How it works
Social Justice Funds cross-references mutual fund holdings with in-depth company research to calculate portfolio ratings on gender equality, workplace equity, racial justice, and LGBTQ+ equity.
Getting started
Finding your funds
We source data on companies and mutual funds from financial services provider Morningstar. Our database covers thousands of U.S. open-end mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), some of the most common funds held in 401(k)s, 403(b)s, and other retirement plans.
Search for funds by name, ticker, or asset manager. Use the search bar below, or use the search page to do more advanced searches, such as filtering funds by investment strategy or asset manager.
Company data
Social justice scorecards from issue experts
Our fund ratings are built on a foundation of in-depth company research on gender equality, workplace equity, racial justice, and LGBTQ+ equity.
Gender equality
We use company data on gender equality from Equileap. The Equileap Gender Equality Scorecard covers over 3,500 companies traded across global markets. Each company is assessed on 19 criteria, including gender balance across the workforce, the gender pay gap, paid parental leave, and anti-sexual harassment policies. Equileap gathers publicly available information provided by the companies, including in their annual reports, sustainability reports and/or on their websites. Each company is assigned a gender equality score between 0 and 100. For more details, refer to the Equileap Gender Equality Global Report and Ranking.
Workplace equity
We use company data on workplace equity from Whistle Stop Capital. The Workplace Equity Disclosure Scorecard covers 3,000 U.S. companies. Whistle Stop Capital gathers publicly available information from company annual reports, sustainability reports, and/or on their websites. For more details, visit the As You Sow website. https://www.asyousow.org/our-work/social-justice/workplace-equity/
Racial justice
We use company data on racial justice from As You Sow. The Racial Justice Scorecard covers 3,000 U.S. companies. As You Sow gathers publicly available information from company annual reports, sustainability reports, and/or on their websites. For more details, visit the As You Sow website. https://www.asyousow.org/our-work/social-justice/racial-justice
LGBTQ+ equity
We use company data on LGBTQ+ equity from Human Rights Campaign. The HRC Corporate Equality Index covers over 1,500 U.S. companies. HRC gathers information with company surveys, with additional research for a subset of companies. For more details, refer to the HRC Corporate Equality Index.
Values-based exclusions
Social Justice Funds is part of our Invest Your Values program. Since 2015, As You Sow has rated mutual funds on their investments in companies contributing to environmental and social risks.
Prison & Border Industry — The prison industrial complex is a term used to describe the overlapping interests of government and industry that use surveillance, policing, and imprisonment as solutions to economic, social and political problems. We focus on two aspects of the prison industrial complex: companies involved in the prison industry (such as private for-profit prison operators and prison services providers), and companies involved in the militarization of borders and the policing of immigration. See the full list of companies at Prison Free Funds.
Military Weapon Manufacturers — Concerns about human rights and social impact have led weapon free investing to be a pillar of sustainable investing for decades. We focus on the largest publicly-traded arms manufacturers and military contractors; companies involved in the construction or maintenance of nuclear weapons; and companies involved with other controversial weapons, including cluster munitions, anti-personnel landmines, incendiary weapons, and depleted uranium. See the full list of companies at Weapon Free Funds.
Mutual fund grades
Analyzing fund portfolios
For each fund, we cross-reference the list of portfolio holdings with in-depth company research on social justice issues to calculate ratings on gender equality, workplace equity, racial justice, LGBTQ+ equity, prisons & borders, and military weapons.
Mutual funds can have a varying number of holdings, from less than one hundred to several thousand. Holdings that are not stocks, like cash holdings or bonds, are not rated. In the fund's investment profile, we show a "Percent Rated" metric, equivalent to the percent of the fund that is invested in stocks. The higher a fund’s Percent Rated value, the more holdings we were able to examine. A fund with a lower Percent Rated value may have hidden risky investments that our tool cannot account for, in the form of bond holdings or other asset types.
Analyzing fund portfolios
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Social justice grades
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Sustainable funds
We use Morningstar's "sustainability mandate" indicator to determine which funds are displayed as sustainably-mandated. Sustainably-mandated funds make investment decisions based on issues like environmental responsibility, human rights, or religious views. A sustainably-mandated fund may take a proactive stance by selectively investing in, for example, environmentally-friendly companies, or firms with good employee relations. They may also avoid investing in companies involved in promoting alcohol, tobacco, or firearms, or in the defense industry. Look for this symbol to find funds that are designated sustainably-mandated.
The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment is a group advancing sustainable, responsible, and impact investing. Asset managers who are members of US-SIF often have policies to exclude or restrict investments in companies involved in the production, licensing, and/or retailing of weapons. Look for this symbol to find funds that are members of US-SIF.
Action toolkit
When you're done looking up funds and finding the data you need, what's next? You can learn how to make a change and move your money with our fossil free action toolkit. Whether you’re an individual investor or if your investments are in your employer-sponsored plan at work, our step-by-step toolkit can help. There's an in-depth guide to responsible investing, links to external resources, a sample letter to send to your employer 401(k) manager, and more — everything you need to make a change and get started investing your money fossil free.
Spreadsheet
Disclaimer: As You Sow is not an investment adviser
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