Download our latest Social Impact Updates (pdf).

 

Third Quarter 2008

 

Forced Child Labor in Uzbekistan. In 2007, the International Labor Rights Forum (ILRF) brought an alarming violation of children’s rights to our attention. Every year, the government of Uzbekistan reportedly mobilizes hundreds of thousands of children — many from ten to fifteen years old — to harvest cotton by hand. Uzbekistan is the world’s third largest exporter of cotton, and is ruled by a corrupt and repressive regime.

 

Can global companies trace the source of their cotton and influence conditions so far down their supply chain? This is a critical question, as forced and child labor is endemic to global cotton production. C&A, Levi Strauss, Limited Brands, Marks & Spencer, Target, Tesco and other companies have already reportedly taken steps to exclude Uzbek cotton from their merchandise.

 

Domini is now working with the ILRF, the As You Sow Foundation, and a coalition of social investment firms and nonprofits to raise awareness and find solutions to Uzbekistan’s bitter harvest. Our immediate goal is to encourage the Uzbek government to invite the International Labor Organization (ILO) into the country for a monitoring and assessment mission. We have met with State Department officials and sent letters on behalf of investors with more than $250 billion in assets to Uzbek President Karimov, the Secretary General of the ILO, and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. In August, trade associations representing close to 100% of all purchases of cotton products in the United States planned to meet with the Uzbek ambassador to express their deep concerns.

 

Our coalition is also working with other major companies to identify ways they can help to end this brutal practice. We have written to more than 100 companies around the world that produce or retail cotton-based products. As a result, companies are asking questions down their supply chain that were not asked before, and some are finding that it is indeed possible to trace the source of their cotton.

 

Domini Briefs U.S. Congress on Investing and Genocide. On September 10, Domini briefed the Congressional Human Rights Caucus on what investors can do to address genocide and other crimes against humanity. Although we were the only financial services representative present at the briefing, we argued that our shareholders are not unique in refusing to profit from genocide, and that no law compels mutual funds to invest in companies that actively support genocidal regimes.

 

Diversity on Japanese Boards. For many years, Domini has voted against board slates where the board does not contain at least one woman or minority. In Japan, women rarely serve as corporate directors. This quarter, we wrote letters to 33 Japanese companies explaining why we voted against their board.

 

Domini Honored for Influence on Corporate Governance and the Boardroom. Founder and CEO Amy Domini and Managing Director and General Counsel Adam Kanzer were included in Directorship magazine’s Directorship 100 list, the magazine’s annual listing of the most influential people on corporate governance and in the boardroom.  

 

This year’s list also includes congressman Barney Frank, Federal Reserve chair Ben Bernanke, Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson, and investors Carl Icahn and Warren Buffett. The complete article appears in the September 2008 issue of Directorship magazine (www.directorship.com).

 

2007 Highlights

 

As a shareholder in the Domini Funds, you make a difference in the world. Listed below are some of the ways that you made a difference in 2007.

 

Sustainable Forestry: After two years of filing resolutions and engaging in dialogue with Kimberly-Clark over its forestry practices, in the second quarter of 2007 the company issued a new policy expressing preference for fiber certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. This sends an important signal to the marketplace from a very significant purchaser of wood fiber.