Tobacco is an addictive product and its use is the single leading preventable cause of death

worldwide, resulting in nearly six million deaths annually. Tobacco use is common throughout the world due to aggressive and widespread marketing and lack of awareness about its dangers, especially amongst the world’s most vulnerable populations. Although the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement of 1998 prohibits “youth targeting” and most forms of advertising in the United States, the major tobacco companies have simply moved their marketing efforts to the developing world, spending billions of dollars each promoting their products to children.

The University of Pennsylvania — a recognized leader in global outreach initiatives through its internationally eminent university and academic medical center — is committed to making a positive contribution to people’s lives around the world. Yet we have fallen out of step with our Ivy League and medical school peers on the issue of tobacco. Of the five Ivies that have

deliberated about tobacco investment, only Yale has not adopted a tobacco restriction for their endowment. Of the top five medical schools, Penn is the only one without a tobacco restriction. We believe this is inconsistent with the values of the Penn community as embodied in the Penn Compact and in our leadership, education, research, and service missions around the globe.

In order to uphold this responsibility, an ad hoc committee comprised of members of the Social Responsibility Advisory Committee (SRAC), with the support of faculty, staff and students from across the University, recommends that the Trustees of the University adopt a policy to exclude those companies that manufacture tobacco products from its direct investments. As part of this policy, we recommend that the University require its separate account investment managers to exclude those companies that manufacture tobacco products from their direct investments.

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