Ongoing Updates to the Fund’s Human Rights Screening Process
We have received questions over the past several months regarding the Fund’s holdings in companies associated with Israel/Palestine-related divestment campaigns. While typically covering companies like HP, Motorola, Caterpillar, and Valero, where the CEF total position is relatively small (approximately 0.5% of UUCEF assets as of August ’26), the underlying issues are not small, and important to aligning the CEF overall with UU values.
Our review of CEF history has found no evidence that the Investment Committee formally adopted a blanket BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) divestment policy but had historically maintained a human rights screening process which effectively had similar outcomes.
However, we also identified governance and process gaps, including the absence of an Investment Committee discussion regarding the 2024 GA Action of Immediate Witness on Palestinian Solidarity, and questions about how the historical human-rights screening practices under the former Socially Responsible Investment Committee were later translated into current CEF manager guidelines. As a reminder, the Socially Responsible Investment committed merged with the Investment Committed in 2022.
Fortunately, the current Investment Committee, and our new Stewardship Subcommittee had already begun a broader stewardship review and process redesign with an external consultant, including developing a broader CAHRA policy (conflict affected high risk areas) inclusive of Israel/Palestine, before these questions emerged. Our current approach is to acknowledge the concerns, identify the process issues that need attention, engage relevant stakeholders and experts, and evaluate the matter through a strengthened stewardship framework, and do this all with a transparency expected of the CEF.
More to come.