- Beats
- The Brief
January 25, 2022
The Brief
Featured: Impact Management
How one fund manager tech’ed up its data management in search of impact alpha. SJF Ventures believed better, faster and smarter impact data could set them apart. The Durham, N.C.-based impact venture capital firm had outgrown its Excel spreadsheets. Collecting and analyzing impact data from dozens of investments in energy, food, education and health over two decades and four funds had become unwieldy. Worse, the outdated system was hampering the fund’s ability to build more impactful companies. Over the past year, SJF spoke with more than a dozen providers of technology for impact measurement and management and mapped the offerings for alignment with the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals and the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board, as well as for capabilities for benchmarking, visualization and surveys. Among the providers: Aeris Atlas, Impact Delta, Proof of Impact and Tablecloth. SJF gave ImpactAlpha an early look at the resulting report, which chronicles the journey, maps the platforms, and shares the firm’s analysis.
Dealflow: Green Infrastructure
Green infrastructure fund raises $741 million for renewable energy and efficiency in India. The Green Growth Equity Fund will be managed by Mumbai-based EverSource Capital, a joint venture between Indian private equity firm Everstone and BP’s renewable energy arm Lightsource BP. EverSource will invest in renewable energy, energy efficiency, e-mobility, resource conservation, and waste and water management. The company’s goal is to build a portfolio in support of India’s COP26 commitment to develop 500 gigawatts of non-fossil fuel energy capacity by 2030. The U.K.’s CDC Group invested $70 million as part of its billion-dollar climate funding commitment for India by 2026.
Podcast: Bridging the Skills Gap
Daniel Pianko, Achieve Partners: Finding the alpha in apprenticeships. “What’s the biggest problem you face?” Pianko likes to ask CEOs. If the answer is, “I can’t find enough trained people to do X,” the company is a good candidate for Achieve Partners. The New York-based private equity firm raised $180 million last year to acquire companies in healthcare, information technology and other industries facing skills shortages. Then it helps them create two-year apprenticeship programs and move newly trained workers into high-quality jobs. “In every company we acquire, we look to train at least 1,000 people a year,” Pianko said on ImpactAlpha’s Agents of Impact podcast. “We can do that across 10 companies, and train 10,000 people every year. And over the 10-year life of the fund put 100,000 Americans in good first jobs.”
Agents of Impact: Follow the Talent
Jonathan Pershing, a U.S. climate envoy under John Kerry, returns to the Hewlett Foundation to run its environment program, effective March 1… Tayler James, ex- of The Weather Channel, joins The Plug as director of research… Consulting firm FSG names Chirlie Felix, ex- of Teach For All, and Shumeca Pickett, ex- of consultancy Alfred Dewitt Ard, as managing directors.
- The Call
Looking Ahead to 2022 | December 17, 2021
The Reconstruction in 2022: Seizing the moment to build multiracial prosperity and democracy
‘Tis the season for our lookaheads to 2022 and, thanks to ImpactAlpha subscribers, we are able to make the roundups freely available. So …
Capitalism Reimagined | December 3, 2021
Call No. 35: Building a multi-movement engine to hold corporations accountable and reimagine capitalism (video)
ImpactAlpha, Dec. 3 – The New Capitalism Project has over the past two years dissected the failings of the current system and crafted a …
Frontier and Growth Markets | November 19, 2021
Call No. 34: How tech innovation is bridging gaps in small business financing in emerging markets
ImpactAlpha, November 19 – The boom in African fintech startups began before COVID-19. The economic shutdowns and financial dislocations of the pandemic supercharged …
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 | October 1, 2021
Call No. 31: Making sense of the ABCs of measurement to optimize for impact
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 1 – Metrics. Standards. Dimensions. Frameworks. SDGs. Cathy Clark of the Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship at Duke University’s Fuqua …
Photo by william william on UnsplashCapitalism Reimagined | September 17, 2021
Call No. 30: Universal owners aim to turn shareholder power into real-world impact
ImpactAlpha, Sept. 16 – Universal owners are leaning into their power as long-term stewards of capital. Asset owners and managers are deploying a flurry …
Capitalism Reimagined | September 1, 2021
RSVP for Call No. 30: Capitalism Reimagined
If you thought this spring’s ExxonMobil proxy fight was dramatic, just wait ’til next year. Join Engine No. 1’s Michael O’Leary, The Shareholder Commons’ Sara Murphy, Illinois …
Photo by K. Mitch Hodge on UnsplashCall Recording | July 9, 2021
Call No. 29: Capitalism reimagined for fair gainsharing and equitable prosperity
ImpactAlpha, July 9 – Elevating the power (and wages) of low-income workers is not typically at the top of investors’ agenda. But a fairer …
Catalytic Capital | June 2, 2021
Call No. 28: For these wealthy families, deploying catalytic capital for impact is a privilege and responsibility
ImpactAlpha, Jun. 2 – The very rich are different, as F. Scott Fitzgerald once observed. One of those differences is the prerogative to put …
Photo credit: Kuli KuliCall 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 …
Call Recording | January 6, 2021
Call No. 26: What Agents of Impact are expecting in 2021 (replay)
ImpactAlpha, January 6 — A few of the keywords thrown around on last month’s Agents of Impact Call No. 26: accountability, electrification, institutional, …
- Podcasts
Podcasts | January 25, 2022
Daniel Pianko, Achieve Partners: Finding the alpha in apprenticeships (podcast)
Daniel Pianko likes to ask CEOs, “What’s the biggest problem you face?” If the answer is, “I can’t find enough trained people to …
Podcasts | January 20, 2022
Larry Fink’s letter, BlocPower’s expansion, and Just Capital CEO Martin Whittaker
Monique Aiken and David Bank react to Larry Fink’s annual letter, BlocPower’s expansion and systemic approaches to income inequality. And, at (5:30), David …
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 …
Impact Investing | January 13, 2022
Briefing: The Roundtable looks ahead to 2022
On this week’s podcast, host Brian Walsh brings back roundtable regulars Imogen Rose-Smith and David Bank to take up private equity scandals, impending …
Photo by Will Francis on UnsplashPodcasts | December 24, 2021
ImpactAlpha’s Holiday List No. 1: Highlights from a year of podcasts
ImpactAlpha, Dec. 24 – “Too often impact investing is heavy on the investing and diet on the impact,” tweeted the Surdna Foundation’s Mekaelia Davis, …
Podcasts | December 16, 2021
Diversity in Asset Management and The Reconstruction This Time
Roundtable regulars Imogen Rose-Smith and David Bank join host Brian Walsh to talk about Imogen’s Institutional Shift column and how it relates to …
Podcasts | December 10, 2021
Briefing: The Reconstruction This Time
On this week’s podcast, host Monique Aiken reflects on the themes of The Reconstruction podcast – rethink, redress, liberate – with selections from …
The Reconstruction | December 6, 2021
A global bio fund is centering women founders and customers to drive equity and returns (podcast)
ImpactAlpha, Dec. 1 – Growing up in an unequal society in India prepared Ipshita Mandal-Johnson to overcome limitations. With a new life sciences fund, …
Podcasts | December 3, 2021
Briefing: Shareholder Activism and ReNewCos
On this week’s podcast, host Brian Walsh and roundtable regulars Imogen Rose-Smith and David Bank take up the corporate trend du jour: spinning …
Podcasts | November 18, 2021
Impact Briefing: Four Takeaways from COP26
On this week’s podcast, host Monique Aiken checks in with FullCycle’s Stephan Nicoleau, back from the climate summit in Glasgow. Plus, the headlines. …
Kelly Burton, Black Innovation AllianceThe Reconstruction | November 16, 2021
The Reconstruction: Building an ecosystem for Black and Brown entrepreneurs
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 16, 2021 – As co-convener of the Black Innovation Alliance, Kelly Burton is working to bring together small business owners and …
Podcasts | November 12, 2021
Impact Briefing: “The Marks,” “The Gretas,” and Inflation — Oh, My!
On this week’s podcast, host Brian Walsh is back from Glasgow and joined for an institutional impact roundtable by Imogen Rose-Smith and David …
- Opinion
Impact Voices | January 18, 2022
Do impact venture capital funds outperform traditional VC? Yes, no and maybe
Do impact venture capital funds outperform traditional VC? Yes. No. Maybe. Oh, you were hoping for a single answer? Read on. First off, …
Indian women farmers | Photo credit: Parikh Mahendra NCatalytic Capital | January 11, 2022
Ceniarth seeks to build ‘bridges to somewhere’ with its impact-first portfolio
The past year required acceptance of the reality that an ability to adapt to changing circumstances is simply the new normal for successful …
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, …
Sponsored | January 10, 2022
Putting people first in the digital health revolution
Editor’s note: This article is sponsored by Johnson & Johnson Impact Ventures, which supports ImpactAlpha’s Investing in Health coverage. In partnership with J&J Impact Ventures, ImpactAlpha is exploring the …
Acumen's Jacqueline Novogratz | Photo credit: Riccardo Savi/Getty Images for Concordia Summit/AFPImpact 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 …
photo: Greg Reese, PixabayImpact Voices | January 4, 2022
Investors press oil majors to address emissions from products
Climate accountability is coming for Big Oil. That message came tucked in a recent news release from Phillips 66, as it became the …
Impact Voices | December 27, 2021
ImpactAlpha’s Holiday List No. 2: Ten Impact Voices that drove the conversation in 2021
ImpactAlpha, Dec. 27 – Raise your voices. Investors, entrepreneurs, practitioners and thought leaders come to ImpactAlpha to use their Impact Voices to drive forward …
Democracy and Power | December 15, 2021
Turning pandemic profits into ‘democracy dividends’
Even as the recent discovery of the Omicron variant drags out the Covid pandemic, the richest Americans are still doing incredibly well. The …
Health center in Jakarta, IndonesiaSponsored | December 14, 2021
Nurturing local health startups in the communities that need them most
Editor’s note: This article is sponsored by Johnson & Johnson Impact Ventures, which supports ImpactAlpha’s Investing in Health coverage. In partnership with J&J Impact Ventures, ImpactAlpha is exploring …
Impact Voices | December 13, 2021
Here’s how we can mobilize private capital for a green and just transition
In July this year, at the invitation of the UK’s G7 Presidency, the Impact Taskforce was formed to answer the pressing question: “How …
Photo by Gayatri Malhotra on UnsplashImpact Voices | December 8, 2021
Shifting power, redefining risk, and advancing justice: A model for investors to advance racial equity
Over 100 million people in America live in economic insecurity, which includes half of all people of color. As we become a more …
Capitalism Reimagined | December 6, 2021
Three ways climate-committed shareholders can flex their power in 2022
While too many global investment firms filled the halls of Glasgow with more hot air, leading early-movers in shareholder action were finding new …
- Agents of Impact
Marcus Whitney.
Agents of Impact | January 21, 2022
Marcus Whitney, Jumpstart Nova: Investing in Black healthcare innovators
ImpactAlpha, January 21 — For years, Marcus Whitney has been the only Black healthcare venture capital partner in Nashville, a city awash in …
Harry HalloranAgents of Impact | January 14, 2022
Big vision and early bets: Harry Halloran leaves a legacy of business as a force for good
ImpactAlpha, Jan 14 – Harry Halloran had a big vision and tried to make it reality: Business could be a driving force for …
Agents of Impact | December 28, 2021
ImpactAlpha’s Holiday List No. 3: A dozen Agents of Impact who took leadership in 2021
ImpactAlpha, Dec. 28 – Of course we follow the money. But ImpactAlpha also follows the talent. In dozens of profiles this year, we highlighted …
WikicommonsAgents of Impact | December 10, 2021
Chris Sacca: ‘Cheaper, better, faster, stronger, simpler and just plain cooler’
If climate tech is the new software, Chris Sacca is the new, well, Chris Sacca. The Google executive turned venture capitalist made early …
Agents of Impact | November 12, 2021
Tatenda Furusa, ImaliPay
ImpactAlpha, November 12 – A tragedy in Nairobi spurred Tatenda Furusa to follow his calling. The serial entrepreneur from Zimbabwe was working for …
Agents of Impact | November 8, 2021
Friends of ImpactAlpha, we appreciate you
You are an Agent of Impact. And a friend of ImpactAlpha. You follow us each day because we follow the money, the talent …
Brianna Fruean, Elizabeth Wathuti, Vanessa Nakate, and Vinisha UmashankarImpact Investing | November 5, 2021
Agents of Impact: Young climate leaders
“As we sit comfortably here in this conference center in Glasgow, over two million of my fellow Kenyans are facing climate-related starvation,” 26-year-old …
Konda Mason, Jubilee JusticeAgents of Impact | October 29, 2021
Konda Mason, Jubilee Justice
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 29 – Konda Mason’s move from managing jazz musicians to financing regenerative farmers “felt pretty seamless to me,” Mason said at the …
Dawn Lippert, Elemental Excelerator and Earthshot VenturesAgents of Impact | October 22, 2021
Dawn Lippert, Elemental Excelerator and Earthshot Ventures
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 22 – Dawn Lippert is closing capital gaps at both ends of climate tech funding. For more than a decade with Elemental …
Agents of Impact | October 15, 2021
Aunnie Patton Power, impact advisor and author
ImpactAlpha, October 15 – Being an investment banker in Chicago as a recent graduate wasn’t working for Aunnie Patton Power. “I was given …
Syukuro Manabe, Klaus Hasselmann and Giorgio Parisi (photo: Ill. Niklas Elmehed © Nobel Prize Outreach)Agents of Impact | October 8, 2021
Climate scientists
ImpactAlpha, Oct. 8 – Climate scientists are having a moment, decades overdue. Private investment funds are seeking out climate soothsayers to inform decision-making. Prescient …
Agents of Impact | October 1, 2021
Oraan’s Halima Iqbal and Farwah Tapal: Digitizing women’s savings circles in Pakistan
ImpactAlpha, October 1 – Halima Iqbal didn’t plan to start her own fintech company when she returned to Pakistan in 2018, after years …
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