Progressive Pockets: a podcast about the untapped power of our wallets to build the world we want

Send us Fan Mail Today's letter is about how to find socially responsible investments if you are a busy investor.  Here's the letter: I don't have time to make sure companies are on the up and up, is there a way to quickly pick socially responsible investments? There are some quick options.  If you are busy and not the type to pick individual stocks, you may want to choose from some...

Send us Fan Mail Here's today's letter: I'm a gentrifier and I feel guilty about it all the time. Is there a way to spend my money in the neighborhood in a socially responsible way? Your question isn’t about whether or not you should move into a gentrifying neighborhood, your question is, now that you’re a neighbor, how can you spend your money in your new neighborhood in a socially...

Send us Fan Mail Today's letter is about shopping fair trade. Here's the letter: How do I know if the places I shop really are sustainable? There are some phrases that sound good, but might not actually mean anything, or anyway, aren’t official stamps of approval. For example, “ethically sourced.” On the other hand, if you see “Fair Trade Certified” that is an actual certification that r...

Send us Fan Mail Today's letter is about getting your company to offer a socially responsible 401k. Here's the letter:   My employer doesn't offer a socially responsible 401k, what should I do? In order to maximize your chances of success, I have three tips for you to consider: Buddy up, get other employees into the effort. They probably won’t add options unless you have a ton of in...

Send us Fan Mail Today's episode is about where to find charities and what to ask. Here's the letter: How should I research a charity to decide if I want to give to them? Where do I look and what questions should I be asking myself? Start by asking yourself your budget and your financial requirements. For example, is it important to you that you claim tax benefits from your donation? Is...

Send us Fan Mail Today’s letter is about giving up brands with values that are different to our own. Here’s the letter: Before I offer up two suggestions for things you can do, let's be clear that it was never intended to be our responsibility as individuals to hold corporations accountable for human rights abuses of their employees, or to have the task of having to research whether your pain...

Send us Fan Mail Today's letter is about picking a focus for socially responsible investments. Here's the letter: How should I pick the focus of my socially responsible investments? If you tend to pick from the 401k options at your job, I will be very impressed if your employer is already offering ESG funds as part of the 401k options. I do think that some companies, especially those tha...

Send us Fan Mail Today's letter is about trying to decide where to donate when it seems like everyone needs help: Is it better to split donations across many groups or pick one to consistently support? I care about so many things its hard to choose, so many people need help these days! The most important thing is to avoid decision paralysis. Don’t get caught up trying to find the “perfect” or...

Send us Fan Mail Today's letter is about socially responsible shopping: My twin says that socially responsible shopping is just rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. What do you think? So your twin’s a skeptic. It’s good to keep skeptics around. What’s funny is that your twin’s attitude might be a bit of a self fulfilling prophecy, at least as far as socially conscious purchasing goes.  Peo...

Send us Fan Mail Today’s letter is about Socially responsible investing...here’s the letter: I'd like to invest more in line with my values. How can I do this? I want to set expectations up top. It is difficult to find publicly traded corporations who are not harmful to our society. So, more often than not, this conversation of socially responsible investing is actually about eliminating a fe...

Send us Fan Mail Today’s letter is about deciding how much to donate. Here’s the letter: How do people decide how much money to give? I'm not religious, so 10% doesn't hold a personal significance to me, so how much should I give? 1. Even if you aren’t religious, you could borrow from those traditions.  The Bible instructs Christians to donate 10% as a tithe.  The Torah guides Jews to gi...

Send us Fan Mail This past year has made the inequality in our society even more blaringly obvious than it was before. A lot of us are grappling with our own role in the current movements towards a more just society. More people have hit the streets to protest, more people have shown up to the polls to vote, and that begs the question...what other sources of power do we have to improve the world a...