How to live your values and achieve your financial goals with ESG, SRI, and Impact Investing

By Samuel C. Adams and Larry E. Swedroe

Sustainable investing is booming. The investment industry is fast approaching a point where one-third of global assets under management are invested with a sustainable objective.

But do sustainable investment products do what investors expect them to do?
How can an investor tell if their investments are having the social impact they want?
Does that impact come at a financial cost?
And how can investors weave their way through the web of confusing acronyms, conflicting agency ratings, and the mass of fund offerings, confident that they can recognize and avoid corporate greenwashing?

Larry Swedroe and Sam Adams cut through the fog and bring clarity on all of this and more—providing investors with a firm plan for truly sustainable investing.

The authors first define sustainable investing, illuminating the differences between ESG, SRI and impact investing, and reveal who is currently investing sustainably and why.

They then move on to a comprehensive review of the academic research. What does the data really say about risk and return in sustainable investing? What performance can you genuinely expect from sustainable investments? And how are today’s sustainable investors using their influence to drive positive changes for society and the environment?

Finally, this book arms you with a practical guide to investing sustainably, including how to effectively choose your asset allocation strategy, and select the managers and funds through which your money can create the change you want to see in the world.

Your Essential Guide to Sustainable Investing is the definitive go-to resource that investors have been waiting for.

Samuel Adams is CEO and co-founder of Vert Asset Management, a dedicated ESG investment management firm. He has been a featured speaker on sustainable investing at financial advisor conferences in the US, UK, Europe, and Australia.

Prior to launching Vert, Sam spent almost 20 years working at Dimensional Fund Advisors. He started Dimensional’s European Financial Advisor Services business and led it for ten years.

Sam has a BA in Philosophy from the University of Colorado, Boulder and an MBA in Finance from the University of California, Davis. Sam is an avid mountaineer and cyclist, and is very passionate about the environment.

Larry E. Swedroe is the chief research officer for Buckingham Strategic Wealth and Buckingham Strategic Partners. Larry holds an MBA in finance and investments from New York University and a bachelor’s degree in finance from Baruch College. Larry was among the first authors to publish a book that explained the science of investing in layman’s terms, The Only Guide to a Winning Investment Strategy You’ll Ever Need. He has since authored nine more books and co-authored seven books on investing and financial planning. His books have been published in seven languages. Larry is a prolific writer and contributes regularly to EvidenceInvestor.com, AdvisorPerspectives.com, and AlphaArchitect.com.