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The Retirement Plan for Officers of Columbia University
has coal, oil, and gas investments that are putting the global climate at risk.

Columbia University

Retirement Plan for Officers of Columbia University

Default fund option managed by Vanguard
Target date option Vanguard Target Retirement Funds series
Plan data 2023 (Filed 07/31/2024)
Fund data Jun 2025

Environment
scorecard

Fossil fuels
Fossil fuels
Poor
Fossil fuel finance
Fossil fuel finance
Poor
Fossil fuel insurance
Fossil fuel insurance
Poor
Deforestation
Deforestation
Poor
Methodology

Social
scorecard

Gender equality
Gender equality
Fair
Civilian firearms
Civilian firearms
Fair
Prison industrial complex
Prison industrial complex
Poor
Military weapons
Military weapons
Poor
Tobacco
Tobacco
Poor
Methodology

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30% of plan assets are invested in the target date option.

Target date option: Vanguard Target Retirement Funds series

Most employer-offered retirement plans have what's called a target date option, broadly diversified investments that offer different "target dates" for investors in different age brackets. These target date funds mostly invest in index funds that are not sustainably invested. If a retirement plan has automatic enrollment, the target date series is usually the default investment option, also known as the Qualified Default Investment Alternative. When you sign up for the plan, your savings are put in a default investment, and most plan participants never switch. Even if plans don't have automatic enrollment, a target date series frequently serves as the de facto default, capturing more assets than any other plan options. For the overall plan scorecard above, we use the 2050 target date as the representative of the fund series.




This retirement plan has millions of dollars invested in fossil fuels, deforestation-risk agribusiness, and arms manufacturers.

Retirement Plan for Officers of Columbia University flagged investmentsClick to enlarge
The figures in this chart and the tables below are calculated by cross-referencing annual data on plan investments for 2023 (using Form 5500 data filed 07/31/2024) and monthly data on mutual fund holdings from Jun 2025. The results represent a best-faith effort to measure plan participant exposure to various environmental and social risk screens using the most recent data available. The actual amount invested by the plan may be higher today as employees have made further contributions since 2023. These results represent stock investments within the plan's target date and equity funds, and do not capture any risky investments in other fund types or through a self-directed option. The results also do not include any risky investments in target date options or equity fund options if those options are closed-end funds where we lack access to holdings, or collective trusts that we were unable to match to a suitable mutual fund as a stand-in. For more information, read our full methodology here.




Access to sustainable funds

Only 1 / 39 plan options report a sustainability mandate.

1.49% of plan assets are invested in sustainable options.

While many people stick with the target date option, 401(k)s and other employer-offered retirement plans usually have a line-up of additional investment options. Some of these investment options may be marketed as "sustainable", "socially responsible", or "ESG" (short for environment, social, and governance). Sustainable funds often seek to avoid investments in high-carbon companies and other environmentally and socially risky industries. But it's important to make sure sustainable funds are actually meeting your standards. The scorecard for any plan options marketed as sustainable can be seen below.



Want more sustainable options in your 401(k) plan?

Learn how to work with your employer to ensure your retirement plan is sustainably invested.

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Self-directed option

This plan has a self-directed option that may offer access to sustainable funds.

A self-directed option (also called a "brokerage window") can provide more access to sustainable funds. But a self-directed option requires more effort from plan participants, and could lead to riskier investments. It's better for retirement plans to offer sustainable funds without making people use a self-directed option - or even better, to make the default investment sustainable.

If your plan has a self-directed option, you can use our database of mutual funds and ETFs to find sustainable funds that meet your investment needs.

This plan has a self-directed option that may offer access to sustainable funds.







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