Socially responsible investing applies ethical criteria to portfolio construction, most often by excluding industries a family does not wish to hold — commonly tobacco, weapons, or fossil fuels. SRI is generally the older, exclusion-based practice that sustainable investing later built on.
Exclusion is the simplest expression of values in a portfolio and the easiest to explain to a family, which is part of why it remains common. Its limitation is that removing a holding does not by itself direct capital anywhere in particular.
Most portfolios described as SRI today combine exclusions with some positive selection, which is where the boundary with sustainable and impact investing becomes blurred in practice.
This definition is provided for educational purposes. It is general information, not investment, tax, or legal advice, and it does not account for any individual circumstances.