Giving Compass' Take:

• Neale Godfrey, writing for Forbes, discusses the increase of millennials that are interested in socially responsible investing and best practices to invest with a purpose.

• How will new millennial mindsets begin to disrupt both philanthropy and the impact investing world? 

• Read more about why millennials care about social impact investing. 


Forget the paradigm that many believe Millennials to be the “Me Generation.”  Research proves them to be the “Us Generation.”  “Us” encompasses the world.

The Millennial voice is being heard loud and clear.  They want this socially responsible investing to be a part of their portfolio and the market has responded.

The US SIF Foundation released a report in 2016 finding that socially responsible investing (SRI) is real and growing. In their report, US Sustainable, Responsible and Impact Investing Trends, US SIF indicated that “The market size of sustainable, responsible and impact investing in the United States in 2016 is $8.72 trillion, or one-fifth of all investment under professional management.”

You do not necessarily need to have a 401(k) to get started. There is an online investing option called Swell Investing. Swell offers six thematic portfolios:

  • Green Tech
  • Renewable Energy
  • Zero Waste
  • Clean Water
  • Healthy Living
  • Disease Eradication

Neale Godfrey recently spoke with David Fanger, Swell’s founder and CEO, to get his thoughts on investing with your heart (but not forgetting your head).

Swell knows that Millennials want to invest in companies aligned with their values, but we also know that they aren’t willing to sacrifice returns. That is why we urge our customers to invest in companies that are building innovative products and working toward addressing social and environmental challenges. It is also why we strive to educate. We believe that when consumers know better they do better. By empowering people with information, they can make more informed decisions.

You can invest with a purpose that reflects your values.  As Oprah Winfrey said, “Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody’s going to know whether you did it or not.”

Read the full article about millennials impact investing by Neale Godfrey at Forbes.