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Getting to the SDGs – And What’s Next for Multi-Sector Collaboration
We live in an era of multi-sector solutions. But it's easy to forget that diverse sectors working closely toward big global development goals is a recent phenomenon that didn’t happen by chance. At a talk at the William Davidson Institute, Tami Kesselman, founder of Aligned Investing Global, discussed several key tipping points that have allowed the business, government, philanthropic and impact investing communities to overcome misaligned priorities and mistrust. Check out her interview and her predictions on what will come next in multi-sector development.
- Categories
- Impact Assessment
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What the ‘Varsity Blues’ Scandal Says (And Doesn’t Say) About Bill McGlashan, the Rise Fund and Impact Investing
Bill McGlashan’s downfall at Rise, TPG's mammoth impact investing fund, has been making national headlines for the past week – sparking a wave of criticism that's putting the sector on the defensive. According to long-time impact investor Lauren Cochran, managing director at Blue Haven Initiative, the critics have a point - but they're missing an important part of the story. She explores what McGlashan's failings say about the Rise Fund and the broader industry – and what impact investing can learn from the scandal.
- Categories
- Impact Assessment, Investing
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The Promise (and the Absence) of EdTech: Why Countries Aren’t Adopting It More Widely – And What Can Be Done
Despite decades of promises and false starts, consistent, large-scale EdTech programs to address under-skilled or absent teachers remain frustratingly elusive in many emerging economies. Why are local Ministries of Education – and donors from rich countries – reluctant to embrace nationwide programs to address teacher gaps through technology? Dalberg analysts are asking the question, and the answers may lie in a lack of actionable evidence.
- Categories
- Education, Impact Assessment, Technology
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It’s Really Happening: Watching Impact Influence Capital
For more than two decades, impact measurement pioneers dreamed of the day when their tools would steer massive amounts of private capital into market-rate funds for social good. Now, writes Stephanie Kater at the Bridgespan Group, it’s actually starting to happen. Kater leads the Bridgespan team managing the impact underwriting for TPG’s Rise Fund, the $2 billion impact investing fund that Bono helped to launch. Kater pulls back the curtain on the processes undergirding the world’s largest impact investing fund.
- Categories
- Impact Assessment, Investing
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Press release: Impact Investing Leaders Introduce Opportunity Zones Reporting Framework
The U.S. Impact Investing Alliance and Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University collaborate to create a shared framework to guide best practices in the Opportunity Zones market.
- Categories
- Impact Assessment, Investing
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‘Appeasement Reporting’ in Development Projects: Satisfying Donors at the Expense of Beneficiaries
“Appeasement reporting” is a common practice among development organizations, says Richard Tinsley. The term refers to their tendency to slant donor reporting, making all projects appear successful and concealing any failures or lack of beneficiary interest. This appeases donors hoping for impactful projects – but it has a detrimental effect on beneficiaries, future projects and the organizations involved. Tinsley explores the causes and consequences of this practice, using the example of farmer co-ops for smallholders.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Impact Assessment
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How Does Digital Finance Impact Low-Income Clients? Insights From a New ‘Evidence Gap Map’
Digital finance can help people live happier, healthier and more prosperous lives – but those outcomes are not inevitable. And the more data we have about the effects of various digital finance products, the better those products will be, says Niamh Barry at Caribou Digital. That’s why the Partnership for Finance in a Digital Africa created the Digital Finance Evidence Gap Map, which now includes 55 studies covering 60 products. Barry highlights some key insights from the research, and how it can boost the sector’s social impact.
- Categories
- Finance, Impact Assessment
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Ease Off on the Accelerators: Why GALI’s Latest Study on Accelerator Programs May Be Overstating Their Impact
Early-stage social venture accelerators are growing at a rapid pace in emerging markets, and they receive widespread acclaim – driven in part by positive results from research conducted by the Global Accelerator Learning Initiative (GALI). But South Africa-based investor Nicky Khaki cautions that, while accelerators can certainly have value, their benefits to participating companies may not be as clear cut as GALI's data suggests. He explores why the studies may be exaggerating accelerators' impact – and how they could do better.
- Categories
- Impact Assessment, Social Enterprise
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