It’s not easy being a billionaire with a social conscience. Just ask Paul Tudor Jones. The philanthropic hedge-fund manager has been at the forefront of raising almost $2 billion for charities focused on the poor through his Robin Hood Foundation over the last few years, but he is having great difficulty in getting the leaders of the corporate world to reform themselves and become more socially conscious.
Paul Tudor Jones expressed his frustrations with global corporations’ ”emphasis on profits, on short-term quarterly earnings and share prices, at the exclusion of all else,” at a recent TED talk. He also noted that he was planning to continue his endeavors in this area.
On Wednesday, April 22nd it became clear what Paul Tudor Jones meant when he announced the launch of JUST Capital, a new nonprofit with a mission to drive more just corporate behavior.
Just Capital is a not-for-profit organization, and includes board members who bring star power, board-room experience, and skepticism regarding today’s short-term corporate thinking. Members of JUST’s BoD include health guru Deepak Chopra, Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington, Tom’s Shoes founder Blake Mycoskie and ex-Goldman Sachs Group partner Paul Scialla.
More on Paul Tudor Jones’ JUST Capital
According to its website, the main mission of JUST Capital is to encourage more just corporate behavior. Members of the organization:
- believe that making a profit or generating a return does not have to come at the expense of society or the planet.
- believe that business conducted in a more balanced, equitable and just manner should be rewarded by the markets, not punished by them.
JUST Capital has a large operating budget courtesy of Paul Tudor Jones, and is currently conducting a poll of 20,000 Americans regarding corporate practices. By September of next year, the nonprofit will release a ranking of 1,000 of the top multinational corporations based on the to-be-determined criteria.
Martin Whittaker, JUST’s CEO, noted that respondents to date have been interested in how companies treat employees and the cities where they operate; the large pay differential between CEOs and their employees and the accurate disclosure of product ingredients.
Statement from board member Deepak Chopra
New board member Deepak Chopra was optimistic. “What happens is that it becomes a movement, slowly, but one that can reach critical mass,” he commented. “I think what’s going to happen is that once consumers have this kind of awareness, when it reaches critical mass, it will make companies become part of it.”
