Socially responsible investing (SRI) has matured significantly since the late 20th century, when the approach was driven by distaste for selected industries such as tobacco and alcohol and a global protest against Apartheid in South Africa. Today, SRI investors control an estimated $13.6 trillion in assets under management (AUM) worldwide and use this leverage to try to influence social and corporate change.
Gender diversity – specifically the number of women holding directorships and top executive positions in corporations – is becoming an important criterion for SRI investors and a litmus test to gauge overall corporate attitudes toward social responsibility generally. In a report sponsored by Barclays, Women in Focus: Gender diversity and socially responsible investing, the Economist Intelligence Unit reviews the evolution of SRI and examines the emergence of gender diversity as a defining factor among investors.
