Climate Finance
Features
Climate Finance | January 26, 2023
Voluntary carbon markets face a reckoning over credit quality and environmental impact
ImpactAlpha, Jan. 25 – Are carbon markets a key pillar of climate finance, or an empty exercise in double-counting and greenwashing? After soaring …
Impact Management | January 25, 2023
To catalyze climate capital, development finance institutions are pressed to ‘publish what you fund’
ImpactAlpha, January 25 – Six trillion dollars. That’s roughly how much is needed annually to fight climate change and meet the U.N.’s Sustainable …
Climate Finance | January 10, 2023
Matching local projects with climate capital to deploy community infrastructure
ImpactAlpha, Jan. 10 – The Great Deployment is on. The capital is teed up. The technology is ready. The Inflation Reduction Act and …
Climate and Clean Tech | January 5, 2023
Electrifying ‘dollar vans’ to boost livelihoods and cut carbon in New York’s transit deserts
ImpactAlpha, January 5 — Along Flatbush Ave. in Brooklyn, several informal “dollar vans” pass by for every city bus. The rides are more …
Climate Finance | January 4, 2023
Last year’s policy progress sets this year up for climate action
ImpactAlpha, Jan. 4 – The Inflation Reduction Act is the climate investment gift that promises to keep on giving. The law represents perhaps …
Climate Finance | December 19, 2022
Deadline 2030: Midway to climate marker, time to take deployment exponential
ImpactAlpha, Dec. 19 – Halfway there. When the ball drops in Times Square this year, it will ring in the critical midpoint in the …
Corporate Impact | December 14, 2022
Are Elon Musk’s Twitter escapades putting Tesla’s climate impact at risk?
ImpactAlpha, Dec. 14 – Some Tesla shareholders are frustrated that CEO Elon Musk is hurting the electric vehicle maker’s share price with his acquisition …
Climate Finance | December 8, 2022
Move over climate, here come biodiversity disclosures
ImpactAlpha, Dec. 8 – Even as a mandatory climate disclosure rule proposed by U.S. regulators hits speed bumps, efforts are underway to require …
Catalytic Capital | December 7, 2022
Circulate Capital eyes opportunities to tackle plastic waste in Latin America
ImpactAlpha, December 7 — Singapore-based investment fund Circulate Capital has spent the past two years backing projects in South and Southeast Asia focused on …
Sponsored | November 28, 2022
How the MacArthur Foundation is leveraging the ‘full continuum’ of capital to address the climate crisis
This interview is part of a partnership between ImpactAlpha and Mission Investors Exchange to present new ideas and perspectives in impact investing. Join …
Climate Finance | November 20, 2022
On deadline, COP27 wrangles with loss, damages and fossil fuels
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 21 – Exhausted negotiators from nearly 200 countries clinched a climate agreement in the wee hours Sunday as the two-week global …
Climate Finance | November 17, 2022
From carbon counting to carbon accounting: The case for Emissions Liability Management
“There does not yet exist the capacity,” Microsoft’s president, Brad Smith warned at last month’s Breakthrough Energy Summit in Seattle, for almost any …
Climate Finance | November 16, 2022
Indonesia aims to cut emissions with $300 million coal-plant deal
The Asian Development Bank is teaming up with an Indonesian fossil fuel-based power producer to decommission a 660 megawatt coal-fired power station and …
Climate Finance | November 16, 2022
Turning gaps into opportunities with the Climate Finance Tracker
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 16 – Billions of dollars in venture capital are pouring into climate tech. And hundreds of organizations, initiatives, coalitions and conferences are …
Climate Finance | November 15, 2022
New narrative of climate action: Unstoppable progress and immense opportunity
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 15 – It has become fashionable to dismiss global climate confabs like COP27 as so much “blah blah blah.” But for …
Signals | November 15, 2022
Women-led agribusinesses notch greater profits, faster growth and less risk
ImpactAlpha, November 15 – Financing smallholder farmers is difficult work. New data from Root Capital suggests that investing in women delivers the trifecta investors …
Climate Finance | November 10, 2022
At COP27, ‘loss and damages’ inches from discussion to action
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 10 – Scotland kicked off the race with $7 million. Then came $13.5 million from Denmark, $10 million from Ireland, $50 …
Climate Finance | November 10, 2022
The Rockefeller Foundation, Bezos Earth Fund, and U.S. tap private sector for energy transition funds
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 10 – Climate envoy John Kerry and the two foundations laid out plans for an Energy Transition Accelerator to generate funding …
Signals | November 9, 2022
It’s Finance Day at COP27: Here’s what’s on tap
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 9 – Developed nations are under pressure to provide more capital to low- and middle-income countries to help them grow sustainably …
Climate Finance | November 7, 2022
With progress on ‘loss and damages,’ COP27 may exceed low expectations
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 7 – No one has been expecting much from this year’s COP27 climate summit. Not the island nations and African countries …
Impact Investing | November 3, 2022
A new kind of carbon credit incentivizes fossil fuel producers to ‘keep it in the ground’
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 3 – ‘Keep it in the ground’ has long been a rallying cry for climate activists. A new company is creating …
Impact Investing | November 2, 2022
What’s at stake for climate, ESG and impact investors in the U.S. midterm elections
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 2 – The annual global climate summit known as COP27, this year in Egypt, will coincide with next week’s midterm elections …
Women Rising | November 1, 2022
Satgana raises funds for climate tech startups in Africa and Europe
ImpactAlpha, November 2 — Luxembourg-based Satgana, which means “a good company” in Sanskrit, has raised an undisclosed amount in a first close from …
Catalytic Capital | October 26, 2022
Creative finance is needed to plug gaps in global climate funding – and to rescue COP27
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 26 – Climate action is facing mighty headwinds just two weeks before the COP27 global climate summit kicks off in Sharm …
Agrifood Tech | October 25, 2022
Misfits Market finds an (im)perfect solution to the problems of food waste and surplus produce
The imperfect produce channels space took a major step forward last month, toward mainstreaming and potential adoption with the announced acquisition of Imperfect Foods by market leader Misfits …
Signals | October 24, 2022
Gender lens + climate finance = broader reach
ImpactAlpha, October 24 – Gender-lens investing’s next big thing: integrating gender considerations across climate action and other investment themes. Investors channeled more than $600 …
Impact Investing | October 20, 2022
Development finance institutions face calls for reform in the face of cascading climate and energy crises
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 21 – Embattled World Bank chief David Malpass made an about-face last week, copping to manmade global warming and the need …
Climate Finance | October 18, 2022
Rockefeller Foundation’s new climate strategy: A Q&A with Thomas Belazis
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 18 – In late July, The Rockefeller Foundation announced a major shift: it would make climate central to everything it does. …
Climate and Clean Tech | October 13, 2022
Raise Green snags $1.2 million to expand access to climate deals for retail investors
ImpactAlpha, October 13 — Somerville, Mass.-based Raise Green manages an online marketplace that helps small-scale solar developers and green ventures get financing for …
Blockchain/AI/IoT | October 6, 2022
Building and musing about blockchain-based regenerative finance in Medellin
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 6 – Blockchain eco-warriors descended on Medellin, Colombia last week to stake a claim for the role the technology can play in …
Corporate Impact | October 5, 2022
How corporations can reduce greenhouse emissions – of their retirement plans and cash deposits
Corporations have embraced net-zero. Some 322 companies have signed The Climate Pledge and even more have made public commitments to address climate change. …
Impact Investing | October 3, 2022
Seven innovative finance tools to unlock funding for climate challenges
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 3 – Climate finance is flowing, but persistent gaps remain, especially in developing nations. Creative solutions are needed to unlock private …
Impact Management | September 29, 2022
To understand the impact of electrifying schools in Colombia, ALIVE Ventures listens to parents and teachers
At Acumen Latam Impact Ventures (or ALIVE Ventures), one of our solar energy investments has reached over 100,000 beneficiaries with their solar installations …
Impact Investing | September 27, 2022
A dozen charts that map the uneven but hopeful path to a carbon-free economy
ImpactAlpha, Sept. 27 – Transitions are rarely a straight line. That is especially true of the massive global shift underway to a low-carbon economy. …
Impact Investing | September 25, 2022
Barbados debt-for-nature swap unlocks $50 million for marine conservation and ‘blue economy’
ImpactAlpha, Sept. 25 – Barbados is the latest nation to restructure its high-priced debt to free up funds for conservation. The Caribbean island …
Climate Finance | September 23, 2022
Trillions are the talk of Climate Week, as opportunities drive climate action.
ImpactAlpha, September 23 – The energy transition is moving from talk to action. Those not moving fast enough are finding themselves on the …
Climate Finance | September 22, 2022
A safe, low-carbon way to store your gold: Leave it in the ground
What’s the most eco-friendly way to mine gold? Not to mine it. Nature’s Vault, a blockchain-based finance company headquartered in Singapore, is buying …
Climate Finance | September 21, 2022
How The Good Roll and Wangara Green Ventures are saving trees and creating green jobs in Ghana
ImpactAlpha, September 21 – A startup in the Netherlands is teaming up with a fund manager in Ghana to demonstrate the green, resilient, local …
Impact Investing | September 20, 2022
Will a new EPA fund serve low- and moderate-income people? Five principles to promote success
On August 16, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act, federal legislation that invests nearly $400 billion over 10 years in renewable energy …
Climate Finance | September 19, 2022
New momentum and stubborn challenges as Climate Week kicks off (Call No. 44)
ImpactAlpha, Sept. 19 – Investors, entrepreneurs, corporate executives and world leaders have descended on New York for Climate Week, the annual gathering alongside the …
Climate Finance | September 15, 2022
Overheard at India’s ‘Impact 2022’: Climate investment tipping point
ImpactAlpha, September 15 – India is experiencing a surge of interest in climate investment and innovation, thanks to the country’s bold commitments at COP26 …
Blockchain/AI/IoT | September 15, 2022
Ethereum transition points the way to a carbon-free blockchain
ImpactAlpha, Sept. 15 – By the time you read this, energy consumption equivalent to that used annually by Chile and the carbon footprint of Hong …
Climate Finance | September 15, 2022
Investors in India are betting on climate tech’s financial opportunity
ImpactAlpha, September 15 – Climate finance in India surged in 2021, reaching about $20 billion in equity, green bonds and other types of capital. …
Clean Energy | September 14, 2022
Energy Impact Partners raises €390 million for its first European fund
ImpactAlpha, September 14 — Europe leads the clean energy transition and is a key market for the low-carbon transition, says Hans Kobler of …
Impact Investing | September 13, 2022
Bringing the energy transition to every building and neighborhood, with public and private capital
ImpactAlpha, Sept. 13 – Green jobs in South Los Angeles. Low-carbon retrofits and cost savings in New York public housing. Electric vehicle and battery …
Catalytic Capital | September 12, 2022
The Climate Finance Tracker’s data-driven map for catalytic climate investors (Q&A)
ImpactAlpha, Sept. 12 – Where is capital most impactful in combating climate change? What kind of capital is needed where? And who is …
Catalytic Capital | September 8, 2022
Measuring and valuing climate adaptation to mobilize capital for low-carbon development
ImpactAlpha, Sept. 8 – Solar irrigation to increase crop yields. Clean cookstoves to improve indoor air quality. Cold storage to raise farmers’ incomes. Water …
Signals | September 1, 2022
Epic floods in Pakistan highlight gap in climate funding for emerging markets
ImpactAlpha, Sept. 1 – The monsoon-season floods sweeping through Pakistan have killed more than 1,000 people, including hundreds of children, and created at …
Green Infrastructure | August 31, 2022
Temasek and HSBC commit $150 million for green infrastructure in Southeast Asia
ImpactAlpha, August 31 — Innovative financing mechanisms could help catalyze the more than $3 trillion gap in sustainable infrastructure financing in Southeast Asia …
sustainability | August 31, 2022
Organic brand Coyuchi looks to raise capital from the crowd
ImpactAlpha, August 31 — Long before sustainability became a buzzword, San Francisco-based Coyuchi was selling high-end organic cotton sheets, bath towels and other …
Climate and Clean Tech | August 29, 2022
New incentives spur building industry to take concrete steps to decarbonize cement
ImpactAlpha, August 29 — Discussions of “deep decarbonization” often turn to global production of concrete and cement, the ubiquitous building material that is …
Climate and Clean Tech | August 24, 2022
Fervo Energy rakes in $138 million for geothermal energy
ImpactAlpha, August 24 — Unlike wind and solar energy, geothermal energy offers steady, renewable power that doesn’t need storage. “Power buyers are interested …
Community Finance | August 18, 2022
Community lenders look to carve out a role for themselves in new green bank fund
ImpactAlpha, Aug. 18 – The Inflation Reduction Act, sprung from the seeming dead just three weeks ago, sprinted into law almost as fast …
Climate Finance | August 18, 2022
IFC partners with Aspiration in $10 million fund to lift quality of carbon credits
ImpactAlpha, August 18 – Forest projects that don’t remove carbon. Protection for forests that aren’t threatened. The low quality of many of the credits …
Policy Corner | August 15, 2022
From permitting to pipelines, mobilization for climate justice targets ‘poison pills’ in the Inflation Reduction Act
ImpactAlpha, Aug. 15 – As part of his deal to support the sweeping climate legislation just passed in the U.S. Congress, Sen. Joe Manchin …
Policy Corner | August 11, 2022
Eight ways the Inflation Reduction Act is resetting the climate table
ImpactAlpha, Aug. 11 – The Inflation Reduction Act hasn’t yet passed the House and already it is reframing narratives (the U.S. is a …
Policy Corner | August 10, 2022
“Green Bank” in climate bill to provide catalytic capital for renewable energy and community resilience
ImpactAlpha, Aug. 10 – It’s not the national green bank that advocates have pushed for more than a decade. But the $27 billion …
Policy Corner | August 3, 2022
Eyes on the prize: Green opportunities outweigh tax quibbles in U.S. climate bill
ImpactAlpha, Aug. 3 – So much for stakeholder capitalism. The CEO lobbying group Business Roundtable has perhaps predictably reverted to form with its …
Climate Finance | August 1, 2022
Can’t we just pay the Democratic Republic of Congo to keep its oil in the ground?
ImpactAlpha, August 1 – The biggest failure of nature conservation and restoration efforts “are the unrewarded provision of public goods and services,” the U.N. …
Climate Finance | July 19, 2022
Early-stage climate tech offers a bright spot amid the gloom
ImpactAlpha, July 19 – U.S. climate policy is in disarray. Venture capital investments are plummeting. The IPO window is shut. And crypto is …
Good Jobs | July 18, 2022
A $25 million plan to upskill and diversify the climate workforce
ImpactAlpha, Jul. 18 – The climate ground war will be won block by block, building by building (for context, see “Call No. 32: …
Signals | July 14, 2022
Is a green transition the cause – or the solution – in Sri Lanka’s crisis?
ImpactAlpha, July 14 – It was an irresistible meme: A crash transition to organic farming tanked Sri Lanka’s agricultural sector and sent the country …
United States | July 5, 2022
TPG Rise Climate backs Intersect Power’s $750 million round to scale up renewable energy infrastructure
ImpactAlpha, July 5 – San Francisco-based Intersect Power has raised $750 million in equity from TPG Rise Climate, TPG’s $7.3 billion climate impact …
Oceans | June 22, 2022
OK Doomer: These young entrepreneurs aren’t giving up on the climate or the oceans
The increasingly apocalyptic tone of the climate conversation has spurred a counter-movement calling for a different message, lest the doom and gloom extinguish …
Policy Corner | June 22, 2022
Pricing carbon could succeed where Scope 3 falls short in accounting for emissions
ImpactAlpha, June 22 – As the Securities and Exchange Commission mulls new rules for climate disclosure, investors are weighing in on what could …
Clean Energy | June 21, 2022
Mirova acquires SunFunder to expand clean energy and climate investing in emerging markets
ImpactAlpha, June 21 — Paris-based Mirova, a $27 billion unit of French global asset management firm Natixis Investment Managers, is acquiring SunFunder to …
Climate Finance | June 14, 2022
For investors and companies, net-zero pledges prove easier than action
ImpactAlpha, Jun. 14 – It’s one thing to join a climate initiative, another to commit assets and yet another to align assets with those …
Climate and Clean Tech | June 8, 2022
Black-led Rheaply secures $20 million to help companies reduce waste and limit emissions
ImpactAlpha, June 8 — Chicago-based Rheaply has raised $20 million in a financing round led by Revolution’s Rise of the Rest Seed Fund. …
Climate and Clean Tech | June 7, 2022
Temasek commits $3.6 billion to accelerate carbon markets and climate solutions
ImpactAlpha, June 7 – Temasek, the $283 billion sovereign wealth fund in Singapore is standing up GenZero to deploy long-term and flexible capital …
Agrifood Tech | May 31, 2022
Switch Bioworks raises $4.3 million for sustainable nitrogen biofertilizer
ImpactAlpha, May 31 — Biotech companies are promising to help farmers cut down on synthetic, and expensive, nitrogen fertilizer. San Carlos, Calif.-based Switch …
Impact Investing | May 23, 2022
At elite World Economic Forum, Davos Man and Davos Woman will talk sustainability, inclusion and action
ImpactAlpha, May 23 – It’s back. As the world’s corporate and government movers and shakers gather at Davos after a two-year pandemic pause, …
Impact Investing | May 23, 2022
Global corporations commit to carbon removal tech buys in South Pole-led initiative
ImpactAlpha, May 23 – Corporations are teaming up to use their buying power to accelerate commercialization of carbon removal technology. The latest: Boston …
Features | May 16, 2022
YAPU is giving microfinance a digital upgrade with a climate twist
ImpactAlpha, May 16 – Beekeeping in Colombia. Greenhouses in Peru. Biogas stoves in Benin. Small upgrades can increase resilience to climate change for the …
Catalytic Capital | May 10, 2022
Catalytic investors sharpen their tools to accelerate commercialization of climate solutions
ImpactAlpha, May 10 – The stubborn gap in financing for early-stage innovations for years was an obstacle to the development of breakthrough climate …
Frontier and Growth Markets | May 9, 2022
High fuel prices spur Africa’s transition to electric mobility
ImpactAlpha, May 9 – Long lines at Nairobi’s gas pumps last month put the spotlight on rising prices and fuel shortages caused by …
Frontier and Growth Markets | May 2, 2022
Can off-grid solar keep focus on energy access for the poor as commercial capital arrives?
ImpactAlpha, May 2 – It’s one of the conundrums of the pandemic: commercial capital is pouring into off-grid electricity companies in Africa and …
Inclusive Economy | April 22, 2022
Call No 41: How investors are catalyzing climate capital for adaptation and equity (video)
ImpactAlpha, April 22 – The Ukraine crisis risks tipping up to 1.7 billion people — over one-fifth of humanity — into poverty, destitution …
Climate Finance | April 18, 2022
Mitigation x adaptation x equity = climate resilience
ImpactAlpha, April 18 – Resilience is the solution to another disruption. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is raising the value of local food security, distributed clean …
Impact Investing | April 17, 2022
Social ‘co-benefits’ and ecosystem restoration begin to make climate adaptation investable
ImpactAlpha, April 14 – Climate-smart investments that restore ecosystems, improve women’s lives, reduce damage from storms and surges, avoid dislocation and migration and …
Smallholder Agriculture | April 13, 2022
Climate change spurs innovation in finance as smallholder farmers struggle to adapt
ImpactAlpha, Apr. 13 – The world’s 500 million smallholder farmers face a double crunch in coming decades: the need to grow more food for …
Agrifood Tech | April 11, 2022
Food startups are using discounts to give food a second life
When a business wants to move product, it cuts the price. Think 50% discounts on day-old bakery items. And while this is not …
Green Infrastructure | April 7, 2022
Inside BlocPower’s mission to upskill workers and green New York City buildings (photo story)
ImpactAlpha, April 7 — On a recent early spring day, a half-dozen workers were installing heat pumps in a two-unit property on Ellis …
Climate Finance | April 5, 2022
How climate investors are getting ready for the carbon removal boom
ImpactAlpha, April 5 – The world is hurtling towards irreversible and catastrophic warming. The goals of the Paris climate accord are fast slipping …
Smallholder Agriculture | March 31, 2022
Apollo Agriculture is out to show how financing smallholder farmers can boost production and profits
ImpactAlpha, March 31 – Smallholder farmers have long been the darling of development specialists, microfinance institutions and impact investors. Now, commercial investors are …
Climate Finance | March 29, 2022
Impact investing goes to the Oscars
ImpactAlpha, Mar. 29 – Forget yachts. Climate funds are the new Hollywood status symbols. King Richard, the biopic that won Will Smith his first …
Climate Finance | March 23, 2022
Third Sphere ramps up for ‘better, cheaper, faster’ climate impact
ImpactAlpha, Mar. 23 – When Shaun Abrahamson and Stonly Blue of Urban Us began investing in building electrification and other improvements for city life …
Policy Corner | March 22, 2022
SEC disclosure rules signal the arrival of climate accountability
ImpactAlpha, March 22 – Better than expected. That was the consensus among advocates for greater transparency for corporate climate-related risks and impacts after …
Climate Finance | March 3, 2022
From ‘Atlas of human suffering’ to ‘Roadmap for climate resilience’
ImpactAlpha. March 3 – Climate change is here. Deal with it. That sums up this week’s grim report from the authoritative Intergovernmental Panel …
Impact Investing | March 1, 2022
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine delivers a dose of green shock therapy
ImpactAlpha, Mar. 1 – The “shock therapy” that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union three decades ago was intended to speed the …
Catalytic Capital | February 16, 2022
Climate adaptation gets a fund of its own to invest in data, analytics and resilience
ImpactAlpha, February 16 — Investments to help businesses and communities adapt to climate change have long taken a back seat to financing to …
Call Recording | February 11, 2022
Call No. 37: Ramping up the supply of carbon reduction to meet the urgent demand (video)
ImpactAlpha, Feb. 11 – ”$100 a ton?” exclaimed CDP’s Paula DiPerna on ImpactAlpha’s Agents of Impact Call this week. “I should be popping champagne.” …
Climate Finance | February 8, 2022
Positive externalities: Carrots as well as sticks for the carbon era
ImpactAlpha, Feb. 8 – Putting a price on carbon is only the beginning. With prices on Europe’s emissions trading scheme topping $100 a ton …
Corporate Impact | February 7, 2022
Simple economics driving carbon prices: Soaring demand, limited supply
ImpactAlpha, Feb. 7 – The crossover has arrived for carbon, the commodity that will increasingly drive the global economy. The rising prices around …
Climate Finance | February 3, 2022
Rising price of carbon starts to hit balance sheets – and corporate decision-making
ImpactAlpha, Feb. 3 – The carbon footprint of corporations, long regarded as a “nonfinancial” factor, is about to become very material indeed. The …
Climate Finance | February 1, 2022
Deployment, deployment, deployment is the rallying cry as climate finance closes in on $1 trillion
ImpactAlpha, Feb. 1 – Venture investments in climate tech grab the headlines. Spending for energy transition deployment by corporations, government and households is …
Agrifood Tech | January 31, 2022
Climate and supply-chain disruptions spur investment in food waste solutions
Drivers of food price fluctuations such as climate change and labor shortages are also driving a wave of innovation in food waste solutions. Reducing …
Climate Finance | January 27, 2022
Climate is a crypto play as action moves from TradFi to DeFi to ReFi
ImpactAlpha, Jan. 27 – If blockchain was a solution in search of a problem, it may have found it in climate change. The …
Water | January 20, 2022
How pre-construction financing is building a pipeline of water projects in Kenya
ImpactAlpha, January 20 – Water and sanitation is one of the fastest growing, yet still underinvested sectors of impact investing. An experimental fund …
Impact Investing | January 20, 2022
Energy Impact Partners raises $200 million to target industrial decarbonization
ImpactAlpha, Jan. 20 – The New York-based venture firm has made a name investing in ready-to-deploy technologies that help its energy and industrial …
Capitalism Reimagined | January 18, 2022
The arc of Larry Fink’s annual letters trace the mainstreaming of sustainable investing
ImpactAlpha, Jan. 18 – You know impact investing has gone mainstream when Larry Fink’s annual letter to CEOs elicits a collective yawn. “This is …
Impact Voices
Climate Finance | January 23, 2023
Variations on a theme: Securitizing fees and taxes to finance climate adaptation
Ghana securitized an education tax to improve access to education and a petrol tax to pay off legacy debts in the banking sector. …
Climate Finance | January 4, 2023
Investing in climate entrepreneurs who think like project developers
Progress is as much about implementation as it is about invention. I wish I could lay claim to these profound words. They were …
Climate Finance | December 15, 2022
Just Energy Transition Partnerships and other ways to shift climate finance toward low-income countries
Important progress is underway on climate finance to developing countries, although you may have missed it in COP27 read-outs. The legacy of the …
Impact Voices | November 10, 2022
A future-focused agenda for COP27
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of Parties (COP27) that began a few days ago will allow the world to …
Policy Corner | November 2, 2022
Pursuing environmental justice through the Inflation Reduction Act
The Inflation Reduction Act is a historic investment in marginalized communities on the frontlines of climate change. However, the bill also links renewable …
Impact Voices | September 28, 2022
Move over New York: Clean energy action shifts to industrial Pittsburgh
The spotlight may have been on Climate Week NYC last week, but 370 miles away, Pittsburgh was the site of additional high-level climate …
Climate Finance | September 19, 2022
Speeding the energy transition: A seven-point action plan
ImpactAlpha, September 19 – Clean-tech research firm Clean Edge has been tracking the investment, policy, and technology trends of the modern energy transition for …
Climate Finance | September 12, 2022
God save the King – and planet
In 1952, the 25-year-old Princess Elizabeth of York stepped down from her treetop camp in Kenya’s Aberdare National Park and became Queen Elizabeth II. On …
Impact Voices | September 7, 2022
Three shifts needed to build resilient water systems in Jackson, Miss. and other U.S. cities
The (shocking but unsurprising) sad news is that 173,000 residents of Jackson, Miss. will be out of water indefinitely. This water issue is …
Agrifood Tech | September 5, 2022
Silver linings in an uncertain fundraising market for food waste innovation
We have entered a strange and challenging funding environment brought about by inflation and economic uncertainty – the two, of course, are inevitably …
Impact Voices | August 22, 2022
Wastewater startups are helping companies reduce costs – and carbon footprints
From record-setting heatwaves and wildfires to sustainability investments and decarbonization goals, carbon emissions are getting the attention they deserve. At the same time, …
Impact Investing | August 9, 2022
How four institutional investors use climate action plans to map their paths to net zero
New York State’s $279 billion pension fund understands the importance of planning. When the New York State Common Retirement Fund announced in 2020 …
Impact Voices | July 28, 2022
Energy efficiency is critical for climate goals and global security
Europe must wean itself off of Russian oil and gas. Energy efficiency can go a long way towards alleviating the pain. Energy efficiency …
Agrifood Tech | July 27, 2022
Food banks and food donors get a tech makeover to reduce hunger – and food waste
We are living in the technological age, and a trend ReFED has been watching closely is how this is affecting food rescue, which …
Smallholder Agriculture | June 16, 2022
Investing to transform food systems in the face of a global crisis
The growing food crisis has become a global catastrophe. The combined impact of the invasion of Ukraine, climate-related disasters like droughts, and other …
Impact Voices | June 6, 2022
Africa Eats: Filling the gap in operational capital to grow Africa’s small businesses
Find great companies, add growth capital, and the result are bigger, stronger, more scalable companies. This analysis demonstrates what happens when the “missing …
Impact Voices | May 23, 2022
Invest in agriculture for its critical role in food security and climate change
More than two billion photos were taken of dinner plates in 2020, at the advent of a global pandemic. Americans have always turned …
The Reconstruction | May 11, 2022
Seven or more ways to lead with justice in climate investing
Black and Indigenous communities live on the front lines of the climate crisis – where negative health, quality of life, and economic outcomes of …
Impact Management | May 4, 2022
How CDFIs can adopt carbon accounting to lead on climate disclosure
Know what you own. A group of community development financiers is taking the lead on climate disclosure to clean up their loan portfolios. …
Impact Voices | April 21, 2022
Investing in the planet by investing in the people who know it best
ImpactAlpha, April 21 – The theme of this year’s Earth Day is “Invest in our planet.” We’ve all heard the argument: governments, NGOs, …
Regeneration | April 21, 2022
On this Earth Day, three ways to care for the earth beneath our feet
Many of the pressing issues we face today have their roots in how we treat our land and grow and eat our food. …
The Reconstruction | April 19, 2022
Black Farmer Fund is reimagining U.S. agricultural finance, on farmers’ terms
A century ago, Black farmers represented 14% of all farmers in the U.S. Now? Just 1.4%. Barriers to affordable financing have cost farmers …
Impact Voices | March 31, 2022
Tipping points of volatility: The case for climate-Sharpe ratios
Investors today are grossly overlooking one critical category of volatility: climate change. When investors seek targeted risk budgets and returns by diversifying portfolios …
Impact Voices | March 28, 2022
A human-centered approach for impact investing in climate action
Climate finance is booming, now reaching over $600 billion in 2020. Yet, as the newest IPCC report makes clear, unequal climate impacts are …
Capitalism Reimagined | March 22, 2022
How the SEC’s rules will – and won’t – solve climate change
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed landmark climate-related disclosure requirements for public companies to inform investors about the risks a changing …
Impact Voices | January 11, 2022
Energy Impact Partners builds a tech portfolio for the low-carbon transition
At EIP, the entire investment focus of our coalition is accelerating the clean energy transition. For our 33 coalition partners, which include utilities, …
Impact Voices | January 6, 2022
To address climate inequality, we need innovative finance solutions
Developed countries received $60 billion more in clean energy investments last year than developing countries according to a recent BloombergNEF survey. Poorer countries …
Impact Voices | November 22, 2021
The right capital in the right place at the right time can take climate impact beyond ‘net zero’
Since COP26 was gaveled to a close earlier this month, a flurry of hot takes and deeply considered critiques have interrogated Mark Carney’s …
Impact Voices | November 1, 2021
International cooperation and open data are key to a just transition away from fossil fuels
This week, 196 countries are gathering in Glasgow for the long-awaited COP26 climate summit. They will work to deliver on their Paris Agreement …
Climate Finance | September 9, 2021
Letter from New Orleans: Climate risk is business risk, and opportunity
Consider these statements: “Climate Risk Is Investment Risk.” “The climate crisis poses enormous financial risk to investment managers, asset owners, and businesses. These …
Climate Finance | August 25, 2021
Investing in climate-smart farms to accelerate the net-zero transition
In case you haven’t seen the headlines – or haven’t experienced the extreme weather events yourself – climate change is here. In the …
Impact Voices | August 18, 2021
Modeling long-term emissions reductions to drive climate tech investments now
The increasing flow of capital into climate solutions offers a chance to avoid the most catastrophic climate scenarios. Increased investor focus on modeling …
Impact Voices | July 26, 2021
The case for a ‘Volcker Shock’ for climate
Contemporary efforts to grapple with the climate crisis almost all come with mid-twentieth century branding: a ‘Green New Deal,’ a ‘climate moonshot,’ a …
Impact Voices | June 7, 2021
Yes, impact-first catalytic capital is still needed for early-stage climate solutions
Climate technologies have become better and more affordable. Renewable energy can compete on cost with power from coal and natural-gas plants. The improving …
Impact Voices | June 3, 2021
For climate adaptation solutions, think smaller, local and experimental
This summer, drivers in Virginia’s coastal communities will have a new way to avoid hazardous flood zones generated by climate change. It’s not …
2030 Finance | June 3, 2021
E-buses are accelerating e-mobility in Latin America
ImpactAlpha, June 3 – Fleets of zero-emission electric buses operating in Latin America were once a distant dream, especially for city dwellers commuting to …
Conservation | April 28, 2021
Who’s going to pay? Due diligence in conservation finance starts with the offtake agreement
Venture capitalists in many sectors have developed robust due-diligence practices. The conservation finance community and its catalytic investors are still learning what works. …
Impact Management | March 24, 2021
Despite climate pledges, Goldman Sachs continues fracking finance
Photo by Sobrevolando Patagonia
Africa | March 24, 2021
African agtech is boosting yields, protecting resources and raising incomes
ImpactAlpha, March 24 – Field drones. Harvesting robots. Big Data-driven farm insights. Innovative technological applications in agriculture can have a profound impact on farmers’ …
Climate and Clean Tech | January 26, 2021
Obvious’ Andrew Beebe: We have entered the climate decade
As we finally put 2020 into hindsight, the road ahead is uncertain. On the one hand, stock markets continue to thrive, and the …
Impact Voices | January 26, 2021
Retool finance to rebuild soil health
Regenerative agriculture may be in vogue, but in many ways, it’s as old as agriculture itself, as practiced by our ancestors and to …
Impact Voices | January 13, 2021
What the U.S. return to the Paris Agreement means for investors
After years of signaling its intent to withdraw from the Paris Agreement to fight climate change, the United States made the decision official …
Impact Voices | December 21, 2020
Financing for climate adaptation can drive Africa’s economic development and climate goals
Power is critical to Africa’s development. At least 600 million people across the continent that don’t have access to affordable and reliable power. …
Africa | November 23, 2020
An ‘impact-first’ approach to investing for climate justice in rural communities
If you are an investor interested in learning more about how to invest in climate justice solutions, join us on December 3rd for …
2030 Finance | July 28, 2020
The world is arriving at where climate investors have long been
ImpactAlpha, July 28 – Much has been written about the link between Covid and the environment, and how Covid will prompt a new …
Catalytic Capital | June 25, 2020
Building a better post-COVID food system with investments in small businesses in developing economies
COVID-19 is – and will continue to have – a huge impact on global food and nutrition security. On the supply side, restrictions …
Asia | May 6, 2020
Helping circular economy startups in emerging markets scale their impact
The COVID-19 crisis has put into stark contrast the need for increased investment in solutions like better resilience, local job creation, affordable healthcare, …
2030 Finance | April 16, 2020
Make new mistakes: Learning from the history of climate change to tackle the COVID challenge
The global experience – and response – to COVID19 is the latest example of history repeating itself. Very rarely have we experienced events …
2030 Finance | March 2, 2020
Catalyzing capital to develop carbontech for gigaton-scale CO2 removal
The pace of international carbon dioxide emissions reduction is insufficient to limit global average temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius. Even with rapid …
2030 Finance | February 18, 2020
Listen to customers, not hypesters, about the impact of energy access
Few would dispute that for many of the 840 million people without access to electricity globally, off-grid solutions will be essential to improving …
Africa | January 23, 2020
Blending philanthropic, public and private capital to finance climate infrastructure in emerging economies
ImpactAlpha, Jan. 23 – The Climate Finance Partnership, announced this week at the World Economic Forum, showcases the catalytic power of philanthropic and public …
Beats | November 19, 2019
“Sandboxes for nature” could speed up environmental innovation
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 19 – Regulatory sandboxes are relatively new tools that provide a special exemption from standard regulation—usually in the fintech and energy …
Catalytic Capital | October 30, 2019
Getting smart about subsidies to bridge the agricultural financing gap
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 30 – The latest data suggests that financial service providers are supplying about $70 billion to rural agricultural households around the …
2030 Finance | October 15, 2019
Climate-smart private equity investors take leadership in Africa
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 15 – Climate change poses an existential threat to our societies. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Africa – the …
Agrifood Tech | October 10, 2019
Investing with a ‘nutrition lens’ to drive progress on the Sustainable Development Goals
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 10 – Poor nutrition is an untrenched global challenge that impacts many of the 17 U.N. Sustainable Development Goals. Solving it …
2030 Finance | September 16, 2019
Investments in sustainable aquaculture point to a greener ‘blue economy’
ImpactAlpha, Sept. 16 – Aquaculture has emerged as a vital alternative to wild-caught fish, a major source of the world’s protein, as ocean …
Catalytic Capital | April 10, 2019
Key ingredient in the blended-finance blend: revenues
ImpactAlpha, April 10 – As the term “blended finance” increasingly becomes part of the global development vernacular, the phrase is popping up in …
Features | January 14, 2019
How Ceniarth is seeking higher impact on rural livelihoods – while preserving its own capital
ImpactAlpha, January 14 – Last summer, Diane Isenberg, founder of our family office Ceniarth, went public in ImpactAlpha with our firm’s pledge to …
Catalytic Capital | December 6, 2018
Changing climate means growing demand for ‘adaptation finance’
A mismatch between the growing climate crises and underinvestment in mitigation solutions such as renewable energy means more investment will be needed to …
2030 Finance | August 29, 2018
Foundations collaborate on catalytic financing to accelerate climate action
Climate change entrepreneurs and fund managers are developing innovative solutions to worldwide challenges. But too often, promising efforts languish on the drawing board …
Impact Tech | June 19, 2018
Technology ventures aim to tackle challenges of the world’s small farmers, too
Farmers have not been passively watching the technology revolution for the last 20 years. Yet most technical advances have targeted commercial farmers in …
2030 Finance | April 4, 2018
How investors can get the most climate-change impact for their bucks
By Scott P. Burger, Alicia Seiger, and Sarah Kearney ImpactAlpha, Apr. 4, 2018 –– By 2050, experts say, the world economy needs to …
2030 Finance | March 23, 2018
As shareholders get active on climate, the SEC lets companies duck votes
Many impact investors posit that holding positions in public companies leads to positive impact because of the ability to pressure management through shareholder …
Dealflow
Frontier and Growth Markets | January 26, 2023
Climate tech venture Ecozen raises $25 million, giving early investors a partial exit
ImpactAlpha, January 26 – Ecozen, in Pune, India, launched a decade ago to provide affordable, clean energy-fueled products for India’s smallholder farmers. The …
Dealflow | January 25, 2023
Generate Capital raises $880 million to capitalize green infrastructure boom
ImpactAlpha, Jan. 25 – Generate is an investor, owner and operator of green infrastructure, from community solar systems and municipal wastewater treatment to …
Climate and Clean Tech | January 25, 2023
Scythe Robotics raises $42 million for ‘pay-as-you-mow’ landscaping equipment
ImpactAlpha, January 25 — Gas-powered equipment like lawn mowers and leaf blowers emit more than 240 million tons of pollutants each year, according …
Smallholder Agriculture | January 23, 2023
BlueOrchard invests $5.29 million in Brazilian insurer Newe for climate resilience
ImpactAlpha. Jan. 23 – Climate-driven floods, droughts and extreme weather around the world caused more than $268 billion in costs last year. Most …
Dealflow | January 23, 2023
Bamboo Capital’s Build Fund backs Green Mountain Arabica Coffee in Rwanda
ImpactAlpha, January 23 — In Rwanda’s Karenge region, women-owned Green Mountain Arabica Coffee exports green unroasted coffee beans that it sources from 1,200 …
Low-carbon transition | January 20, 2023
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Nature-based biotech
ImpactAlpha, January 20 — Forests, oceans and soils play a crucial role in absorbing greenhouse gas emissions – and they could use some …
Clean Energy | January 19, 2023
WeLight raises €19 million to bring solar mini-grids to rural Madagascar
ImpactAlpha, January 19 — The majority of Madagascar’s population lacks access to electricity. Triodos Investment Management, the European Investment Bank and EDFI ElectriFI …
Impact Tech | January 19, 2023
Summit Nanotech secures $50 million for sustainable lithium extraction
ImpactAlpha, January 19 — The scramble is on to commercialize sustainable lithium, which can overcome a major obstacle to the wholesale transition to …
Low-carbon transition | January 18, 2023
Sublime Systems secures $40 million to commercialize electrified zero-carbon cement
ImpactAlpha, January 18 — Mining, grinding and heating limestone to make cement, the main binding agent for concrete, releases an enormous amount of …
Climate and Clean Tech | January 18, 2023
Electrifying heavy-duty drayage trucks at California’s ports
ImpactAlpha, January 18 — The approximately 30,000 heavy-duty trucks that transport containers and bulk freight between ships and rail facilities at California’s 40 …
Dealflow | January 17, 2023
Anew Climate commits $640 million to Terra Global for nature-based carbon offsets in emerging markets
ImpactAlpha, January 17 — Oakland-based Anew is the product of TPG Rise’s rollup last year of Element Markets and Bluesource (for background, see …
Dealflow | January 13, 2023
Deal spotlight: Climate SPAC déjà vu
ImpactAlpha, January 13 – Spanish green hydrogen developer H2B2 Electrolysis Technologies this week announced plans to go public via acquisition. The news follows …
Climate Finance | January 12, 2023
Goldman Sachs climate fund hits $1.6 billion
ImpactAlpha, January 12 – Goldman Sachs Asset Management has raised $1.6 billion for its climate-focused Horizon fund. Horizon makes growth-stage investments of up to …
Dealflow | January 11, 2023
Generate bets on Sedron Technologies’ municipal wastewater treatment
ImpactAlpha, January 11 — Generate Capital, the San Francisco-based sustainable infrastructure financier and operator, launched Generate Upcycle last year to expand into recycling, …
Dealflow | January 10, 2023
Commerz Real’s Klimavest real assets impact fund crosses the billion-euro mark
ImpactAlpha, January 10 — Germany is one of several European nations that backslid on fossil fuels in order to generate power as Russia’s …
Clean Energy | January 9, 2023
A passel of clean energy deals to kick off the new year
ImpactAlpha, January 9 — Climate tech proved resilient last year relative to other VC sectors more impacted by the global economic slowdown. And …
Conservation | January 4, 2023
Conservation fund Terratai launches to invest in biodiversity startups in Indonesia
ImpactAlpha, January 4 – Indonesia is one of the most biodiverse countries on earth. Deforestation, overexploitation of natural resources, climate change and other …
Climate Finance | December 14, 2022
HSBC-backed Climate Asset Management raises $650 million for natural capital funds.
ImpactAlpha, December 14 – U.K.-based Climate Asset Management launched in 2020 to prove that protection and restoration of natural resources can be attractive …
Climate Finance | December 13, 2022
Avarni clinches funding to help companies track Scope 3 emissions
ImpactAlpha, December 13 – As regulators and investors push companies to report their emissions, startups are coming to market with carbon accounting and …
Dealflow | December 12, 2022
Varaha scores $4 million to help smallholder farmers create nature-based carbon credits
ImpactAlpha, December 12 — Gurugram-based Varaha has raised $4 million in a seed financing round backed by Omnivore, RTP Global, Better Capital and …
Clean Energy | December 7, 2022
Sun King gets $10 million to finance off-grid solar in Africa
ImpactAlpha, December 7 — In Africa, millions of off-grid low-income and rural households still use dirty and expensive kerosene lamps. Solar companies, like …
Impact Investing | December 2, 2022
TPG Rise’s $7.3 billion climate plan takes shape
ImpactAlpha, Dec. 2 – Jim Coulter has gotten climate religion. Since taking the helm of TPG’s impact-focused Rise fund last year, Coulter has …
Dealflow | November 30, 2022
Swell Energy’s $120 million raise points to the energy grid of the future
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 30 – There’s a place for large, centralized power plants and the giant private equity firms that write big checks to …
Impact Investing | November 30, 2022
TPG seeds Rubicon Carbon’s carbon marketplace with $300 million
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 30 – Private equity giant TPG is the latest player to tackle the opportunity – and challenge – of buying and …
Impact Tech | November 22, 2022
Kenyan electric bus maker BasiGo scores $6.6 million to electrify mass transit
ImpactAlpha, November 22 — Kenya has emerged as Africa’s early leader in e-mobility, primarily for two- and three-wheelers. EV leaders in the country, …
Climate Finance | November 18, 2022
Deal spotlight: Empowering – and paying – communities to protect nature
ImpactAlpha, November 18 – The issue of loss and damages was a sticking point as negotiators hammered out a final agreement at the COP27 …
Climate Finance | November 17, 2022
Climate Adaptive Infrastructure raises more than $1 billion for low-carbon real assets
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 17 – San Francisco sustainable infrastructure investment firm Climate Adaptive Infrastructure raised $825 in equity and $200 million for a co-investment program …
Frontier and Growth Markets | November 16, 2022
Katapult’s Africa accelerator zeros in on food security
ImpactAlpha, November 16 – Insect farming in Ghana. Aquaculture in Kenya. Land restoration in Morocco. Seven of the nine startups in the Norway-based impact …
Clean Energy | November 15, 2022
KKR bets $400 million on Serentica Renewable for clean energy in India
ImpactAlpha, November 15 — KKR, through its $3.9 billion Asia Pacific Infrastructure fund, is investing $400 million in New Delhi-based clean energy producer …
Climate Finance | November 14, 2022
Philanthropic organizations commit $500 million for energy transition in developing countries
ImpactAlpha, November 14 — A three-year commitment by nine philanthropies will support energy transition projects by low- and middle-income countries and their partners …
Low-carbon transition | November 10, 2022
Radical Ventures plants $9 million in seed funding for ranch management
ImpactAlpha, November 10 — Billings, Montana-based Enriched Ag uses machine-learning to help U.S. ranchers reduce emissions, improve soil health and generate revenues from …
Clean Energy | November 9, 2022
Havfram secures $250 million from Sandbrook Capital to finance offshore wind projects
ImpactAlpha, November 9 — Engineering and technological advances are pushing down the costs of offshore wind power. Stamford, Conn.-based climate infrastructure investor Sandbrook …
Climate and Clean Tech | November 8, 2022
Climate funds deploy capital to waste-tech
ImpactAlpha, November 8 — Nearly two billion tons of waste have been dumped in the air, oceans, soils and waterways this year. The …
Dealflow | November 7, 2022
Amazon commits $53 million to support female climate tech founders
ImpactAlpha, November 7 — Amazon, through its $2 billion Climate Pledge Fund, says it will invest $50 million directly in climate tech companies …
Dealflow | November 4, 2022
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Nature-based solutions
ImpactAlpha, November 4 — Demand is surging for high-quality nature-based carbon offsets, and developers are scrambling to supply them. Houston-based ZeroSix, formed by …
Climate and Clean Tech | November 3, 2022
Elemental Excelerator stocks the climate tech pipeline for hard-to-decarbonize industries
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 3 – Early-stage climate tech investor and accelerator Elemental Excelerator has helped launch some of the hottest names in climate tech. Among …
Impact Management | November 1, 2022
Orchard Street’s Social and Environmental Impact Partnership fund secures £90 million
ImpactAlpha, November 2 — U.K.-based commercial real estate investor Orchard Street Investment Management has raised $103.3 million in a first close from investors …
Dealflow | November 1, 2022
BlackRock secures $4.5 billion for its fourth global infrastructure fund
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 1 – The first close of the BlackRock Global Infrastructure Fund IV, which is targeting $7.5 billion, follows BlackRock’s $5.1 billion …
Low-carbon transition | October 28, 2022
Solugen rakes in over $200 million to expand zero-carbon chemical production
ImpactAlpha, October 28 — Houston-based zero-carbon chemicals producer Solugen has raised over $200 million to fund a new “bioforge” production plant in Minnesota. …
Climate Finance | October 28, 2022
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Climate and green infrastructure
ImpactAlpha, October 28 — Expectations may be low for the COP27 global climate summit, which kicks off in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt next …
Clean Energy | October 27, 2022
Saudi Aramco launches a $1.5 billion fund for energy-transition technologies
ImpactAlpha, October 27 – Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil company Aramco announced a $1.5 billion venture fund to invest in in carbon capture and storage, …
Smallholder Agriculture | October 25, 2022
KKR Global Impact takes a $300 million stake in seed platform Advanta Enterprises
ImpactAlpha, October 25 — KKR Global Impact, the $1.3 billion impact fund of private equity giant KKR, has acquired a 13.3% of Advanta …
Impact Investing | October 24, 2022
Lowercarbon doubles down on fusion energy with $250 million fund
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 25 – As global economies electrify and new solutions like carbon capture and water desalination come online, power demand could triple …
Oceans | October 24, 2022
Propeller Ventures raises $100 million climate tech fund for ocean-based solutions
ImpactAlpha, October 24 — Trees get all the glory. But oceans absorb 20 times more carbon dioxide than trees. “Only a fraction of …
Catalytic Capital | October 24, 2022
Kresge Foundation backs three community solar organizations with $7 million in program-related investments
ImpactAlpha, October 24 — Troy, Mich.-based Kresge Foundation is aiming to catalyze investments for solar energy and storage in low-wealth communities and communities …
Dealflow | October 21, 2022
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Oil giants’ biogas acquisitions
ImpactAlpha, October 21 — Oil majors looking to phase out of fossil fuels are buying their way into the energy transition. Shell and …
Conservation | October 20, 2022
New Forests’ African Forestry Impact Platform secures $200 million from development finance institutions
ImpactAlpha, October 20 — Nearly 10 million acres of forests in Africa, one of Earth’s most important carbon sinks and soil, are disappearing …
Climate Finance | October 19, 2022
India’s EKI Energy Services commits $24.3 million to launch a climate impact fund
ImpactAlpha, October 19 — Indore-based EKI Energy is a global carbon credits supplier and project manager with its own trading platform. The company …
Climate and Clean Tech | October 19, 2022
BP acquires U.S. renewable natural gas producer Archaea Energy in a deal valued at $4.1 billion.
ImpactAlpha, October 19 — BP became one of the first oil majors to embrace the low-carbon transition when CEO Bernard Looney took over …
Climate Finance | October 17, 2022
Lightrock’s climate fund raises €860 million for net-zero growth companies
ImpactAlpha, October 17 — London-based private equity investor Lightrock has raised €860 million ($838 million) for its first climate impact fund. Lightrock raised …
Dealflow | October 14, 2022
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Impact M&A
ImpactAlpha, October 14 — The year has seen an uptick in impact mergers and acquisitions, including Mirova’s purchase of SunFunder to expand clean …
ESG | October 13, 2022
Net Purpose raises £10 million for a fact-base of social and environmental performance
ImpactAlpha, October 13 — London-based data analytics provider Net Purpose has raised £10 million to help investors measure the performance of their portfolios …
Dealflow | October 12, 2022
Propagate scores $10 million to help farms transition to agroforestry
ImpactAlpha, October 12 — Agroforestry, the integration of trees in agricultural production, promises to sequester carbon, decrease erosion, reduce nutrient loss and increase …
Green Infrastructure | October 11, 2022
Hy24 hauls €2 billion for clean hydrogen infrastructure fund
ImpactAlpha, October 11 – European governments are intensifying their efforts to reduce their reliance on Russian hydrocarbons – and to hit their targets for …
Climate Finance | October 7, 2022
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Mega climate deals
ImpactAlpha, October 7 — Mega funds are finding mega deals. Multi-billion dollar funds from private equity giants like TPG Rise and Brookfield are …
Clean Energy | October 6, 2022
Bluestar Energy Capital launches with $100 million for renewable energy development
ImpactAlpha, October 6 — Bluestar Energy is a new renewable energy investment firm launched by Declan Flanigan, the former head of Danish power …
Climate and Clean Tech | October 6, 2022
LineVision raises $33 million to help utilities decarbonize
ImpactAlpha, October 6 — LineVision is among the wave of startups using hardware and software solutions to help utilities optimize performance to reduce …
Low-carbon transition | October 4, 2022
LanzaTech secures $550 million carbon recycling partnership with Brookfield Renewable
ImpactAlpha, October 4 — Chicago-based LanzaTech uses microbes to convert industrial carbon emissions into sustainable fuel and inputs for textile, rubber and packaging. …
Clean Energy | September 29, 2022
Moxion Power secures $100 million to decarbonize mobile power
ImpactAlpha, September 29 — Construction sites, outdoor events, film productions and disaster response teams need temporary power generation. “There’s enormous demand for cleaner …
Frontier and Growth Markets | September 27, 2022
Maris raises $12 million from Proparco for climate resilience in Africa
ImpactAlpha, September 28 – Maris invests in renewables energy, agriculture and forestry, as well as gold mining, real estate and services. French development finance …
Clean Energy | September 27, 2022
Mirova raises $1.5 billion for fifth energy transition infrastructure fund
ImpactAlpha, September 27 — Paris-based Mirova is the $27 billion impact unit of French asset management firm Natixis Investment Managers. The B Corp …
Climate Finance | September 27, 2022
AXA’s €500 million initiative to invest in reforestation and land conservation
ImpactAlpha, September 27 – AXA has launched a €500 million ($482 million) Natural Capital Strategy that will make equity investments and offer project financing …
Low-carbon transition | September 22, 2022
Future scores $5.3 million to reward consumers for reducing their carbon footprint
ImpactAlpha, September 22 — More U.S. consumers are looking to make climate-friendly purchases to reduce their carbon emissions. “There’s a common misconception that …
Clean Energy | September 21, 2022
KKR leads India’s Hero Future Energies’ $450 million raise to expand into battery storage and green hydrogen
ImpactAlpha, September 21 — New Delhi-based independent power producer Hero Future Energies was launched a decade ago by industrial equipment giant Hero Group. …
Dealflow | September 16, 2022
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Exit to stakeholders
ImpactAlpha, September 16 — Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard and his family have given away the $3 billion outdoor apparel company. The new owners …
Smallholder Agriculture | September 15, 2022
Sahyadri Farms raises nearly $40 million to digitalize India’s smallholder farmers
ImpactAlpha, September 15 — Sahyadri Farms is a farmer-led fruit and vegetable processing and export business that works with more than 18,000 farmers …
Green Infrastructure | September 14, 2022
TeraWatt Infrastructure rakes in more than $1 billion for EV charging for commercial fleets
ImpactAlpha, September 14 — A lack of charging infrastructure for commercial vehicles is slowing the deployment of electric trucks. San Francisco-based TeraWatt Infrastructure …
Agrifood Tech | September 13, 2022
Bond Pet Foods raises $17.5 million to make lab-grown meat for pets
ImpactAlpha, September 13 — Animal byproducts used in pet food are less carbon-intensive than other types of meat, but they are still derived …
Clean Energy | September 13, 2022
Tesseract raises $78 million to help consumers in Europe lower energy bills
ImpactAlpha, September 13 — Russian President Vladimir Putin this week threatened to cut off energy supplies to Europe. In the U.K., millions of …
Oceans | September 12, 2022
Ocean 14 Capital raises €100 million to advance the blue economy
ImpactAlpha, September 12 — Investing in sustainable and regenerative oceans is a multi-trillion-dollar global opportunity that could create 40 million jobs by 2030, …
Dealflow | September 9, 2022
Deal Spotlight: Clean energy financing for low- and middle-income countries
ImpactAlpha, September 9 — Emerging economies are helping lead the clean energy transition by attracting private investment to larger-scale renewable energy projects, the …
Dealflow | September 8, 2022
Misfits Market acquires Imperfect Foods to consolidate the food-waste reduction market
ImpactAlpha, September 8 — Even amid the downturn in venture funding this year, significant raises for companies in food waste management and upcycling …
Climate Finance | September 8, 2022
British International Investment lends $25 million for clean energy in Nepal
ImpactAlpha, September 8 – U.K. development agency British International Investment made a $25 million loan to NMB Bank to boost the bank’s renewable energy …
Clean Energy | September 7, 2022
Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners raises €3 billion for energy transition fund
ImpactAlpha, September 7 — The Danish fund received commitments from 65 institutional investors, including global pension and sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, asset …
Frontier and Growth Markets | September 7, 2022
Bboxx expands in West Africa with acquisition of off-grid solar peer PEG Africa
ImpactAlpha, September 7 – PEG Africa launched its pay-as-you-go solar business in Ghana in 2013 and has since expanded to Senegal, Ivory Coast and …
Clean Energy | September 1, 2022
Blue World raises €37 million for methanol fuel for decarbonized shipping
ImpactAlpha, September 1 — Starting in January, most global shipping companies will be required to have their vessels’ exhaust tested and graded on …
Climate and Clean Tech | August 30, 2022
Dryad secures €10.5 million for ‘ultra-early’ wildfire detection
ImpactAlpha, August 30 — Extreme heat waves, exacerbated by drought, set many parts of Europe ablaze this summer. Hotter temperatures are pushing severe …
Innovative Finance | August 30, 2022
Rockefeller Foundation taps satellites and AI to guide green infrastructure in Africa
ImpactAlpha, August 30 – The Rockefeller Foundation is backing a digital platform to aid policymakers in understanding how and where resilient infrastructure could mitigate …
Dealflow | August 29, 2022
Apple accelerates Black-, Latinx- and Indigenous-owned suppliers to meet its climate goals
ImpactAlpha, Aug. 29 – The second cohort of Apple’s Impact Accelerator includes Navajo Power, a majority Native-owned firm led by Brett Isaac that develops …
Dealflow | August 29, 2022
Clarity Movement raises $9.6 million to help customers monitor and fix air pollution
ImpactAlpha, Aug. 29 – Pollutants in the air are an escalating problem for health, climate and environmental justice. City and state governments, school districts, …
Dealflow | August 29, 2022
Carbon Counts raises $7 million to gamify climate change
ImpactAlpha, Aug. 29 – EverForest, the first game from upstart game company Carbon Counts, aims to help plant 100 million real trees on …
Climate and Clean Tech | August 26, 2022
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Electric Homes
ImpactAlpha, August 26 — The raft of consumer savings and incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act for heat pumps, induction stovetops and other …
Low-carbon transition | August 25, 2022
Carbon Direct raises $60 million for science-based carbon management
ImpactAlpha, August 25 — Supply chain emissions. Decarbonizing processes. Carbon offsets. Meeting net-zero goals is a daunting challenge for corporations. New York-based Carbon …
Clean Energy | August 17, 2022
BlackRock acquires Akaysha to deploy over $700 million for battery storage in Australia
ImpactAlpha, August 17 — Battery storage is “a fundamental requirement” to realize the $100 trillion opportunity presented by the transition to net zero, …
Muni Impact | August 11, 2022
Ting Internet secures $200 million from Generate for communication infrastructure in communities
ImpactAlpha, August 11 — Cable internet versus fiber optic, you ask? A lower-waste footprint and lower-energy consumption makes fiber technology the more eco-friendly …
Climate and Clean Tech | August 9, 2022
Raincoat scores $4.5 million to scale disaster insurance in the Caribbean and Latam
ImpactAlpha, August 9 — More than 150 million people in Latin America and the Caribbean have been impacted by hurricanes, earthquakes, floods and …
Agrifood Tech | August 9, 2022
Afresh rakes in $115 million to help grocers reduce food waste
ImpactAlpha, August 9 — The San Francisco-based company developed an AI-based system to help grocery store owners manage fresh food inventory and sales …
Climate and Clean Tech | August 8, 2022
Project Solar raises $23 million to provide low-cost solar installations to homeowners
ImpactAlpha, August 8 — Nearly half of American homeowners want to install solar panels in their homes, but high upfront costs are prohibitive. …
Low-carbon transition | August 2, 2022
Onto raises $60 million for electric-vehicles-as-a-service in Germany
ImpactAlpha, August 2 — U.K.-based Onto launched in 2017 to promote consumer usership, not ownership, of electric vehicles. Onto’s all-inclusive monthly subscription service …
Catalytic Capital | August 1, 2022
IDB and Green Climate Fund lead $450 million fund for e-mobility in Latin America and the Caribbean
ImpactAlpha, August 1 — The COVID-19 pandemic reduced users and revenues for public transportation companies, says Mauricio Claver-Carone of the Inter-American Development Bank, …
Climate and Clean Tech | August 1, 2022
Blue Frontier raises $20 million for energy-storing air conditioners
ImpactAlpha, August 1 — There should be a word for that feeling when you blast your air conditioner on a hot day and …
Climate Finance | July 29, 2022
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Climate-smart agriculture
ImpactAlpha, July 29 — Farmers around the world will need to produce about 70% more food by 2050 to feed an estimated nine …
Climate Finance | July 28, 2022
Circulate Capital secures $53 million to reduce plastic pollution
ImpactAlpha, July 28 — Circulate Capital has been investing in recycling and waste-reduction efforts to keep plastic out of oceans and waterways since …
Climate Finance | July 27, 2022
American Forest Foundation’s $10 million green bond connects forest owners to carbon markets
ImpactAlpha, July 27 – Nearly 40% of forestland in the U.S. is family owned. The American Forest Foundation wants to incentivize such smallholder forest …
Catalytic Capital | July 26, 2022
BlocPower secures a $3 million guarantee from Kresge Foundation to green and electrify buildings
ImpactAlpha, July 26 — Troy, Mich.-based Kresge Foundation has committed a $3 million guarantee to BlocPower. The foundation’s commitment supports a loan-loss reserve …
Climate and Clean Tech | July 25, 2022
Fifth Wall closes $500 million climate fund to decarbonize real estate
ImpactAlpha, July 25 — Buildings across the world contribute to nearly half of global carbon emissions. Property tech investor Fifth Wall’s first climate …
Clean Energy | July 25, 2022
D.light raises $50 million in debt as investors warm up (again) to off-grid solar
ImpactAlpha, July 25 – D.light, a pioneer in low-cost solar products for off-grid households, secured $50 million in debt financing to extend its product …
Dealflow | July 22, 2022
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Mergers and acquisitions
ImpactAlpha, July 22 — Evidence from the Great Financial Crisis shows that investors that made significant acquisitions have outperformed those that didn’t. Large …
Climate and Clean Tech | July 20, 2022
TAE Technologies secures $250 million to build its fusion reactor
ImpactAlpha, July 20 — You think it’s hot out? Fusion energy startup TAE Technologies announced it was able to sustain plasma at temperatures …
Frontier and Growth Markets | July 20, 2022
CrossBoundary Energy raises $40 million to expand clean energy in Africa
ImpactAlpha, July 20 — Nairobi-based CrossBoundary Energy invests in and develops solar systems for commercial and industrial customers in sub-Saharan Africa, where access …
Podcasts
Climate Finance | December 13, 2022
Jigar Shah on building a $140 billion ‘bridge to bankability’ for the energy transition (podcast)
ImpactAlpha, Dec. 13 – Talk about catalytic capital. With a fresh $100 billion in funding from the Inflation Reduction Act boosting its financing capacity …
Podcasts | May 27, 2022
Live-ish from Davos: Taking on the world with BlocPower and friends
ImpactAlpha, May 26 — Donnell Baird arrived at Davos this week with his partners from Brooklyn and Ithaca, where BlocPower is greening thousands …
Climate Finance | May 3, 2022
Jonathan Rose on building green, affordable communities of opportunity (podcast)
ImpactAlpha, May 3 – The Pasatiempo apartments on the edge of Silicon Valley near downtown Fremont, Calif., are a mix of market-rate and …
Impact Investing | January 19, 2022
Institutional Shift: ‘Net-zero’ becomes ‘uh-oh’ and other sustainability trends to watch in 2022 (podcast)
Getting to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions is going to mean a deep re-engineering of every industry, every corporation, every community, Equilibrium Capital’s Dave …
The Reconstruction | September 20, 2021
The Reconstruction: Redressing the past with climate-smart infrastructure for a just transition
ImpactAlpha, Sept 20 – Infrastructure is highways and bridges. And hospitals and airports; broadband, clean water, plumbing and electricity. And it all needs …
Climate Finance | August 17, 2021
Forget crypto: Here’s how to play the rising price of carbon
ImpactAlpha, August 17, 2021 – Rising demand. Shrinking supply. Higher prices. Carbon markets in Europe, California and elsewhere are finally starting to work …
Podcasts | January 13, 2021
Generate’s Jigar Shah: What’s next for sustainable infrastructure? Deployment, deployment deployment
ImpactAlpha, Jan 13 – First came solar and wind energy. Then batteries and storage. Now, a raft of better, cheaper and more sustainable …
Podcasts | December 18, 2020
Institutional Shift: The Great Burp Forward and other trends to watch in 2021
ImpactAlpha, December 18, 2020 – As it’s fit and proper to take stock of last year’s predictions before venturing new ones, we looked back …
Podcasts | December 17, 2020
Wildfires bring to the fore financing for forest resilience
Wildfires are natural. Catastrophic firestorms are not. More than 4 million acres of California burned this year, a record that included the first …
Features | September 23, 2019
Mispriced climate risks signal investment shocks – and opportunities for action
The bigger the protests, the better for investors. In a counter-intuitive shift, the estimated four million global youth climate strikers who took to …
2030 Finance | December 10, 2018
Climate signals blinking red, a test for global leadership at COP24 (updated)
Updates from COP 24 Leaders and laggards. Maersk, the world’s largest container shipper, pledged to be carbon-neutral by 2050, in the latest sign …
Climate Finance | April 3, 2018
Institutional investors come for the risk reduction, stay for the impact
ImpactAlpha, Apr. 3, 2018 –– The billionaires with their family offices command on outsized share of attention from impact fund managers. The …
Climate Finance | March 23, 2018
Which financial innovations will grow from billions to trillions?
https://medium.com/media/82d73555419e0a8a96448332079b505c/href By finding inventive ways to make social inclusion and environmental regeneration pay, innovative financing models are “internalizing positive externalities.” Too wonky? Just …
2030 Finance | November 22, 2017
Trillion-dollar question: How are the world’s biggest asset owners playing the risks ahead?
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 21 – No sooner had we recorded the latest episode of ImpactAlpha’s Returns on Investment podcast than Norway’s trillion-dollar sovereign wealth …
2030 Finance | September 22, 2017
Hurricanes add urgency to efforts to make climate resilience investable
https://medium.com/media/8c3aacc51fd93d95948bd6c177f57b9d/href We’re only beginning to tally the devastation from hurricanes Harvey, Irma and now Maria — and the wildfires in the Western U.S. and the …
2030 Finance | February 22, 2017
Why is Cleantech Still a Dirty Word for Investors?
Climate Finance https://medium.com/media/ecd55fa1f9cd2c83d228972a14902dad/href Now the 2016 numbers are in, thanks to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. And the worldwide totals are (drumroll) a drop …
2030 Finance | April 22, 2016
Turning Paris Climate Agreements Into Institutional-Ready Investments (Podcast)
https://medium.com/media/697e46c0cbcb9f523233eb5132cc226c/href But it’s going to take more than speeches or even treaties (which won’t go into effect until at least 2018, if not …
Calls
Climate Finance | September 19, 2022
New momentum and stubborn challenges as Climate Week kicks off (Call No. 44)
ImpactAlpha, Sept. 19 – Investors, entrepreneurs, corporate executives and world leaders have descended on New York for Climate Week, the annual gathering alongside the …
Inclusive Economy | April 22, 2022
Call No 41: How investors are catalyzing climate capital for adaptation and equity (video)
ImpactAlpha, April 22 – The Ukraine crisis risks tipping up to 1.7 billion people — over one-fifth of humanity — into poverty, destitution …
Call Recording | February 11, 2022
Call No. 37: Ramping up the supply of carbon reduction to meet the urgent demand (video)
ImpactAlpha, Feb. 11 – ”$100 a ton?” exclaimed CDP’s Paula DiPerna on ImpactAlpha’s Agents of Impact Call this week. “I should be popping champagne.” …
Catalytic Capital | October 29, 2021
Call No. 33: Using catalytic capital to fill climate finance gaps from the bottom up
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 29 – As the COP26 global climate summit kicks off this weekend, much of the focus will be on the massive …
The Reconstruction | October 15, 2021
Call No. 32: Black tech, green solutions for the planet and the people
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 15 – Invest in climate action for the planet – and the people. “Climate change is a public health issue, it’s a …
Call Recording | March 1, 2021
Call No. 27: Opportunities at the intersection of gender and climate
ImpactAlpha, March 1 – Capital is flowing to climate solutions. Climate bonds have topped $1 trillion. SPACs, or special purpose acquisition companies are …
Features | October 19, 2020
Call No. 24: Agents of Impact converge on financing solutions to ‘light every clinic’
The people and principles needed to solve the challenges of financing solar power for frontline health clinics were represented on ImpactAlpha’s Agents of …
Call Recording | July 1, 2020
Call No. 20: Investors share experiences in getting their assets off the sidelines
“It’s a great time for new entrants, but for those of us who’ve been doing this for a while it is equally urgent to raise our game right and to not get complacent,” said Margot Brandenburg of the Ford Foundation.
Features | June 24, 2020
Call No. 19: Green infrastructure is back on the agenda
ImpactAlpha, Jun 24 – The action in climate action is shifting to infrastructure. Driven by falling price curves for renewables, mispriced risk, and …
Agents of Impact
Bold leaders. Taking action. Driving impact.