Impact Investing Guide

What's going to close the $7 trillion gap in climate finance? One of my favorite reports each year from Climate Policy Initiative has some ideas for scaling the investments needed to align with a net-zero pathway. To my mind, this is the best report each year on the state of climate finance. It shows you: -Where financial flows are going from (across public and private sources) -Where money is going to (in industry, location, and activity) -What our estimated needs are across sectors and regions -The mitigation potential to unlock across sectors -Strategies for scaling both public and private investment. Here's a look at the sector gaps we are seeing to date and how they can be overcome. Energy systems- need a 2.5-fold increase in mitigation finance to align with average 2024 to 2030 needs. This sector has the highest emissions reduction potential, requiring investment in renewables, grid modernization, and storage solutions. Transport- also requires an almost 2.5-fold increase in mitigation finance, alongside a significant shift away from high-carbon investments. With a mitigation potential of 3.2 GtCO2e, priorities include electric mobility, public transport expansion, and freight decarbonization. Buildings and infrastructure- mitigation finance must rise nearly 4-fold. This is sector is generally climate-aligned, but further investment can realize its 3.2 GtCO2e mitigation potential. Focus areas include efficiency upgrades, sustainable construction, and low-carbon heating and cooling. Industry- a nearly 24-fold mitigation finance increase, along with reallocation from high-carbon activities, is needed to tap the sector's 4.4 GtCO2e abatement potential. Key areas include clean hydrogen, low-emission manufacturing of cement, steel, and ammonia, and carbon capture, and storage. AFOLU- holds great untapped emissions reduction opportunities—mitigation flows should increase 64-fold from USD 18 billion to USD 1,170 billion annually through 2030 to realize this potential. There is also a need to improve definitional boundaries and enhance tracking of finance flows to this sector. Check out the full report here along with the data and dozens of interactive charts: https://lnkd.in/esqBmpfe #climatefinance #climateinvestment #netzero #decarbonization #climatepolicy #climateaction #emissions

Investment Opportunities in Climate Adaptation and Resilience 🌎 Climate change is intensifying physical risks across regions and sectors, placing climate adaptation and resilience (A&R) at the center of global strategic priorities. While mitigation addresses emissions, A&R solutions tackle the immediate and long-term risks to infrastructure, economies, and communities. Investment in Climate A&R remains at an early stage despite its scale and urgency. The BCG and Temasek report projects global A&R financing needs of $0.5 trillion to $1.3 trillion per year by 2030. This presents a significant opportunity for private capital to drive both financial returns and systemic resilience. The Climate Adaptation & Resilience Investment Opportunities Map provides a framework to assess where capital can be most effectively deployed. It structures opportunities into seven impact themes and offers a granular view of subsectors and solutions across industries. Investors will find diverse entry points—from early-stage ventures focusing on pure-play A&R innovations to established industrial players integrating resilience solutions into broader portfolios. This dual landscape enables a mix of venture, growth, and buyout strategies tailored to different risk appetites. Adaptation markets are inherently localized. Flood defense strategies, water efficiency technologies, and agricultural resilience solutions vary by geography, creating fragmented but scalable market opportunities that respond to specific climate risks and regulatory frameworks. The report highlights the importance of co-benefits. Nature-based solutions, for example, deliver protective functions while enhancing biodiversity and ecological health. At the same time, material-intensive interventions require careful scrutiny to balance resilience gains with environmental impacts. To capitalize on these trends, investors will need to navigate sectors where regulation, insurance incentives, and risk disclosure frameworks are evolving rapidly. Competitive advantages will accrue to those with deep technical expertise and the ability to scale proven solutions across markets. The Climate Adaptation & Resilience Investment Map identifies seven key impact themes: - Food Resilience - Infrastructure Resilience - Health Resilience - Business and Community Resilience - Water Resilience - Energy Resilience - Biodiversity Resilience Climate adaptation is shaping a new investment frontier, where value creation is tied directly to long-term societal and economic stability. #sustainability #sustainable #business #esg #climatechange

New Nature Finance Series Idea? “Boring = Sexy” – Insurance Edition 🔥📉➡️📈 Insurance isn’t the flashiest topic. But here’s the thing—boring is what gets the big money moving. 💰🌍 And nature needs that 💰 💵 💰 . Right now, one of the biggest barriers to scaling nature-based solutions isn’t the projects themselves—it’s risk. Investors worry about carbon credit integrity, natural disasters, regulatory changes… and without a safety net, a lot of them just won’t commit. ❌💸 That’s why this new wave of insurance innovations is such a big deal. This article highlights how warranties on carbon credits, parametric insurance for natural disasters, and risk-sharing tools are quietly making nature finance investable at scale. 📑🔐 Why does this matter? 👉 It gives investors confidence—Less risk means more capital flowing into nature. 🌱💵 👉 It unlocks institutional money—Pension funds, banks, and asset managers need guardrails before they go big. 🏦📊 👉 It makes nature an asset class—When nature investments can be insured like infrastructure or real estate, they stop being “impact” and start being “mainstream.” 🚀🌿 This is how we turn billions into trillions for nature. More boring, please. 😏 Anyone seeing other insurance innovations to accelerate nature solutions? 👀🔥 #NatureFinance #climatefinance #InvestingInNature #ClimateSolutions #Insurance #ScalingImpact Hari Balasubramanian Patricia Zurita Samuel Gill Link to article: https://lnkd.in/eJDZVZaj

Less than 2% of VC funding goes to women founders. As a female VC, I want to spotlight funds and networks actively backing women entrepreneurs. If you’re a female founder, these are great doors to knock on: 🔹 Female Founders Fund – https://lnkd.in/g-NN8jqf The first VC fund exclusively investing in female-founded startups across tech, commerce, and media. 🔹 BBG Ventures – https://lnkd.in/gjtmBEwz NYC-based early-stage fund investing in companies with at least one female founder. 🔹 Golden Seeds – https://goldenseeds.com A pioneering angel network funding women-led businesses for over 15 years. 🔹 Halogen Ventures – https://halogenvc.com LA-based early-stage VC focused on female-founded consumer technology startups. 🔹 SoGal Ventures – https://sogalventures.com The first female-led, millennial VC firm, backing diverse founders globally. 🔹 Backstage Capital – https://lnkd.in/gNdfgyCU Founded by Arlan Hamilton, investing in underrepresented founders, including women. 🔹 Fearless Fund – https://fearless.fund VC fund investing in women of color at pre-seed, seed, and Series A stages. 🔹 XFactor Ventures – https://xfactor.ventures Seed-stage VC investing in female founders building billion-dollar businesses. 🔹 Portfolia – https://portfolia.co An investing platform designed for women backing female-led startups. 🔹 Mindshift Capital – https://lnkd.in/gfgwnYcD Global VC fund investing in early-stage women-led technology and fintech companies. 🔹 Astia Angels – https://astia.org Global angel investor network supporting high-growth women-led startups. 🔹 Chloe Capital – https://chloecapital.com VC + accelerator investing in women entrepreneurs across the U.S. 🔹 Hannah Grey – https://hannahgrey.com Female-led VC backing early-stage startups redefining work, wellness, and finance. 🔹 HearstLab – https://hearstlab.com Funds and supports women-led, tech-enabled startups with operational resources. 🔹 The Helm – https://thehelm.co An early-stage VC investing exclusively in women-founded companies. 🔹 How Women Invest – https://howwomeninvest.com A network of women executives investing in female-led companies at Seed and Series A. 🔹 Illuminate Ventures – https://illuminate.com Early-stage VC led by Cindy Padnos, investing in B2B/enterprise cloud and women founders. 🔹 Inspired Capital – https://lnkd.in/g7YZbJWj Founded by Alexa von Tobel and Penny Pritzker, backing diverse early-stage founders. #Womenpower 🔹 Cowboy Ventures – https://cowboy.vc Aileen Lee’s seed-stage VC, backing diverse and often women-led startups. 🔹 Revenge Capital – https://revengecapital.com London-based £50M fund focused on overlooked female entrepreneurs. 🔹 Serena Ventures – https://serenaventures.com Founded by Serena Williams, investing in women and minority founders globally. 🔹 Ulu Ventures – https://uluventures.com Data-driven VC, majority of portfolio includes women, immigrants, and minority founders.

What happens when African fund managers lead the investment strategy? In a recent CNBC Africa interview, DOROTHY NYAMBI, CEO of MEDA (Mennonite Economic Development Associates) shared powerful insights into how the Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund is reimagining what it means to put African capital in African hands. The Fund demonstrates that capital can be reimagined and redirected to serve African fund managers, entrepreneurs, and especially women, using a gender-lens and locally led investment model that: 1. Rethinks gender-lens investing • It’s not about ticking diversity boxes- it’s about empowering women with real agency to influence investment decisions and strategy. • The Fund emphasizes patience and local context, shaping investment approaches to suit real-world African realities rather than imposing external templates. 2. Builds local ecosystems • Local leadership matters. The Fund invests in and supports African and female-led managers, ensuring they are not just invited to the table- but leading it. • It enables fund managers to spearhead strategy and draw in other stakeholders, strengthening the investment ecosystem from within. 3. Focuses on returns “on inclusion” • The Fund measures more than financial returns. It prioritizes social impact, like job creation and economic empowerment. • The goal: dignified, sustainable employment, particularly for African youth, moving beyond short-term fixes. 4. Is intentional about youth and women inclusion • The Fund challenges outdated narratives that investing in women is riskier, instead proving the financial viability of women-led enterprises. • It applies a holistic, end-to-end gender lens, supporting women as entrepreneurs, fund managers, and drivers of growth across the value chain. Impact so far: • ~US$150 million deployed across 18 African-led investment vehicles • 49 SMEs supported in 12 countries • 2,500 full-time jobs created, with 1,100 held by women • 75% of supported vehicles are female-led • Honored with the DEI Award at AVCA’s 20th Anniversary Conference In essence, African-led, gender-smart capital flows are delivering equity and economic resilience. Fund managers and entrepreneurs are shaping outcomes with a clear focus on inclusion, impact, and sustainability. This is a transformative model where African and female-led fund managers are no longer just recipients of capital, but drivers of it, reshaping the investment landscape to deliver both financial returns and lasting, meaningful change across the continent. Watch the full interview: https://lnkd.in/d9SuiuSj #Africa #GenderLensInvesting #InclusiveCapital #ImpactInvesting #Leadership #YouthEmployment

For decades, climate action has often been framed as a choice: Mitigation to cut greenhouse gas emissions. Adaptation to help communities withstand worsening floods, storms, droughts, and fires. 💰 Yet, finance for adaptation has lagged far behind. Mitigation attracts most of the investment, while adaptation remains underfunded, leaving communities increasingly exposed to climate risks. But here’s the truth: this divide is misleading. Many solutions already exist that deliver both mitigation and adaptation benefits simultaneously. 🔎 A recent analysis of 300 adaptation investments found that over half also reduced emissions , often with economic value equal to or greater than their resilience benefits. 🌱 Whether it’s silvopasture that sequesters carbon while protecting farmers’ incomes, or mangroves that absorb CO₂ while shielding coastal communities, these are not “either/or” solutions. They are “both/and” — and they are urgently needed. 🚨 With global temperatures dangerously close to thresholds that will unleash even more severe impacts, prioritizing multitasking climate solutions is essential. They make limited finance go further, deliver co-benefits across sectors, and most importantly, improve lives while safeguarding the planet. 👉 Climate action must be designed to serve both goals at once. read the article by World Resources Institute 👇 https://lnkd.in/eMAvraRv

New Impact Funds in Europe in 2024. 💸🌍 Last week, Impact Shakers (Alina and Yonca) released their mapping of new impact funds in Europe in 2024. Today, I’m sharing 3 funds by topics: 𝗖𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗯𝗼𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 🌍 → Mirova (FR) – Climate tech and regenerative agriculture → White Summit Capital (ES) – Decarbonization and energy → Blue Earth Capital AG (DE) – Climate tech at growth stage 𝗦𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲⚡ → Future Energy Ventures (DE) – Energy and cities → Impax Asset Management (UK) – Renewable energy → Move Energy (NL) - Power, transports and building sector 𝗙𝗼𝗼𝗱, 𝗔𝗴𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗔𝗴𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 🌾 → Future Food Fund (NL) – Agritech, food and circularity → Cibus Capital (UK) – Foodtech and agritech startups → Capagro (FR) – Foodtech and agritech startups 𝗕𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗢𝗰𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 🌊 → Ocean 14 Capital (UK) – Aquaculture, marine conservation → Hatch Blue (NO) – Aquaculture, marine tech, bluetech → Bluefront Equity (NO) – Sustainable seafood 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 🌳 → Astarte Capital Partners LLP (UK) – Forestry → Greensphere Capital LLP (UK) – Biodiversity and climate → Cerulean Ventures (ES) – Biodiversity, carbon solutions ...and more below. 👇 ---- 📍 For more climate-tech insights, follow me @Hugo Rauch or subscribe to my newsletter at the link below my name.

Dear philanthropists, you need to start funding core operations in nonprofits. One of the most problematic things I’ve heard in the philanthropic space is that “no donor will want to fund operations.” Ugh. This gives me the ick. It should not be something we ask nonprofit leaders to work around. It should be a funding criterion that philanthropists actively CHANGE t to serve what activists and nonprofit teams truly need. Operations (from organizational development, HR and finance, to strategy planning, communication and fundraising) ARE the backbone of how social justice is literally PUT IN ACTION. Refusing to fund operations is extremely anti-feminist and perpetuates power imbalances. It reminds me of a system that still refuses to see domestic or caregiving labor as labor that should be paid. Domestic and caregiving (informal and formal) professionals, much like operation professionals (often women!!) remain invisible, often thankless, and terribly undervalued, but they are essential for the wellbeing, sustainability and flourishing of communities and organizations they serve. Would it sound okay if a philanthropist who also supports feminist or social justice causes claimed that domestic or caregiving labor is unworthy of fair monetary remuneration? If you, too, believe that the answer is no, well, it’s time to be louder about funding nonprofit operations! The truth is that without operations, no program nor activism can develop sustainably and scale in the long term. Operational capacity is foundational in social justice efforts and, therefore, a real feminist issue.   People with money privilege who want to do good need to get on board with this and support it, and stop letting the ego get in the way of their funding agendas (apparently, funding operations does not sound “cool” or “prestigious” enough in the philanthropy bubble…). The truth is that when philanthropy fails to invest in nonprofits' impact engines, it undermines the core impact that leaders and activists are trying to achieve. Philanthropists, if you want to truly serve communities and do your part in contributing to systemic change, this is your opportunity to put the money where the real needs of frontline leaders and activists are.

Women-led companies outperform, despite getting just 2% of VC money. Ahead of International Women’s Day tomorrow this is exactly what I would like to celebrate: 1. Women-led businesses deliver better ROI, period Numbers don't lie: → 2.3x higher returns per dollar invested →  9% higher revenue in downturns →  Lower burn rates, better cash flow Source: Boston Consulting Group (BCG), 2023 2. Women-led businesses built for long-term success What sets them apart: → Stronger risk assessment → More efficient operations → Better cash management Source: Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, 2023 3. Women-led businesses are better connected to real spending power Market reality check: → Women control $31.8T in global spending → Drive 75% of consumer purchases → Make 85% of household decisions Source: Harvard Business Review, 2023 4. Women-led businesses drive impact beyond profit The multiplier effect: → 2x more diverse hiring → 60% better staff retention → Stronger community investment Source: Morgan Stanley Lab, 2023 5. Women-led businesses succeed despite systemic barriers  The uphill battle:  → UK just hit its lowest gender equality ranking in a decade  → Women occupy only 18% of senior leadership roles  → Pay gap still sits at 14.3% across industries Source: The Guardian Report, March 2025 Here's what it means: Smart investors aren't just looking at gender diversity They're looking at better returns Your move: Are you leaving money on the table? 👇 ♻️ Found this helpful? Repost to share with your network. ⚡ Want more content like this? Hit follow Maya Moufarek. Image: Credit: Women's Business Enterprise National Council WBENC www.wbenc.org

Investing in women’s health has meaningful outcomes. Yes, it improves the life of that individual, which directly affects her family and her community. But it extends much further than that. Healthy women help build more vibrant and productive workplaces, and in turn, more prosperous and resilient economies. A recent World Economic Forum/McKinsey Health Institute report found that closing the women’s health gap would unlock $1 trillion in annual global GDP by 2040. So, how do we get there? We get there through improved data collection to understand women’s burden of disease, investment in research that focuses on the range of conditions women face across their lifespans, better care and clinical education, innovative solutions that directly respond to women’s needs and preferences, and by ensuring women are well-represented everywhere in the health care system—from clinical trials to boardrooms.  For the past 25 years, we at the Gates Foundation have committed ourselves to helping people lead healthy and productive lives. #InternationalWomensDay is a reminder of why this work matters, and what we can accomplish in the next 25.