To: The Wellesley Community
From: Debby Kuenstner, Chief Investment Officer
Re: Background in Advance of February 5 Subcommittee on Investment Responsibility Meeting
Date: February 4, 2020

At its meeting tomorrow, the Wellesley College Board of Trustees’ Subcommittee on Investment Responsibility (SIR) will hear proposals from students and faculty regarding the College’s investment practices related to fossil fuels.

SIR, part of the board’s governance structure, is a subcommittee of the board’s Investment Committee, which is composed of trustees, faculty, staff, and students, and is responsible for making recommendations to the Investment Committee related to shareholder responsibility.

As I shared previously, this past summer the Investment Office began a broad assessment of the many ways climate change could impact the College’s portfolio over the next 15 to 20 years. As part of that work, and in response to questions from students and faculty about the role of energy investments, we have developed a fact sheet that analyzes the costs of various endowment actions related to fossil fuel companies. We shared this with the students and faculty who submitted proposals to SIR earlier this year to inform their work. We want to share this with the broader community now so that there is a common understanding of the impact of various endowment actions related to fossil fuel investment.

Climate change is an urgent threat. We appreciate the opportunity to work with students and faculty regarding fossil fuel investments as part of the Investment Office’s broader work on climate change risk. Following this week’s discussion, SIR will develop a recommendation to submit to the Investment Committee. It is expected that the board will consider this issue at its April 2020 meeting.

Please reach out to me if you have questions about the information presented.