Seeking to increase their philanthropic impact, many engaged foundations are turning to impact investing. The reason is clear: The field and practice of impact investing have matured—structures are in place, best practices have emerged, and opportunities have multiplied—enabling more foundations to use this powerful tool.
During an early September 1988 morning, Calvin Evans and a friend set out on what was supposed to be a routine drug run.
But the deal suddenly went south. The acquaintance they were buying from stole their dope, leading Evans’ friend to shoot and kill the man. The Mt. Clemens police hit Evans, then 18 years old, with a second-degree murder charge.
While Evans maintains he wasn’t the shooter, he doesn’t deny a role in the crime, and he admits that he “lived by the code of the street” and existed in a desperate situation likely to end with his own death or a life sentence.
Thus, he considered the 25- to 40-years he received for the murder a sort of blessing in disguise that forced him to assess his life.
I think most people would agree that Michigan is on the rebound. In Detroit, where I live, new restaurants are popping up on a weekly basis, national retailers are moving in, and corporations are opening new offices. This hint of change in the Pure Michigan air is still polluted, however, by many of the same intractable issues — homelessness, unequal access to education and food, and environmental degradation, to name a few.
ON Tuesday, Michigan became the first state in the country to enact a law allowing the modern equivalent of a local stock market. The Michigan Investment Markets bill went little noticed. But it revives a forgotten American tradition that once fueled economic growth — and perhaps could again.
If the world is to solve its huge environmental and social problems, it’s going to take more than government spending and private philanthropy. These sources can bring in billions of dollars, but what’s really needed is trillions—the sort of money only business and the markets can provide.
Are you a nongovernmental organization wondering how to benefit from impact investors? You are not alone. The Nonprofit Finance Fund recently surveyed U.S. nonprofits, and 20 percent of respondents said they will be seeking funding other than grants and contracts — such as loans and other types of investments — within the next year. In addition, 26 percent are considering pursuing an earned income venture as a way to diversify their sources of revenue. And the timing couldn’t be more perfect. Global investors are expected to commit 19 percent more capital to impact investments this year than they did in 2013, according to a joint study from JP Morgan and the Global Impact Investing Network. A growing percentage of their portfolio is projected to be deployed to sub-Saharan Africa and Asia as well.
It’s safe to assume that impact investing will play an increasingly important role in the funding of organizations involved in making an impact in developing countries. While the appeal of impact investing is undeniable, nonprofits should know that taking investors on board is a major step, and implies a vast number of changes in the way their organization operates — changes that might conflict with their mission. When would it make sense, then, to transition to a revenue-generating model and when would it be better to remain a “traditional” nonprofit? This guide will hopefully allow you to get a better sense of what impact investing means for your organization.
In recent years, Detroit has been the setting of several prominent business success stories, from the growth of restaurants like Slows Bar-B-Q to the rise of high-end watch manufacturer Shinola. These profitable companies have contributed to and benefited from the Detroit revival narrative and we are all familiar with their stories.
But there is a growing number of Detroit business ventures concerned with more than simply making products and earning profits, and their success is equally as important to Detroit’s future as that of traditional businesses. They’re called “social enterprises,” and their story deserves the same amount attention we give to traditional business development in the city.
Roca, a 26-year-old Massachusetts organization that aids high-risk young men who are on track for incarceration and early death, has proven its worth with an effective model for keeping its participants out of jail and in steady jobs. Now the organization is getting a big boost from a seven year, $27 million social impact bond–the largest ever in the U.S.
Social impact bonds are a relatively new type of philanthropy where donors put money in social impact programs, which have specific and tangible goals and make money back (paid by the state of Massachusetts, which has received $11.7 million in funding for the project from the U.S. Department of Labor) only if those goals are met. In this case, Roca is participating in a randomized trial to see how its efforts in keeping young men out of prison compare to the norm.
This is a group of young men in the country that we leave on the street.
The funding, which comes from loans and grants provided by organizations including the Goldman Sachs Social Impact Fund, Living Cities, and New Profit, will allow Roca to help 929 at-risk young men between 17 to 23, all of whom are either exiting the juvenile justice system or are in the probation system currently. Nonprofit advisory firm Third Sector Capital Partners organized the effort.
