Western University
PAE-T2-8: Socially Responsible Investment Policy

Regarding the entire retirement plans, the University has the following policy on socially responsible investing in its Statement of Investment Policies and Procedures. SECTION 14 – POLICY ON SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE INVESTING - 14.1 The Mission of the Joint Pension Board is to provide members with the opportunity to accumulate adequate funds for retirement. - 14.2 The duty of the Joint Pension Board is to maximize investment returns without undue risk. - 14.3 The Joint Pension Board will not request that its external managers divest some of their holdings because of pressure from members of the University Community, due to the involvement of a particular company in some controversial industry or region of the world. - 14.4 Nevertheless, the Joint Pension Board recognizes that environmental, social and governance factors may have an impact on corporate performance over the long-term, although the impact can vary by industry. - 14.5 In order to monitor the impact of these factors on plan performance, the Director, Investments, may ask its external managers, as part of their annual review, to disclose all actions they’ve taken in regard to environmental, social and governance factors and their impact on our portfolio. - 14.6 The Academic Staff Pension Board may offer a socially responsible investment option on a stand-alone basis. The investment option(s) offered must provide competitive risk-adjusted returns.