Mutual Fund Removes Growth from Portfolio

A global mutual fund management firm, Portfolio 21, has taken a courageous and visionary stance.  The company has backed the idea of a non-growing economy by endorsing the position on economic growth championed by the Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy (CASSE).  Although leading sustainability scholars have acknowledged that the economy can’t grow forever, it is a breakthrough for a successful investment firm to reach that conclusion.

The financial meltdown and its effects on the stock markets have government and business leaders scrambling to reassemble the growth machine.  It’s business as usual for most leaders and organizations, as they seek to externalize or blatantly ignore the costs of growth.  Portfolio 21 approaches investment from a different perspective.  The company realizes that environmental devastation, climate change, and loss of nonrenewable resources are not mere externalities of an otherwise harmless economy.   Portfolio 21 invests in businesses that are leading the charge to sustainability.  Such businesses won’t grow forever, but they will replace competitors that aren’t able to function within the context of a steady state economy.

A steady state economy does not close the door on investments.  It does, however, direct investments toward activities, institutions, and infrastructure that promote development over growth.  The steady state economy is designed for improving long-term wellbeing.  It is about getting better rather than getting bigger, a distinction that is well understood by Portfolio 21 and its customers.