Divestment is consistent with organization’s mission
Philadelphia (April 22, 2019): On Earth Day 2019, the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), a 102-year old Quaker peace and justice organization, announced its divestment from the fossil fuel industry. AFSC’s Board of Directors voted in April 2018 to change the organization’s Investment Policy Statement. AFSC announced that it has now developed and implemented specific policies and guidelines for environmentally responsible investing.
“Divesting from the fossil fuel industry is consistent with AFSC’s leadership on socially responsible investing and shareholder advocacy,” said Phil Lord, clerk of the AFSC Board of Directors. “AFSC has long considered its investments through the lens of social responsibility.”
The AFSC Board’s investment subcommittee has codified divestment from the fossil fuel industry in the organization’s investment policy statement and given guidance to the organization’s asset managers on how to approach this policy point.
In considering this decision, AFSC’s Board looked at how divestment related to the organization’s mission.
“AFSC’s commitment to environmental responsibility is in part about the social impact of climate change on the communities we work with,” Phil Lord continued. “Climate change creates distress in ways that are directly related to AFSC’s work for peace and social justice. Allocation of resources, conflict, and human migration are all impacted by our changing environment. Further, the Quaker commitment to good stewardship of resources calls us to work in ways that are environmentally sustainable. This investment decision is consistent with our mission and purpose as an organization
To learn more about AFSC’s investments, visit: http://www.afsc.org/financial-information
###
The American Friends Service Committee is a Quaker organization that includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice, peace and humanitarian service. Its work is based on the belief in the worth of every person and faith in the power of love to overcome violence and injustice.