Investment Strategy
|
Mar. 26, 2026 |
| Inspire Global Hope ETF |
|
| Prospectus [Line Items] |
|
| Strategy [Heading] |
Principal
Investment Strategies:
|
| Strategy Narrative [Text Block] |
The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its total assets in the component securities of the Global Hope
Index. Inspire Investing, LLC (the Adviser or Index Provider), the Funds index provider (and also the Funds
investment adviser) selects foreign (including emerging markets) and domestic equity securities from a global universe of publicly traded
equity securities of large capitalization companies and which have an Inspire Impact Score™ of zero or higher. The Adviser defines
large capitalization companies to be those that are the largest 10% of the global equity market.
The
Inspire Impact Score™ is a proprietary selection methodology that is designed to assign a score to a particular security based
on the securitys alignment with biblical values and the positive impact the issuing company has on the world. Utilizing specifically
identified, publicly available and/or third-party sources, the Inspire Impact Score™ methodology endeavors to assign negative scores
to, and exclude companies from, the investment universe if they are found in violation of specified categories that do not align with
biblical values and seeks to assign positive scores to companies which the Adviser has not found to be in violation of the specified
exclusionary categories. The selection methodology used in calculating the Inspire Impact Score™ is separate from the fundamental
and technical company research that Inspire performs for inclusion in its exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
It
is not possible for the Adviser to be aware of every action a company takes, and there may be additional positive or problematic activities
which a company engages in that are beyond what is included in the Inspire Impact Score™ calculation. The Inspire Impact Score™
is not meant to include all activities, whether public or private, of each company scored, but rather to assign a score to companies
based on the data the Adviser has found from the specified publicly available sources and/or third-party data providers. The Inspire
Impact Score™ represents the Advisers viewpoint on the biblical alignment of scored investments, and other investors may
have different opinions about what should or should not be considered a violation. The Adviser seeks to update Inspire Impact Scores™
in a timely fashion at regular intervals, but due to differences in research schedules, corporate engagement efforts and data publication
timing, a companys Inspire Impact Score™ may not immediately reflect all known data as soon as it is researched.
The
specific exclusionary categories deemed to not be in alignment with biblical values for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to
assign negative scores (to companies to be excluded from the investment universe) are as follows:
| ● | Abortifacients:
Companies that manufacture or distribute (1) abortifacient drugs (pharmaceuticals designed
or used to terminate a pregnancy at any stage, from conception onward), (2) medications whose
primary active ingredient (e.g., mifepristone & misoprostol) is capable of causing an
abortion regardless of stated use, and/or (3) contraceptive drugs, including emergency
contraceptive drugs (e.g., Plan B, levonorgestrel, ella, or certain hormonal IUDs),
that can prevent implantation of a fertilized egg, thereby acting as an abortifacient. |
| ● | Abortion
Activism: Companies that promote abortion access through legislative support, corporate
philanthropic activity, and/or employee travel benefits. Screening includes companies that
have signed Dont Ban Equality and/or Dont Ban Equality
in Texas Statement(s) from Planned Parenthood, a widely known abortion access advocate,
to pledge support for legalizing abortion access and to oppose legislative bans on abortion
access, companies that engage in corporate-guided philanthropy to Center for American Progress,
Women and Their Bodies, and/or Pathfinder, which advocate for abortion access (seeks to exclude
donations from employee matching programs, employee resource groups, donor-advised funds,
and foundations), and companies that offer employee travel benefits which allow employee
access to abortion services at any stage of pregnancy, according to Rhia Ventures and the
1792 Exchange. The Adviser is not able to screen for companies that donate to Planned Parenthood
because its corporate donor list is no longer publicly available. |
| ● | Abortion
Services: Companies that own and operate one or more medical facilities that provide
abortion procedures at any stage of pregnancy. |
| ● | Alcohol:
Companies that produce at least one alcoholic beverage or exclusively distribute alcoholic
beverages. |
| ● | Cannabis
Cultivation/Processing: Companies that cultivate or process cannabis for retail or wholesale
distribution. |
| ● | Cannabis
(Retail THC): Companies that produce or distribute retail cannabis products containing
THC (which is the psychoactive component of cannabis). |
| ● | Embryonic
Stem Cells: Companies that perform research on or produce products using embryonic stem
cells, companies that provide embryonic stem cells to other entities, and companies that
utilize propagated stem cell lines which originally derived from embryonic stem cells. |
| ● | Exploitation:
Companies that contribute towards the unlawful and immoral practices of exploiting individuals
for labor or sexual purposes, according to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE). |
| ● | Gambling:
Companies that generate revenue from gambling facilities, products, and/or services (not
including third-party stores which offer Lottery services). |
| ● | In
Vitro Fertilization: Companies that offer in vitro fertilization services or manufacture
equipment specifically for the purpose of in vitro fertilization procedures. |
| ● | LGBT
Activism: Companies that receive an above-average rating in an annual self-reported survey
conducted by a national LGBT advocacy organization. The survey rates companies based
on their corporate LGBT activism across several areas, including philanthropy, corporate
policy, marketing efforts, and legislative support. The advocacy organization extrapolates
the information obtained and publishes each companys score, and an average score for
all companies. |
| ● | Sexually
Explicit: Companies that derive revenue from the creation, sale, or distribution of sexually
explicit content and/or services for recreation and/or entertainment purposes. This category
seeks to cover media types such as film, print, gaming, and websites that contain pornographic
content, including platforms that stream movies rated for nudity and/or sex, and other explicit
depictions of sex, such as audio pornography or animated sex/nudity. Also included are companies
that profit from sexually immoral services, such as strip clubs and LGBT dating services,
that actively promote and profit from unbiblical sexual behavior. |
| ● | State
Owned Enterprise: Companies that are verifiably labeled state owned or have
greater than 50% ownership by a nation-state/government are excluded from investment due
to significant human rights violations of the following nature (as provided by U.S. Department
of State): freedom of religion, sexual exploitation of children, trafficking in persons (Tier
3 only), and/or predominantly governed by Sharia Law. The current list of countries excluded
from investment due to significant human rights violations is available at https://inspireinsight.com/excludedcountries. |
| ● | Tobacco:
Companies that derive revenue from producing or exclusively distributing tobacco products. |
In
addition to excluding companies involved in the preceding categories, the Adviser also excludes investment from companies engaged in
the following categories, though they do not constitute a negative Inspire Impact Score™:
| ● | Contraceptives
(Barrier): Companies that produce barrier-type contraceptives, such as condoms and diaphragms,
which prevent pregnancy by creating a physical barrier (rather than hormonal or chemical
means). |
| ● | Weapons
(Civilian Firearms): Companies that manufacture firearms for civilian use. |
| ● | Weapons
(Military): Companies that manufacture and produce completed weapons and ammunition for
military use (this category does not include maintenance, repair, and operation (MRO) companies
or individual components for weaponry). |
The
specific biblical alignment categories, for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to assign positive scores (to companies not found
to be in violation of the previously mentioned exclusionary categories), are listed below. FactSet provides the data for each category.
| ● | Air
Quality: Companies that responsibly address and manage the impact of air quality resulting
from stationary (e.g., factories, power plants) and mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery
vehicles, planes) as well as industrial emissions (does not include GHG emissions). |
| ● | Business
Ethics: Companies that intentionally manage risks and opportunities surrounding ethical
conduct of business, including fraud, corruption, bias, negligence, bribery, facilitation
payments, fiduciary responsibilities, and other behavior that may have an ethical component. |
| ● | Business
Resilience: Companies that display a capacity to manage risks and opportunities associated
with incorporating social, environmental, and political transitions into long-term business
model planning despite operating in industries where evolving environmental and social realities
challenge their current business approach. |
| ● | Critical
Risk Management: Companies that display responsible use of management systems and scenario
planning to identify, understand, and prevent or minimize the occurrence of low-probability,
high-impact accidents and emergencies with significant probable consequences, taking into
consideration the potential human, environmental, and social implications, as well as the
long-term ramifications for the company. |
| ● | Customer
Privacy: Companies that responsibly address risks related to the use of personally identifiable
information (PII) and other user/customer data for secondary purposes including but not limited
to marketing through affiliates and non-affiliates, data collecting procedures, managing
user/customer expectations, consent processes, and compliance with evolving regulation (does
not include cybersecurity risks). |
| ● | Customer
Welfare: Companies that responsibly address customer welfare concerns over issues including,
but not limited to, health and nutrition of foods and beverages, antibiotic use in animal
production, and management of controlled substances. |
| ● | Data
Security: Companies that responsibly address management of risks related to collection,
retention, and use of sensitive, confidential, and/or proprietary customer or user data,
as well as strategic policies for incidents such as data breaches. |
| ● | Employee
Wellbeing: Companies that responsibly address their ability to create and maintain a
safe and healthy workplace environment that is free of injuries, fatalities, and illness
(both chronic and acute) through the implementation of safety management plans, training
requirements, regular audits of internal practices, and systematized monitoring and testing. |
| ● | Energy
Management: Companies that conscientiously manage the environmental impacts linked to
their energy consumption used in their business operations. |
| ● | Environmental
Risk Mitigation: Companies that display the ability to manage risks and opportunities
associated with direct exposure of their owned or controlled assets and operations as they
pertain to the potential or actual physical impacts of environmental factors, including factors
such as the increased frequency and severity of extreme weather, shifting climate, sea level
change, and other expected physical impacts. |
| ● | Ethical
Labor Practices: Companies that responsibly ensure adherence to widely accepted labor
standards within the workplace. This encompasses compliance with labor laws and internationally
recognized norms and standards, including fundamental human rights and the prohibition of
child, forced, or bonded labor, as well as exploitative labor practices. |
| ● | Ethical
Sales Practices: Companies that responsibly handle social issues arising from inadequately
managing the transparency, accuracy, and comprehensibility of marketing statements, advertising,
and product/service labeling. |
| ● | Ethical
Supply Chain Management – Companies that responsibly address the management of
risks within their supply chain and handle issues associated with environmental and social
externalities created by suppliers through their operational activities. Such issues include,
but are not limited to, environmental responsibility, human rights, labor practices, ethics,
and corruption. |
| ● | Fair
Competition: Companies that conscientiously manage issues associated with the existence
of monopolies, which may include, but are not limited to, excessive prices, poor quality
of service, and inefficiencies. |
| ● | GHG
Emissions: Companies that responsibly address direct (Scope 1) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
they may generate through their operations, which includes GHG emissions from stationary
(e.g., factories, power plants) or mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery vehicles, planes).
The seven GHGs covered under the Kyoto Protocol are included within the category: carbon
dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons
(PFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3). |
| ● | Hiring
Ethics: Companies that responsibly address their ability to ensure culture, hiring, and
promotion practices do not discriminate based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, and other
factors. |
| ● | Human
Rights: Companies that responsibly manage the relationship between their business and
the communities in which they operate, including, but not limited to, management of direct
and indirect impacts on core human rights, the treatment of indigenous peoples, and the impact
of local businesses. |
| ● | Low
Ecological Impact: Companies that demonstrate conscientious knowledge and management
of their impact on ecosystems and biodiversity through activities including, but not limited
to, land use for exploration, natural resource extraction, and cultivation, as well as project
development, construction, and siting. |
| ● | Materials
Efficiency: Companies that responsibly address issues related to the resilience of materials
supply chains to impacts of climate change and other external environmental and social factors,
including, but not limited to, product design, manufacturing, end-of-life management, reduction
of key material usage, maximizing planning efficiency, and R&D material diversity. |
| ● | Product
Safety: Companies that responsibly address issues involving unintended characteristics
of products sold or services provided that may create health or safety risks to end-users,
meet customer expectations, manage liability concerns, product testing, and intentionally
acknowledge recalls or market withdraws. |
| ● | Product
Sustainability: Companies that conscientiously acknowledge the characteristics of products
and services provided or sold and address customer and societal demand for more sustainable
products and services as well as meet evolving environmental and social regulations. |
| ● | Regulatory
Adherence: Companies that responsibly engage with regulators in cases where conflicting
corporate and public interests may have the potential for long-term adverse direct or indirect
environmental and social impacts and display their level of reliance on regulatory policy
or monetary incentives while acknowledging the necessity of regulatory compliance within
a competitive business environment. |
| ● | Systemic
Risk Management: Companies that responsibly manage systemic risks resulting from large-scale
weakening or collapse of systems upon which the economy and society depend, such as financial
systems, natural resource systems, and technological systems. |
| ● | Waste
Hazmat Management: Companies that responsibly address environmental issues associated
with the hazardous and non-hazardous waste they generate and the treatment, handling, storage,
disposal, and regulatory compliance. |
| ● | Water
Conservation: Companies that conscientiously manage their water use, water consumption,
wastewater generation, water recycling, water treatment, and any other operations pertaining
to water resources, which may be influenced by regional differences in the availability and
quality of and competition for water resources. |
The
Index Provider uses software that analyzes publicly available data relating to the primary business activities, products and services,
philanthropy, legal activities, policies and practices when assigning Inspire Impact Scores™ to a company. The 400 securities
with the highest Inspire Impact Scores™ are included in the Global Hope Index and are equally weighted. The Global Hope Index is
typically comprised of 50% domestic securities, 40% in developed foreign securities, and 10% in emerging market securities. The Inspire
Impact Scores™ of the securities in the Global Hope Index are reviewed periodically (at least annually), and the Global Hope Index
is rebalanced quarterly. If, upon review, the Inspire Impact Score™ of a security falls below an acceptable level, the security
is removed from the Global Hope Index and replaced with a higher scoring security. A security with a score of zero—indicating that
the issuer has no violations to merit a negative score, but there is insufficient data to assess a positive score—may be included
in the Global Hope Index.
The
equity securities included in the Global Hope Index are typically foreign and domestic equity securities of large capitalization companies.
Under normal market conditions, the Fund will invest at least 40% of its net assets in securities of companies in at least 3 countries
outside the U.S.
The
Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Global Hope Index because, in certain circumstances, it may not be possible or
practicable to purchase all of the securities in the Global Hope Index in their proportionate weightings. In that case, the Adviser may
purchase a sample of the securities in the Global Hope Index to track the Global Hope Index. Representative sampling is
an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar
to that of an applicable underlying index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics,
fundamental characteristics and liquidity measures similar to those of the underlying index. The Fund may concentrate its investments
in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Global Hope Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries.
|
| Inspire Small/Mid Cap ETF |
|
| Prospectus [Line Items] |
|
| Strategy [Heading] |
Principal
Investment Strategies:
|
| Strategy Narrative [Text Block] |
The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its total assets in the component securities of the Small/Mid Cap
Index. Inspire Investing, LLC (the Adviser or Index Provider), the Funds index provider (and also the Funds
investment adviser) selects securities from a universe of publicly traded, domestic small and mid capitalization equity securities of
companies which have an Inspire Impact Score™ of zero or higher. The Adviser defines mid capitalization companies to be those that
are the second largest 10% of the U.S. equity market, and small capitalization companies as the next largest 10% of the U.S. equity market.
The Inspire Impact Score™ is a proprietary selection methodology that assigns a score to a particular security based on the securitys
alignment with biblical values and the positive impact the issuing company has on its customers, communities, workplace and the world.
Under normal circumstances, 50% of the index will be comprised of equities of small capitalization companies, and 50% of the index will
be comprised of equities of mid capitalization companies.
Utilizing
specifically identified, publicly available and/or third-party sources, the Inspire Impact Score™ methodology endeavors to assign
negative scores to, and exclude companies from, the investment universe if they are found in violation of specified categories that do
not align with biblical values and seeks to assign positive scores to companies which the Adviser has not found to be in violation of
the specified exclusionary categories. The selection methodology used in calculating the Inspire Impact Score™ is separate from
the fundamental and technical company research that Inspire performs for inclusion in its exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
It
is not possible for the Adviser to be aware of every action a company takes, and there may be additional positive or problematic activities
which a company engages in that are beyond what is included in the Inspire Impact Score™ calculation. The Inspire Impact Score™
is not meant to include all activities, whether public or private, of each company scored, but rather to assign a score to companies
based on the data the Adviser has found from the specified publicly available sources and/or third-party data providers. The Inspire
Impact Score™ represents the Advisers viewpoint on the biblical alignment of scored investments, and other investors may
have different opinions about what should or should not be considered a violation. The Adviser seeks to update Inspire Impact Scores™
in a timely fashion at regular intervals, but due to differences in research schedules, corporate engagement efforts and data publication
timing, a companys Inspire Impact Score™ may not immediately reflect all known data as soon as it is researched.
The
specific exclusionary categories deemed to not be in alignment with biblical values for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to
assign negative scores (to companies to be excluded from the investment universe) are as follows:
| ● | Abortifacients:
Companies that manufacture or distribute (1) abortifacient drugs (pharmaceuticals designed
or used to terminate a pregnancy at any stage, from conception onward), (2) medications whose
primary active ingredient (e.g., mifepristone & misoprostol) is capable of causing an
abortion regardless of stated use, and/or (3) contraceptive drugs, including emergency
contraceptive drugs (e.g., Plan B, levonorgestrel, ella, or certain hormonal IUDs),
that can prevent implantation of a fertilized egg, thereby acting as an abortifacient. |
| ● | Abortion
Activism: Companies that promote abortion access through legislative support, corporate
philanthropic activity, and/or employee travel benefits. Screening includes companies that
have signed Dont Ban Equality and/or Dont Ban Equality
in Texas Statement(s) from Planned Parenthood, a widely known abortion access advocate,
to pledge support for legalizing abortion access and to oppose legislative bans on abortion
access, companies that engage in corporate-guided philanthropy to Center for American Progress,
Women and Their Bodies, and/or Pathfinder, which advocate for abortion access (seeks to exclude
donations from employee matching programs, employee resource groups, donor-advised funds,
and foundations), and companies that offer employee travel benefits which allow employee
access to abortion services at any stage of pregnancy, according to Rhia Ventures and the
1792 Exchange. Philanthropy to Planned Parenthood, a widely known abortion access advocate,
is not included, because their corporate donor list is no longer publicly available. The
Adviser is not able to screen for companies that donate to Planned Parenthood because its
corporate donor list is no longer publicly available. |
| ● | Abortion
Services: Companies that own and operate one or more medical facilities that provide
abortion procedures at any stage of pregnancy. |
| ● | Alcohol:
Companies that produce at least one alcoholic beverage or exclusively distribute alcoholic
beverages -. |
| ● | Cannabis
Cultivation/Processing: Companies that cultivate or process cannabis for retail or wholesale
distribution. |
| ● | Cannabis
(Retail THC): Companies that produce or distribute retail cannabis products containing
THC (which is the psychoactive component of cannabis). |
| ● | Embryonic
Stem Cells: Companies that perform research on or produce products using embryonic stem
cells, companies that provide embryonic stem cells to other entities, and companies that
utilize propagated stem cell lines which originally derived from embryonic stem cells. |
| ● | Exploitation:
Companies that contribute towards the unlawful and immoral practices of exploiting individuals
for labor or sexual purposes, according to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE). |
| ● | Gambling:
Companies that generate revenue from gambling facilities, products, and/or services (not
including third-party stores which offer Lottery services |
| ● | In
Vitro Fertilization: Companies that offer in vitro fertilization services or manufacture
equipment specifically for the purpose of in vitro fertilization procedures. |
| ● | LGBT
Activism: Companies that receive an above-average rating in an annual self-reported survey
conducted by a national LGBT advocacy organization. The survey rates companies based
on their corporate LGBT activism across several areas, including philanthropy, corporate
policy, marketing efforts, and legislative support. The advocacy organization extrapolates
the information obtained and publishes each companys score, and an average score for
all companies. |
| ● | Sexually
Explicit: Companies that derive revenue from the creation, sale, or distribution of sexually
explicit content and/or services for recreation and/or entertainment purposes. This category
seeks to cover media types, such as film, print, gaming, and online that contain pornographic
content, including platforms that stream movies rated for nudity and/or sex, and other explicit
depictions of sex, such as audio pornography or animated sex/nudity. Also included are companies
that profit from sexually immoral services, such as strip clubs and LGBT dating services,
that actively promote and profit from unbiblical sexual behavior. |
| ● | State
Owned Enterprise: Companies that are verifiably labeled state owned or have
greater than 50% ownership by a nation-state/government are excluded from investment due
to significant human rights violations of the following nature (as provided by U.S. Department
of State): freedom of religion, sexual exploitation of children, trafficking in persons (Tier
3 only), and/or predominantly governed by Sharia Law. The current list of countries excluded
from investment due to significant human rights violations is available at https://inspireinsight.com/excludedcountries. |
| ● | Tobacco:
Companies that derive revenue from producing or exclusively distributing tobacco products. |
In
addition to excluding companies involved in the preceding categories, the Adviser also excludes investment from companies engaged in
the following categories, though they do not constitute a negative Inspire Impact Score™:
| ● | Contraceptives
(Barrier): Companies that produce barrier-type contraceptives, such as condoms and diaphragms,
which prevent pregnancy by creating a physical barrier (rather than hormonal or chemical
means). |
| ● | Weapons
(Civilian Firearms): Companies that manufacture firearms for civilian use. |
| ● | Weapons
(Military): Companies that manufacture and produce completed weapons and ammunition for
military use (this category does not include maintenance, repair, and operation (MRO) companies
or individual components for weaponry). |
The
specific biblical alignment categories, which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to assign positive scores for (to companies not found
to be in violation of the previously mentioned exclusionary categories), are listed below. FactSet provides the data for each category.
| ● | Air
Quality: Companies that responsibly address and manage the impact of air quality resulting
from stationary (e.g., factories, power plants) and mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery
vehicles, planes) as well as industrial emissions (does not include GHG emissions). |
| ● | Business
Ethics: Companies that intentionally manage risks and opportunities surrounding ethical
conduct of business, including fraud, corruption, bias, negligence, bribery, facilitation
payments, fiduciary responsibilities, and other behavior that may have an ethical component. |
| ● | Business
Resilience: Companies that display a capacity to manage risks and opportunities associated
with incorporating social, environmental, and political transitions into long-term business
model planning despite operating in industries where evolving environmental and social realities
challenge their current business approach. |
| ● | Critical
Risk Management: Companies that display responsible use of management systems and scenario
planning to identify, understand, and prevent or minimize the occurrence of low-probability,
high-impact accidents and emergencies with significant probable consequences, taking into
consideration the potential human, environmental, and social implications, as well as the
long-term ramifications for the company. |
| ● | Customer
Privacy: Companies that responsibly address risks related to the use of personally identifiable
information (PII) and other user/customer data for secondary purposes including but not limited
to marketing through affiliates and non-affiliates, data collecting procedures, managing
user/customer expectations, consent processes, and compliance with evolving regulation (does
not include cybersecurity risks). |
| ● | Customer
Welfare: Companies that responsibly address customer welfare concerns over issues including,
but not limited to, health and nutrition of foods and beverages, antibiotic use in animal
production, and management of controlled substances. |
| ● | Data
Security: Companies that responsibly address management of risks related to collection,
retention, and use of sensitive, confidential, and/or proprietary customer or user data,
as well as strategic policies for incidents such as data breaches. |
| ● | Employee
Wellbeing: Companies that responsibly address their ability to create and maintain a
safe and healthy workplace environment that is free of injuries, fatalities, and illness
(both chronic and acute) through the implementation of safety management plans, training
requirements, regular audits of internal practices, and systematized monitoring and testing. |
| ● | Energy
Management: Companies that conscientiously manage the environmental impacts linked to
their energy consumption used in their business operations. |
| ● | Environmental
Risk Mitigation: Companies that display the ability to manage risks and opportunities
associated with direct exposure of their owned or controlled assets and operations as they
pertain to the potential or actual physical impacts of environmental factors, including factors
such as the increased frequency and severity of extreme weather, shifting climate, sea level
change, and other expected physical impacts. |
| ● | Ethical
Labor Practices: Companies that responsibly ensure adherence to widely accepted labor
standards within the workplace. This encompasses compliance with labor laws and internationally
recognized norms and standards, including fundamental human rights and the prohibition of
child, forced, or bonded labor, as well as exploitative labor practices. |
| ● | Ethical
Sales Practices: Companies that responsibly handle social issues arising from inadequately
managing the transparency, accuracy, and comprehensibility of marketing statements, advertising,
and product/service labeling. |
| ● | Ethical
Supply Chain Management: Companies that responsibly address the management of risks within
their supply chain and handle issues associated with environmental and social externalities
created by suppliers through their operational activities. Such issues include, but are not
limited to, environmental responsibility, human rights, labor practices, ethics, and corruption. |
| ● | Fair
Competition: Companies that conscientiously manage issues associated with the existence
of monopolies, which may include, but are not limited to, excessive prices, poor quality
of service, and inefficiencies. |
| ● | GHG
Emissions: Companies that responsibly address direct (Scope 1) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
they may generate through their operations, which includes GHG emissions from stationary
(e.g., factories, power plants) or mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery vehicles, planes).
The seven GHGs covered under the Kyoto Protocol are included within the category: carbon
dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons
(PFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3). |
| ● | Hiring
Ethics: Companies that responsibly address their ability to ensure culture, hiring, and
promotion practices do not discriminate based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, and other
factors. |
| ● | Human
Rights: Companies that responsibly manage the relationship between their business and
the communities in which they operate, including, but not limited to, management of direct
and indirect impacts on core human rights, the treatment of indigenous peoples, and the impact
of local businesses. |
| ● | Low
Ecological Impact: Companies that demonstrate conscientious knowledge and management
of their impact on ecosystems and biodiversity through activities including, but not limited
to, land use for exploration, natural resource extraction, and cultivation, as well as project
development, construction, and siting. |
| ● | Materials
Efficiency: Companies that responsibly address issues related to the resilience of materials
supply chains to impacts of climate change and other external environmental and social factors,
including, but not limited to, product design, manufacturing, end-of-life management, reduction
of key material usage, maximizing planning efficiency, and R&D material diversity. |
| ● | Product
Safety: Companies that responsibly address issues involving unintended characteristics
of products sold or services provided that may create health or safety risks to end-users,
meet customer expectations, manage liability concerns, product testing, and intentionally
acknowledge recalls or market withdraws. |
| ● | Product
Sustainability: Companies that conscientiously acknowledge the characteristics of products
and services provided or sold and address customer and societal demand for more sustainable
products and services as well as meet evolving environmental and social regulations. |
| ● | Regulatory
Adherence: Companies that responsibly engage with regulators in cases where conflicting
corporate and public interests may have the potential for long-term adverse direct or indirect
environmental and social impacts and display their level of reliance on regulatory policy
or monetary incentives while acknowledging the necessity of regulatory compliance within
a competitive business environment. |
| ● | Systemic
Risk Management: Companies that responsibly manage systemic risks resulting from large-scale
weakening or collapse of systems upon which the economy and society depend, such as financial
systems, natural resource systems, and technological systems. |
| ● | Waste
Hazmat Management: Companies that responsibly address environmental issues associated
with the hazardous and non-hazardous waste they generate and the treatment, handling, storage,
disposal, and regulatory compliance. |
| ● | Water
Conservation: Companies that conscientiously manage their water use, water consumption,
wastewater generation, water recycling, water treatment, and any other operations pertaining
to water resources, which may be influenced by regional differences in the availability and
quality of and competition for water resources. |
The
Index Provider uses software that analyzes publicly available data relating to the primary business activities, products and services,
philanthropy, legal activities, policies and practices when assigning Inspire Impact Scores™ to a company. The 500 securities with
the highest Inspire Impact Scores are included in the Small/Mid Cap Index and are equally weighted. The Inspire Impact Scores™
of the securities in the Small/Mid Cap Index are reviewed periodically (at least annually), and the Small/Mid Cap Index is rebalanced
quarterly. If, upon review, the Inspire Impact Score of a security falls below an acceptable level, the security is removed from the
Small/Mid Cap Index and replaced with a higher scoring security. A security with a score of zero—indicating that the issuer has
no violations to merit a negative score, but there is insufficient data to assess a positive score—may be included in the Small/Mid
Cap Index.
The
Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Small/Mid Cap Index because, in certain circumstances, it may not be possible or
practicable to purchase all of the securities in the Small/Mid Cap Index in their proportionate weightings. In that case, the Adviser
may purchase a sample of the securities in the Small/Mid Cap Index to track the Small/Mid Cap Index. Representative sampling
is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile
similar to that of an applicable underlying index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics,
fundamental characteristics and liquidity measures similar to those of underlying index.
The
Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Small/Mid Cap Index concentrates
in an industry or group of industries.
|
| Inspire Corporate Bond ETF |
|
| Prospectus [Line Items] |
|
| Strategy [Heading] |
Principal
Investment Strategies:
|
| Strategy Narrative [Text Block] |
The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its total assets in the component securities of the Corporate Bond
Index. Inspire Investing, LLC (the Adviser or Index Provider), the Funds index provider (and also the Funds
investment adviser) selects domestic corporate bonds issued by companies that are large capitalization companies, which have an Inspire
Impact Score™ of zero or higher. The Adviser defines large capitalization companies to be those that are the largest 10% of the
U.S. bond market. The Inspire Impact Score™ is a proprietary selection methodology that is designed to assign a score to a particular
security based on the securitys alignment with biblical values and the positive impact that the issuing company has on its customers,
communities, workplace and the world.
Utilizing
specifically identified, publicly available and/or third-party sources, the Inspire Impact Score™ methodology endeavors to assign
negative scores to, and exclude companies from, the investment universe if they are found in violation of specified categories that do
not align with biblical values, and seeks to assign positive scores to companies which the Adviser has not found to be in violation of
the specified exclusionary categories. The selection methodology used in calculating the Inspire Impact Score™ is separate from
the fundamental and technical company research that Inspire performs for inclusion in its exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
It
is not possible for the Adviser to be aware of every action a company takes, and there may be additional positive or problematic activities
which a company engages in that are beyond what is included in the Inspire Impact Score™ calculation. The Inspire Impact Score™
is not meant to include all activities, whether public or private, of each company scored, but rather to assign a score to companies
based on the data the Adviser has found from the specified publicly available sources and/or third-party data providers. The Inspire
Impact Score™ represents the Advisers viewpoint on the biblical alignment of scored investments, and other investors may
have different opinions about what should or should not be considered a violation. The Adviser seeks to update Inspire Impact Scores™
in a timely fashion at regular intervals, but due to differences in research schedules, corporate engagement efforts and data publication
timing, a companys Inspire Impact Score™ may not immediately reflect all known data as soon as it is researched.
The
specific exclusionary categories deemed to not be in alignment with biblical values for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to
assign negative scores (to companies to be excluded from the investment universe) are as follows:
| ● | Abortifacients:
Companies that manufacture or distribute (1) abortifacient drugs (pharmaceuticals designed
or used to terminate a pregnancy at any stage, from conception onward), (2) medications whose
primary active ingredient (e.g., mifepristone & misoprostol) is capable of causing an
abortion regardless of stated use, and/or (3) contraceptive drugs, including emergency
contraceptive drugs (e.g., Plan B., levonorgestrel, ella, or certain hormonal IUDs),
that can prevent implantation of a fertilized egg, thereby acting as an abortifacient. |
| ● | Abortion
Activism: Companies that promote abortion access through legislative support, corporate
philanthropic activity, and/or employee travel benefits. Screening includes companies that
have signed Dont Ban Equality and/or Dont Ban Equality
in Texas Statement(s) from Planned Parenthood, a widely known abortion access advocate,
to pledge support for legalizing abortion access and to oppose legislative bans on abortion
access, companies that engage in corporate-guided philanthropy to Center for American Progress,
Women and Their Bodies, and/or Pathfinder, which advocate for abortion access (seeks to exclude
donations from employee matching programs, employee resource groups, donor-advised funds,
and foundations), and companies that offer employee travel benefits which allow employee
access to abortion services at any stage of pregnancy, according to Rhia Ventures and the
1792 Exchange. The Adviser is not able to screen for companies that donate to Planned Parenthood
because its corporate donor list is no longer publicly available. |
| ● | Abortion
Services: Companies that own and operate one or more medical facilities that provide
abortion procedures at any stage of pregnancy. |
| ● | Alcohol:
Companies that produce at least one alcoholic beverage or exclusively distribute alcoholic
beverages. |
| ● | Cannabis
Cultivation/Processing: Companies that cultivate or process cannabis for retail or wholesale
distribution. |
| ● | Cannabis
(Retail THC): Companies that produce or distribute retail cannabis products containing
THC (which is the psychoactive component of cannabis). |
| ● | Embryonic
Stem Cells: Companies that perform research on or produce products using embryonic stem
cells, companies that provide embryonic stem cells to other entities, and companies that
utilize propagated stem cell lines which originally derived from embryonic stem cells. |
| ● | Exploitation:
Companies that contribute towards the unlawful and immoral practices of exploiting individuals
for labor or sexual purposes, according to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE). |
| ● | Gambling:
Companies that generate revenue from gambling facilities, products, and/or services (not
including third-party stores which offer Lottery services). |
| ● | In
Vitro Fertilization: Companies that offer in vitro fertilization services or manufacture
equipment specifically for the purpose of in vitro fertilization procedures |
| ● | LGBT
Activism: Companies that receive an above-average rating in an annual self-reported survey
conducted by a national LGBT advocacy organization. The survey rates companies based
on their corporate LGBT activism across several areas, including philanthropy, corporate
policy, marketing efforts, and legislative support. The advocacy organization extrapolates
the information obtained and publishes each companys score, and an average score for
all companies. |
| ● | Sexually
Explicit: Companies that derive revenue from the creation, sale, or distribution of sexually
explicit content and/or services for recreation and/or entertainment purposes. This category
seeks to cover media types, such as film, print, gaming, and online that contain pornographic
content, including platforms that stream movies rated for nudity and/or sex, and other explicit
depictions of sex, such as audio pornography or animated sex/nudity. Also included are companies
that profit from sexually immoral services, such as strip clubs and LGBT dating services,
that actively promote and profit from unbiblical sexual behavior. |
| ● | State
Owned Enterprise: Companies that are verifiably labeled state owned or have
greater than 50% ownership by a nation-state/government are excluded from investment due
to significant human rights violations of the following nature (as provided by U.S. Department
of State): freedom of religion, sexual exploitation of children, trafficking in persons (Tier
3 only), and/or predominantly governed by Sharia Law. The current list of countries excluded
from investment due to significant human rights violations is available at https://inspireinsight.com/excludedcountries. |
| ● | Tobacco:
Companies that derive revenue from producing or exclusively distributing tobacco products. |
In
addition to excluding companies involved in the preceding categories, the Adviser also excludes investment from companies engaged in
the following categories, though they do not constitute a negative Inspire Impact Score™:
| ● | Contraceptives
(Barrier): Companies that produce barrier-type contraceptives, such as condoms and diaphragms,
which prevent pregnancy by creating a physical barrier (rather than hormonal or chemical
means). |
| ● | Weapons
(Civilian Firearms): Companies that manufacture firearms for civilian use. |
| ● | Weapons
(Military): Companies that manufacture and produce completed weapons and ammunition for
military use (this category does not include maintenance, repair, and operation (MRO) companies
or individual components for weaponry). |
The
specific biblical alignment categories, which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to assign positive scores for (to companies not found
to be in violation of the previously mentioned exclusionary categories), are listed below. FactSet provides the data for each category.
| ● | Air
Quality: Companies that responsibly address and manage the impact of air quality resulting
from stationary (e.g., factories, power plants) and mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery
vehicles, planes) as well as industrial emissions (does not include GHG emissions). |
Business
Ethics: Companies that intentionally manage risks and opportunities surrounding ethical conduct of business, including fraud, corruption,
bias, negligence, bribery, facilitation payments, fiduciary responsibilities, and other behavior that may have an ethical component.
| ● | Business
Resilience: Companies that display a capacity to manage risks and opportunities associated
with incorporating social, environmental, and political transitions into long-term business
model planning despite operating in industries where evolving environmental and social realities
challenge their current business approach. |
| ● | Critical
Risk Management: Companies that display responsible use of management systems and scenario
planning to identify, understand, and prevent or minimize the occurrence of low-probability,
high-impact accidents and emergencies with significant probable consequences, taking into
consideration the potential human, environmental, and social implications, as well as the
long-term ramifications for the company. |
| ● | Customer
Privacy: Companies that responsibly address risks related to the use of personally identifiable
information (PII) and other user/customer data for secondary purposes including but not limited
to marketing through affiliates and non-affiliates, data collecting procedures, managing
user/customer expectations, consent processes, and compliance with evolving regulation (does
not include cybersecurity risks). The category addresses management of risks related
to the use of personally identifiable information and other customer or user data for secondary
purposes including. but not limited to. marketing through affiliates and non-affiliates.
The scope of the category includes social issues that may arise from a companys approach
to collecting data, obtaining consent (e.g., opt-in policies), managing user and customer
expectations regarding how their data is used, and managing evolving regulations. It excludes
social issues arising from cybersecurity risks, which are covered in Data Security. |
| ● | Customer
Welfare: Companies that responsibly address customer welfare concerns over issues including,
but not limited to, health and nutrition of foods and beverages, antibiotic use in animal
production, and management of controlled substances. |
| ● | Data
Security: Companies that responsibly address management of risks related to collection,
retention, and use of sensitive, confidential, and/or proprietary customer or user data,
as well as strategic policies for incidents such as data breaches. |
| ● | Employee
Wellbeing: Companies that responsibly address their ability to create and maintain a
safe and healthy workplace environment that is free of injuries, fatalities, and illness
(both chronic and acute) through the implementation of safety management plans, training
requirements, regular audits of internal practices, and systematized monitoring and testing. |
| ● | Energy
Management: Companies that conscientiously manage the environmental impacts linked to
their energy consumption used in their business operations. |
| ● | Environmental
Risk Mitigation: Companies that display the ability to manage risks and opportunities
associated with direct exposure of their owned or controlled assets and operations as they
pertain to the potential or actual physical impacts of environmental factors, including factors
such as the increased frequency and severity of extreme weather, shifting climate, sea level
change, and other expected physical impacts. |
| ● | Ethical
Labor Practices: Companies that responsibly ensure adherence to widely accepted labor
standards within the workplace. This encompasses compliance with labor laws and internationally
recognized norms and standards, including fundamental human rights and the prohibition of
child, forced, or bonded labor, as well as exploitative labor practices. |
| ● | Ethical
Sales Practices: Companies that responsibly handle social issues arising from inadequately
managing the transparency, accuracy, and comprehensibility of marketing statements, advertising,
and product/service labeling. |
| ● | Ethical
Supply Chain Management: Companies that responsibly address the management of risks within
their supply chain and handle issues associated with environmental and social externalities
created by suppliers through their operational activities. Such issues include, but are not
limited to, environmental responsibility, human rights, labor practices, ethics, and corruption. |
| ● | Fair
Competition: Companies that conscientiously manage issues associated with the existence
of monopolies, which may include, but are not limited to, excessive prices, poor quality
of service, and inefficiencies. |
| ● | GHG
Emissions: Companies that responsibly address direct (Scope 1) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
they may generate through their operations, which includes GHG emissions from stationary
(e.g., factories, power plants) or mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery vehicles, planes).
The seven GHGs covered under the Kyoto Protocol are included within the category: carbon
dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons
(PFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3). |
| ● | Hiring
Ethics: Companies that responsibly address their ability to ensure culture, hiring, and
promotion practices do not discriminate based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, and other
factors. |
| ● | Human
Rights: Companies that responsibly manage the relationship between their business and
the communities in which they operate, including, but not limited to, management of direct
and indirect impacts on core human rights, the treatment of indigenous peoples, and the impact
of local businesses. |
| ● | Low
Ecological Impact: Companies that demonstrate conscientious knowledge and management
of their impact on ecosystems and biodiversity through activities including, but not limited
to, land use for exploration, natural resource extraction, and cultivation, as well as project
development, construction, and siting. |
| ● | Materials
Efficiency: Companies that responsibly address issues related to the resilience of materials
supply chains to impacts of climate change and other external environmental and social factors,
including, but not limited to, product design, manufacturing, end-of-life management, reduction
of key material usage, maximizing planning efficiency, and R&D material diversity. |
| ● | Product
Safety: Companies that responsibly address issues involving unintended characteristics
of products sold or services provided that may create health or safety risks to end-users,
meet customer expectations, manage liability concerns, product testing, and intentionally
acknowledge recalls or market withdraws. |
| ● | Product
Sustainability: Companies that conscientiously acknowledge the characteristics of products
and services provided or sold and address customer and societal demand for more sustainable
products and services as well as meet evolving environmental and social regulations. |
| ● | Regulatory
Adherence: Companies that responsibly engage with regulators in cases where conflicting
corporate and public interests may have the potential for long-term adverse direct or indirect
environmental and social impacts and display their level of reliance on regulatory policy
or monetary incentives while acknowledging the necessity of regulatory compliance within
a competitive business environment. |
| ● | Systemic
Risk Management: Companies that responsibly manage systemic risks resulting from large-scale
weakening or collapse of systems upon which the economy and society depend, such as financial
systems, natural resource systems, and technological systems. |
| ● | Waste
& Hazmat Management: Companies that responsibly address environmental issues associated
with the hazardous and non-hazardous waste they generate and the treatment, handling, storage,
disposal, and regulatory compliance. |
| ● | Water
& Conservation: Companies who conscientiously manage their water use, water consumption,
wastewater generation, water recycling, water treatment, and any other operations pertaining
to water resources, which may be influenced by regional differences in the availability and
quality of and competition for water resources. Category data provided by FactSet. |
Two
hundred fifty (250) bonds from the top 200 issuers with the highest Inspire Impact Scores™ are included in the Corporate Bond Index
and under normal circumstances are equally weighted across four maturity tranches of 0-3 years, 3-5 years, 5-7 years and 7-10 years,
to arrive at an average maturity of approximately 5 years of all holdings. The Inspire Impact Scores™ of the securities in the
Corporate Bond Index are reviewed periodically (at least annually), and the Corporate Bond Index is rebalanced quarterly. If, upon review,
the Inspire Impact Score™ of a security falls below an acceptable level, the security is removed from the Corporate Bond Index
and replaced with a higher scoring security. A security with a score of zero—indicating that the issuer has no violations to merit
a negative score, but there is insufficient data to assess a positive score—may be included in the Corporate Bond Index.
The
Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Corporate Bond Index because, in certain circumstances, it may not be possible
or practicable to purchase all of the securities in the Corporate Bond Index in their proportionate weightings. In that case, the Adviser
may purchase a sample of the securities in the Corporate Bond Index to track the Corporate Bond Index. Representative sampling
is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile
similar to that of an applicable underlying index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics,
fundamental characteristics and liquidity measures similar to those of the underlying index.
The
Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Corporate Bond Index concentrates
in an industry or group of industries.
|
| Inspire 100 ETF |
|
| Prospectus [Line Items] |
|
| Strategy [Heading] |
Principal
Investment Strategies:
|
| Strategy Narrative [Text Block] |
The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its total assets in the component securities of the 100 Index. Inspire
Investing, LLC (the Adviser or Index Provider), the Funds index provider (and also the Funds investment
adviser) selects domestic large capitalization equity securities and which have an Inspire Impact Score™ of zero or higher. The
Adviser defines large capitalization companies to be those that are the largest 10% of the U.S. equity market.
The
Inspire Impact Score™ is a proprietary selection methodology that is designed to assign a score to a particular security based
on the securitys alignment with biblical values and the positive impact the issuing company has on the world. Utilizing specifically
identified, publicly available and/or third-party sources, the Inspire Impact Score™ methodology endeavors to assign negative scores
to, and exclude companies from, the investment universe if they are found in violation of specified categories that do not align with
biblical values, and seeks to assign positive scores to companies which the Adviser has not found to be in violation of the specified
exclusionary categories. The selection methodology used in calculating the Inspire Impact Score™ is separate from the fundamental
and technical company research that Inspire performs for inclusion in its exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
It
is not possible for the Adviser to be aware of every action a company takes, and there may be additional positive or problematic activities
which a company engages in that are beyond what is included in the Inspire Impact Score™ calculation. The Inspire Impact Score™
is not meant to include all activities, whether public or private, of each company scored, but rather to assign a score to companies
based on the data Inspire has found from the specified publicly available sources and/or third-party data providers. The Inspire Impact
Score™ represents the Advisers viewpoint on the biblical alignment of scored investments, and other investors may have different
opinions about what should or should not be considered a violation. The Adviser seeks to update Inspire Impact Scores™ in a timely
fashion at regular intervals, but due to differences in research schedules, corporate engagement efforts and data publication timing,
a companys Inspire Impact Score™ may not immediately reflect all known data as soon as it is researched.
The
specific exclusionary categories deemed to not be in alignment with biblical values for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to
assign negative scores (to companies to be excluded from the investment universe) are as follows:
| ● | Abortifacients:
Companies that manufacture or distribute (1) abortifacient drugs (pharmaceuticals designed
or used to terminate a pregnancy at any stage, from conception onward), (2) medications whose
primary active ingredient (e.g., mifepristone & misoprostol) is capable of causing an
abortion regardless of stated use, and/or (3) contraceptive drugs, including emergency
contraceptive drugs (e.g., Plan B, levonorgestrel, ella, or certain hormonal IUDs),
that can prevent implantation of a fertilized egg, thereby acting as an abortifacient. |
| ● | Abortion
Activism: Companies that promote abortion access through legislative support, corporate
philanthropic activity, and/or employee travel benefits. Screening includes companies that
have signed Dont Ban Equality and/or Dont Ban Equality
in Texas Statement(s) from Planned Parenthood, a widely known abortion access advocate,
to pledge support for legalizing abortion access and to oppose legislative bans on abortion
access, companies that engage in corporate-guided philanthropy to Center for American Progress,
Women and Their Bodies, and/or Pathfinder, which advocate for abortion access (seeks to exclude
donations from employee matching programs, employee resource groups, donor-advised funds,
and foundations), and companies that offer employee travel benefits which allow employee
access to abortion services at any stage of pregnancy, according to Rhia Ventures and the
1792 Exchange. The Adviser is not able to screen for companies that donate to Planned Parenthood
because its corporate donor list is no longer publicly available. |
| ● | Abortion
Services: Companies that own and operate one or more medical facilities that provide
abortion procedures at any stage of pregnancy. |
| ● | Alcohol:
Companies that produce at least one alcoholic beverage or exclusively distribute alcoholic
beverages. |
| ● | Cannabis
Cultivation/Processing: Companies that cultivate or process cannabis for retail or wholesale
distribution. |
| ● | Cannabis
(Retail THC): Companies that produce or distribute retail cannabis products containing
THC (which is the psychoactive component of cannabis). |
| ● | Embryonic
Stem Cells: Companies that perform research on or produce products using embryonic stem
cells, companies that provide embryonic stem cells to other entities, and companies that
utilize propagated stem cell lines which originally derived from embryonic stem cells. |
| ● | Exploitation:
Companies that contribute towards the unlawful and immoral practices of exploiting individuals
for labor or sexual purposes, according to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE). |
| ● | Gambling:
Companies that generate revenue from gambling facilities, products, and/or services (not
including third-party stores which offer Lottery services). |
| ● | In
Vitro Fertilization: Companies that offer in vitro fertilization services or manufacture
equipment specifically for the purpose of in vitro fertilization procedures. |
| ● | LGBT
Activism: Companies that receive an above-average rating in an annual self-reported survey
conducted by a national LGBT advocacy organization. The survey rates companies based
on their corporate LGBT activism across several areas, including philanthropy, corporate
policy, marketing efforts, and legislative support. The advocacy organization extrapolates
the information obtained and publishes each companys score, and an average score for
all companies. |
| ● | Sexually
Explicit: Companies that derive revenue from the creation, sale, or distribution of sexually
explicit content and/or services for recreation and/or entertainment purposes. This category
seeks to cover media types, such as film, print, gaming, and online that contain pornographic
content, including platforms that stream movies rated for nudity and/or sex, and other explicit
depictions of sex, such as audio pornography or animated sex/nudity. Also included are companies
that profit from sexually immoral services, such as strip clubs and LGBT dating services,
that actively promote and profit from unbiblical sexual behavior. |
| ● | State
Owned Enterprise Companies that are verifiably labeled state owned or have
greater than 50% ownership by a nation-state/government are excluded from investment due
to significant human rights violations of the following nature (as provided by U.S. Department
of State): freedom of religion, sexual exploitation of children, trafficking in persons (Tier
3 only), and/or predominantly governed by Sharia Law. The current list of countries excluded
from investment due to significant human rights violations is available at https://inspireinsight.com/excludedcountries. |
| ● | Tobacco:
Companies that derive revenue from producing or exclusively distributing tobacco products. |
In
addition to excluding companies involved in the preceding categories, the Adviser also excludes investment from companies engaged in
the following categories, though they do not constitute a negative Inspire Impact Score™:
| ● | Contraceptives
(Barrier): Companies that produce barrier-type contraceptives, such as condoms and diaphragms,
which prevent pregnancy by creating a physical barrier (rather than hormonal or chemical
means). |
| ● | Weapons
(Civilian Firearms): Companies that manufacture firearms for civilian use. |
| ● | Weapons
(Military): Companies that manufacture and produce completed weapons and ammunition for
military use (this category does not include maintenance, repair, and operation (MRO) companies
or individual components for weaponry). |
The
specific biblical alignment categories, for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to assign positive scores (to companies not found
to be in violation of the previously mentioned exclusionary categories) are listed below. FactSet provides the data for each category.
| ● | Air
Quality: Companies that responsibly address and manage the impact of air quality resulting
from stationary (e.g., factories, power plants) and mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery
vehicles, planes) as well as industrial emissions (does not include GHG emissions). |
| ● | Business
Ethics: Companies that intentionally manage risks and opportunities surrounding ethical
conduct of business, including fraud, corruption, bias, negligence, bribery, facilitation
payments, fiduciary responsibilities, and other behavior that may have an ethical component. |
| ● | Business
Resilience: Companies that display a capacity to manage risks and opportunities associated
with incorporating social, environmental, and political transitions into long-term business
model planning despite operating in industries where evolving environmental and social realities
challenge their current business approach. |
| ● | Critical
Risk Management: Companies that display responsible use of management systems and scenario
planning to identify, understand, and prevent or minimize the occurrence of low-probability,
high-impact accidents, and emergencies with significant probable consequences, taking into
consideration the potential human, environmental, and social implications, as well as the
long-term ramifications for the company. |
| ● | Customer
Privacy: Companies that responsibly address risks related to the use of personally identifiable
information (PII) and other user/customer data for secondary purposes including but not limited
to marketing through affiliates and non-affiliates, data collecting procedures, managing
user/customer expectations, consent processes, and compliance with evolving regulation (does
not include cybersecurity risks). |
| ● | Customer
Welfare: Companies that responsibly address customer welfare concerns over issues including,
but not limited to, health and nutrition of foods and beverages, antibiotic use in animal
production, and management of controlled substances. |
| ● | Data
Security: Companies that responsibly address management of risks related to collection,
retention, and use of sensitive, confidential, and/or proprietary customer or user data,
as well as strategic policies for incidents such as data breaches. |
| ● | Employee
Wellbeing: Companies that responsibly address their ability to create and maintain a
safe and healthy workplace environment that is free of injuries, fatalities, and illness
(both chronic and acute) through the implementation of safety management plans, training
requirements, regular audits of internal practices, and systematized monitoring and testing. |
| ● | Energy
Management: Companies that conscientiously manage the environmental impacts linked to
their energy consumption used in their business operations. |
| ● | Environmental
Risk Mitigation: Companies that display the ability to manage risks and opportunities
associated with direct exposure of their owned or controlled assets and operations as they
pertain to the potential or actual physical impacts of environmental factors, including factors
such as the increased frequency and severity of extreme weather, shifting climate, sea level
change, and other expected physical impacts. |
| ● | Ethical
Labor Practices: Companies that responsibly ensure adherence to widely accepted labor
standards within the workplace. This encompasses compliance with labor laws and internationally
recognized norms and standards, including fundamental human rights and the prohibition of
child, forced, or bonded labor, as well as exploitative labor practices. |
| ● | Ethical
Sales Practices: Companies that responsibly handle social issues arising from inadequately
managing the transparency, accuracy, and comprehensibility of marketing statements, advertising,
and product/service labeling. |
| ● | Ethical
Supply Chain Management: Companies that responsibly address the management of risks within
their supply chain and handle issues associated with environmental and social externalities
created by suppliers through their operational activities. Such issues include, but are not
limited to, environmental responsibility, human rights, labor practices, ethics, and corruption. |
| ● | Fair
Competition: Companies that conscientiously manage issues associated with the existence
of monopolies, which may include, but are not limited to, excessive prices, poor quality
of service, and inefficiencies. |
| ● | GHG
Emissions: Companies that responsibly address direct (Scope 1) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
they may generate through their operations, which includes GHG emissions from stationary
(e.g., factories, power plants) or mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery vehicles, planes).
The seven GHGs covered under the Kyoto Protocol are included within the category: carbon
dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons
(PFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3). |
| ● | Hiring
Ethics: Companies that responsibly address their ability to ensure culture, hiring, and
promotion practices do not discriminate based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, and other
factors. |
| ● | Human
Rights: Companies that responsibly manage the relationship between their business and
the communities in which they operate, including, but not limited to, management of direct
and indirect impacts on core human rights, the treatment of indigenous peoples, and the impact
of local businesses. |
| ● | Low
Ecological Impact: Companies that demonstrate conscientious knowledge and management
of their impact on ecosystems and biodiversity through activities including, but not limited
to, land use for exploration, natural resource extraction, and cultivation, as well as project
development, construction, and siting. |
| ● | Materials
Efficiency: Companies that responsibly address issues related to the resilience of materials
supply chains to impacts of climate change and other external environmental and social factors,
including, but not limited to, product design, manufacturing, end-of-life management, reduction
of key material usage, maximizing planning efficiency, and R&D material diversity. |
| ● | Product
Safety: Companies that responsibly address issues involving unintended characteristics
of products sold or services provided that may create health or safety risks to end-users,
meet customer expectations, manage liability concerns, product testing, and intentionally
acknowledge recalls or market withdraws. |
| ● | Product
Sustainability: Companies that conscientiously acknowledge the characteristics of products
and services provided or sold and address customer and societal demand for more sustainable
products and services as well as meet evolving environmental and social regulations. |
| ● | Regulatory
Adherence: Companies that responsibly engage with regulators in cases where conflicting
corporate and public interests may have the potential for long-term adverse direct or indirect
environmental and social impacts and display their level of reliance on regulatory policy
or monetary incentives while acknowledging the necessity of regulatory compliance within
a competitive business environment. |
| ● | Systemic
Risk Management: Companies that responsibly manage systemic risks resulting from large-scale
weakening or collapse of systems upon which the economy and society depend, such as financial
systems, natural resource systems, and technological systems. |
| ● | Waste
& Hazmat Management: Companies that responsibly address environmental issues associated
with the hazardous and non-hazardous waste they generate and the treatment, handling, storage,
disposal, and regulatory compliance. |
| ● | Water
Conservation: Companies that conscientiously manage their water use, water consumption,
wastewater generation, water recycling, water treatment, and any other operations pertaining
to water resources, which may be influenced by regional differences in the availability and
quality of and competition for water resources. |
The
Index Provider uses software that analyzes publicly available data relating to the primary business activities, products and services,
philanthropy, legal activities, policies and practices when assigning Inspire Impact Scores™ to a company. The 100 securities without
a negative Inspire Impact Scores™ are included in the 100 Index and are market capitalization weighted so that components with
higher market values have a higher weighting in the 100 Index. The Inspire Impact Scores™ of the securities in the 100 Index are
reviewed semi-annually for activities that would cause it to be removed from the investment universe due to participation in the activities
described above that do not align with biblical values, and the 100 Index is rebalanced annually. If, upon review, the Inspire Impact
Score™ of a security falls below the threshold level for inclusion in the 100 Index, the security is removed from the 100 Index
and replaced with a higher scoring security. A security with a score of zero—indicating that the issuer has no violations to merit
a negative score, but there is insufficient data to assess a positive score—may be included in the 100 Index.
The
Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the 100 Index because, in certain circumstances, it may not be possible or practicable
to purchase all of the securities in the 100 Index in their proportionate weightings. In that case, the Adviser may purchase a sample
of the securities in the 100 Index to track the 100 Index. Representative sampling is an indexing strategy that involves
investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to that of an applicable underlying
index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics, fundamental characteristics and liquidity
measures similar to those of the 100 Index. The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries
to the extent that the 100 Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries.
|
| Inspire International ETF |
|
| Prospectus [Line Items] |
|
| Strategy [Heading] |
Principal
Investment Strategies:
|
| Strategy Narrative [Text Block] |
The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its total assets in the component securities of the International
Index. Inspire Investing, LLC (the Adviser or Index Provider), the Funds index provider (and also the Funds
investment adviser) selects foreign (including emerging markets) equity securities from a global universe of publicly traded equity securities
of large capitalization foreign and emerging market companies which have an Inspire Impact Score™ of zero or higher. The Adviser
defines large capitalization companies to be those that are the largest 10% of the international equity market. The Inspire Impact Score™
is a proprietary selection methodology that is designed to assign a score to a particular security based on the securitys alignment
with biblical values and the positive impact the issuing company has on its customers, communities, workplace and the world.
Utilizing
specifically identified, publicly available and/or third-party sources, the Inspire Impact Score™ methodology endeavors to assign
negative scores to, and exclude companies from, the investment universe if they are found in violation of specified categories that do
not align with biblical values and seeks to assign positive scores to companies which the Adviser has not found to be in violation of
the specified exclusionary categories. The selection methodology used in calculating the Inspire Impact Score™ is separate from
the fundamental and technical company research that Inspire performs for inclusion in its exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
It
is not possible for the Adviser to be aware of every action a company takes, and there may be additional positive or problematic activities
which a company engages in that are beyond what is included in the Inspire Impact Score™ calculation. The Inspire Impact Score™
is not meant to include all activities, whether public or private, of each company scored, but rather to assign a score to companies
based on the data the Adviser has found from the specified publicly available sources and/or third-party data providers. The Inspire
Impact Score™ represents the Advisers viewpoint on the biblical alignment of scored investments, and other investors may
have different opinions about what should or should not be considered a violation. The Adviser seeks to update Inspire Impact Scores™
in a timely fashion at regular intervals, but due to differences in research schedules, corporate engagement efforts and data publication
timing, a companys Inspire Impact Score™ may not immediately reflect all known data as soon as it is researched.
The
specific exclusionary categories deemed to not be in alignment with biblical values for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to
assign negative scores (to companies to be excluded from the investment universe) are as follows:
| ● | Abortifacients:
Companies that manufacture or distribute (1) abortifacient drugs (pharmaceuticals designed
or used to terminate a pregnancy at any stage, from conception onward), (2) medications whose
primary active ingredient (e.g., mifepristone & misoprostol) is capable of causing an
abortion regardless of stated use, and/or (3) contraceptive drugs, including emergency
contraceptive drugs (e.g., Plan B, levonorgestrel, ella, or certain hormonal IUDs),
that can prevent implantation of a fertilized egg, thereby acting as an abortifacient. |
| ● | Abortion
Activism: Companies that promote abortion access through legislative support, corporate
philanthropic activity, and/or employee travel benefits. Screening includes companies that
have signed Dont Ban Equality and/or Dont Ban Equality
in Texas Statement(s) from Planned Parenthood, a widely known abortion access advocate,
to pledge support for legalizing abortion access and to oppose legislative bans on abortion
access, companies that engage in corporate-guided philanthropy to Center for American Progress,
Women and Their Bodies, and/or Pathfinder, which advocate for abortion access (seeks to exclude
donations from employee matching programs, employee resource groups, donor-advised funds,
and foundations), and companies that offer employee travel benefits which allow employee
access to abortion services at any stage of pregnancy, according to Rhia Ventures and the
1792 Exchange. The Adviser is not able to screen for companies that donate to Planned Parenthood
because its corporate donor list is no longer publicly available. |
| ● | Abortion
Services: Companies that own and operate one or more medical facilities that provide
abortion procedures at any stage of pregnancy. |
| ● | Alcohol:
Companies that produce at least one alcoholic beverage or exclusively distribute alcoholic
beverages. |
| ● | Cannabis
Cultivation/Processing: Companies that cultivate or process cannabis for retail or wholesale
distribution. |
| ● | Cannabis
(Retail THC): Companies that produce or distribute retail cannabis products containing
THC (which is the psychoactive component of cannabis). |
| ● | Embryonic
Stem Cells: Companies that perform research on or produce products using embryonic stem
cells, companies that provide embryonic stem cells to other entities, and companies that
utilize propagated stem cell lines which originally derived from embryonic stem cells. |
| ● | Exploitation:
Companies that contribute towards the unlawful and immoral practices of exploiting individuals
for labor or sexual purposes, according to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE). |
| ● | Gambling:
Companies that generate revenue from gambling facilities, products, and/or services (not
including third-party stores which offer Lottery services). |
| ● | In
Vitro Fertilization: Companies that offer in vitro fertilization services or manufacture
equipment specifically for the purpose of in vitro fertilization procedures. |
| ● | LGBT
Activism: Companies that receive an above-average rating in an annual self-reported survey
conducted by a national LGBT advocacy organization. The survey rates companies based
on their corporate LGBT activism across several areas, including philanthropy, corporate
policy, marketing efforts, and legislative support. The advocacy organization extrapolates
the information obtained and publishes each companys score, and an average score for
all companies. |
| ● | Sexually
Explicit: Companies that derive revenue from the creation, sale, or distribution of sexually
explicit content and/or services for recreation and/or entertainment purposes. This category
seeks to cover media types, such as film, print, gaming, and online that contain pornographic
content, including platforms that stream movies rated for nudity and/or sex, and other explicit
depictions of sex, such as audio pornography or animated sex/nudity. Also included are companies
that profit from sexually immoral services, such as strip clubs and LGBT dating services,
that actively promote and profit from unbiblical sexual behavior. |
| ● | State
Owned Enterprise: Companies that are verifiably labeled state owned or have
greater than 50% ownership by a nation-state/government are excluded from investment due
to significant human rights violations of the following nature (as provided by U.S. Department
of State): freedom of religion, sexual exploitation of children, trafficking in persons (Tier
3 only), and/or predominantly governed by Sharia Law. The current list of countries excluded
from investment due to significant human rights violations is available at https://inspireinsight.com/excludedcountries. |
| ● | Tobacco:
Companies that derive revenue from producing or exclusively distributing tobacco products. |
In
addition to excluding companies involved in the preceding categories, the Adviser also excludes investment from companies engaged in
the following categories, though they do not constitute a negative Inspire Impact Score™:
| ● | Contraceptives
(Barrier): Companies that produce barrier-type contraceptives, such as condoms and diaphragms,
which prevent pregnancy by creating a physical barrier (rather than hormonal or chemical
means). |
| ● | Weapons
(Civilian Firearms): Companies that manufacture firearms for civilian use. |
| ● | Weapons
(Military): Companies that manufacture and produce completed weapons and ammunition for
military use (this category does not include maintenance, repair, and operation (MRO) companies
or individual components for weaponry). |
The
specific biblical alignment categories, for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to assign positive scores (to companies not found
to be in violation of the previously mentioned exclusionary categories) are listed below. FactSet provides the data for each category.
| ● | Air
Quality: Companies that responsibly address and manage the impact of air quality resulting
from stationary (e.g., factories, power plants) and mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery
vehicles, planes) as well as industrial emissions (does not include GHG emissions). |
| ● | Business
Ethics: Companies that intentionally manage risks and opportunities surrounding ethical
conduct of business, including fraud, corruption, bias, negligence, bribery, facilitation
payments, fiduciary responsibilities, and other behavior that may have an ethical component. |
| ● | Business
Resilience: Companies that display a capacity to manage risks and opportunities associated
with incorporating social, environmental, and political transitions into long-term business
model planning despite operating in industries where evolving environmental and social realities
challenge their current business approach. |
| ● | Critical
Risk Management: Companies that display responsible use of management systems and scenario
planning to identify, understand, and prevent or minimize the occurrence of low-probability,
high-impact accidents, and emergencies with significant probable consequences, taking into
consideration the potential human, environmental, and social implications, as well as the
long-term ramifications for the company. |
| ● | Customer
Privacy: Companies that responsibly address risks related to the use of personally identifiable
information (PII) and other user/customer data for secondary purposes including but not limited
to marketing through affiliates and non-affiliates, data collecting procedures, managing
user/customer expectations, consent processes, and compliance with evolving regulation (does
not include cybersecurity risks). |
| ● | Customer
Welfare: Companies that responsibly address customer welfare concerns over issues including,
but not limited to, health and nutrition of foods and beverages, antibiotic use in animal
production, and management of controlled substances. |
| ● | Data
Security: Companies that responsibly address management of risks related to collection,
retention, and use of sensitive, confidential, and/or proprietary customer or user data,
as well as strategic policies for incidents such as data breaches. |
| ● | Employee
Wellbeing: Companies that responsibly address their ability to create and maintain a
safe and healthy workplace environment that is free of injuries, fatalities, and illness
(both chronic and acute) through the implementation of safety management plans, training
requirements, regular audits of internal practices, and systematized monitoring and testing. |
| ● | Energy
Management: Companies that conscientiously manage the environmental impacts linked to
their energy consumption used in their business operations. |
| ● | Environmental
Risk Mitigation: Companies that display the ability to manage risks and opportunities
associated with direct exposure of their owned or controlled assets and operations as they
pertain to the potential or actual physical impacts of environmental factors, including factors
such as the increased frequency and severity of extreme weather, shifting climate, sea level
change, and other expected physical impacts. |
| ● | Ethical
Labor Practices: Companies that responsibly ensure adherence to widely accepted labor
standards within the workplace. This encompasses compliance with labor laws and internationally
recognized norms and standards, including fundamental human rights and the prohibition of
child, forced, or bonded labor, as well as exploitative labor practices. |
| ● | Ethical
Sales Practices: Companies that responsibly handle social issues arising from inadequately
managing the transparency, accuracy, and comprehensibility of marketing statements, advertising,
and product/service labeling. |
| ● | Ethical
Supply Chain Management: Companies that responsibly address the management of risks within
their supply chain and handle issues associated with environmental and social externalities
created by suppliers through their operational activities. Such issues include, but are not
limited to, environmental responsibility, human rights, labor practices, ethics, and corruption. |
| ● | Fair
Competition: Companies that conscientiously manage issues associated with the existence
of monopolies, which may include, but are not limited to, excessive prices, poor quality
of service, and inefficiencies. |
| ● | GHG
Emissions: Companies that responsibly address direct (Scope 1) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
they may generate through their operations, which includes GHG emissions from stationary
(e.g., factories, power plants) or mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery vehicles, planes).
The seven GHGs covered under the Kyoto Protocol are included within the category: carbon
dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons
(PFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3). |
| ● | Hiring
Ethics: Companies that responsibly address their ability to ensure culture, hiring, and
promotion practices do not discriminate based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, and other
factors. |
| ● | Human
Rights: Companies that responsibly manage the relationship between their business and
the communities in which they operate, including, but not limited to, management of direct
and indirect impacts on core human rights, the treatment of indigenous peoples, and the impact
of local businesses. |
| ● | Low
Ecological Impact: Companies that demonstrate conscientious knowledge and management
of their impact on ecosystems and biodiversity through activities including, but not limited
to, land use for exploration, natural resource extraction, and cultivation, as well as project
development, construction, and siting. |
| ● | Materials
Efficiency: Companies that responsibly address issues related to the resilience of materials
supply chains to impacts of climate change and other external environmental and social factors,
including, but not limited to, product design, manufacturing, end-of-life management, reduction
of key material usage, maximizing planning efficiency, and R&D material diversity. |
| ● | Product
Safety: Companies that responsibly address issues involving unintended characteristics
of products sold or services provided that may create health or safety risks to end-users,
meet customer expectations, manage liability concerns, product testing, and intentionally
acknowledge recalls or market withdraws. |
| ● | Product
Sustainability: Companies that conscientiously acknowledge the characteristics of products
and services provided or sold and address customer and societal demand for more sustainable
products and services as well as meet evolving environmental and social regulations. |
| ● | Regulatory
Adherence: Companies that responsibly engage with regulators in cases where conflicting
corporate and public interests may have the potential for long-term adverse direct or indirect
environmental and social impacts and display their level of reliance on regulatory policy
or monetary incentives while acknowledging the necessity of regulatory compliance within
a competitive business environment. |
| ● | Systemic
Risk Management: Companies that responsibly manage systemic risks resulting from large-scale
weakening or collapse of systems upon which the economy and society depend, such as financial
systems, natural resource systems, and technological systems. |
| ● | Waste
& Hazmat Management: Companies that responsibly address environmental issues associated
with the hazardous and non-hazardous waste they generate and the treatment, handling, storage,
disposal, and regulatory compliance. |
| ● | Water
Conservation: Companies that conscientiously manage their water use, water consumption,
wastewater generation, water recycling, water treatment, and any other operations pertaining
to water resources, which may be influenced by regional differences in the availability and
quality of and competition for water resources. |
The
Index Provider relies exclusively on software that analyzes publicly available data relating to the primary business activities, products
and services, philanthropy, legal activities, policies and practices when assigning Inspire Impact Scores™ to a company. The 200
securities with the highest Inspire Impact Scores™ are included in the International Index and are equally weighted. The International
Index will typically be comprised of 80% in developed foreign securities, and 20% in emerging market securities. The Inspire Impact Scores™
of the securities in the International Index are reviewed periodically (at least annually), and the International Index is rebalanced
quarterly. If, upon review, the Inspire Impact Score™ of a security is negative, the security is removed from the International
Index and replaced with a positive scoring security. A security with a score of zero—indicating that the issuer has no violations
to merit a negative score, but there is insufficient data to assess a positive score—may be included in the International Index.
The
equity securities included in the International Index are typically foreign securities of large capitalization companies. The Fund may
or may not hold all of the securities in the International Index because, in certain circumstances, it may not be possible or practicable
to purchase all of the securities in the International Index in their proportionate weightings. In that case, the Adviser may purchase
a sample of the securities in the International Index to track the International Index. Representative sampling is an indexing
strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to that
of an applicable underlying index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics, fundamental
characteristics and liquidity measures similar to those of an underlying index. The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular
industry or group of industries to the extent that the International Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries.
|
| Inspire Capital Appreciation ETF |
|
| Prospectus [Line Items] |
|
| Strategy [Heading] |
Principal
Investment Strategies:
|
| Strategy Narrative [Text Block] |
The Fund, an actively managed exchange-traded fund (ETF), uses a proprietary methodology of technical
analysis, using publicly available data, to tactically allocate assets into U.S. large cap stocks when the strategy identifies an uptrend
in the U.S. large cap stock market, and shifts into U.S. Treasury bonds via third-party ETFs, investment grade and high-yield corporate
bonds, government agency bonds, and listed gold exchange-traded products and exchange-traded notes such as SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) when
the strategy identifies a downtrend in the U.S. large cap stock market. The Funds investment adviser, Inspire Investing LLC (the
Adviser), defines large capitalization companies to be those that are the largest 10% of the U.S. equity market. The Fund
invests at least 80% of the Funds net assets plus any borrowings for investment purposes in stocks or fixed income securities that
meet the Funds criteria described below.
The
Inspire Impact Score™ is a proprietary selection methodology that is designed to assign a score to a particular security based
on the securitys alignment with biblical values and the positive impact the issuing company has on the world. Utilizing specifically
identified, publicly available and/or third-party sources, the Inspire Impact Score™ methodology endeavors to assign negative scores
to, and exclude companies from, the investment universe if they are found in violation of specified categories that do not align with
biblical values, and seeks to assign positive scores to companies which the Adviser has not found to be in violation of the specified
exclusionary categories. The selection methodology used in calculating the Inspire Impact Score™ is separate from the fundamental
and technical company research that Inspire performs for inclusion in its ETFs.
It
is not possible for the Adviser to be aware of every action a company takes, and there may be additional positive or problematic activities
which a company engages in that are beyond what is included in the Inspire Impact Score™ calculation. The Inspire Impact Score™
is not meant to include all activities, whether public or private, of each company scored, but rather to assign a score to companies
based on the data the Adviser has found from the specified publicly available sources and/or third-party data providers. The Inspire
Impact Score™ represents the Advisers viewpoint on the biblical alignment of scored investments, and other investors may
have different opinions about what should or should not be considered a violation. The Adviser seeks to update Inspire Impact Scores™
in a timely fashion at regular intervals, but due to differences in research schedules, corporate engagement efforts and data publication
timing, a companys Inspire Impact Score™ may not immediately reflect all known data as soon as it is researched.
The
specific exclusionary categories deemed to not be in alignment with biblical values for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to
assign negative scores (to companies to be excluded from the investment universe) are as follows:
| ● | Abortifacients:
Companies that manufacture or distribute (1) abortifacient drugs (pharmaceuticals designed
or used to terminate a pregnancy at any stage, from conception onward), (2) medications whose
primary active ingredient (e.g., mifepristone & misoprostol) is capable of causing an
abortion regardless of stated use, and/or (3) contraceptive drugs, including emergency
contraceptive drugs (e.g., Plan B, levonorgestrel, ella, or certain hormonal IUDs),
that can prevent implantation of a fertilized egg, thereby acting as an abortifacient. |
| ● | Abortion
Activism: Companies that promote abortion access through legislative support, corporate
philanthropic activity, and/or employee travel benefits. Screening includes companies that
have signed Dont Ban Equality and/or Dont Ban Equality
in Texas Statement(s) from Planned Parenthood, a widely known abortion access advocate,
to pledge support for legalizing abortion access and to oppose legislative bans on abortion
access, companies that engage in corporate-guided philanthropy to Center for American Progress,
Women and Their Bodies, and/or Pathfinder, which advocate for abortion access (seeks to exclude
donations from employee matching programs, employee resource groups, donor-advised funds,
and foundations), and companies that offer employee travel benefits which allow employee
access to abortion services at any stage of pregnancy, according to Rhia Ventures and the
1792 Exchange. The Adviser is not able to screen for companies that donate to Planned Parenthood
because its corporate donor list is no longer publicly available. |
| ● | Abortion
Services: Companies that own and operate one or more medical facilities that provide
abortion procedures at any stage of pregnancy. |
| ● | Alcohol:
Companies that produce at least one alcoholic beverage or exclusively distribute alcoholic
beverages. |
| ● | Cannabis
Cultivation/Processing: Companies that cultivate or process cannabis for retail or wholesale
distribution. |
| ● | Cannabis
(Retail THC): Companies that produce or distribute retail cannabis products containing
THC (which is the psychoactive component of cannabis). |
| ● | Embryonic
Stem Cells: Companies that perform research on or produce products using embryonic stem
cells, companies that provide embryonic stem cells to other entities, and companies that
utilize propagated stem cell lines which originally derived from embryonic stem cells. |
| ● | Exploitation:
Companies that contribute towards the unlawful and immoral practices of exploiting individuals
for labor or sexual purposes, according to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE). |
| ● | Gambling:
Companies that generate revenue from gambling facilities, products, and/or services (not
including third-party stores which offer Lottery services). |
| ● | In
Vitro Fertilization: Companies that offer in vitro fertilization services or manufacture
equipment specifically for the purpose of in vitro fertilization procedures. |
| ● | LGBT
Activism: Companies that receive an above-average rating in an annual self-reported survey
conducted by a national LGBT advocacy organization. The survey rates companies based
on their corporate LGBT activism across several areas, including philanthropy, corporate
policy, marketing efforts, and legislative support. The advocacy organization extrapolates
the information obtained and publishes each companys score, and an average score for
all companies. |
| ● | Sexually
Explicit: Companies that derive revenue from the creation, sale, or distribution of sexually
explicit content and/or services for recreation and/or entertainment purposes. This category
seeks to cover media types, such as film, print, gaming, and online that contain pornographic
content, including platforms that stream movies rated for nudity and/or sex, and other explicit
depictions of sex, such as audio pornography or animated sex/nudity. Also included are companies
that profit from sexually immoral services, such as strip clubs and LGBT dating services,
that actively promote and profit from unbiblical sexual behavior. |
| ● | State
Owned Enterprise: Companies that are verifiably labeled state owned or have greater than 50% ownership by a nation-state/government
are excluded from investment due to significant human rights violations of the following nature (as provided by U.S. Department of State):
freedom of religion, sexual exploitation of children, trafficking in persons (Tier 3 only), and/or predominantly governed by Sharia Law.
The current list of countries excluded from investment due to significant human rights violations is available at https://inspireinsight.com/excludedcountries. |
| ● | Tobacco:
Companies that derive revenue from producing or exclusively distributing tobacco products. |
In
addition to excluding companies involved in the preceding categories, the Adviser also excludes investment from companies engaged in
the following categories, though they do not constitute a negative Inspire Impact Score™:
| ● | Contraceptives
(Barrier): Companies that produce barrier-type contraceptives, such as condoms and diaphragms,
which prevent pregnancy by creating a physical barrier (rather than hormonal or chemical
means). |
| ● | Weapons
(Civilian Firearms): Companies that manufacture firearms for civilian use. |
| ● | Weapons
(Military): Companies that manufacture and produce completed weapons and ammunition for
military use (this category does not include maintenance, repair, and operation (MRO) companies
or individual companies for weaponry). |
The
specific biblical alignment categories, for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to assign positive scores (to companies not found
to be in violation of the previously mentioned exclusionary categories) are listed below. FactSet provides the data for each category.
| ● | Air
Quality: Companies that responsibly address and manage the impact of air quality resulting
from stationary (e.g., factories, power plants) and mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery
vehicles, planes) as well as industrial emissions (does not include GHG emissions). |
| ● | Business
Ethics: Companies that intentionally manage risks and opportunities surrounding ethical
conduct of business, including fraud, corruption, bias, negligence, bribery, facilitation
payments, fiduciary responsibilities, and other behavior that may have an ethical component. |
| ● | Business
Resilience: Companies that display a capacity to manage risks and opportunities associated
with incorporating social, environmental, and political transitions into long-term business
model planning despite operating in industries where evolving environmental and social realities
challenge their current business approach. |
| ● | Critical
Risk Management: Companies that display responsible use of management systems and scenario
planning to identify, understand, and prevent or minimize the occurrence of low-probability,
high-impact accidents, and emergencies with significant probable consequences, taking into
consideration the potential human, environmental, and social implications, as well as the
long-term ramifications for the company. |
| ● | Customer
Privacy: Companies that responsibly address risks related to the use of personally identifiable
information (PII) and other user/customer data for secondary purposes including but not limited
to marketing through affiliates and non-affiliates, data collecting procedures, managing
user/customer expectations, consent processes, and compliance with evolving regulation (does
not include cybersecurity risks). |
| ● | Customer
Welfare: Companies that responsibly address customer welfare concerns over issues including,
but not limited to, health and nutrition of foods and beverages, antibiotic use in animal
production, and management of controlled substances. |
| ● | Data
Security: Companies that responsibly address management of risks related to collection,
retention, and use of sensitive, confidential, and/or proprietary customer or user data,
as well as strategic policies for incidents such as data breaches. |
| ● | Employee
Wellbeing: Companies that responsibly address their ability to create and maintain a
safe and healthy workplace environment that is free of injuries, fatalities, and illness
(both chronic and acute) through the implementation of safety management plans, training
requirements, regular audits of internal practices, and systematized monitoring and testing. |
| ● | Energy
Management: Companies that conscientiously manage the environmental impacts linked to
their energy consumption used in their business operations. |
| ● | Environmental
Risk Mitigation: Companies that display the ability to manage risks and opportunities
associated with direct exposure of their owned or controlled assets and operations as they
pertain to the potential or actual physical impacts of environmental factors, including factors
such as the increased frequency and severity of extreme weather, shifting climate, sea level
change, and other expected physical impacts. |
| ● | Ethical
Labor Practices: Companies that responsibly ensure adherence to widely accepted labor
standards within the workplace. This encompasses compliance with labor laws and internationally
recognized norms and standards, including fundamental human rights and the prohibition of
child, forced, or bonded labor, as well as exploitative labor practices. |
| ● | Ethical
Sales Practices: Companies that responsibly handle social issues arising from inadequately
managing the transparency, accuracy, and comprehensibility of marketing statements, advertising,
and product/service labeling. |
| ● | Ethical
Supply Chain Management: Companies that responsibly address the management of risks within
their supply chain and handle issues associated with environmental and social externalities
created by suppliers through their operational activities. Such issues include, but are not
limited to, environmental responsibility, human rights, labor practices, ethics, and corruption. |
| ● | Fair
Competition: Companies that conscientiously manage issues associated with the existence
of monopolies, which may include, but are not limited to, excessive prices, poor quality
of service, and inefficiencies. |
| ● | GHG
Emissions: Companies that responsibly address direct (Scope 1) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
they may generate through their operations, which includes GHG emissions from stationary
(e.g., factories, power plants) or mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery vehicles, planes).
The seven GHGs covered under the Kyoto Protocol are included within the category: carbon
dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons
(PFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3). |
| ● | Hiring
Ethics: Companies that responsibly address their ability to ensure culture, hiring, and
promotion practices do not discriminate based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, and other
factors. |
| ● | Human
Rights: Companies that responsibly manage the relationship between their business and
the communities in which they operate, including, but not limited to, management of direct
and indirect impacts on core human rights, the treatment of indigenous peoples, and the impact
of local businesses. |
| ● | Low
Ecological Impact: Companies that demonstrate conscientious knowledge and management
of their impact on ecosystems and biodiversity through activities including, but not limited
to, land use for exploration, natural resource extraction, and cultivation, as well as project
development, construction, and siting. |
| ● | Materials
Efficiency: Companies that responsibly address issues related to the resilience of materials
supply chains to impacts of climate change and other external environmental and social factors,
including, but not limited to, product design, manufacturing, end-of-life management, reduction
of key material usage, maximizing planning efficiency, and R&D material diversity. |
| ● | Product
Safety: Companies that responsibly address issues involving unintended characteristics
of products sold or services provided that may create health or safety risks to end-users,
meet customer expectations, manage liability concerns, product testing, and intentionally
acknowledge recalls or market withdraws. |
| ● | Product
Sustainability: Companies that conscientiously acknowledge the characteristics of products
and services provided or sold and address customer and societal demand for more sustainable
products and services as well as meet evolving environmental and social regulations. |
| ● | Regulatory
Adherence: Companies that responsibly engage with regulators in cases where conflicting
corporate and public interests may have the potential for long-term adverse direct or indirect
environmental and social impacts and display their level of reliance on regulatory policy
or monetary incentives while acknowledging the necessity of regulatory compliance within
a competitive business environment. |
| ● | Systemic
Risk Management: Companies that responsibly manage systemic risks resulting from large-scale
weakening or collapse of systems upon which the economy and society depend such as financial
systems, natural resource systems, and technological systems. |
| ● | Waste
& Hazmat Management: Companies that responsibly address environmental issues associated
with hazardous and non-hazardous waste they generate and the treatment, handling, storage,
disposal, and regulatory compliance. |
| ● | Water
Conservation: Companies that conscientiously manage their water use, water consumption,
wastewater generation, water recycling, water treatment, and any other operations pertaining
to water resources, which may be influenced by regional differences in the availability and
quality of and competition for water resources. |
The
Adviser relies exclusively on software that analyzes publicly available data relating to the primary business activities, products and
services, philanthropy, legal activities, policies and practices when assigning Inspire Impact Scores™ to a company.
A security with a score of zero—indicating that the issuer has no violations to merit a negative score, but there is insufficient
data to assess a positive score. The Adviser invests Fund assets only in securities with an Inspire Impact Score™ of
zero or higher and the Adviser will cause a portfolio security to be sold when the Adviser deems appropriate if a portfolio securitys
Impact Score™ falls below a specified level.
|
| Inspire Growth ETF |
|
| Prospectus [Line Items] |
|
| Strategy [Heading] |
Principal
Investment Strategies:
|
| Strategy Narrative [Text Block] |
The Fund, an actively managed exchange-traded fund (ETF), invests at least 80% of its net assets
plus any borrowings for investment purposes in midcap stocks. The Adviser defines midcap companies to be those that are the second largest
10% of the U.S. equity market.
The
Funds investment adviser, Inspire Investing, LLC (the Adviser) uses the proprietary Inspire Impact Score™
method of faith-based analysis to provide the acceptable investment universe available for the Fund. The Adviser uses a system of technical
analysis provided by a third-party research firm not affiliated with the Adviser to select Fund investments from this investment universe
and to manage the assets of the Fund. It seeks to invest Fund assets in stocks demonstrating momentum that the Adviser further deems
to have high growth potential based on the companys financial health, earnings trends, valuation, risk and relative strength.
In adopting a momentum style of investing, the Fund seeks to invest in securities that have had better recent performance compared to
their peers and upward price movements. Based on these factors, the Fund at any given time may have significant percentage of its assets
invested in one or more sectors than other sectors.
The
Inspire Impact Score™ is a proprietary selection methodology that is designed to assign a score to a particular security based
on the securitys alignment with biblical values and the positive impact the issuing company has on the world. Utilizing specifically
identified, publicly available and/or third-party sources, the Inspire Impact Score™ methodology endeavors to assign negative scores
to, and exclude companies from, the investment universe if they are found in violation of specified categories that do not align with
biblical values, and seeks to assign positive scores to companies which the Adviser has not found to be in violation of the specified
exclusionary categories. The selection methodology used in calculating the Inspire Impact Score™ is separate from the fundamental
and technical company research that Inspire performs for inclusion in its ETFs.
It
is not possible for the Adviser to be aware of every action a company takes, and there may be additional positive or problematic activities
which a company engages in that are beyond what is included in the Inspire Impact Score™ calculation. The Inspire Impact Score™
is not meant to include all activities, whether public or private, of each company scored, but rather to assign a score to companies
based on the data the Adviser has found from the specified publicly available sources and/or third-party data providers. The Inspire
Impact Score™ represents the Advisers viewpoint on the biblical alignment of scored investments, and other investors may
have different opinions about what should or should not be considered a violation. The Adviser seeks to update Inspire Impact Scores™
in a timely fashion at regular intervals, but due to differences in research schedules, corporate engagement efforts and data publication
timing, a companys Inspire Impact Score™ may not immediately reflect all known data as soon as it is researched.
The
specific exclusionary categories deemed to not be in alignment with biblical values for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to
assign negative scores (to companies to be excluded from the investment universe) are as follows:
| ● | Abortifacients:
Companies that manufacture or distribute (1) abortifacient drugs (pharmaceuticals designed
or used to terminate a pregnancy at any stage, from conception onward), (2) medications whose
primary active ingredient (e.g., mifepristone & misoprostol) is capable of causing an
abortion regardless of stated use, and/or (3) contraceptive drugs, including emergency
contraceptive drugs (e.g., Plan B, levonorgestrel, ella, or certain hormonal IUDs),
that can prevent implantation of a fertilized egg, thereby acting as an abortifacient. |
| ● | Abortion
Activism: Companies that promote abortion access through legislative support, corporate
philanthropic activity, and/or employee travel benefits. Screening includes companies that
have signed Dont Ban Equality and/or Dont Ban Equality
in Texas Statement(s) from Planned Parenthood, a widely known abortion access advocate,
to pledge support for legalizing abortion access and to oppose legislative bans on abortion
access, companies that engage in corporate-guided philanthropy to Center for American Progress,
Women and Their Bodies, and/or Pathfinder, which advocate for abortion access (seeks to exclude
donations from employee matching programs, employee resource groups, donor-advised funds,
and foundations), and companies that offer employee travel benefits which allow employee
access to abortion services at any stage of pregnancy, according to Rhia Ventures and the
1792 Exchange. The Adviser is not able to screen for companies that donate to Planned Parenthood
because its corporate donor list is no longer publicly available. |
| ● | Abortion
Services: Companies that own and operate one or more medical facilities that provides
abortion procedures at any stage of pregnancy. |
| ● | Alcohol:
Companies that produce at least one alcoholic beverage or exclusively distribute alcoholic
beverages. |
| ● | Cannabis
Cultivation/Processing: Companies that cultivate or process cannabis for retail or wholesale
distribution. |
| ● | Cannabis
(Retail THC): Companies that produce or distribute retail cannabis products containing
THC (which is the psychoactive component of cannabis). |
| ● | Embryonic
Stem Cells: Companies that perform research on or produce products using embryonic stem
cells, companies that provide embryonic stem cells to other entities and companies that utilize
propagated stem cell lines which originally derived from embryonic stem cells. |
| ● | Exploitation:
Companies that contribute towards the unlawful and immoral practices of exploiting individuals
for labor or sexual purposes, according to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE). |
| ● | Gambling:
Companies that generate revenue from gambling facilities, products, and/or services (not
including third-party stores which offer Lottery services). |
| ● | In
Vitro Fertilization: Companies that offer in vitro fertilization services or manufacture
equipment specifically for the purpose of in vitro fertilization procedures. |
| ● | LGBT
Activism: Companies that receive an above-average rating in an annual self-reported survey
conducted by a national LGBT advocacy organization. The survey rates companies based
on their corporate LGBT activism across several areas, including philanthropy, corporate
policy, marketing efforts, and legislative support. The advocacy organization extrapolates
the information obtained and publishes each companys score, and an average score for
all companies. |
| ● | Sexually
Explicit: Companies that derive revenue from the creation, sale, or distribution of sexually
explicit content and/or services for recreation and/or entertainment purposes. This category
seeks to cover media types, such as film, print, gaming, and online that contain pornographic
content, including platforms that stream movies rated for nudity and/or sex, and other explicit
depictions of sex, such as audio pornography or animated sex/nudity. Also included are companies
that profit from sexually immoral services, such as strip clubs and LGBT dating services,
that actively promote and profit from unbiblical sexual behavior. |
| ● | State
Owned Enterprise: Companies that are verifiably labeled state owned or have
greater than 50% ownership by a nation-state/government are excluded from investment due
to significant human rights violations of the following nature (as provided by U.S. Department
of State): freedom of religion, sexual exploitation of children, trafficking in persons (Tier
3 only), and/or predominantly governed by Sharia Law. The current list of countries excluded
from investment due to significant human rights violations is available at https://inspireinsight.com/excludedcountries. |
| ● | Tobacco:
Companies that derive revenue from producing or exclusively distributing tobacco products. |
In
addition to excluding companies involved in the preceding categories, the Adviser also excludes investment from companies engaged in
the following categories, though they do not constitute a negative Inspire Impact Score™:
| ● | Contraceptives
(Barrier): Companies that produce barrier-type contraceptives, such as condoms and diaphragms,
which prevent pregnancy by creating a physical barrier (rather than hormonal or chemical
means). |
| ● | Weapons
(Civilian Firearms): Companies that manufacture firearms for civilian use. |
| ● | Weapons
(Military): Companies that manufacture and produce completed weapons and ammunition for
military use (this category does not include maintenance, repair, and operation (MRO) companies
or individual companies for weaponry). |
The
specific biblical alignment categories, for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to assign positive scores (to companies not found
to be in violation of the previously mentioned exclusionary categories) are listed below. FactSet provides the data for each category.
| ● | Air
Quality: Companies that responsibly address and manage the impact of air quality resulting
from stationary (e.g., factories, power plants) and mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery
vehicles, planes) as well as industrial emissions (does not include GHG emissions). |
| ● | Business
Ethics: Companies that intentionally manage risks and opportunities surrounding ethical
conduct of business, including fraud, corruption, bias, negligence, bribery, facilitation
payments, fiduciary responsibilities, and other behavior that may have an ethical component. |
| ● | Business
Resilience: Companies that display a capacity to manage risks and opportunities associated
with incorporating social, environmental, and political transitions into long-term business
model planning despite operating in industries where evolving environmental and social realities
challenge their current business approach. |
| ● | Critical
Risk Management: Companies that display responsible use of management systems and scenario
planning to identify, understand, and prevent or minimize the occurrence of low-probability,
high-impact accidents, and emergencies with significant probable consequences, taking into
consideration the potential human, environmental, and social implications, as well as the
long-term ramifications for the company. |
| ● | Customer
Privacy: Companies that responsibly address risks related to the use of personally identifiable
information (PII) and other user/customer data for secondary purposes including but not limited
to marketing through affiliates and non-affiliates, data collecting procedures, managing
user/customer expectations, consent processes, and compliance with evolving regulation (does
not include cybersecurity risks). |
| ● | Customer
Welfare: Companies that responsibly address customer welfare concerns over issues including,
but not limited to, health and nutrition of foods and beverages, antibiotic use in animal
production, and management of controlled substances. |
| ● | Data
Security: Companies that responsibly address management of risks related to collection,
retention, and use of sensitive, confidential, and/or proprietary customer or user data,
as well as strategic policies for incidents such as data breaches. |
| ● | Employee
Wellbeing: Companies that responsibly address their ability to create and maintain a
safe and healthy workplace environment that is free of injuries, fatalities, and illness
(both chronic and acute) through the implementation of safety management plans, training
requirements, regular audits of internal practices, and systematized monitoring and testing.
Category data provided by FactSet. |
| ● | Energy
Management: Companies that conscientiously manage the environmental impacts linked to
their energy consumption used in their business operations. |
| ● | Environmental
Risk Mitigation: Companies that display the ability to manage risks and opportunities
associated with direct exposure of their owned or controlled assets and operations as they
pertain to the potential or actual physical impacts of environmental factors, including factors
such as the increased frequency and severity of extreme weather, shifting climate, sea level
change, and other expected physical impacts. |
| ● | Ethical
Labor Practices: Companies that responsibly ensure adherence to widely accepted labor
standards within the workplace. This encompasses compliance with labor laws and internationally
recognized norms and standards, including fundamental human rights and the prohibition of
child, forced, or bonded labor, as well as exploitative labor practices. |
| ● | Ethical
Sales Practices: Companies that responsibly handle social issues arising from inadequately
managing the transparency, accuracy, and comprehensibility of marketing statements, advertising,
and product/service labeling. |
| ● | Ethical
Supply Chain Management: Companies that responsibly address the management of risks within
their supply chain and handle issues associated with environmental and social externalities
created by suppliers through their operational activities. Such issues include, but are not
limited to, environmental responsibility, human rights, labor practices, ethics, and corruption. |
| ● | Fair
Competition: Companies that conscientiously manage issues associated with the existence
of monopolies, which may include, but are not limited to, excessive prices, poor quality
of service, and inefficiencies. |
| ● | GHG
Emissions: Companies that responsibly address direct (Scope 1) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
they may generate through their operations, which includes GHG emissions from stationary
(e.g., factories, power plants) or mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery vehicles, planes).
The seven GHGs covered under the Kyoto Protocol are included within the category: carbon
dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons
(PFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3). |
| ● | Hiring
Ethics: Companies that responsibly address their ability to ensure culture, hiring, and
promotion practices do not discriminate based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, and other
factors. |
| ● | Human
Rights: Companies that responsibly manage the relationship between their business and
the communities in which they operate, including, but not limited to, management of direct
and indirect impacts on core human rights, the treatment of indigenous peoples, and the impact
of local businesses. |
| ● | Low
Ecological Impact: Companies that demonstrate conscientious knowledge and management
of their impact on ecosystems and biodiversity through activities including, but not limited
to, land use for exploration, natural resource extraction, and cultivation, as well as project
development, construction, and siting. |
| ● | Materials
Efficiency: Companies that responsibly address issues related to the resilience of materials
supply chains to impacts of climate change and other external environmental and social factors,
including, but not limited to, product design, manufacturing, end-of-life management, reduction
of key material usage, maximizing planning efficiency, and R&D material diversity. |
| ● | Product
Safety: Companies that responsibly address issues involving unintended characteristics
of products sold or services provided that may create health or safety risks to end-users,
meet customer expectations, manage liability concerns, product testing, and intentionally
acknowledge recalls or market withdraws. |
| ● | Product
Sustainability: Companies that conscientiously acknowledge the characteristics of products
and services provided or sold and address customer and societal demand for more sustainable
products and services as well as meet evolving environmental and social regulations. |
| ● | Regulatory
Adherence: Companies that responsibly engage with regulators in cases where conflicting
corporate and public interests may have the potential for long-term adverse direct or indirect
environmental and social impacts and display their level of reliance on regulatory policy
or monetary incentives while acknowledging the necessity of regulatory compliance within
a competitive business environment. |
| ● | Systemic
Risk Management: Companies that responsibly manage systemic risks resulting from large-scale
weakening or collapse of systems upon which the economy and society depend, such as financial
systems, natural resource systems, and technological systems. |
| ● | Waste
& Hazmat Management: Companies that responsibly address environmental issues associated
with the hazardous and non-hazardous waste they generate and the treatment, handling, storage,
disposal, and regulatory compliance. |
| ● | Water
Conservation: Companies that conscientiously manage their water use, water consumption,
wastewater generation, water recycling, water treatment, and any other operations pertaining
to water resources, which may be influenced by regional differences in the availability and
quality of and competition for water resources. Category data provided by FactSet. |
The
Adviser relies exclusively on software that analyzes publicly available data relating to the primary business activities, products and
services, philanthropy, legal activities, policies and practices when assigning Inspire Impact Scores™® to a company. A security
with a score of zero—indicating that the issuer has no violations to merit a negative score, but there is insufficient data to
assess a positive score. The Adviser invests Fund assets only in securities with an Inspire Impact Score™ of zero or higher and
the Adviser will cause a portfolio security to be sold when the Adviser deems appropriate if a portfolio securitys Impact Score™
falls below a specified level.
|
| Inspire Fidelis Multi Factor ETF |
|
| Prospectus [Line Items] |
|
| Strategy [Heading] |
Principal
Investment Strategies:
|
| Strategy Narrative [Text Block] |
The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its total assets in securities that meet the following criteria
(the Multi Factor criteria) that are the components of the Index in an attempt to track the Index.
The
universe of eligible index components consists of common stocks that meet the following Multi-Factor criteria:
| ● | have
an Inspire Impact Score that is positive (i.e., greater than or equal to zero). |
| ● | are
listed on a major US stock exchange, including American Depositary Receipts (ADRs); |
| ● | have
market capitalization of $250 million or greater; |
| ● | are
in the top 60% of stocks for combined value, growth and momentum factors (as described below); |
| ● | are
not in the bottom 20% of stocks for value, growth or momentum factors individually; |
| ● | are
not limited partnerships; |
| ● | are
not companies based in China; and |
| ● | are
not a manufacturer of military weapons or a medical facility providing access to abortion
services. |
The
Inspire Impact Score™ is a proprietary selection methodology that is designed to assign a score to a particular security based
on the securitys alignment with biblical values and the positive impact the issuing company has on its customers, communities,
workforce and the world. Utilizing specifically identified, publicly available and/or third-party sources, the Inspire Impact Score™
methodology endeavors to assign negative scores to, and exclude companies from, the investment universe if they are found in violation
of specified categories that do not align with biblical values and seeks to assign positive scores to companies which the Funds
adviser, Inspire Investing, LLC (the Adviser), has not found to be in violation of the specified exclusionary categories.
The selection methodology used in calculating the Inspire Impact Score™ is separate from the fundamental and technical company
research that Inspire performs for inclusion in its exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
It
is not possible for the Adviser to be aware of every action a company takes, and there may be additional positive or problematic activities
which a company engages in that are beyond what is included in the Inspire Impact Score™ calculation. The Inspire Impact Score™
is not meant to include all activities, whether public or private, of each company scored, but rather to assign a score to companies
based on the data the Adviser has found from the specified publicly available sources and/or third-party data providers. The Inspire
Impact Score™ represents the Advisers viewpoint on the biblical alignment of scored investments, and other investors may
have different opinions about what should or should not be considered a violation. The Adviser seeks to update Inspire Impact Scores™
in a timely fashion at regular intervals, but due to differences in research schedules, corporate engagement efforts and data publication
timing, a companys Inspire Impact Score™ may not immediately reflect all known data as soon as it is researched.
The
specific exclusionary categories deemed to not be in alignment with biblical values for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to
assign negative scores (to companies to be excluded from the investment universe) are as follows:
| ● | Abortifacients:
Companies that manufacture or distribute (1) abortifacient drugs (pharmaceuticals designed
or used to terminate a pregnancy at any stage, from conception onward), (2) medications whose
primary active ingredient (e.g., mifepristone & misoprostol) is capable of causing an
abortion regardless of stated use, and/or (3) contraceptive drugs, including emergency
contraceptive drugs (e.g., Plan B, levonorgestrel, ella, or certain hormonal IUDs),
that can prevent implantation of a fertilized egg, thereby acting as an abortifacient. |
| ● | Abortion
Activism: Companies that promote abortion access through legislative support, corporate
philanthropic activity, and/or employee travel benefits. Screening includes companies that
have signed Dont Ban Equality and/or Dont Ban Equality
in Texas Statement(s) from Planned Parenthood, a widely known abortion access advocate,
to pledge support for legalizing abortion access and to oppose legislative bans on abortion
access, companies that engage in corporate-guided philanthropy to Center for American Progress,
Women and Their Bodies, and/or Pathfinder, which advocate for abortion access (seeks to exclude
donations from employee matching programs, employee resource groups, donor-advised funds,
and foundations), and companies that offer employee travel benefits which allow employee
access to abortion services at any stage of pregnancy, according to Rhia Ventures and the
1792 Exchange. The Adviser is not able to screen for companies that donate to Planned Parenthood
because its corporate donor list is no longer publicly available. |
| ● | Abortion
Services: Companies that own and operate one or more medical facilities that provide
abortion procedures at any stage of pregnancy. |
| ● | Alcohol:
Companies that produce at least one alcoholic beverage or exclusively distribute alcoholic
beverages. |
| ● | Cannabis
Cultivation/Processing: Companies that cultivate or process cannabis for retail or wholesale
distribution. |
| ● | Cannabis
(Retail THC): Companies that produce or distribute retail cannabis products containing
THC (which is the psychoactive component of cannabis). |
| ● | Embryonic
Stem Cells: Companies that perform research on or produce products using embryonic stem
cells, companies that provide embryonic stem cells to other entities, and companies that
utilize propagated stem cell lines which originally derived from embryonic stem cells. |
| ● | Gambling:
Companies that generate revenue from gambling facilities, products, and/or services (not
including third-party stores which offer Lottery services). |
| ● | In
Vitro Fertilization: Companies that offer in vitro fertilization services or manufacture
equipment specifically for the purpose of in vitro fertilization procedures. |
| ● | LGBT
Activism: Companies that receive an above-average rating in an annual self-reported survey
conducted by a national LGBT advocacy organization. The survey rates companies based
on their corporate LGBT activism across several areas, including philanthropy, corporate
policy, marketing efforts, and legislative support. The advocacy organization extrapolates
the information obtained and publishes each companys score, and an average score for
all companies. |
| ● | Sexually
Explicit: Companies that derive revenue from the creation, sale, or distribution of sexually
explicit content and/or services for recreation and/or entertainment purposes. This category
seeks to cover media types, such as film, print, gaming, and online that contain pornographic
content, including platforms that stream movies rated for nudity and/or sex, and other explicit
depictions of sex, such as audio pornography or animated sex/nudity. Also included are companies
that profit from sexually immoral services, such as strip clubs and LGBT dating services,
that actively promote and profit from unbiblical sexual behavior. |
| ● | State
Owned Enterprise: Companies that are verifiably labeled state owned or have
greater than 50% ownership by a nation-state/government are excluded from investment due
to significant human rights violations of the following nature (as provided by U.S. Department
of State): freedom of religion, sexual exploitation of children, trafficking in persons (Tier
3 only), and/or predominantly governed by Sharia Law. The current list of countries excluded
from investment due to significant human rights violations is available at https://inspireinsight.com/excludedcountries. |
| ● | Tobacco:
Companies that derive revenue from producing or exclusively distributing tobacco products. |
In
addition to excluding companies involved in the preceding categories, the Adviser also excludes investment from companies engaged in
the following categories, though they do not constitute a negative Inspire Impact Score™:
| ● | Contraceptives
(Barrier): Companies that produce barrier-type contraceptives, such as condoms and diaphragms,
which prevent pregnancy by creating a physical barrier (rather than hormonal or chemical
means). |
| ● | Weapons
(Civilian Firearms): Companies that manufacture firearms for civilian use. |
| ● | Weapons
(Military): Companies that manufacture and produce completed weapons and ammunition for
military use (this category does not include maintenance, repair, and operation (MRO) companies
or individual companies for weaponry). |
The
specific biblical alignment categories, for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to assign positive scores (to companies not found
to be in violation of the previously mentioned exclusionary categories) are listed below. FactSet provides the data for each category.
| ● | Air
Quality: Companies that responsibly address and manage the impact of air quality resulting
from stationary (e.g., factories, power plants) and mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery
vehicles, planes) as well as industrial emissions (does not include GHG emissions). |
| ● | Business
Ethics: Companies that intentionally manage risks and opportunities surrounding ethical
conduct of business, including fraud, corruption, bias, negligence, bribery, facilitation
payments, fiduciary responsibilities, and other behavior that may have an ethical component. |
| ● | Business
Resilience: Companies that display a capacity to manage risks and opportunities associated
with incorporating social, environmental, and political transitions into long-term business
model planning despite operating in industries where evolving environmental and social realities
challenge their current business approach. |
| ● | Critical
Risk Management: Companies that display responsible use of management systems and scenario
planning to identify, understand, and prevent or minimize the occurrence of low-probability,
high-impact accidents, and emergencies with significant probable consequences, taking into
consideration the potential human, environmental, and social implications, as well as the
long-term ramifications for the company. |
| ● | Customer
Privacy: Companies that responsibly address risks related to the use of personally identifiable
information (PII) and other user/customer data for secondary purposes including but not limited
to marketing through affiliates and non-affiliates, data collecting procedures, managing
user/customer expectations, consent processes, and compliance with evolving regulation (does
not include cybersecurity risks). |
| ● | Customer
Welfare: Companies that responsibly address customer welfare concerns over issues including,
but not limited to, health and nutrition of foods and beverages, antibiotic use in animal
production, and management of controlled substances. |
| ● | Data
Security: Companies that responsibly address management of risks related to collection,
retention, and use of sensitive, confidential, and/or proprietary customer or user data,
as well as strategic policies for incidents such as data breaches. |
| ● | Employee
Wellbeing: Companies that responsibly address their ability to create and maintain a
safe and healthy workplace environment that is free of injuries, fatalities, and illness
(both chronic and acute) through the implementation of safety management plans, training
requirements, regular audits of internal practices, and systematized monitoring and testing. |
| ● | Energy
Management: Companies that conscientiously manage the environmental impacts linked to
their energy consumption used in their business operations. |
| ● | Environmental
Risk Mitigation: Companies that display the ability to manage risks and opportunities
associated with direct exposure of their owned or controlled assets and operations as they
pertain to the potential or actual physical impacts of environmental factors, including factors
such as the increased frequency and severity of extreme weather, shifting climate, sea level
change, and other expected physical impacts. |
| ● | Ethical
Labor Practices: Companies that responsibly ensure adherence to widely accepted labor
standards within the workplace. This encompasses compliance with labor laws and internationally
recognized norms and standards, including fundamental human rights and the prohibition of
child, forced, or bonded labor, as well as exploitative labor practices. |
| ● | Ethical
Sales Practices: Companies that responsibly handle social issues arising from inadequately
managing the transparency, accuracy, and comprehensibility of marketing statements, advertising,
and product/service labeling. |
| ● | Ethical
Supply Chain Management: Companies that responsibly address the management of risks within
their supply chain and handle issues associated with environmental and social externalities
created by suppliers through their operational activities. Such issues include, but are not
limited to, environmental responsibility, human rights, labor practices, ethics, and corruption. |
| ● | Fair
Competition: Companies that conscientiously manage issues associated with the existence
of monopolies, which may include, but are not limited to, excessive prices, poor quality
of service, and inefficiencies. |
| ● | GHG
Emissions: Companies that responsibly address direct (Scope 1) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
they may generate through their operations, which includes GHG emissions from stationary
(e.g., factories, power plants) or mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery vehicles, planes).
The seven GHGs covered under the Kyoto Protocol are included within the category: carbon
dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons
(PFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3). |
| ● | Hiring
Ethics: Companies that responsibly address their ability to ensure culture, hiring, and
promotion practices do not discriminate based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, and other
factors. |
| ● | Human
Rights: Companies that responsibly manage the relationship between their business and
the communities in which they operate, including, but not limited to, management of direct
and indirect impacts on core human rights, the treatment of indigenous peoples, and the impact
of local businesses. |
| ● | Low
Ecological Impact: Companies that demonstrate conscientious knowledge and management
of their impact on ecosystems and biodiversity through activities including, but not limited
to, land use for exploration, natural resource extraction, and cultivation, as well as project
development, construction, and siting. |
| ● | Materials
Efficiency: Companies that responsibly address issues related to the resilience of materials
supply chains to impacts of climate change and other external environmental and social factors,
including, but not limited to, product design, manufacturing, end-of-life management, reduction
of key material usage, maximizing planning efficiency, and R&D material diversity. |
| ● | Product
Safety: Companies that responsibly address issues involving unintended characteristics
of products sold or services provided that may create health or safety risks to end-users,
meet customer expectations, manage liability concerns, product testing, and intentionally
acknowledge recalls or market withdraws. |
| ● | Product
Sustainability: Companies that conscientiously acknowledge the characteristics of products
and services provided or sold and address customer and societal demand for more sustainable
products and services as well as meet evolving environmental and social regulations. |
| ● | Regulatory
Adherence: Companies that responsibly engage with regulators in cases where conflicting
corporate and public interests may have the potential for long-term adverse direct or indirect
environmental and social impacts and display their level of reliance on regulatory policy
or monetary incentives while acknowledging the necessity of regulatory compliance within
a competitive business environment. |
| ● | Systemic
Risk Management: Companies that responsibly manage systemic risks resulting from large-scale
weakening or collapse of systems upon which the economy and society depend, such as financial
systems, natural resource systems, and technological systems. |
| ● | Waste
& Hazmat Management: Companies that responsibly address environmental issues associated
with the hazardous and non-hazardous waste they generate and the treatment, handling, storage,
disposal, and regulatory compliance. |
| ● | Water
Conservation: Companies that conscientiously manage their water use, water consumption,
wastewater generation, water recycling, water treatment, and any other operations pertaining
to water resources, which may be influenced by regional differences in the availability and
quality of and competition for water resources. |
The
Adviser licenses the Index from Wallick Investments, LLC (the FDLS Index Provider.). After selecting the Index universe,
the FDLS Index Provider uses a proprietary ranking system to provide each common stock with an overall Fidelis Multi-Factor Score. The
FDLS Index Providers Fidelis Multi-Factor Score ranks securities based on their exposure to traditional factors: quality, value
and momentum. Quality also includes a Christian values component and the value factor includes a dividend and low volatility component.
Quality refers to a companys profitability, financial health and potential for economic growth. Value refers to a companys
dividend yield, price to sale ratio, price to earnings ratio, price to book value, price to cash flow ratio and volatility in relation
to the market. Momentum refers to whether a company is showing an upward price trend.
The
Index is composed of 100 constituents. The FDLS Index Provider selects the 40 companies with the highest Fidelis Multi-Factor Score for
the Index. The FDLS Index Provider then chooses the remaining 60 constituents of the Index by adding the companies from each sector with
the highest Fidelis Multi-Factor Score in accordance with the Indexs target sector weightings. The Index is weighted to permit
significant exposure, up to 27%, in the information technology sector. If necessary, due to restrictions that may eliminate a company
in the top 40, the FDLS Index Provider will select the next highest scoring stocks until a total of 40 have been selected. Next, the
FDLS Index Provider selects the highest-ranking stocks within each sector to complete the needed weightings. The process is repeated
for each sector. The FDLS Index Provider then assigns each of the final 100 Index constituents an equal weight of 1%. If the resulting
Index has weightings to international stocks greater than 35%, the FDLS Index Provider makes an adjustment to keep the weighting at or
below 35%. When a common stock within the Index is no longer available due to a corporate action or its Inspire Impact Score drops below
zero, the stock will be replaced.
The
Index is reconstituted and rebalanced on a quarterly basis. Deletions from the Index may be made at any time due to changes in business,
mergers, acquisitions, bankruptcies, suspensions, de-listings and spin-offs. The Index is unmanaged and cannot be invested in directly.
Weightings will be changed between rebalances based on market movements.
The
Fund employs a passive management investment strategy in seeking to achieve its investment objective. The Adviser generally
will use a replication methodology, meaning it will invest in all of the securities comprising the Index in proportion to the weightings
in the Index. However, the Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Index because, in certain circumstances, it may not
be possible or practicable to purchase all of the securities in the Index in their proportionate weightings. In that case, the Adviser
may purchase a sample of the securities in the Index to track the Index. Representative sampling is an indexing strategy
that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to that of an applicable
underlying index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics, fundamental characteristics
and liquidity measures similar to those of an underlying index. The Fund will not concentrate in any particular industry.
The
FDLS Index Provider is not affiliated with the Fund or the Adviser. The FDLS Provider developed the methodology for determining the securities
to be included in the Index and is responsible for the ongoing maintenance of the Index. The Index is calculated by Solactive AG, which
is not affiliated with the Fund or the Adviser.
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Principal
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The Fund generally invests at least 80% of its total assets in the component securities of the Inspire 500
Index. Inspire Investing, LLC (the Adviser), the Funds index provider (and also the Funds investment adviser)
selects domestic large capitalization equity securities using the Advisers Inspire Impact Score™, a proprietary selection
methodology that is designed to assign a score to a particular security based on the securitys alignment with biblical values
and the positive impact that company has on its customers, communities, workplace and the world. The Adviser defines large capitalization
companies to be those that are the largest 10% of the U.S. equity market.
Utilizing
specifically identified, publicly available and/or third-party sources, the Inspire Impact Score™ methodology endeavors to assign
negative scores to and exclude companies from the investment universe if they are found in violation of specified categories that do
not align with biblical values, and seeks to assign positive scores to companies which the Adviser has not found to be in violation of
the specified exclusionary categories. The selection methodology used in calculating the Inspire Impact Score™ is separate from
the fundamental and technical company research that Inspire performs for inclusion in its exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
It
is not possible for the Adviser to be aware of every action a company takes, and there may be additional positive or problematic activities
which a company engages in that are beyond what is included in the Inspire Impact Score™ calculation. The Inspire Impact Score™
is not meant to include all activities, whether public or private, of each company scored, but rather to assign a score to companies
based on the data the Adviser has found from the specified publicly available sources and/or third-party data providers. The Inspire
Impact Score™ represents the Advisers viewpoint on the biblical alignment of scored investments, and other investors may
have different opinions about what should or should not be considered a violation. The Adviser seeks to update Inspire Impact Scores™
in a timely fashion at regular intervals, but due to differences in research schedules, corporate engagement efforts and data publication
timing, a companys Inspire Impact Score™ may not immediately reflect all known data as soon as it is researched.
The
specific exclusionary categories deemed to not be in alignment with biblical values for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to
assign negative scores (to companies to be excluded from the investment universe) are as follows:
| ● | Abortifacients:
Companies that manufacture or distribute (1) abortifacient drugs (pharmaceuticals designed
or used to terminate a pregnancy at any stage, from conception onward), (2) medications whose
primary active ingredient (e.g., mifepristone & misoprostol) is capable of causing an
abortion regardless of stated use, and/or (3) contraceptive drugs, including emergency
contraceptive drugs (e.g., Plan B, levonorgestrel, ella, or certain hormonal IUDs),
that can prevent implantation of a fertilized egg, thereby acting as an abortifacient. |
| ● | Abortion
Activism: Companies that promote abortion access through legislative support, corporate
philanthropic activity, and/or employee travel benefits. Screening includes companies that
have signed Dont Ban Equality and/or Dont Ban Equality
in Texas Statement(s) from Planned Parenthood, a widely known abortion access advocate,
to pledge support for legalizing abortion access and to oppose legislative bans on abortion
access, companies that engage in corporate-guided philanthropy to Center for American Progress,
Women and Their Bodies, and/or Pathfinder, which advocate for abortion access (seeks to exclude
donations from employee matching programs, employee resource groups, donor-advised funds,
and foundations), and companies that offer employee travel benefits which allow employee
access to abortion services at any stage of pregnancy, according to Rhia Ventures and the
1792 Exchange. The Adviser is not able to screen for companies that donate to Planned Parenthood
because its corporate donor list is no longer publicly available. |
| ● | Abortion
Services: Companies that own and operate one or more medical facilities that provide
abortion procedures at any stage of pregnancy. |
| ● | Alcohol:
Companies that produce at least one alcoholic beverage or exclusively distribute alcoholic
beverages. |
| ● | Cannabis
Cultivation/Processing: Companies that cultivate or process cannabis for retail
or wholesale distribution. |
| ● | Cannabis
(Retail THC): Companies that produce or distribute retail cannabis products containing
THC (which is the psychoactive component of cannabis). |
| ● | Embryonic
Stem Cells: Companies that perform research on or produce products using embryonic stem
cells, companies that provide embryonic stem cells to other entities and companies that utilize
propagated stem cell lines which originally derived from embryonic stem cells. |
| ● | Exploitation:
Companies that contribute towards the unlawful and immoral practices of exploiting individuals
for labor or sexual purposes, according to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE). |
| ● | Gambling:
Companies that generate revenue from gambling facilities, products, and/or services (not
including third-party stores which offer Lottery services). |
| ● | In
Vitro Fertilization: Companies that offer in vitro fertilization services or manufacture
equipment specifically for the purpose of in vitro fertilization procedures. |
| ● | LGBT
Activism: Companies that receive an above-average rating in an annual self-reported survey
conducted by a national LGBT advocacy organization. The survey rates companies based
on their corporate LGBT activism across several areas, including philanthropy, corporate
policy, marketing efforts, and legislative support. The advocacy organization extrapolates
the information obtained and publishes each companys score, and an average score for
all companies. |
| ● | Sexually
Explicit Content: Companies that derive revenue from the creation, sale, or distribution
of sexually explicit content and/or services for recreation and/or entertainment purposes.
This category seeks to cover media types, such as film, print, gaming, and online that contain
pornographic content, including platforms that stream movies rated for nudity and/or sex,
and other explicit depictions of sex, such as audio pornography or animated sex/nudity. Also
included are companies that profit from sexually immoral services, such as strip clubs and
LGBT dating services, that actively promote and profit from unbiblical sexual behavior |
| ● | State
Owned Enterprise: Companies that are verifiably labeled state owned or have
greater than 50% ownership by a nation-state/government are excluded from investment due
to significant human rights violations of the following nature (as provided by U.S. Department
of State): freedom of religion, sexual exploitation of children, trafficking in persons (Tier
3 only), and/or predominantly governed by Sharia Law. The current list of countries excluded
from investment due to significant human rights violations is available at https://inspireinsight.com/excludedcountries. |
| ● | Tobacco:
Companies that derive revenue from producing or exclusively distributing tobacco products. |
In
addition to excluding companies involved in the preceding categories, the Adviser also excludes investment from companies engaged in
the following categories, though they do not constitute a negative Inspire Impact Score™:
| ● | Contraceptives
(Barrier): Companies that produce barrier-type contraceptives, such as condoms and diaphragms,
which prevent pregnancy by creating a physical barrier (rather than hormonal or chemical
means). |
| ● | Weapons
(Civilian Firearms): Companies that manufacture firearms for civilian use. |
| ● | Weapons
(Military): Companies that manufacture and produce weapons and ammunition for military
use (this category does not include maintenance, repair, and operation (MRO) companies or
individual components for weaponry). |
The
specific biblical alignment categories, for which the Inspire Impact Score™ seeks to assign positive scores (to companies not found
to be in violation of the previously mentioned exclusionary categories), are listed below. FactSet provides the data for each category.
| ● | Air
Quality: Companies that responsibly address and manage the impact of air quality resulting
from stationary (e.g., factories, power plants) and mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery
vehicles, planes) as well as industrial emissions (does not include GHG emissions). |
| ● | Business
Ethics: Companies that intentionally manage risks and opportunities surrounding ethical
conduct of business, including fraud, corruption, bias, negligence, bribery, facilitation
payments, fiduciary responsibilities, and other behavior that may have an ethical component. |
| ● | Business
Resilience: Companies that display a capacity to manage risks and opportunities associated
with incorporating social, environmental, and political transitions into long-term business
model planning despite operating in industries where evolving environmental and social realities
challenge their current business approach. |
| ● | Critical
Risk Management: Companies that display responsible use of management systems and scenario
planning to identify, understand, and prevent or minimize the occurrence of low-probability,
high-impact accidents, and emergencies with significant probable consequences, taking into
consideration the potential human, environmental, and social implications, as well as the
long-term ramifications for the company. |
| ● | Customer
Privacy: Companies that responsibly address risks related to the use of personally identifiable
information (PII) and other user/customer data for secondary purposes including, but not
limited, to marketing through affiliates and non-affiliates, data collecting procedures,
managing user/customer expectations, consent processes and compliance with evolving regulation
(does not include cybersecurity risks). |
| ● | Customer
Welfare: Companies that responsibly address customer welfare concerns over issues including,
but not limited to, health and nutrition of foods and beverages, antibiotic use in animal
production, and management of controlled substances. |
| ● | Data
Security: Companies that responsibly address management of risks related to collection,
retention, and use of sensitive, confidential, and/or proprietary customer or user data,
as well as strategic policies for incidents such as data breaches. |
| ● | Employee
Wellbeing: Companies that responsibly address their ability to create and maintain a
safe and healthy workplace environment that is free of injuries, fatalities, and illness
(both chronic and acute) through the implementation of safety management plans, training
requirements, regular audits of internal practices, and systematized monitoring and testing. |
| ● | Energy
Management: Companies that conscientiously manage the environmental impacts linked to
their energy consumption used in their business operations. |
| ● | Environmental
Risk Mitigation: Companies that display the ability to manage risks and opportunities
associated with direct exposure of their owned or controlled assets and operations as they
pertain to the potential or actual physical impacts of environmental factors, including factors
such as the increased frequency and severity of extreme weather, shifting climate, sea level
change, and other expected physical impacts. |
| ● | Ethical
Labor Practices: Companies that responsibly ensure adherence to widely accepted labor
standards within the workplace. This encompasses compliance with labor laws and internationally
recognized norms and standards, including fundamental human rights and the prohibition of
child, forced, or bonded labor, as well as exploitative labor practices. |
| ● | Ethical
Sales Practices: Companies that responsibly handle social issues arising from inadequately
managing the transparency, accuracy, and comprehensibility of marketing statements, advertising,
and product/service labeling. |
| ● | Ethical
Supply Chain Management: Companies that responsibly address the management of risks within
their supply chain and handle issues associated with environmental and social externalities
created by suppliers through their operational activities. Such issues include, but are not
limited to, environmental responsibility, human rights, labor practices, ethics, and corruption. |
| ● | Fair
Competition: Companies that conscientiously manage issues associated with the existence
of monopolies, which may include, but are not limited to, excessive prices, poor quality
of service, and inefficiencies. |
| ● | GHG
Emissions: Companies that responsibly address direct (Scope 1) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
they may generate through their operations, which includes GHG emissions from stationary
(e.g., factories, power plants) or mobile sources (e.g., trucks, delivery vehicles, planes).
The seven GHGs covered under the Kyoto Protocol are included within the category: carbon
dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons
(PFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3). |
| ● | Hiring
Ethics: Companies that responsibly address their ability to ensure culture, hiring, and
promotion practices do not discriminate based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, and other
factors. |
| ● | Human
Rights: Companies that responsibly manage the relationship between their business and
the communities in which they operate, including, but not limited to, management of direct
and indirect impacts on core human rights, the treatment of indigenous peoples, and the impact
of local businesses. |
| ● | Low
Ecological Impact: Companies that demonstrate conscientious knowledge and management
of their impact on ecosystems and biodiversity through activities including, but not limited
to, land use for exploration, natural resource extraction, and cultivation, as well as project
development, construction, and siting. |
| ● | Materials
Efficiency: Companies that responsibly address issues related to the resilience of materials
supply chains to impacts of climate change and other external environmental and social factors,
including, but not limited to, product design, manufacturing, end-of-life management, reduction
of key material usage, maximizing planning efficiency, and R&D material diversity. |
| ● | Product
Safety: Companies that responsibly address issues involving unintended characteristics
of products sold or services provided that may create health or safety risks to end-users,
meet customer expectations, manage liability concerns, product testing, and intentionally
acknowledge recalls or market withdraws. |
| ● | Product
Sustainability: Companies that conscientiously acknowledge the characteristics of products
and services provided or sold and address customer and societal demand for more sustainable
products and services as well as meet evolving environmental and social regulations. |
| ● | Regulatory
Adherence: Companies that responsibly engage with regulators in cases where conflicting
corporate and public interests may have the potential for long-term adverse direct or indirect
environmental and social impacts and display their level of reliance on regulatory policy
or monetary incentives while acknowledging the necessity of regulatory compliance within
a competitive business environment. |
| ● | Systemic
Risk Management: Companies that responsibly manage systemic risks resulting from large-scale
weakening or collapse of systems upon which the economy and society depend, such as financial
systems, natural resource systems, and technological systems. |
| ● | Waste
& Hazmat Management: Companies that responsibly address environmental issues associated
with the hazardous and non-hazardous waste they generate and the treatment, handling, storage,
disposal, and regulatory compliance. |
| ● | Water
Conservation: Companies that conscientiously manage their water use, water consumption,
wastewater generation, water recycling, water treatment, and any other operations pertaining
to water resources, which may be influenced by regional differences in the availability and
quality of and competition for water resources. |
The
Adviser uses software that analyzes publicly available data relating to the primary business activities, products and services, philanthropy,
legal activities, policies and practices when assigning Inspire Impact Scores™ to a company. The 500 largest US securities without
a negative Inspire Impact Score™ are included in the Inspire 500 Index and are market capitalization weighted so that components
with higher market values have a higher weighting in the Inspire 500 Index. The Inspire Impact Scores™ of the securities in the
Inspire 500 Index are reviewed at least annually for activities that would cause it to be removed from the investment universe due to
participation in the activities described above that do not align with biblical values, and the Inspire 500 Index is rebalanced annually.
If, upon review, the Inspire Impact Score™ of a security falls below the threshold level for inclusion in the Inspire 500 Index,
the security is removed from the Inspire 500 Index and replaced with a higher scoring security. A security with a score of zero—indicating
that the issuer has no violations to merit a negative score, but there is insufficient data to assess a positive score—may be included
in the Inspire 500 Index if it meets all other criteria set forth in the Inspire 500 Indexs proprietary methodology.
The
Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Inspire 500 Index because, in certain circumstances, it may not be possible or
practicable to purchase all of the securities in the Inspire 500 Index in their proportionate weightings. In that case, the Adviser may
purchase a sample of the securities in the Inspire 500 Index to track the Inspire 500 Index. This is known as representative sampling.
Representative sampling is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively
has an investment profile similar to that of an applicable underlying index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate,
investment characteristics, fundamental characteristics and liquidity measures similar to those of an underlying index.
The
Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Inspire 500 Index concentrates
in an industry or group of industries.
|