From United Church Funds' Investment Policy Statement:
United Church Funds endeavors to be a faithful representative of the principles of the United
Church of Christ in its responsible investing program, but will always maintain the proper
fiduciary controls over the assets entrusted to us.
United Church Funds' efforts toward fostering a just and sustainable economic system and
world include several effective strategies. Exclusionary screening is just one practice that
examines the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) impacts of the corporations in
which we have invested. ESG considerations have always been a moral and performance
issue for UCF, and the wider investing industry now increasingly acknowledges the
importance of ESG factors. In addition to exclusionary screening, United Church Funds
utilizes shareholder advocacy, investor statements on public policy and regulations,
and intentional proxy voting on behalf of the United Church of Christ’s assets.
In an effort to drive positive outcomes, United Church Funds also seeks opportunities in impact investing.
Alternative Investments Exception: Due to the specialized investments and strategies utilized by
alternative investments, which are predominantly offered as commingled vehicles, the Investment
Committee recognizes that these investments are subject to the diversification and quality guidelines of the investment advisor managing a given fund. Therefore, UCF’s Alternatives Fund
and by extension the Alternatives Balanced Fund may not be in compliance with UCF’s
social screens.
Money Manager Structures: The assets of UCF’s funds may be invested as separately managed accounts or in commingled or institutional mutual funds, depending on investment, administ
rative and cost considerations. The Investment Committee recognizes that commingled
funds and mutualfunds are subject to the diversification and quality guidelines of the in vestment advisor managing the fund. When selecting such an investment vehicle, the Investment Committee
will attempt to select funds with portfolio policies and guidelines which are consistent with
the guidelines in this Statement of Investment Policy. If screened investments held in a
commingled or mutual fund do not exceed 2% of the assets under management by any
manager, the fund will be considered consistent with the guidelines in this Statement of
Investment Policy. However, there may be circumstances under which a commingled or
institutional mutual fund may not be entirely consistent with the guidelines in the
Statement of Investment Policy and yet represent the best or only alternative means of participating in a particular asset class. These circumstances may include an asset class in which
costs, diversification requirements, limited access to available managers and the unavailability of a separately managed account may necessitate the use of such a fund.