier Economies: Linking Community Outcomes and Business Value.” Farzana is a graduate of the Fletcher School at Tufts University, where she obtained an M.A. in International Relations with concentrations in Monetary Theory and Environmental Policy. She completed her B.A. in International Relations with a concentration in Economic Development at Tufts University.

Dafrine Jones-Forbes, Administrative Assistant

Dafrine Jones-Forbes PhotoDafrine's responsibilities include; providing Administrative Support to the US SIF staff and members. Prior to joining US SIF, Dafrine worked with government contractors Booz Allen Hamilton and Northrup Grumman in various capacities from Administrative Support, Project Management to Meetings and Event Management. Dafrine completed George Washington University Event Management Certification Program and received her Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designation from the Convention Industry Council in 2007. She's been planning and managing meetings and events since 2000.