ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book examines the idea of responsible investment from an economics perspective and through a historical overview of the development of responsible investment. It presents some broader reflections around the contribution of responsible investment to sustainable development and the future direction for responsible investment. The book considers how social, ethical and environmental issues are taken into account in investment decision-making and shareholder activism respectively. It concentrates on investments in equities and bonds, specifically the relevance of social, ethical and environmental issues to the issuers of, and investors in, shares or debt and the manner in which institutional investors act to influence investee companies to address these issues. The book focuses on how the negative consequences of institutional investment can be minimised and the positive consequences enhanced.
