Learning by Doing: Lessons from WRI's Sustainable Investing Journey

In 2014 the World Resources Institute (WRI) board committed to align the organization's investments with its vision for a sustainable future. Since then, WRI has set out to systematically integrate sustainability across their entire endowment portfolio as part of a long-term investment strategy.

 

WRI has long recognized that sustainability has a material impact on business profitability and that companies that actively manage their sustainability performance are best positioned to survive — and thrive — in a resource-constrained world. The business case for sustainability has informed a substantial shift in how WRI manages its endowment capital. In the words of David Blood, a sustainable investing pioneer who joined WRI's board in 2016, "Sustainable investing is not only the right thing to do, but it is actually a smarter investment approach."

 

This case example outlines WRI's journey since 2014 of implementing its sustainable investment strategy.