Don’t underestimate the power of your money. Not only can we spend our money in responsible ways, but we can influence businesses to invest in supporting social justice and preventing environmental degradation.
Ethical investment at local level
What do you know about where your money and your church’s funds are invested? What about your pension fund? Is there a local project your church could work with or start up? Could you invest some of your resources in ethical funds to do good while making extra income?
This video from Good Money Week unpacks the importance of ethical investment and how this can be integrated with sustainable, community-involved projects.
Ethical investment at national level
At a national level we have an Ethical Investment Advisory Group (EIAG) to support the national investing bodies.
The EIAG has developed:
- A policy on climate change in relation to investments.
- And an active programme of engagement with companies.
We also co-founded the Transition Pathway Initiative. It is a tool to evaluate how companies are transitioning to a low carbon economy.
Finally, we are also a member of the Ecumenical Council for Corporate Responsibility (ECCR). The ECCR leads and collaborates with others on raising awareness of business, human rights and environmental stewardships.
Procurement and good stewardship
Each year parishes spend over £200 million on operating costs.
Our procurement service uses the Church of England’s combined buying power to negotiate good deals on everything from energy to photocopiers.
We work closely with the procurement team to provide you with green options. The energy basket, for example, is 100% renewable energy. And there are deals available on a range of ‘green’ products including LEDs.
It isn’t just about saving money. It's also about good stewardship in what we buy, where we buy it and what we do with any savings we make.