intelligence
aqua-spark | February 23, 2017
Year of the Oceans: No Time Like the Present to Reverse the Degradation of the Seas
Suddenly, oceans are everywhere. The run-up to the big United Nations Ocean Conference in June began with last week’s preparatory conference and the …
Billionaires | February 22, 2017
Bloomberg recruits Republicans to stake out a different immigration policy
Media mogul and former Mayor Michael Bloomberg has recruited Republicans as well as Democrats to help highlight the contributions of immigrants in all …
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 …
Frontier and Growth Markets | February 17, 2017
What will ‘middle-class’ mean in 2030?
By standard measures, India’s middle class is forecast to grow from 50 million in 2010 to 475 million by 2030. China’s middle class …
Beats | February 16, 2017
New impact funds showcased in 6th edition of ImpactAssets 50 directory
ImpactAssets has released the 6th edition of its ImpactAssets 50 directory. This year’s list of 50 impact investing fund managers includes regular repeaters …
aqua-spark | February 16, 2017
Is the Netherlands the new UK in European impact investing?
Britain has been the undeniable leader of the movement on the continent, providing a regulatory model, institutions such as Big Society Capital, and …
Beats | February 16, 2017
Demand for organic products boom, but supply lags
Last year’s 11 percent increase in organic farmland in the U.S. sounds like a big win for sustainable agriculture. Except it isn’t. Of the …
Good Jobs | February 16, 2017
The economic contributions of international migrants
Young, connected, entrepreneurial and skilled: migrants from Africa, China, India and the Philippines are making a positive impact on the countries they’ve settled in. …
Dealflow | February 16, 2017
Homegrown venture capital support helps double the number of Mexican startups
A border wall may stem the flow of people between the U.S. and Mexico, but it can’t stop the flow of ideas. “Regardless of …
Beats | February 14, 2017
Dina Powell: Impact investing’s woman in the White House
Whither social-impact investment in the Trump administration may depend on Dina Powell, the former Goldman Sachs executive who was named, with Ivanka Trump’s …
intelligence | February 14, 2017
Boom time for urban planners
If you think cities are crowded now, you haven’t seen anything yet. Today, 1.5 billion people, or about 20 percent of global population, …
carousel | February 14, 2017
Immigrants and the American Economy: A Love Story
There’s an upside to the Trump administration’s efforts to crack down on immigration: mobilized constituencies expressing renewed appreciation for immigrants’ positive impact on …
Good Jobs | February 14, 2017
Are development experts tackling the wrong problems?
№1 among the 2030 global Sustainable Development Goals is “end poverty in all its forms everywhere.” Efosa Ojomo at the Clayton Christensen Institute …
Beats | February 10, 2017
Long-termism pays off for business and society
The U.S. economy might have grown by an additional $1 trillion and generated five million more jobs in the last decade if all …
Education Tech | February 10, 2017
Silicon Valley aims to democratize individualized education
Venture capitalist Marc Andreessen predicts two kinds of jobs in the future: some people will tell computers what to do, others will be …
2050 | February 10, 2017
Meet the E7 of 2050: China, India, Indonesia, Brazil, Russia, Mexico and Turkey
Photo credit: KIM KYUNG-HOON / Reuters
2030 Finance | February 9, 2017
Growing Republican support for a carbon tax
Climate Finance Former Secretary of State James A. Baker III and party elders are pushing a “conservative climate solution.” In return for a …
carousel | February 9, 2017
Dispatch from the NewCo Shift Forum: Purpose is the new profit in tech startup pitches
How are entrepreneurs plotting to disrupt business as usual? By empowering their employees, reflecting their customers’ best selves and engaging the current political …
carousel | February 8, 2017
Laureate Education raises $490 million in first IPO for a public benefit corp
Laureate Education has grown to become the world’s largest for-profit college by targeting middle class students in emerging markets, particularly in Latin America. Its …
Climate Finance | February 8, 2017
Seven trends are transforming the global landscape through 2035
Climate Finance The new report from the National Intelligence Council assessing the forces and choices shaping the world for the next 20 years …
Beats | February 6, 2017
CEOs feel the heat from consumers and employees on ties to Trump
CEOs are feeling the heat from consumers and employees on their ties to Trump. That didn’t take long. First Uber CEO Travis Kalanick quit …
carousel | February 4, 2017
Young, Local and Social: A Latin American Formula for Inclusive Growth
An entrepreneurial culture, a youthful population and, paradoxically, still-high social inequality, are driving business opportunities throughout Latin America. Such local businesses may make …
2030 Finance | February 3, 2017
Disrupt Carbon: Shift to Electric Vehicles and Solar Power Speeds the End of the Oil Era
Climate Finance Students of disruptive innovation over the last several decades will recognize the pattern. Solar panels and electric cars, once derided as …
Gender Smart | February 2, 2017
Two steps forward, one step back on maternal health
Women Rising Back in 1990, for every 100,000 live births worldwide, 385 mothers died from complications of childbirth. By 2015, that number fell …
Beats | February 2, 2017
Women’s Health is Human Health
That giant sucking sound you hear is hundreds of millions of dollars rushing out of clinics and health services around the world. The loss …
Frontier and Growth Markets | February 1, 2017
Who’s driving solutions to youth unemployment? Young people
There will be nearly 1.3 billion youths between 15 and 24 in 2030. India, for example, will need to create 12 to 17 …
cuemath | February 1, 2017
Micro-Franchises Offer Global Entrepreneurs a Proven Business-in-a-Box
Developing-world entrepreneurs are creating their own jobs without having to start their own companies. Instead, they are adopting proven models in education, health …
Frontier and Growth Markets | January 28, 2017
Ignia demonstrates investment opportunities in Mexico’s emerging middle class
Inclusive Economics Monterey-based venture capital firm Ignia has invested $200 million in companies supporting upward economic mobility. The emerging middle class represents 70 …
Good Jobs | January 28, 2017
Can a Robot do Your Job?
Almost half of the activities for which people are paid almost $16 trillion in wages could be automated with current technology, according to …
Beats | January 28, 2017
Q&A with Derek Handley: From B Team to Aera VC
Derek Handley has a ticket to go to space with Virgin Galactic. But first the veteran of Richard Branson’s B Team has big …
intelligence | January 27, 2017
“Hard” or “soft” Brexit will determine U.K.’s path to 2030
Parliament, which now will have a say in triggering negotiations with the European Union, may want to insist on a soft landing, indeed. “Future …
carousel | January 26, 2017
Put Americans to work. Get them to work: Transit infrastructure’s double dividend
Not all infrastructure is created equal. The Trump administration is floating ambitious plans for bridges, roads, airports, to be financed through tax credits …
carousel | January 13, 2017
Why Small Businesses, Not Big Companies, May Be the Future of Employment
President-elect Trump has claimed some high-profile job wins with big companies. But the future of employment is in small businesses. Carrier, Fiat, Ford …
africa | January 12, 2017
Everyday Africa: Finding the Human Story
Bill Gates published his first blog of the new year yesterday: Five Reasons I’m Hopeful about Africa. Much of it was typical Gates. …
elevar-equity | December 22, 2016
Billionaires’ Ball: Deconstructing TPG’s $2 billion RISE Fund
Talk about raising expectations. The RISE fund scored an Andrew Ross Sorkin exclusive in the New York Times, led by Bono, backed by …
2030 Finance | December 22, 2016
Could Trump be getting ready to pull a Nixon-to-China on carbon?
Climate Finance His big projects in Russia and close relationship with Vladimir Putin have dominated most of the coverage of Rex Tillerson’s selection …
carousel | December 19, 2016
Clean cookstoves on the hot seat: Lessons from social impact hits and misses
“Clean cookstoves fail to save African kids,” read last week’s headline in The Hindu, one of India’s leading newspapers. A few days later, …
Beats | December 2, 2016
Impact Investing Deals Start to Flow in Central America and the Caribbean
Antigua, Guatemala was the place last month to take stock of the impact investing ecosystem in Central America and the Caribbean. More than …
Climate Finance | November 17, 2016
Wishful Thinking: Clean Energy Revolution Trumps Climate Skepticism at Global Climate Talks
2030 Marrakech, Morocco — If Donald Trump’s election killed any chance of fighting global climate change, nobody told the advocates, officials and bankers gathered here …
Beats | November 8, 2016
#Shifts October/November: New Theses, Markets and Signals Guiding Impact Investors
In this edition of #Shifts, ImpactAlpha’s monthly roundup of ideas and trends driving impact investing: investors look to restore degraded land and back …
2030 Finance | November 8, 2016
Road to Marrakech: Finance Trends Point to a Tipping Point in the Low-Carbon Transition
Climate Finance Here’s a quick lesson in the climate jargon you’re going to be hearing for the next two weeks. “Marrakech,” as in …
carousel | November 1, 2016
Impact Investing in Central America: New Funds, More Support, High Expectations
Promising impact ventures, new impact funds and growing interest from banks, NGOs and high net worth families — impact investing in Central America may finally …
Beats | October 6, 2016
Rockefeller Brothers Fund: How the Oil Heirs Are Getting Out of Fossil Fuels
The Rockefeller Brothers Fund — founded in 1940 by the five sons of John D. Rockefeller Jr. — made headlines a couple years ago when it announced …
carousel | October 6, 2016
Q&A with Roopa Kudva: Smartphones + Aadhaar = Tipping Point for Impact Investing in India
Tipping points are hard to call, at least until they’re obvious. But Roopa Kudva, a partner at Omidyar Network and managing director of …
Beats | September 29, 2016
#Shifts September: New Theses, Markets and Signals Guiding Impact Investors
Welcome to #Shifts, ImpactAlpha’s monthly roundup of the ideas and trends driving impact investing. In this edition: investors see opportunity in scaling impact …