-
Funding the Fight Against the World’s Oldest Fuel Source: How New Financing Mechanisms in Clean Cooking Can Succeed Where Grants Have Failed
The use of biomass fuel for cooking has remained consistent over the centuries, despite the development sector's efforts to scale global access to clean cookstoves. As Paul Ronalds at Save the Children Global Ventures argues, a key reason for this failure is the estimated $5.5 billion annual funding gap facing clean cooking initiatives — a gap that traditional sources of finance, like private donations and government grants, have been unable to fill. He discusses several funding solutions, including carbon credits, that could help the clean cooking sector finally end the era of biomass fuel.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment, Investing, Technology
-
Solving the Funding Challenges of Indian MSMEs: The Advantages of Founder-Friendly Non-Dilutive Financing
About 30% of India’s GDP is generated by micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), which provide jobs for more than 110 million people and account for around 50% of the country’s exports. But as Bhavik Vasa at GetVantage points out, a drop in private equity and venture capital investments has led many of these entrepreneurs to shift towards more founder-friendly types of non-dilutive capital. He discusses the funding challenges facing Indian MSMEs, and why alternative forms of non-dilutive financing are uniquely suited to these businesses' needs.
- Categories
- Finance, Investing, Technology
-
Measuring Systems Change: Three Tools for Understanding Your System-Level Impact
There's a growing realization that traditional solutions to individual global challenges often fail to address the interconnected causes at the root of these issues. As a result, impact-focused organizations are increasingly viewing these problems as part of a broader system, and developing solutions that aim to make positive systemic change. But as Gaurav Gupta and Bianca Samson at Dalberg and Saloni Atal at Artha Global explain, measuring system-level impact presents some unique difficulties. They explore these challenges and share some measurement tools that can allow organizations to separate the signal from the noise.
- Categories
- Social Enterprise, Technology
-
Blockchain vs. Greenwashing: Why Emissions Reporting is Pointless Without Verifiable Data
The current carbon emissions reporting landscape is awash in bold, often dubious claims about the supposed climate impact of different businesses. According to Nish Kotecha at Finboot, these claims are a result of the growing pressure on companies to provide more environmental accountability, and they often reduce emissions reporting to an exercise in greenwashing. He explores how Finboot is leveraging blockchain to verify the accuracy and reliability of emissions data, and discusses some key obstacles to the wider adoption of blockchain-based emissions reporting.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment, Technology
-
Accelerating the Adoption of Inclusive Business Models in Multinational Corporations: Challenges, Solutions and Success Stories
Over two decades ago, C.K. Prahalad and Stuart L. Hart challenged the private sector to tap into “the fortune at the bottom of the pyramid” by developing business models that serve people living in poverty. As Annabel Beales at Business Fights Poverty explains, this vision has gained traction under the mantle of inclusive business — yet adoption of these business models remains low among large corporations. She explores why accelerating this adoption is crucial to eliminating poverty and addressing the other SDGs, and shares three key lessons that show how inclusive business can be operationalized by large corporations.
- Categories
- Investing, Social Enterprise
-
Regulatory Roadblocks are Holding Blended Finance Back: Here are Three Concrete Ways to Address Them
After hitting a 10-year low in 2022, blended finance flows bounced back to a five-year high of $15 billion in 2023. But despite this renewed momentum, Andrew Apampa at Convergence points out that blended finance faces a number of challenges that hinder its ability to scale — including the complex web of policies and regulations that deter highly regulated financial institutions from investing in emerging markets. He discusses these obstacles and presents some promising solutions, as outlined in Convergence’s State of Blended Finance 2024 report.
- Categories
- Investing
-
How Young People are Driving Africa’s Digital Future: A Recent Report Highlights the Impacts of Technology — And the Need for Greater Support
With over 400 million people between the ages of 15 and 35, Africa has the world’s youngest population — and by 2050, this youth population is projected to increase by 73%. As Grace Natabaalo and Chelsea Horváth at Caribou Digital explain, young Africans are leveraging digital platforms to find work, education and more — but they face numerous challenges in accessing and using technology. They share highlights from a new report based on discussions with 20 young people from seven countries across Africa, which show the impact of digital technology — and how this impact could be amplified.
- Categories
- Education, Technology
-
Why Americans Struggle to Share Power — And How Western Social Entrepreneurs Should Change Their Approach to Empowerment in the Global South
Who has the power in impact-focused enterprise? Many believe that this question lies at the heart of social enterprises' work, and that localizing power should be a core goal of the sector. But as Andrea Nelson Trice explains, this approach remains discouragingly rare among Western businesses and investors in emerging markets. She explores why it's so difficult for Westerners — and particularly Americans — to empower others, and shares solutions based on interviews and case studies with 90 American and Global South leaders working in the development space.
- Categories
- Social Enterprise
