Global data showed that more than 90 per cent of all investments did not meet ethical investment criteria, so it was "almost a given" that money was invested in projects that either directly or indirectly help to kill off small businesses, damaged the environment or fuelled warfare and human rights abuses somewhere in the world.
The New Zealand Government still invested taxes in Rio Tinto and Exxon Mobil, both notorious for environmental and human rights abuse, while many KiwiSaver providers invested in corporations that demonstrated unethical behaviour, for example Apple, which pays no tax in New Zealand, Shell, associated with massive oil spills and assassinations in Nigeria, and Veolia, the largest owner of privatised water in the world.
Dr Howell said the Government could adopt the Norwegian Government's ethical investment model, and add specific standards and exclusions to reflect its particular aspirations.
The Norwegian model was based on three general principles: to act in a socially just and fair way, to respect the Earth, and to live within the capacity of the Earth to support human life.
An Ethical Council monitored the application of those principles across all government investments, as well as those of institutions such as insurance companies, banks, local government and universities.
Dr Howell outlined how people could apply that model regarding how their money was invested by first selecting the bank, investment agency or political party that was most closely aligned with those principles, then stipulating that their money could only be invested in support of the principles.
Examples of such investments were in areas such as local businesses or renewable energy, and not in companies that manufactured weapons, destroyed rainforests or used slave labour.