Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 69.61
Liaison Tina Woolston
Submission Date Nov. 2, 2022

STARS v2.2

Tufts University
PA-10: Sustainable Investment

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.76 / 5.00 Saheba Sahni
Investment Officer
Tufts Investment Office
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1. Positive sustainability investment

Total value of the investment pool:
2,800,000,000 US/Canadian $

Value of holdings in each of the following categories:
Value of holdings
Sustainable industries (e.g., renewable energy or sustainable forestry) 0 US/Canadian $
Businesses selected for exemplary sustainability performance (e.g., using criteria specified in a sustainable investment policy) 0 US/Canadian $
Sustainability investment funds (e.g., a renewable energy or impact investment fund) 117,000,000 US/Canadian $
Community development financial institutions (CDFIs) or the equivalent 0 US/Canadian $
Socially responsible mutual funds with positive screens (or the equivalent) 55,000,000 US/Canadian $
Green revolving funds funded from the endowment 0 US/Canadian $

If any of the above is greater than zero, provide:

A brief description of the companies, funds, and/or institutions referenced above:
The sustainability industries invested in are primarily timber and some sustainable energy funds. At Tufts, donors have a unique alternative in endowment giving through the Tufts University Sustainability Fund (TUSF). This distinct pool of endowed assets was launched by the Board of Trustees in 2015 to pursue a fossil fuel–free investment mandate for donors wishing to direct their gifts in this way. While the strategic allocation of the TUSF pool differs from the main endowment, it benefits from the same governance oversight and investment resources.

Percentage of the institution's investment pool in positive sustainability investments:
6.14

Part 2. Investor engagement

Sustainable investment policy 

Does the institution have a publicly available sustainable investment policy?:
Yes

None
A copy of the sustainable investment policy:
RIAG-Report-Final-December-2020.pdf

None
The sustainable investment policy:
On February 10, 2021, the Board of Trustees announced its adoption of several measures to consider environmental sustainability in relation to the investment of the university’s main endowment. These measures include prohibition on direct investments in 120 coal and tar sands companies with the largest reserves, a commitment to invest in positive impact funds related to climate change, proactive communication to Tufts’ investment managers to encourage them to further integrate climate-change risk and other environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations into their processes, and development of a reporting dashboard to share the university’s progress toward these actions. In addition, the trustees committed to conducting a formal review of this effort by the middle of this decade.

None
Does the institution use its sustainable investment policy to select and guide investment managers?:
Yes

A brief description of how the sustainable investment policy is applied:
The policy above directs the university to refrain from engaging with certain stocks.

Proxy voting 

Has the institution engaged in proxy voting, either by its CIR or other committee or through the use of guidelines, to promote sustainability during the previous three years?:
No

None
A copy of the proxy voting guidelines or proxy record:
---

None
A brief description of how managers are adhering to proxy voting guidelines:
Tufts does not generally invest directly in companies and is therefore not typically a shareholder.

Shareholder resolutions 

Has the institution filed or co-filed one or more shareholder resolutions that address sustainability or submitted one or more letters about social or environmental responsibility to a company in which it holds investments during the previous three years?:
No

Examples of how the institution has engaged with corporations in its portfolio about sustainability issues during the previous three years:
Tufts does not generally invest directly in companies and is therefore not typically a shareholder.

Divestment efforts and negative screens

Does the institution participate in a public divestment effort and/or have a publicly available investment policy with negative screens?:
No

A brief description of the divestment effort or negative screens and how they have been implemented:
N/A

Approximate percentage of endowment that the divestment effort and/or negative screens apply to:
---

Investor networks 

Does the institution engage in policy advocacy by participating in investor networks and/or engage in inter-organizational collaborations to share best practices?:
Yes

None
A brief description of the investor networks and/or collaborations:
Tufts is part of the Global Impact Investing Network and Impact Frontiers.

Optional Fields 

Website URL where information about the institution’s sustainable investment efforts is available:
https://tufts.app.box.com/v/FY21-Annual-Endowment-Report

Additional documentation to support the submission:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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