OPTIMIZING PORTFOLIOS BY PROTECTING THE COMMONS
the shareholder commons ADVances the theory and practice of system-level investing
Diversified investment portfolios depend on a healthy economy. Investors should therefore preserve the social and environmental systems that protect and grow the economy and their portfolios.
AN INNOVATIVE APPROACH
System-Level Investing and System Stewardship
The current financial system measures success by alpha, or relative returns compared to a benchmark. This approach limits individual companies to addressing systemic issues only if doing so will improve their own relative financial performance.
Without a shift in approach allowing investors to consider companies’ impacts on beta (i.e. overall market returns), environmental and social resources will continue to be extracted from society and future portfolio returns will be reduced. Read more here.
What we do
System-level investing continues to grow and evolve through research, innovation, and implementation by individuals, organizations, and practitioners. The Shareholder Commons supports these efforts through:
IDentifying leaders and best practices
FACilitating knowledge sharing and implementation
field building and public advocacy
What We Heard: System-Level Investing Knowledge Lab Listening Tour
Last month we wrapped the Listening Tour for the System-Level Investing Knowledge Lab: a public-good platform designed to curate, create, and convene in support of the theory and practice of system-level investing. Through in-person and virtual roundtables, one-on-one...
Spotlight on Portfolios on the Ballot 2026
Looking Back on Four Years of Portfolios on the Ballot Before Portfolios on the Ballot launched in 2023, TSC aimed to show investors who use a company-specific focus that portfolio-wide risk is embedded throughout the economy and that those risks are actionable in...
A message from TSC’s Incoming CEO: A Paradigm Shift is a Collective Effort
Last month, Rick Alexander, founder of The Shareholder Commons (TSC), announced that he will step down as CEO and introduced Dan Osusky as the next CEO of the organization. You can learn more about Dan and his background here. As Rick noted in his message, this next...
Update from The Shareholder Commons: Leadership Transition
Dear Colleagues, I will be stepping down as CEO of The Shareholder Commons, effective June 30, 2026. I am sure the timing will be a surprise to many of our allies, as it does feel as if the ideas we have been promoting are gaining traction at an increasing rate--why...
Together, we can fundamentally transform our financial system. Get involved today.
