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If You Build It, They Will Come: Four Ways Impact Investors Can Boost Ecosystem Development
An entrepreneurial ecosystem isn't just "nice to have" - it's essential, both for a company’s long-term success and for investor performance. Ecosystems have a critical impact on a company’s ability to recruit a capable management team, hire skilled staff, benefit from effective mentorship and source new capital for growth – among many other areas. Dia Martin, Managing Director for Social Enterprise Finance at OPIC charts out some concrete actions investors can take today to build ecosystems for tomorrow.
- Categories
- Investing, Social Enterprise
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What Was the Top NextBillion Post of 2018? Vote for Your Favorite
As 2018 comes to a close and we look back at the year's top posts, it's clear that the social sector is developing an increasingly willingness to challenge long-held assumptions – even when this leads to uncomfortable discussions and difficult course corrections. As NextBillion launches our seventh annual "Top Post of the Year" contest, we encourage you to vote for the post that influenced you most in 2018. You can vote up to once every six hours until 12:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (U.S.) on Jan. 3, and the winners will be announced on Jan. 4. Thanks for reading, and happy holidays!
- Categories
- Agriculture, Energy, Finance, Investing, Social Enterprise, Technology
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Homegrown, African-Owned: A New Approach to Building Africa’s Off-Grid Energy Industry
How can Africa achieve universal access to electricity – and what role should social business and investing play? These questions remain controversial, as investors flood the off-grid solar space, while a small number of enterprises struggle to use that capital to expand beyond their core markets. According to Dan Murphy at Catalyst Off-Grid Advisors and Andreas Zeller at Open Capital Advisors, there’s a critical “missing link” where the industry should focus to reach the region’s 120 million underserved households. And there are thousands of African entrepreneurs who can lead the way – with the right kind of support from investors.
- Categories
- Energy
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Viewpoint: Almost Everything You Know About Impact Investing Is Wrong
Growing confusion about impact investing's key principles and practices has it headed for a fall.
- Categories
- Investing
- Tags
- impact investing
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Viewpoint: Impact Investing As A Poverty Solution: The Case For Patient Pessimism
Based on my experience over the last 50 years in poverty reduction in the developing countries, the high expectations of impact investment are at best unreasonable.
- Categories
- Investing
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Viewpoint: ‘Impact Investment’ Funds Advertise Great Returns and Social Impacts. They Aren’t Delivering.
Socially responsible investment is a $12 trillion industry. Does it make the world better? Probably not.
- Categories
- Investing
- Tags
- ESG, impact investing
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Viewpoint: How Socially Responsible Investing Lost Its Soul
ESG funds that promise to align your money with your values are often more marketing than science.
- Categories
- Investing
- Tags
- ESG, impact investing
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Matt Damon’s Water Charity Takes Impact Investing Plunge
Water.org, the nonprofit resulting from the 2009 merger of Matt Damon’s H2O Africa and Gary White’s WaterPartners, has completed an $11 million impact investing pilot project and has already closed on $33 million in a new fund that they hope will reach $50 million.
- Categories
- Environment, Investing
- Tags
- impact investing
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