Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace Fully Divest from Fossil Fuels
June 22, 2022
The Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace (CSJP) announced today that their investment portfolio is 100% fossil-free. The sisters made the decision to divest in 2018. The portfolio managed in the United Kingdom was fully divested in 2019. The portfolio managed in the United States is fully divested as of June 2022.
“We worked with our investment advisors to put our values into action,” said Congregation Chief Financial Officer Melody Maravillas. “In the past we have held on to some investments in fossil fuels to engage in shareholder advocacy. Our Investment Policy has now been updated to exclude direct equity and fixed income investments in fossil fuel companies as identified by the Carbon Underground 200.”
In 2008, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace made a commitment to reduce their carbon footprint and pray, study and act to promote a sustainable lifestyle. The sisters have developed a Land Ethic that names ecological sustainability as one of the most urgent religious and moral challenges of our time. The Congregation made a commitment in 2021 to a seven-year plan to achieve ecological sustainability and participate in the Laudato Si’ Action Platform organized by the Dicastery for the Promotion of Integral Development in the Vatican.
“Pope Francis has called the global church to a conversion of heart, as we listen to the cries of Earth and the cries of people living on the margins,” said Assistant Congregation Leader and Treasurer Sister Susan Francois CSJP. “We believe that care of creation is an essential element of peacemaking. The time is now to act. We have a fiduciary responsibility to Earth.”
The Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace was founded in Nottingham, England in 1884 by Margaret anna Cusack. Today sisters and lay associates minister in the United Kingdom and on the East and West coasts of the United States. The founding mission and charism of the Congregation is to promote social justice as a path to peace. The sisters have always lived simply and shared their goods in common. Funds not needed for immediate living or ministry expenses were invested with an eye towards growing the resources available for future mission.
“Today we see the ethical use of our financial resources through the lens of our vow of poverty,” said Sister Susan Francois. “We decided it was morally imperative to divest fully from carbon rather than profit from activities which hasten the climate crisis.”
