Thematic investing: a forward-looking, positive approach

Using various social and topical themes to guide investment can be an effective and rewarding strategy to aid investors in making ethical - and profitable - choices

SRI Investing had its birth with investors having ethical concerns about the businesses and practices that their funds invested in. Many people feel they do not want to profit from the arms trade, tobacco or the pornography industry, and therefore sought to avoid companies with involvement in these industries. Thus, SRI funds have traditionally screened out companies with involvement in ethically questionable businesses or with poor ethical practices, and restricted their investment to ethically neutral businesses. Now a new generation of SRI funds is emerging, driven by investors seekin...