 | Collaborative Capitalism and the Rise of Impact Investing Investing with the explicit goal of creating financial returns alongside measurable social and environmental benefits is catching fire. Wall Street's biggest players are rushing to provide clients with access to new impact investing options, amid growing consumer demand and evidence that the approach can be successfully executed. Recent research on outstanding impact investing funds has revealed a mature practice, vibrant with commercial investors, providing stable, predictable returns to their investors as well as supporting the creation of millions of jobs and other tangible outcomes in markets overlooked by traditional asset managers. And yet, the individuals and organizations committed to impact investing are just the tip of the iceberg in a larger movement. This includes the growing field of social enterprise, where market-based solutions can go beyond what government and philanthropy can do to directly address society's problems. And it includes institutional investors who have utilized impact screens and shareholder activism as a risk reduction strategy over the past 30 years. Collaborative Capitalism and the Rise of Impact Investing sees these movements as signs of a much more fundamental shift, as finance as a whole responds to an increased consumer demand for market transparency--the need to know exactly what we are buying, where and how it was made, and who it affects. By putting a lens on the underlying practices that bridge impact investing and risk mitigation finance, the book outlines the transformation in finance itself, driven by more cross-sector, transparent relationships in the service of creating long-term value for multiple stakeholders, not just shareholders. Cathy Clark is Director of the CASE Initiative on Impact Investing (CASE i3) and a professor at Duke University's Fuqua School of Business. A former impact investor who has managed both foundation and private investment funds, Cathy helped develop the standards for B Corporations, taught and directed a research program at Columbia Business School for nearly a decade, and has worked across the government, nonprofit and private sectors for over 20 years to promote social change through entrepreneurship. She is a leading authority in for-profit social entrepreneurship, impact investing, and impact assessment. Jed Emerson , Chief Strategist of ImpactAssets, is founder of some of the nation's leading venture philanthropy, community venture capital and social enterprises. Jed coined the term "blended value," has done extensive consulting for investors in Europe and Asia and has worked with firms across the investment spectrum, from foundation mission-related investing to sustainable private equity and public equities. He is Visiting Professor of Leadership and Social Entrepreneurship, NYU Abu Dhabi and a Senior Fellow with the Center for Social Investing at Heidelberg University (Germany) and Senior Advisor to The Sterling Group (a multi-family office based in Hong Kong). Ben Thornley is Director of Insight -- Pacific Community Ventures' global research and consulting practice in high-impact investing. Ben leads the Global Impact Investing Policy Project, a Rockefeller-funded research collaboration with the Initiative for Responsible Investment at Harvard University, and evaluates the social and economic impacts of over $25 billion of investments for clients including CalPERS, Citi, and the Annie E Casey Foundation. |
