| Organisational Overview | ||||||
| Organisational Overview This section captures information that helps determine if some of the subsequent questions are required and also plays a role in benchmarking. Please make sure you provide accurate answers. This is also one of the more challenging sections as it may require gathering information from multiple sources. We suggest you collect all this information before progressing to other parts of the questionnaire. | ||||||
| 1. What were your organisation's total assets under management as of the most recent count (in millions)? (Estimating to the nearest hundred million as of December 31 2008 would be preferable - although the most recent available count would be sufficient. If your currency is not listed, please select 'other' and indicate your currency or convert to United States dollars.) | 1900 | |||||
| Please select currency | United States dollar (USD) | |||||
| 1a. If 'other' was selected, please specify the other currency here | No Answer | |||||
2. Please pick the one category and level of complexity that best describes your organisation (if your organisation is a pension fund, please also select your pension type). This information may be used to provide you with the best possible benchmarking. Complexity
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| Socially responsible investment manager | Moderately complex | |||||
| 2a. If 'other' was selected, please specify the other category here | No answer | |||||
| 3. Please provide an approximation of your average asset mix for 2008 or your asset mix as of the most recent count (in percent):(+/- 5% is sufficient. The sum of all the fields must be 100%) | ||||||
Active | Passive | Active | Passive | |||
| Listed equity (developed markets) | 59.29 | 0 | 0.31 | 0 | ||
| Listed equity (emerging markets) | 1.6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Fixed income (not including corporate issuers) | 26.04 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Fixed income (corporate issuers) | 11.52 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Private equity | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Listed real estate or property | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Non-listed real estate or property | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Hedge funds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Commodities | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Infrastructure | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Cash | 1.23 | 0 | 0.01 | 0 | ||
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Governance, Policy and Strategy | ||||||
| Governance, Policy and StrategyQuestions 5 through 15 are about the governance and oversight of your organisation's responsible investment activities and the associated policies and strategy. This section will be scored separately from the six Principles."Policy" in this section may refer to one overall RI policy or multiple policies that address various elements of RI. | ||||||
| 5. Do you have a policy that makes specific reference to responsible investment (RI) or environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues? | Yes | |||||
| 6. If you have a policy that makes specific reference to RI/ESG issues, which of the following Principles does it address?(Please check all that apply.) | Principle 1: We will incorporate ESG issues into investment analysis and decision-making processes.,Principle 2: We will be active owners and incorporate ESG issues into our ownership policies and practices.,Principle 3: We will seek appropriate disclosure on ESG issues by the entities in which we invest. | |||||
| 7. If you have a policy that makes specific reference to RI/ESG issues, which of the following asset classes does it apply to?(Please check all that apply.) | Listed equity (developed markets),Fixed income (not including corporate issuers),Fixed income (corporate issuers) | |||||
| 8. If you have a policy that makes specific reference to RI/ESG issues, when was your policy last reviewed? | Within the last 3 years | |||||
| 9. If you have a policy that makes specific reference to RI/ESG issues, has it been disclosed publicly?(If answering yes, please indicate how this statement can be obtained - a URL would be sufficient. If answering no, please explain why not.) | Yes: 'http://paxworld.com/investment-approach/esg/' | |||||
10. To what extent has your approach to responsible investment been translated into a plan of action as reflected in business planning, strategic planning, or similar internal management processes?
| To a large extent | |||||
| 11. Who within your organisation has responsibilities related to RI implementation?(Please check all that apply.) | Board of trustees or board of directors,Committee of the board of trustees or board of directors,Chief Executive Officer or Chief Investment Officer or equivalent,Other senior management,Middle management,RI or ESG specialist,Non RI or ESG investment professional | |||||
| 12. Do you have a policy or approach/process that requires screening out or excluding stocks or sectors from your investment universe? | Both stocks and sectors | |||||
| 13. What are your reasons for screening out or excluding stocks or sectors from your investment universe?(Please check all that apply.) | We (and/or our clients) wish to avoid supporting the companies/sectors in question based on ethical considerations and we regard buying/holding their stock as providing such support,We believe that it is possible to exclude companies/sectors which will prove to be long term chronic underperformers in terms of their ability to maintain and grow earnings i.e. our exclusion is based on a high level integration | |||||
| 14. Please describe how your organisation assesses if there is a link between your RI activities and the performance (risk and return) of your investments: | At Pax World, we believe there is a link between RI activities and performance, and we integrate traditional financial analysis with environmental, social and governance (ESG), or sustainability analysis. This second layer of analysis gives us added insight into the quality of a firm's management and culture, risk, innovation and other factors influencing a company's long-term financial prospects. In other words, ESG analysis gives us another angle from which to assess the same core elements of value that we look for in financial analysis. We believe that well-managed companies offer investors the best opportunity to add value to their portfolios over the long term. There is some developing academic literature that shows that sustainable business practices can have positive impacts on risk, or beta. A much larger body of literature posits that sustainable investing can add alpha, or at least does not detract from it. | |||||
| 15. Please add any overall comments and clarifications related to Governance, Policy, and Strategy here. | With few exceptions, companies are not required to provide ESG disclosure to investors. Pax World believes that the full integration of financial and sustainability analysis will become more effective as more companies report on a wider array of ESG indicators, such as policies, procedures and related performance data. | |||||
| Principle 1 | ||||||
Principle 1: We will incorporate ESG issues into investment analysis and decision-making processes.For the purposes of this questionnaire, integration is the consideration of ESG issues alongside traditional financial measures, based on the belief that ESG issues can affect the performance (risk and/or return) of investment portfolios (to varying degrees across companies, sectors, regions, asset classes and through time). Please note that the view that ESG issues can influence investment returns may be based either on
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| 16. Please provide a one to two paragraph description of your approach to this Principle.This question and similar questions relating to each of the other Principles are being asked for three reasons. The first reason is to gather details regarding signatory implementation for inclusion in the PRI annual report on progress. The second reason is to capture activities not captured directly by questions in the Reporting and Assessment Tool. The third reason is to provide context and details to support verification calls. | To us, sustainable investing means the full integration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into investment analysis and decision making. In our view, the combination of rigorous financial analysis and equally rigorous ESG analysis provides an extra level of scrutiny that helps us identify better long-term investments. For more information, please visit Pax World's website at http://paxworld.com/investment-approach/esg/. | |||||
| Integration of ESG issues into investment analysis and decision-making processes of internally managed assets | ||||||
| 17. For what percentage of your internal assets under active management do you integrate RI/ESG issues into your internal investment decision-making processes (in percent)?(+/- 5% is sufficient.) | ||||||
| Listed equity (developed markets) | 100 | |||||
| Listed equity (emerging markets) | 100 | |||||
| Fixed income (not including corporate issuers) | 100 | |||||
| Fixed income (corporate issuers) | 100 | |||||
18. To what extent have you integrated RI/ESG issues into your internal active investment decision-making processes?(Applies only to investments that include integration of RI/ESG issues as indicated in Q17.)
| ||||||
| Listed equity (developed markets) | To a large extent | |||||
| Listed equity (emerging markets) | To a large extent | |||||
| Fixed income (not including corporate issuers) | To a large extent | |||||
| Fixed income (corporate issuers) | To a large extent | |||||
19. When forming investment views, to what extent does your organisation gather and analyse ESG information, including, where applicable, information obtained from engagement activities?(Applies only to investments that include integration of RI/ESG issues as indicated in Q17.)
| To a large extent | |||||
20. To what extent do portfolio managers or others making investment decisions in your organisation apply the ESG information and analysis available to them when constructing and managing portfolios?(Applies only to investments that include integration of RI/ESG issues as indicated in Q17.)
| To a large extent | |||||
21. To what extent do you have a process for improving the effectiveness of research and portfolio management processes with regards to ESG factors?(Applies only to investments that include integration of RI/ESG issues as indicated in Q17.)
| To a large extent | |||||
22. To what extent do you have a process for assessing and improving internal investment staff competency to incorporate RI/ESG issues into investment analysis and decision-making processes?(Applies only to investments that include integration of RI/ESG issues as indicated in Q17.)
| To a moderate extent | |||||
| Integration of ESG issues into investment analysis and decision-making processes of externally managed assets | ||||||
| 23. For what percentage of your external assets under management are RI/ESG issues integrated into the investment decision-making processes of your external investment managers (in percent, +/- 5% is sufficient)? | ||||||
| Listed equity (developed markets) | 100 | |||||
24. To what extent have RI/ESG issues been integrated into the investment decision-making processes of your external investment managers?(Applies only to investments that include integration of RI/ESG issues as indicated in Q23.)
| ||||||
| Listed equity (developed markets) | To a large extent | |||||
25. To what extent do you consider the capabilities of external investment managers to incorporate RI/ESG issues when searching for, selecting and retaining your external investment managers?(Applies only to investments that include integration of RI/ESG issues as indicated in Q23.)
| To a moderate extent | |||||
| Integration - final comments | ||||||
| 26. Please add any overall comments and clarifications related to Principle 1 here. Please also describe any significant activities relating to Principle 1 that have not been captured by the questions above. | Pax World believes that some environmental, social or governance issues are more prominent in some industries. For example, we believe environmental impacts generally deserve more weight when evaluating utility companies than application software companies. Pax World seeks companies that, for example, demonstrate positive performance in the areas identified as key issues for their sector, along with policies, programs and data to address industry-specific concerns. | |||||
| Principle 2 | ||||||
| Principle 2: We will be active owners and incorporate ESG issues into our ownership policies and practices. | ||||||
| 27. Please provide a one to two paragraph description of your approach to this Principle. | At Pax World we believe that engaged shareowners can play an important role in improving the financial, environmental, social and corporate governance performance of the companies they invest in. That's why we: " Vote shareholder proxies in accordance with our environmental, social and governance criteria; " Engage in dialogue with corporate management on issues of concern; " Initiate or support shareholder resolutions at annual stockholders meetings aimed at persuading companies to adopt higher standards of corporate responsibility; and " Support public policy initiatives that promote greater corporate transparency, accountability and social responsibility. | |||||
| (Proxy) voting - applies only to listed equity (developed markets), listed equity (emerging markets) and listed real estate or property. | ||||||
| 28. Do you have a (proxy) voting policy?(If 'Yes - disclosed publicly', please indicate how your (proxy) voting policy can be obtained- a URL would be sufficient. If answering no, please explain why not.) | Yes - disclosed publicly: 'http://www.paxworld.com/pax_code/documents/proxy/proxy-guidelines.pdf' | |||||
| 29. Does your (proxy) voting policy address environmental, social, and governance issues? | ||||||
| Environmental | Yes | |||||
| Social | Yes | |||||
| Governance | Yes | |||||
| 30. Who decided how to vote on ballot items on behalf of your organisation in 2008?(Please check all that apply.) | Internal investment manager,Internal voting or governance group | |||||
31. To what extent is information related to ballot items gathered and analysed before voting decisions are made?
| To a large extent | |||||
| 32. Do you ensure that voting is done in accordance with your voting instructions? | Yes for all | |||||
| 33. Do you inform companies of your rationale when you abstain or vote against management recommendations? | Yes for some | |||||
| 34. Please indicate how many resolutions you could have voted on and how many resolutions you did vote on in 2008:(include abstentions as votes where votes against are not possible, use the last available one year period if information for 2008 is not available or too difficult to gather, approximate numbers are acceptable. If you are unable to provide the exact number please provide an approximation of the percentage by entering 10 in the 'Resolutions could have voted on' column and your estimate in the 'Resolutions voted on' column. So if you voted on about 70% of the possible resolutions you would enter 7 in the 'Resolutions voted on' column. If you are not sure, please enter a 1 in all four fields.) | ||||||
| Domestic | 2623 | 2613 | ||||
| Foreign | 1675 | 1539 | ||||
| 35. For the listed equities that you manage, do you provide (proxy) voting services for your clients if they request them? | Yes - According to our own policy | |||||
| 36. How does your securities lending program address voting? | We recall all securities for voting on all ballot items | |||||
| 37. How many shareholder resolutions related to ESG issues did you file or co-file during 2008? | ||||||
| As lead filer | 1 | |||||
| As co-filer | 3 | |||||
| Planning to be lead filer in 2009 | 0 | |||||
| Planning to be co-filer in 2009 | 0 | |||||
| 38. Please explain why you did or did not file or co-file any shareholder resolutions related to RI/ESG issues during 2008: | No Answer | |||||
| Engagement - general | ||||||
| 39. Who engaged with companies to seek ESG improvements in 2008?Please rank who engaged with companies according to their importance within your overall active ownership activities. You can only select Most, Second, Third and Fourth most important once each. Only the method you rank as 'Most important' will be scored for benchmarking purposes. If you wish to request that your other methods of engagement also be scored, please complete all the relevant sections and email the PRI at assessment@unpri.org when you submit your response. | ||||||
| Internal staff | Most important | |||||
| External investment manager(s) | Did not engage with companies in 2008 | |||||
| External engagement service provider(s) | Did not engage with companies in 2008 | |||||
| No Answer | |||||
| 40. Do you have a written engagement policy or other documents that direct engagement?(If 'Yes - disclosed publicly', please indicate how your policy can be obtained- a URL would be sufficient.) | Yes - internal document | |||||
| 41. If you have an engagement policy or other documents that direct engagement, what do they include?(Please check all that apply.) | Indication of what markets it applies to,Expectations of companies with regards to environmental issues,Expectations of companies with regards to social issues,Expectations of companies with regards to governance issues,Approach to monitoring companies,Approach to selecting companies for engagement | |||||
| 42. How many companies are you invested in? | 429 | |||||
| Engagement - internal staff | ||||||
43. To what extent do you have a process for identifying and prioritising ESG related engagement opportunities?
| To a moderate extent | |||||
44. How many portfolio companies did you engage with on ESG issues in 2008?
| ||||||
| Extensive engagement | 9 | |||||
| Moderate engagement | 9 | |||||
| Basic engagement | 124 | |||||
| 45. What proportion of your engagements addressed environmental, social or governance issues (in percent)?(One engagement may address more than one issue, so the three percentages need not add to 100%. For example, if you only had one engagement and it addressed environmental and governance issues then the answer would be 100% for environmental and 100% for governance.) | ||||||
| Environmental | 23 | |||||
| Social | 42 | |||||
| Governance | 42 | |||||
46. To what extent do you set ESG engagement objectives and attempt to evaluate your engagement success?
| To a moderate extent | |||||
| 47. What percentage of engagements that ended in 2008 were deemed successful (in percent)?(Engagement success: a considerable part of objectives or milestones that were set when the engagement commenced were achieved.) | 50 | |||||
48. To what extent do you have a process for assessing and improving staff competency to act as active owners and incorporate ESG issues into ownership practices?
| To a moderate extent | |||||
| Engagement - external engagement service provider(s) | ||||||
49. This question is not applicable to you due to your response to Q39 regarding who engages with companies. How many portfolio companies did your external engagement service provider(s) engage with on ESG issues on your behalf in 2008?
| ||||||
| Extensive engagement | ||||||
| Moderate engagement | ||||||
| Basic engagement | ||||||
| 50. This question is not applicable to you due to your response to Q39 regarding who engages with companies. What proportion of your external engagement service provider(s)'s engagements on your behalf addressed environmental, social or governance issues (in percent)?(One engagement may address more than one issue, so the three percentages need not add to 100%. For example, if you only had one engagement and it addressed environmental and governance issues then the answer would be 100% for environmental and 100% for governance.) | ||||||
| Environmental | ||||||
| Social | ||||||
| Governance | ||||||
51. This question is not applicable to you due to your response to Q39 regarding who engages with companies. To what extent do you contribute to and assess the ESG engagement activities of your external engagement service provider(s)?
| No Answer | |||||
| Engagement - external investment manager(s) | ||||||
52. This question is not applicable to you due to your response to Q39 regarding who engages with companies. How many portfolio companies did your external investment manager(s)'s engage with on ESG issues on your behalf in 2008?
| ||||||
| Extensive engagement | ||||||
| Moderate engagement | ||||||
| Basic engagement | ||||||
| 53. This question is not applicable to you due to your response to Q39 regarding who engages with companies. What proportion of your external investment manager(s)'s engagements on your behalf addressed environmental, social or governance issues (in percent)? (One engagement may address more than one issue, so the three percentages need not add to 100%. For example, if you only had one engagement and it addressed environmental and governance issues then the answer would be 100% for environmental and 100% for governance.) | ||||||
| Environmental | ||||||
| Social | ||||||
| Governance | ||||||
54. This question is not applicable to you due to your response to Q39 regarding who engages with companies. To what extent do you contribute to and assess the ESG engagement activities of your external investment manager(s)?
| No Answer | |||||
| 55. This question is not applicable to you due to your response to Q39 regarding who engages with companies. Did you consider the capabilities of external investment managers to engage with companies on ESG issues on your behalf when searching for, selecting and retaining your investment managers? | No Answer | |||||
| Engagement - final comments | ||||||
| 56. What ESG issues were addressed in your or your service providers'engagement initiatives? (Please check all that apply.) | Activities in conflict zones,Benefits and compensation,Climate change,Environment,Governance,Health and safety,Human rights,Labour issues,Other (please specify): 'Product Safety' | |||||
| 57. What measures do you or your external service provider(s) use to assess the impact and success of engagement? | We do periodically compare a company's actions on an ESG issue with our initial request or ask of the company. Depending on the outcome of this analysis we may continue to engage the company as before, adapt our engagement strategy or seek additional stakeholders to join our efforts. We believe that engagement is successful when it results in a change in company policy and/or performance. | |||||
| 58. Please add any overall comments and clarifications related to Principle 2 here. Please also describe any significant activities relating to Principle 2 that have not been captured by the questions above. | No Answer | |||||
| Principle 3 | ||||||
| Principle 3: We will seek appropriate disclosure on ESG issues by the entities in which we invest. | ||||||
| 59. Please provide a one to two paragraph description of your approach to this Principle. | Pax World generally seeks additional disclosure from companies on ESG issues when we determine that a company lags its peers on a particular issue, either due to a lack of disclosure or because of a poor performance record. For example, in 2008 Pax World asked to 23 companies held in our funds to respond to the Carbon Disclosure Project when we learned they had not completed the CDP6 survey. We also periodically meet with companies in meetings facilitated by Ceres and SIRAN to review the content of companies' sustainability reports and provided feedback about areas of potential improvement. We also support all efforts to require mandatory ESG disclosure from all companies. Pax was one of a group of several institutional investors that petitioned the Securities and Exchange Commission to provide interpretive guidance to companies on climate risk reporting in 2007, and we met with SEC staff at least two times in 2008 to support action on this petition. | |||||
| 60. Who asked investee companies (or other investment entities) to provide information about their ESG policies, practices or performance in 2008?(Please check all that apply.) | Internal staff,Internal staff collaboratively with other investors | |||||
61. To what extent did you or your external engagement service provider(s) or your external investment manager(s) have a dialogue with investee companies (or other investment entities) regarding the production of standardized reporting about their ESG policies, practices or performance in 2008?('Standardized' could also include systematic reporting in areas where standardized reporting has not yet emerged.)
| ||||||
| Listed equity (developed market) | To a moderate extent | |||||
| Listed equity (emerging markets) | To a moderate extent | |||||
| Fixed income (not including corporate issuers) | Not at all | |||||
| Fixed income (corporate issuers) | To a moderate extent | |||||
| 62. What formats of reporting on ESG issue policies, practices or performance have been requested? Please check all that apply. | Integrated with regular financial reports,Standalone corporate social responsibility or sustainability reporting,Global Reporting Initiative (GRI),Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP),Other (please specify): 'Employee demographic data' | |||||
63. To what extent did you or your external engagement service provider(s) or your external investment manager(s) seek information from companies regarding their practices related to norms, standards, codes of conduct or international initiatives related to ESG issues in 2008?
| To a moderate extent | |||||
| 64. Please add any overall comments and clarifications related to Principle 3 here. Please also describe any significant activities relating to Principle 3 that have not been captured by the questions above. | No Answer | |||||
| Principle 4 | ||||||
| Principle 4: We will promote acceptance and implementation of the Principles within the investment industry. | ||||||
| 65. Please provide a one to two paragraph description of your approach to this Principle. | Pax World is considering how to approach other firms in the financial services industries regarding adoption of the PRI. We do not currently use PRI endorsement as a criterion for hiring vendors, though we may encourage our own vendors to consider becoming PRI endorsers. | |||||
| 66. Did you consider RI/ESG requirements when searching for and selecting service providers in 2008 when applicable? | ||||||
| Investment consultant | Not applicable | |||||
| Proxy voting service provider | Yes, some of the time | |||||
| External overlay service provider | Not applicable | |||||
| Investment research provider | No | |||||
| 67. Have you included RI/ESG elements in the following? | ||||||
| Investment monitoring | Yes, all of the time | |||||
| Incentive structure (internally managed) | No | |||||
| Incentive structure (externally managed) | No | |||||
| Contractual relationships with external investment managers | Yes, some of the time | |||||
| Contractual relationships with other investment related service providers | No | |||||
68. To what extent did you encourage your eligible service providers to become PRI signatories or consider RI/ESG factors in 2008?(Service providers include but are not limited to: external investment managers, investment consultants, proxy voting service providers, external engagement service providers, and investment research providers.)
| Planning to in 2009 | |||||
69. To what extent did you encourage your institutional clients to become PRI signatories or consider RI/ESG factors in 2008?
| Not at all | |||||
70. To what extent did you encourage peer organisations to become PRI signatories or consider RI/ESG factors in 2008?
| Not at all | |||||
| 71. Have you revisited any relationships with service providers in light of RI/ESG issue-related capabilities? | No | |||||
| 72. Does your broker evaluation process (which determines how you allocate commissions to brokers) include an ESG component and/or do you have a budget to pay for ESG broker research? | No | |||||
| 73A. What is your total investment research budget (including brokerage commissions intended to recognize research, in the same currency used in Q1) | 4068211 | |||||
| 73B. what proportion of your total investment research budget is allocated to ESG research (in percent)? | 13.8 | |||||
74. To what extent do you identify ESG issues and suggest them to brokers or other investment research providers for research?
| To a moderate extent | |||||
75. To what extent did you engage in dialogue, lobbying or initiatives pertaining to government policy and/or industry regulations (for example, stock exchanges or accounting standards) related to RI/ESG issues in 2008?
| To a large extent | |||||
| 76. Please add any overall comments and clarifications related to Principle 4 here. Please also describe any significant activities relating to Principle 4 that have not been captured by the questions above. | The calculations in question #73 are calculated by summing the amounts spent on research staff salaries at Pax World Management Corp., as well as the purchase of research services and certain sub-advisory management fees. | |||||
| Principle 5 | ||||||
| Principle 5: We will work together to enhance our effectiveness in implementing the Principles. | ||||||
| 77. Please provide a one to two paragraph description of your approach to this Principle. | Pax World primarily worked with other investors to implement Principles 1, 2 & 3, collaborating on shareholder advocacy, as a member of several working groups of UNEP Finance Initiatives, and asking companies to provide more ESG disclosure through joint letters and meetings with company representatives. Working with other investors to help implement Principle 4, such as encouraging research providers to provide more ESG research, is the area we believe has the most potential for impact. | |||||
78. To what extent did you collaborate with other investors to improve your effectiveness in implementing each of the following Principles?
| ||||||
| Principle 1 | To a large extent | |||||
| Principle 2 | To a large extent | |||||
| Principle 3 | To a moderate extent | |||||
| Principle 4 | To a small extent | |||||
| 79. How did you use the PRI Engagement Clearinghouse in 2008?(Please check all that apply.) | Logged in during 2008 to use the Clearinghouse as a learning tool or to keep up to date on ongoing engagements,Joined a collaborative engagement led by another signatory that was posted to the Clearinghouse,Planning to log in in 2009 | |||||
| 80. Did you participate in any of the following RI/ESG issue-related collaborations and/or associations? For those not listed, please use the "other" field:(Please check all that apply.) | Carbon Disclosure Project,Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC),Investor Network on Climate Risk (INCR),Regional social investment organisation (for example SIF or UKSIF),Social Investment Research Analyst (SIRAN),United Nations Environmental Program Finance Initiative (UNEP FI),Other (please specify): 'Ceres' | |||||
81. Please indicate the three RI/ESG issue-related collaborative engagement initiatives and/or industry associations that you participated in most extensively and indicate how you did so:
| ||||||
| United Nations Environmental Program Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) | To a large extent | We are a member of the Asset Management Working Group and the Climate Change Working Group of UNEP FI, as well as being involved in the biodiversity workstream of UNEP FI. | ||||
| 1st Other specify from Q80 | To a large extent | Pax World is a member of Ceres and the Investor Network on Climate Risk, and we engage in many stakeholder dialogues and public policy advocacy under those umbrellas. | ||||
| Social Investment Research Analyst (SIRAN) | To a moderate extent | Pax World is a member of SIRAN, and our Sustainability Research Analysts participate in many stakeholder dialogues and seminars sponsored by SIRAN on sustainability issues ranging from human rights to oil sands drilling. | ||||
| 82. Please add any overall comments and clarifications related to Principle 5 here. Please also describe any significant activities relating to Principle 5 that have not been captured by the questions above. | Pax World regularly reports to shareholders and interested parties on our efforts to integrate ESG and financial analysis, shareowner advocacy, and public policy advocacy through our website, our newsletters, and our annual reports. We have not reported specifically on PRI in the past, but all of our transparency on ESG and sustainable investing is in line with the spirit and letter of the PRI. Our efforts so far have focused on Principles 1, 2 & 3: Integrating ESG issues into our investment analysis, being active owners of the companies we hold in our funds, and seeking increased ESG disclosure from companies. | |||||
| Principle 6 | ||||||
| Principle 6: We will each report on our activities and progress towards implementing the Principles. | ||||||
| 83. Please provide a one to two paragraph description of your approach to this Principle. | Pax World regularly reports to shareholders and interested parties on our efforts to integrate ESG and financial analysis, shareowner advocacy, and public policy advocacy through our website, our newsletters, and our annual reports. We have not reported specifically on PRI in the past, but all of our transparency on ESG and sustainable investing is in line with the spirit and letter of the PRI. Our efforts so far have focused on Principles 1, 2 & 3: Integrating ESG issues into our investment analysis, being active owners of the companies we hold in our funds, and seeking increased ESG disclosure from companies. | |||||
84. To what extent did you disclose (privately and/or publicly) your approach to incorporating ESG issues into investment analysis and decision-making processes in 2008?(If you disclose publicly, please indicate how this disclosure can be obtained - a URL would be sufficient. If answering not at all, please explain why not.)
| To a large extent: 'http://paxworld.com/investment-approach/esg/' | |||||
| 85. How did you disclose your (proxy) voting record in 2008?(Please select all that apply. If you disclose publicly, please indicate how this disclosure can be obtained - a URL would be sufficient. If answering not at all, please explain why not.) | Disclosed to clients or beneficiaries,Disclosed publicly: 'http://paxworld.com/investment-approach/proxy-voting/',All votes,No guidance explaining votes,Disclosed annually,Disclosed continuously (primarily before meetings),Planning to in 2009 | |||||
86. To what extent did you disclose (privately and/or publicly) your RI/ESG issue-related engagement activities, results and progress in 2008?(If you disclose publicly, please indicate how this disclosure can be obtained - a URL would be sufficient. If answering not at all, please explain why not.)
| To a moderate extent: 'http://paxworld.com/investment-approach/shareholder-activities/' | |||||
| 87. Did you disclose (privately and/or publicly) RI/ESG activities, results and progress related to Principle 3, Principle 4 or Principle 5 in 2008?(If you disclose publicly, please indicate how this disclosure can be obtained - a URL would be sufficient. If answering not at all, please explain why not.) | ||||||
| Principle 3 | Yes - to clients or beneficiaries | http://paxworld.com/newsmedia/connection/, http://paxworld.com/customer-service/documents/#9 | ||||
| Principle 4 | Not at all | In 2008 Pax World focused its limited resources on the implementation of Principles 1, 2 & 3. | ||||
| Principle 5 | Not at all | In 2008 Pax World focused its limited resources on the implementation of Principles 1, 2 & 3. | ||||
| 88. How would you like to publish your responses to this PRI Reporting and Assessment tool?(Please check all that apply.) | Please automatically publish our responses to the reporting and assessment tool in full on the PRI website | |||||
| 89. Please add any overall comments and clarifications related to Principle 6 here. Please also describe any significant activities relating to Principle 6 that have not been captured by the questions above. | No Answer | |||||
| Closing Comments | ||||||
| 90. Please describe the benefits you have enjoyed as a result of signing the PRI: | The PRI has given Pax World an objective framework to evaluate the extent to which we have integrated sustainability analysis into our investment process, along with identifying areas for improvement. We have found the use of the PRI Clearinghouse to be an effective means of building coalitions and sharing information on ESG analysis and shareowner advocacy with a global group of like-minded investors, and we believe the Clearinghouse is one of the most useful aspects of the PRI, beyond the Principles themselves. | |||||
| 91. What has your organisation changed as a direct result of becoming a PRI signatory? | We have found it much easier to communicate with and learn from a wider group of global investors through the Clearinghouse than was possible prior to its inception. | |||||
| 92. Did the financial market turmoil of 2008 cause you to change your approach to the consideration of ESG factors or active ownership? If it did, please explain how. | Pax World's ESG criteria are constantly under review, and both the criteria themselves or their implementation may change as the world changes. The financial crisis is another part of a landscape of constant change that prompts frequent re-evaluation of our ESG criteria. The financial crisis has sharpened our focus on governance, and we are considering changing some of the implementation of this criterion in response. | |||||
| 93. What are the top three activities the PRI Secretariat could undertake to enhance and encourage further implementation of the PRI by current and prospective signatories? | ||||||
| 1. | While the PRI is an excellent forum for asset owners and asset managers, the service providers category seems less well defined and the principles and their implementation seem much less sharp with respect to service providers. It could be useful for the PRI to further develop and provide specific guidance on how various segments of the service provider industry to advance the integration of ESG. In particular, we believe that greater attention to ESG matters on the part of corporate governance service providers, credit rating agencies, and self-regulatory organizations that guide security markets would be useful. | |||||
| 2. | ||||||
| 3. | ||||||
| 94. What are your top three PRI-related goals/priorities for 2009? | ||||||
| 1. | Make increased use of the PRI Clearinghouse to coordinate research and advocacy on specific ESG topics, including gender empowerment and climate change. | |||||
| 2. | Develop better methods of evaluating the effectiveness of shareholder engagement. | |||||
| 3. | Consider the inclusion of PRI Signatory status when evaluating new research partners, or reviewing the services provided by existing providers. | |||||
| 95. What were your most significant achievements in 2008 in relation to your implementation of Principles? | ||||||
| Principle 1: We will incorporate ESG issues into investment analysis and decision-making processes. | ||||||
| Principle 2: We will be active owners and incorporate ESG issues into our ownership policies and practices. | ||||||
| Principle 3: We will seek appropriate disclosure on ESG issues by the entities in which we invest. | ||||||
| Principle 4: We will promote acceptance and implementation of the Principles within the investment industry. | ||||||
| Principle 5: We will work together to enhance our effectiveness in implementing the Principles. | ||||||
| Principle 6: We will each report on our activities and progress towards implementing the Principles. | ||||||
| 96. What were your biggest barriers in 2008 with relation to your implementation of the Principles? | ||||||
| Principle 1: We will incorporate ESG issues into investment analysis and decision-making processes. | Pax World's most significant achievements related to implementation of the PRI were the continued refinement of our research process and our successful engagement with Ameriprise Financial, which resulted in the withdrawal of our shareholder resolution and the company's agreement to respond to the Carbon Disclosure Project. | |||||
| Principle 2: We will be active owners and incorporate ESG issues into our ownership policies and practices. | Pax World's most significant achievements related to implementation of the PRI were the continued refinement of our research process and our successful engagement with Ameriprise Financial, which resulted in the withdrawal of our shareholder resolution and the company's agreement to respond to the Carbon Disclosure Project. | |||||
| Principle 3: We will seek appropriate disclosure on ESG issues by the entities in which we invest. | ||||||
| Principle 4: We will promote acceptance and implementation of the Principles within the investment industry. | ||||||
| Principle 5: We will work together to enhance our effectiveness in implementing the Principles. | ||||||
| Principle 6: We will each report on our activities and progress towards implementing the Principles. | ||||||
| 97. Please indicate which principle you find the most difficult to implement and the principle you find the least difficult to implement: | ||||||
| Most difficult | Principle 1 | |||||
| Least difficult | Principle 3 | |||||