Investing for Social and Environmental Impact

New research from the Monitor Institute and funded by Annie E. Casey Foundation, JPMorgan Chase Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, and W.K. Kellogg Foundation  "provides an overview of impact investing and a guide to the challenge of developing it into a major source of the capital, talent, and creativity needed to address social and environmental issues. Includes recommendations and profiles of impact investors."

From the introduction:
"The New Yorker moving into her first home, the student in Tanzania studying under electric light, the small-business owner in Cambodia expanding her payroll—none of these people would recognize one another as co-participants in the same emerging industry. Neither, perhaps, would the commercial banker placing debt in the Acquisition Fund, the high-net-worth individuals investing in E+Co, or the German worker whose pension fund invested in microfinance through Blue Orchard.

Yet these are all examples of the proliferation of activity occurring as a new industry of impact investing emerges. This industry which involves making investments that generate social and environmental value as well as financial return, has the potential to complement philanthropy and government intervention as a potent force for addressing global challenges at scale. This document is intended to shed light on the industry’s recent emergence and highlight the challenges it faces in achieving its promise. "

http://foundationcenter.org/gainknowledge/pubhub/pubhub_item.jhtml?id=fdc77600014