Financial Advisor contributor Paul Ellis recently interviewed Jane Carten; president, CEO and director, Saturna Capital; to discuss her firm’s commitment to sustainable investing strategies.

Ellis: Jane, as a second-generation owner of Saturna Capital and a portfolio manager for the firm you have been instrumental in developing the firm’s commitment to sustainable investment strategies that incorporate the use of ESG metrics into stock and bond mutual fund portfolios. Tell our readers why you’ve made these choices as an asset manager.   

Carten: I believe that we’ve crossed a chasm from early adopters of sustainable investing to the larger investor community in society, and I think that we’ll see a tremendous uptick towards sustainable investing over the next 15 years.

As investors become more educated about the benefits of good ESG characteristics within a company, the more companies will take that awareness seriously. Investors not only notice that there’s a performance benefit but also the benefit of having a portfolio that’s aligned with what they’d like to be doing in the world. I think that there’s long-term upside in this part of our industry as ESG metrics gradually become embedded in all investment decisions.

Ellis: As a portfolio manager, what kind of ESG metrics do you focus on in stock selection?

Carten: We have a proprietary system that gives the individual securities that we’re looking at an E score, an S score and a G score. Then we have an F, financial score, as well. If they perform well in these metrics, they’ll get a rating of A to F. So, I’m looking for companies that qualify initially on their ESG ratings. Then I’m looking for companies that I think are undervalued and are going to be a good long-term investment for our shareholders.

Ellis: Jane, you started working with the firm in June of 1997. What were your initial responsibilities?

Carten: When I began working for Saturna, my role was systems administrator. I was in-charge of the computer network, being sure that all of them were in working order and had the software they needed to stay current in the industry. I expanded that role into desktop publishing and took care of the website and the marketing materials for the firm. Eventually, I became chief information officer and that expanded my responsibilities to being in-charge of all technology, including the software development portion of our business.

We develop software that we license to other mutual fund firms, so as chief information officer I was in-charge of the technology department and the marketing department. I moved from there to executive vice president for a couple of years to make sure that I was ready to become president and CEO of Saturna Capital, which I did in 2009.

Ellis: What advice do you have for young women who think that sustainable finance might be a good career opportunity, whether it’s marketing, being an advisor, an analyst or managing portfolios?

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