Understanding Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) criteria points and how they relate to investment portfolios is critical for helping your clients navigate ESG issues.

In this episode, Laura Gregg and David Partain talk with Michael Young, Manager of Educational Programs at US SIF: The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment. They discuss ESG investing and how you can better educate yourself and your clients on the topic to generate new conversations and investment strategies.

Michael discusses: 

• How US SIF has created tools and programs to support advisors in selling sustainable investments
  
• Growing your understanding of ESG alongside your client
  
• Tools and resources that can jumpstart your learning and the integration of ESG data points
  
• How you can begin to measure impact investing to enhance your client conversations
  
• And more
  

Resources: 

• FlexShares Exchange Traded Funds 
  
• AsYouAre.org 
  
• Morningstar: ESG Investing 
  
• yourstake
  

Connect With Michael Young:

• Linkedin: Michael Young 
  

Connect With  Laura Gregg: 

• Email
  
• Laura Gregg’s Linkedin 
  

Connect With  David Partain: 

• Email
  
• David Partain’s Linkedin
  

About Our Guest:

Michael Young is the Manager of Educational programs at US SIF: The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment. He is responsible for education initiatives, all US SIF course offerings, and private training services. 

He continually develops existing courses, creates educational materials for the US SIF Foundation, and contributes to new materials and resources to advance the field. He presents frequently on sustainable investing at industry events and enjoys sharing the work of US SIF and its membership on podcasts and radio programs. 

Michael’s comments have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Investment News, and Bloomberg, among other publications.

 

Prior to joining US SIF, Michael worked in mutual funds, separately managed accounts, closed-end funds, and exchange-traded funds. His clients ranged from registered investment advisors and financial planning firms and broker-dealer firms to registered investment companies and hedge funds. 

While at AdvisorShares, Michael helped launch the first actively managed fossil fuel free ETF in 2012   

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