Ten years ago, I launched an investment advisory service called Green Chip Stocks.
The idea was to focus primarily on companies that were good for the planet or promote a peaceful and just society.
You can probably imagine the response I got after pitching this idea in 2005.
I was called everything from a naïve fool to a clueless treehugger.
But the folks that I worked for were kind enough to entertain my “insanity.” For that, I am forever grateful. Because now, a full decade later, Green Chip Stocks is known as the premier investment advisory service for green market investors.
Of course, over the years, Green Chip Stocks has morphed into something much bigger than I had ever imagined.
Today, Green Chip Stocks isn’t really even an investment advisory service anymore. It’s an actual community of like-minded investors that have come together in an effort to promote socially-responsible investment practices while making a boatload of cash along the way.
I realize some folks still can’t come to terms with such an idea. But this idea that caring about the environment and social justice is somehow at odds with wealth creation is outdated. It’s a fallacy. In fact, it worthy of mockery.
Only a fool would look at what’s going on in the world today and think investing in the things that will make our world cleaner, safer and more peaceful is a bad idea. Especially when you look at how much money green chip investors have been making for nearly ten years now. Just look at some of these winners …
- First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) – 1,144%
- SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWR) – 420%
- SolarCity (NASDAQ: SCTY) – 663%
- Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) – 1,450%
- Whole Foods (NASDAQ: WFM) – 1,160%
- Hain Celestial (NASDAQ: HAIN) – 737%
- Ormat Technologies (NYSE: ORA) – 243%
- U.S. Geothermal (AMEX: HTM) – 252%
- SunOpta (NASDAQ: STKL) – 1,149%
- Vestas Wind Systems (OTCBB: VWDRY) – 1,206%
Those are not the gains of naïve fools and clueless treehuggers.
And the best part is, these huge gains continue roll in, thereby further legitimizing “green” markets as the juggernauts they are.
Doing Well by Doing Good
Today, I sit here at my desk, just two days away from 2016.
Looking back over the past ten years, I’m absolutely blown away by how fast socially-responsible investing has grown.
From clean energy and organic foods to microfinance and “green” banks, there are literally thousands of opportunities for investors to make money while making the world a better place for future generations.
Ten years ago, finding these types of investment opportunities was a major chore. They were needles in haystacks. Today, it’s much easier. And that’s a major win for investors and major win for the planet.
In 2016, we will continue to profit from these types of green market opportunities.
We’ll continue to support socially-responsible investments.
We’ll continue to land huge gains in clean energy sectors.
We’ll continue to put our investment dollars to work, enabling farmers to grow more organic foods and lenders to lend to those looking to lift themselves out of poverty with hard work and an unrelenting drive.
We’ll continue to divest from fossil fuels and Big Ag operations that are poisoning the planet with unsustainable food production systems that treat humans like guinea pigs and animals like soulless widgets.
And above all, we’ll continue to do extremely well, by doing good.
I hope you’ll join us.
Wishing a peaceful and prosperous new year …
Jeff
