ETF tracking

Admittedly, I'm no financial mastermind. My budget exists in an Excel spreadsheet, I have a 401(k), and I can read a credit report. But beyond that, no dice. However, with the recent economic twists and turns, my partner-in-crime and I have been able to get into the game. The stock game.

Of course, I am a supporter of the maxim, "Slow steady wins the race", or as business mastermind Warren Buffet better put it, "I don't look to jump over 7-foot bars; I look around for 1-foot bars that I can step over." But learning the market and her seemingly oxymoronic volatile trends can be a daunting and terribly off-putting task. Fortunately, the internet has made the various markets not only accessible to layfolk, but palatable. Companies like eTrade now mean you no longer need a color jacket and aggressive demeanor to get in on the action.

So what does this have to do with water conservation? Well, it's all about the ETFs, or exchange-traded funds. (Here comes the learning part!)

An ETF is an investment vehicle traded on stock exchanges, much like stocks. An ETF holds assets such as stocks or bonds and trades at approximately the same price as the net asset value of its underlying assets over the course of the trading day. Most ETFs track an index, such as the S&P 500 or MSCI EAFE. ETFs may be attractive as investments because of their low costs, tax efficiency, and stock-like features. (Thank you, Wikipedia!) Think of it as a hybrid of a stock and a mutual fund.

They have existed in the US since 1993 (and in Europe since 1999) and, according to the pros, have changed the investment game. According to a recent Wharton study, 67% of industry professionals called ETFs "the most innovative investment vehicle of the last two decades."

Again, why does this all matter to you? Two bigs reasons:

1. Investors are looking to put money toward ETFs.
2. ETFs are now tracking water scarcity.

And this all means that investors are actively paying attention to the world water crisis and how solutions to said crisis can MAKE THEM MONEY. They're looking for workable answers to water transmission, irrigation, distribution, viable filtering and desalination, and general building of infrastructure, and they're looking for you to make them money from it all. Which, naturally, means a tidy income for you, as well.

Is this a cold way to approach the water crisis? Perhaps. Or is it more realistic? After decades of shouting, it took awhile for the right people to hear and be heard. But now everyone is listening. So what do you have to say?