There are many phrases and jargon used in responsible investment. The following is an evolving list of terms and explanations.
| AGM | Annual general meeting of shareholders. |
| Corporate Governance | The process by which companies are managed. |
| Concert Party | A group of shareholders acting together can be called a concert party. The legal definition of concert party in the UK is maintained by The Takeover Panel. |
| EGM | Extra-ordinary shareholder meeting. |
| ESG | Environment & Social Governance – or the governance of environmental and social issues within a company or investment portfolio. |
| Ethical Investment | Ethical investment strategies are based on a philosopy of excluding companies from investment portfolios based on specific criteria. Ethical exclusion criteria include companies involved in in alcohol, tobacco, pornography, gambling or poor human rights at investee companies. |
| Engagement | Engagement is the process through which investors use their influence to encourage investee companies to adopt new standards or change their conduct on ESG issues. |
| Negative Screening | The process of excluding investments based on individual characteristics or preferences e.g. no alcohol, no high-carbon impact investments. |
| PRI | A membership organisation created to show support for the United Nations-backed Principles of Responsible Investment. The Principles were launched in 2006 by UNEP Finance Initiative and the UN Global Compact. The PRI provides a voluntary framework by which all investors can incorporate ESG issues into their decision-making and ownership practices and so better align their objectives with those of society at large. |
| Proxy / Proxies | Depending on jurisdiction, the proxy may be the proxy ballot form or a person appointed to be a proxy. |
| Proxy Voting | The act of voting proxies, or shareholder voting |
| Responsible Investment | Responsible Investment or RI is the umbrella term used for Ethical and ESG oriented investment. |
| Say on Pay | Voting on executive pay/remuneration. |
| Shareholder Voting | Voting at shareholder meetings, AGMs or EGMs |
| Stewardship | A collection of activities associated with long-term share ownership. |
| UN Global Compact | A call to companies to align strategies and operations with universal principles on human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption, and take actions that advance societal goals. |
| UN SDGs | The UN Global Compact’s multi-year strategy to drive business awareness and action in support of achieving The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs by 2030 |
| UKSIF | The UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association, is a membership network for sustainable and responsible financial services. |
| Voting policy | A policy produced by an institutional investor which explains their governance beliefs and how they are likely to vote. |