A shareholder, also known as a stockholder or beneficiary, is an individual or entity that owns shares in a corporation. Shareholders invest capital into a company and, in return, receive ownership stakes, which may entitle them to dividends and voting rights on certain corporate matters. Your shares could be held in various ways, such as in diversified mutual funds or ETFs, or you may own shares directly. If you have an investment account (e.g., a 401(k), IRA, or pension), then you are a shareholder.

Shareholder Democracy is a movement that empowers all shareholders—like you—to vote your shares based on your values, fostering a capitalism that reflects the collective priorities of its owners. It invites you to partner with not-for-profit civil society organizations you trust to guide how your shares are voted on key corporate decisions. Allowing owners to vote their values on all of their shares, all of the time, aligns corporate purpose with societal values. This liberates corporations to do their part to contribute toward widely supported public priorities, such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). Shareholder democracy integrates whatever owners care about into corporate governance and decision making, such as human well-being, environmental care, or social equity. The goal remains value creation, with owners’ values and priorities fully integrated.

Proxy voting is the process by which shareholders entrust their voting rights to a representative to cast votes on their behalf at corporate meetings, such as annual general meetings. However, today, most shareholders don’t vote. And, the votes that do get cast are not voted in alignment with each owner’s values. Unlike our grandparents who may have had personal or almost personal relationships with the companies they invested in, modern portfolio theory reduces risk by encouraging owners to have a diversified portfolio. Thus, today it would take an impossible amount of time for every shareholder to take an educated position on every vote on every corporation in their portfolio. We call today’s capitalism “zombie capitalism” because nearly no one is voting, thus we can together march toward futures no one wants. By partnering with trusted civil society organizations who provide voting recommendations and engage corporations on their behalf, shareholders can collectively express their voice through a representative democracy. Together, they have a voice where alone they could not. Together, they can inspire corporate decisions that align with their values, enhancing the democratic voice within capitalism, and moving us toward collectively desirable futures.

A civil society organization is a not-for-profit group that operates independently from the government to advocate for social, cultural, economic, or environmental priorities. These organizations play a vital role in representing community interests, shaping policy, and fostering positive change. Examples include advocacy groups, professional associations, unions, religious institutions, and foundations.

Civil society organizations inspire and support stronger shareholder participation and corporate purpose. They educate shareholders about their voting rights, advocate for policies that enhance democratic governance, and highlight opportunities for corporations to align with owners' values. In Shareholder Democracy, they offer voting recommendations, enabling shareholders to vote alongside civil society organizations that reflect their priorities, amplifying a collective vision for an economy that creates the most value for its owners.

Capitalism has sparked extraordinary economic growth and innovation, yet it has also contributed to challenges like human rights violations and environmental degradation. Since the earliest corporations, such as The Dutch East India Company in the 17th century, shareholders—often faith-based groups—have invited companies to embrace greater care for people and the planet. For instance, Quaker shareholders in the 1700s influenced British firms to shift away from slave-dependent trade, while 19th-century religious investors in industrial firms inspired safer workplaces through support for reforms like the UK Factory Acts. Over centuries, thousands of such smaller efforts by churches and now secular civil society organizations have inspired incremental progress reflecting the power of shareholder voice to align business with societal well-being. However, historically, shareholder advocacy has been conducted by a small number of civil society organizations with a small number of votes. Churches, for example, would vote a small amount of their endowment to influence a small number of companies on a small number of issues, rather than voting all of their endowment and the holdings of their parishioners. Shareholder Democracy builds on this legacy and accelerates the movement by empowering all owners to vote all of their shares, all the time. We do this by scaling the number of civil society organizations involved in shareholder advocacy and the power of each organization by helping them invite their members to vote their own shares alongside each organization, thus amplifying owners' voices to accelerate the integration of owner’s values into corporate practices.

Liberating corporate executives to make values based decisions: When shareholders actively vote in alignment with their values, alongside their preferred civil society organization, on key shareholder policies and corporate elections, executives are able to make decisions that reflect the values of owners. This prevents management practices that prioritize short-term profits if investors want long-term sustainability. Moverover, this creates the opportunity for owners to self-govern their corporations rather than requiring government regulation to shift practices within publicly traded companies. Encouraging ethical and socially responsible business practices: By exercising their votes alongside trusted civil society organizations that owners already support, owners can invite companies to adopt ethical labor practices and reduce harm to the environment and other stakeholders. This counters the exploitative tendencies of non-democratic capitalism.​ Creating new market signals for love and care: Rather than focusing primarily on quarterly earnings, often at the expense of worker rights, sustainability, and long-term growth, shareholder democracy diversifies the values owners are able to communicate. Thus, we can transcend the narrow focus on short-term profit maximization to include all of the values that are important to owners.​ Distributing power, giving more people a voice in economic decision-making: Instead of corporate power being concentrated in the hands of a few institutions and wealthy elites, a shareholder democracy allows a representative range of voices to shape our economy. This democratizes capitalism and actionably aligns corporate purpose with societal values, creating the possibility of a regenerative economy of care and a flourishing future for all. ​Supporting regenerative economic models: Shareholder voting recommendations and board members selected by diverse stakeholders can invite companies to invest in sustainable supply chains, inclusive hiring, fair wages, climate-conscious business models or whatever else most expresses owners’ values. This transforms capitalism into a system capable of prioritizing human prosperity and planetary well-being in addition to profit. Advocating for democratic policies and structural reforms: The Shareholder Democracy movement can advocate for policy changes that promote democratic practices and advocate against policies that would restrict owners’ rights or perpetuate our non-democratic capitalism.

Voting based on civil society organizations’ voting recommendations allows shareholders to align their investments with their values—such as environmental stewardship or social equity—without needing to study every corporate proposal and election themselves. These trusted organizations can steward votes for many investors, giving voice to each owner that they could not have alone. Moreover, by empowering a representative civil society organization with your vote, they can engage management on your behalf, negotiating for what matters to you and creating proposals on your behalf. Even if you were to vote all of your shares based on all of your values all of the time, without a representative authoring proposals and engaging with management from each of the companies in your portfolio, you still would not have a voice at the table. Thus, partnering with a representative civil society organization gives shareholders a voice that they could not have alone.

Pass-through and choice voting are systems where large investment managers (e.g., BlackRock, Vanguard, or State Street) empower beneficiary shareholders to choose how their shares are voted, rather than deciding for them. Shareholder Democracy enhances this by partnering with large investment managers to offer you a simple way to vote alongside civil society organizations you trust in one easy step, such as a one click or one phone call. This leverages existing tools to make voting accessible and meaningful, inviting shareholders to express their voice and shape corporate governance nearly effortlessly. If you don't yet see the civil society voting options you'd like to see at your investment manager, join us to help build the movement and make them available wherever your money is held. Your voice and your vote matter.

Investment managers (e.g., Northern Trust, BlackRock) oversee assets and often collaborate with providers like Iconik or Tumelo or build their own platforms to provide voting options to their beneficiaries. Shareholder Democracy partners with these managers and platforms to integrate voting recommendations from civil society organizations wherever investors hold their money—be it a 401(k), separately managed account (SMA), or mutual fund. The aim is to make it seamless for shareholders to vote alongside organizations they trust and support, with managers and platforms facilitating the process.

Separately Managed Accounts (SMAs) are investment portfolios where individuals or institutions directly own shares, unlike mutual funds or ETFs where ownership is pooled. Shareholder Democracy can most easily begin with SMAs because they allow for straightforward voting preferences—custodians can easily execute votes for specific owners without untangling pooled funds. This makes SMAs a natural starting point for family offices, endowments, and donor-advised funds to lead the way, while infrastructure is being built to untangle pooled funds by financial service providers like Tumelo and Iconik. As the infrastructure is built out, owners will have access to voting all of their shares based on their values all of the time, including mutual funds or ETFs.

Pooled investments like mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) blend shares from many investors, making it trickier to tailor voting preferences. Unlike SMAs, where ownership is distinct, these funds need technology to determine each investor’s share and carry out varied voting instructions—a process that’s currently intricate and costly given how legacy voting infrastructure was created. Shareholder Democracy is helping develop solutions by partnering with platforms like Tumelo and Iconik, to simplify this, remove the costs, and expand owners’ voice over time.

Imagine living in a country that is legally a democracy, but none of the citizens know they live in a democracy. They don’t vote. They don’t know they have a vote. They don’t have a representative or know what representatives are. And, if they try to vote, it’s unimaginably difficult and time consuming. They have portfolios with hundreds of companies in them, each with board member elections and shareholder proposals, none of which they’ve heard of or understand. People are generally dissatisfied with the direction of the country, yet they don’t know what they can do to shift it. We call this system “Zombie Capitalism” where we can all march toward futures no one wanted because we’ve outsourced our agency to nowhere. To create a future where everyone’s votes are voted based on their values, all of the time, our challenges include transforming dauntingly complex voting processes; and shareholders’ lack of awareness or engagement, where many may not realize they can vote their shares, feel inspired, or have the resources to do so. Addressing these involves simplifying participation, fostering collaboration across the investment community to make it easy for every owners’ voice to be heard, and raising awareness among shareholders that they have a vote and how to wield it.

Individual investors can join by voting their shares in line with recommendations from civil society organizations they already support during annual general meetings. This lets you express your values and voice in corporate governance, inviting businesses to reflect widely supported priorities like those in the UN SDGs. Stay informed about governance opportunities, connect with the Shareholder Democracy movement and its featured advocacy groups, and share your aspirations with company management to encourage positive change.

As of March 24, 2025, the next step is expanding pilots with not-for-profit civil society organizations like Sierra Club, which already stewards $5 billion in votes, and focusing on SMAs held by foundations, family offices, DAFs and endowments. Shareholder Democracy is weaving a coalition of foundations, philanthropists, and impact investors who will help fund and scale the emerging movement.

Individual Shareholders – Everyday investors, including retail investors, pension holders, and employees with retirement plans, who deserve a voice in how their capital is used to influence corporate behavior. Foundations and Philanthropic Organizations – Entities that align their grantmaking with values such as environmental protection, social justice, and human rights, and seek to ensure that their investments and shareholder votes uphold those same values. Donor-Advised Funds and Family Offices – Those who wish to align wealth management and impact investing strategies with their philanthropic missions. Civil Society Organizations – Groups advocating for change—on climate, labor, health, racial justice, and other issues—that benefit when shareholder votes support, rather than contradict, their goals. Financial Institutions and Asset Managers – Institutions that act as fiduciaries and stewards of capital, with the potential to implement responsible voting practices across portfolios. Corporate Stakeholders – Employees, consumers, and communities impacted by corporate behavior who benefit when shareholder votes push for more responsible governance and sustainable practices. Frontline and Historically Marginalized Communities – These are the individuals and communities most vulnerable to the negative externalities of unchecked corporate power—such as environmental degradation, labor exploitation, and health disparities—and who stand to gain the most from a more just and representative financial system. Pre-IPO Purpose Led and Triple Bottom Line Corporations - Purpose-led pre-IPO companies can partner with civil society organizations to maintain their prosocial missions post-IPO, fostering a just, equitable financial system that prioritizes people, planet, and profit.

Fill out the "Build the Movement" form at the bottom of our page, share a bit about yourself, and we’ll provide additional resources or arrange a conversation with you. Visit shareholderdemocracy.org for more insights and updates on how you can participate.