Heading for Change, the donor-advised fund launched by the late Suzanne Biegel, expanded its portfolio with five fund investments in Asia, Africa and Latin America, bringing its total number of investments to 12. The latest deals include the second fund by Acumen’s KawiSafi Ventures, which is expanding its clean energy focus to green mobility, logistics and other climate technologies. Embedded in KawiSafi’s strategy is “a clear awareness and understanding of the unique barriers and vulnerabilities women face in the fund’s core markets,” the Heading for Change team wrote.
KawiSafi offers technical assistance to build a bigger pipeline of investable women-owned green businesses and support green jobs and skills training for women.
Also in Africa, Heading for Change is investing in women-led Catalyst Fund, a new climate tech venture fund incubated by BFA Global that focuses on African entrepreneurs and which just invested in South Africa-based The Awareness Company. Catalyst fund is aiming for 40% of its portfolio companies to be women-led, and the majority to be led by local entrepreneurs.
Climate impact in LatAm
Women-led EcoEnterprises Fund, in Bogota and Washington, DC, secured backing from Heading for Change for its fourth fund. The firm invests in sustainable agroforestry, tourism and biodiversity; through its work in rural and agricultural communities, it also aims to advance women’s economic participation.
Heading for Change also backed Singapore-based Circulate Capital, which is in the market with a Latin America-focused strategy that invests in opportunities to improve waste management and curb plastic waste. Its gender-strategy includes addressing pay gaps and providing training to women in its portfolio companies’ supply chains.
Resilient agriculture
Acumen’s Climate Action Pakistan Fund is investing in companies supporting the adoption of climate-smart technology and climate resilience in Pakistan’s agriculture sector. The woman-led fund is Acumen’s first dedicated fund in the country.
Heading for Change aims to have a mix of new managers building gender-relevant climate strategies and established managers that are integrating a climate lens in their work.
“This demonstration portfolio is working towards being well diversified and illustrative of the rich and growing set of climate and gender investing opportunities,” the team wrote.
