Re-Imagining Capitalism is Key to Inclusive Economic Growth

Jay OwenSRI/ESG News, Greentech, Trendspotting

 


 

“The old normal says growth comes first, and only once we’re growing, do we ask, ‘How can be more inclusive?’ The next normal will demonstrate that inclusivity is the foundation upon which the most widespread economic growth can occur.” – Amit Bouri, Co-Founder and CEO of the GIIN

The GIIN’s signature series of events for 2021, Next Normal Now, is designed to explore innovative solutions to pervasive social and economic problems. Earlier this month, Next Normal Now kicked off with an inspiring session on Inclusive Economic Growth, which gathered hundreds of people challenging the status quo to create systemic changes that bolster inclusive and sustainable capitalism.

The next convening on Climate Action is just around the corner! As the climate crisis intensifies, it threatens irreversible environmental degradation while disproportionately burdening the poorest and most vulnerable communities. The need for climate finance becomes more crucial than ever before, and the public and private sectors must unite to address it. Join us for this free live event to explore how we can mobilize finance to tackle these urgent challenges.

June 16, 2021 | 9:00-11:45 am EDT | Zoom
Register


REGISTER: New IRIS+ Themes Lay the Foundation for Development of Vital Impact Performance Resources

To highlight the newest themes in IRIS+, the GIIN is hosting a webinar on Climate Change Mitigation, Quality Jobs, and Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH). Over the past year, the urgency of the climate crisis continued to grow, while COVID-19 has further illuminated socio-economic disparities. The new IRIS+ themes are key to addressing these social and environmental challenges, and impact investors who target them play a critical role in creating a more sustainable, inclusive world.

This webinar – hosted alongside Ceres, the International Labour Organization and ITC-ILO, and Water Equity and Water.org – will explore the themes’ content and applications, in addition to offering opportunities for investors to help build resources on impact performance analytics.

Join this session on Wednesday, May 5, at 10:30 am EDT.
Register


PARTICIPATE: Investor Contributions Lead the
Way Towards Impact Performance Comparisons

Following the launch of the Climate Change Mitigation and Quality Jobs themes in IRIS+, the GIIN is expanding its impact performance research to these two sectors – and our Research team needs your help. The GIIN is urging impact investors in these sectors to submit their data to the upcoming Impact Performance Studies. Your data will support industry progress.

The ability to more deeply understand and compare impact performance is critical in the race to meet global impact goals and overcome environmental and social challenges. The GIIN’s impact performance work builds on more than a decade of experience in impact measurement and management.  IRIS+ is a critical component of this effort and has been instrumental in standardizing impact metrics. And now, using IRIS+ as the foundation, the Impact Performance Studies are a testing ground to explore real-world impact data and analytics in the pursuit of comparable impact metrics.

 

 

 

The GIIN is calling on all impact investors investing in Climate Change Mitigation and/or Quality Jobs to submit their data. To engage in the GIIN’s impact performance work, reach out to Sophia Sunderji at [email protected].


LEARN: Overcoming Impact Measurement and Management Gaps Are Seen as Crucial to Driving Greater Impact Results

Demand for impact benchmarks continues to grow alongside the impact investing industry. According to the second edition of The State of Impact Measurement and Management Practice, 92% of impact investors indicate impact benchmarks are essential to advancing their impact measurement and management (IMM) practice.

The GIIN is responding to this clear investor need for additional IMM resources, as a part of our focus on impact performance. Comparing impact results is crucial to understanding performance and gauging progress towards global development goals. The GIIN’s work on standardizing impact analytics lays the foundation for future benchmarks and strives to fill some of these key resource gaps.

92% of impact investors believe that impact benchmarks are important in advancing the practice of IMM, followed by tools to strengthen impact screening (83%) and pooled impact data (85%).

 

In case you missed it…

The State of Impact Measurement and Management Practice examines one of the key distinguishing features of impact investing: impact measurement and management (IMM). Released in January 2020, the second edition of this report features insights into investors’ IMM practices and motivations, as well as their perspectives on the market. This report also highlights the industry’s progress in rigorous IMM practice, identifies remaining challenges, and emphasizes IMM’s important role in achieving impact results.

 

Read


GIIN Member Highlight: Omnivore Uses Venture Capital to Jumpstart Indian Agriculture

As a regular feature in the GIIN newsletter, we share the work of GIIN members and how they are contributing to the growth of the industry.

Omnivore deploys venture capital to Indian startups developing innovative food and agriculture technologies. The firm strives to deliver market-rate returns while impacting the lives of smallholder farmers and rural communities in India. Omnivore’s portfolio companies address many of the challenges rampant in Indian agriculture, including smallholder farmer viability, water scarcity, and climate change. Some of Omnivore’s core themes for agritech investment include Farmer Platforms & Fintech, B2B Agri Marketplaces, Precision Agriculture, Farm to Consumer (F2C) Brands, Agrifood Life Sciences, and Post-Harvest Technologies.

Omnivore has been a GIIN member since 2015 and joined the GIIN’s Investors’ Council in 2019. For years, the firm has been integral in the GIIN’s development of sustainable agriculture impact measurement and management resources. This collaboration includes a large involvement in the IRIS+ working group on the topic and meaningful contributions to the GIIN’s Understanding Impact Performance: Agriculture Investments, among other GIIN research. Most recently, as the pandemic unfolded, the firm jumped to action and joined the Response, Recovery, and Resilience (R3) Investment Coalition. Through the R3 Coalition, Omnivore leaders connected with fellow impact investors to address the pandemic’s large-scale social and economic consequences.

According to Managing Partner Mark Kahn, “Agricultural technologies have immense potential to transform the lives of smallholder farmers and rural communities across India. At Omnivore, we believe agritech entrepreneurs will lead this transformation by leveraging innovation, agility, and growth to reinvent agriculture as we know it.”

Omnivore’s vision is centered on driving agricultural prosperity and transforming food systems in India. To make that vision a reality, Omnivore invests based on a theory of change that aims to increase smallholder profitability, enhance smallholder resilience, and improve agricultural sustainability. Since 2011, Omnivore has raised USD 135 million across two funds and backed over 25 startups.

Learn about GIIN Membership


APPLY: View new job opportunities in the GIIN Career Center

The GIIN is looking to expand its highly passionate and ambitious team and is currently recruiting a new Market Building Manager and Executive Assistant. Check out these roles and other opportunities to join the GIIN and other organizations in the impact investing industry.


 

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The Global Impact Investing Network (“GIIN”) is a nonprofit 501c(3) organization dedicated to increasing the scale and effectiveness of impact investing. The GIIN builds critical infrastructure and supports activities, education, and research that help accelerate the development of a coherent impact investing industry. Readers should be aware that the GIIN has had and will continue to have relationships with many of the organizations identified in this report, through some of which the GIIN has received and will continue to receive financial and other support. These materials do not constitute tax, legal, financial or investment advice, nor do they constitute an offer, solicitation, or recommendation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument or security. Readers should consult with their own investment, accounting, legal and tax advisers to evaluate independently the risks, consequences and suitability of any investment made by them. The information contained in these materials is made available solely for general information purposes and includes information provided by third-parties. The GIIN has collected data for this document that it believes to be accurate and reliable, but the GIIN does not warrant the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of this information. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. We disclaim all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on such materials by any reader of these materials or by anyone who may be informed of any of its contents.