Funds Group: AXA Equitable Funds (EQ Advisors Trust)
Management Company: Adviser-AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company. Sub-advisers-Calvert Asset Management Company, Inc. and Bridgeway Capital Management, Inc.
Funds Affected: EQ/Calvert Socially Responsible Fund
Sustainable Investing Strategy: ESG Integration, Exclusions
Summary:
The portfolio seeks to invest in companies and other enterprises that demonstrate positive environmental, social and governance performance as they address the corporate responsibility and sustainability challenges. Calvert believes that there are long-term benefits in an investment philosophy that attaches material weight to the environment, workplace relations, human rights, indigenous peoples’ rights, community relations, and positive product and business practices, as well as corporate governance. Calvert also believes that managing risks and opportunities related to these issues can contribute positively to company as well as investment performance.
Calvert has developed sustainable and socially responsible investment criteria for the portfolio, detailed below. These criteria represent standards of behavior which few, if any, organizations totally satisfy. As a matter of practice, evaluation of a particular organization in the context of these criteria will involve subjective judgment by Calvert. All sustainable and socially responsible criteria may be changed by Calvert’s Board of Directors without shareholder approval.
The portfolio seeks to invest in companies that:
• Take positive steps to improve environmental management and performance, advance sustainable development, or provide innovative and effective solutions to environmental problems through their products and services.
• Maintain positive diversity, labor relations, and employee health and safety practices, including inclusive and robust diversity policies, programs and training, and disclosure of workforce diversity data; have strong labor codes ideally consistent with the International Labor Organization (ILO) core standards, comprehensive benefits and training opportunities, and sound employee relations, as well as strong employee health and safety policies, safety management systems and training, and positive safety performance records.
• Observe appropriate international human rights standards in operations in all countries.
• Respect Indigenous Peoples and their lands, cultures, knowledge, environment, and livelihoods.
• Produce or market products and services that are safe and enhance the health or quality of life of consumers.
• Contribute to the quality of life in the communities where they operate, such as through stakeholder engagement with local communities, corporate philanthropy and employee volunteerism.
• Uphold sound corporate governance and business ethics policies and practices, including independent and diverse boards, and respect for shareholder rights; align executive compensation with corporate performance, maintain sound legal and regulatory compliance records, and disclose environmental, social and governance information.
The portfolio seeks to avoid investing in companies that:
• Demonstrate poor environmental performance or compliance records, or contribute significantly to local or global environmental problems; or own or operate nuclear power plants or have substantial contracts to supply key components in the nuclear power process.
• Are the subject of serious labor-related actions or penalties by regulatory agencies or demonstrate a pattern of employing forced, compulsory or child labor.
• Exhibit a pattern and practice of human rights violations or are directly complicit in human rights violations committed by governments or security forces, including those that are under U.S. or international sanction for grave human rights abuses, such as genocide and forced labor.
• Exhibit a pattern and practice of violating the rights and protections of Indigenous Peoples.
• Demonstrate poor corporate governance or engage in harmful or unethical business practices.
• Manufacture tobacco products.
• Are significantly involved in the manufacture of alcoholic beverages.
• Have direct involvement in gambling operations.
• Manufacture, design, or sell weapons or the critical components of weapons that violate international humanitarian law; or manufacture, design, or sell inherently offensive weapons, as defined by the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe and the UN Register on Conventional Arms, or the munitions designed for use in such inherently offensive weapons.
• Manufacture or sell firearms and/or ammunition.
• Abuse animals, cause unnecessary suffering and death of animals, or whose operations involve the exploitation or mistreatment of animals.
• Develop genetically-modified organisms for environmental release without countervailing social benefits such as demonstrating leadership in promoting safety, protection of Indigenous Peoples’ rights, the interests of organic farmers and the interests of developing countries generally.