ImpactAlpha, June 1 – The Baltimore Community Foundation is planning to allocate 4% of its $148 million endowment to its new Invest for More fund, which will invest in affordable housing, community preservation and restoration, and green projects in and around the Baltimore area.
“The traditional foundation model, where our investment committee focuses on returns, and the grants committee separately focuses on grants, is just not enough anymore. It is no longer defensible for our investment strategy to simply seek financial returns and nothing else,” said Baltimore Community Foundation trustee Patti Baum. “We cannot simply grant our way out of our problems.”
- First commitments… Invest for more has made two investments already, to Enterprise Community Loan Fund to support affordable multifamily housing and to Healthy Neighborhoods for several community restoration and green projects.
- Going with the flow… Baltimore Community Foundation’s new impact fund follows similar announcements from the Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta, Lancaster County Community Foundation in Pennsylvania, Coastal Community Foundation in South Carolina, and others. (Read more here.)
