SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 26, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Adasina Social Capital (“Adasina”) an investment and financial activism firm that serves as a critical bridge between financial markets and social justice movements, today announced its official launch. Led by a diverse team of people from non-traditional backgrounds, Adasina enables impact-driven investors to pursue intersectional racial, gender, economic, and climate justice by harnessing the power of the current economic system.
Adasina’s approach is very different from traditional ESG (environmental, social, governance) firms. Through partnerships with social justice organizations that represent the communities most impacted by systemic inequities, Adasina created the Adasina Social Justice Investing Criteria, a data-driven set of investment standards that reflects social justice values and supports progressive movements for change.
This investment methodology is one part of Adasina’s four interlocking levers of change – People, Investments, Campaigns, and Education – which work closely together to expand investor impact beyond individual portfolios to drive bold and decisive action industry-wide.
“In order for systems to transform, it’s so important that we look to people outside of traditional power structures who carry different perspectives,” said Founder and CEO, Rachel Robasciotti. “We’re proud that our team reflects the very people for which we seek justice. It’s the wisdom from these communities that enables us to define our investment criteria, educate and mobilize investors through strategic campaigns, and give a voice to those most overlooked by our current financial system.”
Adasina seeks a better alternative to existing SRI (socially responsible investment) indexes and ESG practices, which overlook specific issues that directly impact underserved and marginalized communities. To accomplish this, Adasina uses its community-sourced data and investor power to “draw the line” so that public companies and governments may choose which side of justice they stand on. The firm then organizes strategic campaigns around these issue areas to advance positive, systemic change across the financial industry.
For example, in 2019, Adasina launched the “Force the Issue” campaign, aimed at ending forced arbitration for sexual harassment claims in publicly traded companies, which has been shown to favor employers over harassment survivors. Adasina worked with investors representing $54 billion in assets (RISE Investor Statement), as well as consumer activism group Grab Your Wallet Alliance (GYWA) and the workplace equity data group LedBetter, to build a public database that captures which corporations use forced arbitration. This campaign effectively persuaded 200+ publicly traded companies to publicly disavow the use of forced arbitration policies for sexual harassment claims (Force the Issue Campaign). Over 10 million workers now know that they can take a workplace harasser/abuser to court.
“Many investors today are seeking solutions that reflect their personal values, but aren’t sure where to start or how their money really makes an impact,” said Maya Philipson, Co-Founder & COO. “However, when you begin by listening to the community you intend to impact, you become accountable to them – and it is through accountability that real change happens.”
There are many ways for investors to leverage the Adasina Social Justice Investing approach. They can work directly with Adasina’s investment team to create a values-aligned, professionally managed retirement or brokerage account; work with their current financial advisor to apply the Adasina Social Justice Index for public equities to their current portfolio; or invest in the Adasina-Activest Fiscal Justice Strategy, a fixed income portfolio intended to advance racial and economic justice by investing directly in Black communities.
For more information about Adasina, visit www.adasina.com. For media inquiries, contact media@adasina.com.
About Adasina:
Adasina Social Capital (“Adasina”) is an investment and financial activism firm that serves as a critical bridge between financial markets and social justice movements for the benefit of people and our planet. Adasina uses four interlocking levers to enact large-scale, systemic change: People, Investments, Campaigns, and Education.
We believe that community-sourced impact data should set the standards for how publicly traded companies participate in racial, gender, economic, and climate justice. With Adasina, investors can seek both financial and social returns that are accountable to the well-being of the people and planet they impact.
Adasina Social Capital is the sister company of Robasciotti & Philipson, a registered investment advisory firm with over 15 years of experience creating social justice portfolios for clients. We are majority-owned and operated by women, people of color, and members of the LGBTQ+ community. Both companies are headquartered in San Francisco and maintain client relationships throughout the United States. For more information visit www.adasina.com.
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