JUST PENSIONS: Launch of cutting-edge toolkit for trustees and fund managers

A new toolkit for pension fund trustees and fund managers is being launched today, May 26, to provide essential advice on how to improve the impact of pension fund investment on people in the poorest countries in the world.

The result of a cutting-edge collaboration between pensions professionals and non-governmental organisations specialising in development issues, Just Pensions shows how to design and implement a Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) policy through positive engagement between pension funds and the companies they invest in.

Just Pensions is user-friendly, providing checklists of sample questions for trustees and fund managers, and answering questions about the legal implications of SRI and the business case for social responsibility. It contains independent advice and does not attempt to sell a product.

National Association of Pension Funds chairman Alan Pickering introduces the guide, writing: "Those who care about pensions care about the world. Enlightened corporate values and shareholder value are by no means incompatible: on the contrary they constitute a powerful and sustainable partnership".

Project co-ordinator Duncan Green said: "SRI is a new and rapidly expanding field, and is crying out for clear guidance on best practice in areas such as labour standards, human rights and corruption. Just Pensions provides it."

Just Pensions is a project funded by the National Lottery Community Fund, managed by War on Want and Traidcraft Exchange, and aided by an advisory group of experts from the investment world and NGOs.