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Tools and Resources for Investing in Social Change

What's New:

  • The Annie E. Casey Foundation announced an additional $25 million allocation for social investments – a set of strategies that would use endowment dollars to generate financial returns as well as social returns that advance the Foundation’s mission to improve the lives of vulnerable children and families.
  • Our National Conference registration is NOW OPEN.
  • Meyer Memorial Trust, ShoreBank Enterprise Cascadia, and the Community Action Team partner to repair hundreds of homes ravaged by the late 2007 floods in the Pacific Northwest. A loan guarantee and grant made by the Meyer Memorial Trust has helped the Community Action Team (CAT) finance the repair of over 140 homes. We interviewed Jim Tierney, deputy director of CAT and head of the community investment program, about the investment.
  • Our National Conference registration is NOW OPEN.
  • Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors' Solutions for Impact Investors: From Strategy to Implementation provides practical tools for foundation leaders and trustees, as well as individual and institutional investors struggling with whether - and how - to integrate impact investing into existing asset allocation models.
  • Kathy O. Brozek offers insightful thoughts and research on the distinctions between nonprofits with earned income and social enterprise nonprofits in her article, Exploring the Continuum of Social and Financial Returns: When Does a Nonprofit Beome a Social Enterprise? published in Community Development Investment Review.
  • The Community Development Bankers Association and Promontory Interfinancial Network, L.L.C. announced they will work together to channel more than $10 billion into America's most economically distressed communities over the next five years.
  • Presentations from "Financing to Promote Sustainable Fisheries teleconference" are now available. Jointly hosted by PRI Makers Network and Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Funders, the call featured opportunities to use grants, PRIs and other investments to revive and preserve fisheries while supporting coastal communities. A recording of the call is available through January 7th.
  • Third Quarter 2009 CDFI Market Conditions Report is now available online. The report is based on quarterly surveys of community development financial institutions (CDFIs). Each report provides a near-real-time view of market conditions and CDFI responses, and analyses regional and financing sector differences,and trends.
  • Blue Print Research and Design invites your participation in a conversation about the strategic value of the different kinds of financial support foundations provide organizations, from non-recoverable grants to market-rate mission-related investments.
  • Janet Kawalt, director of Responsible Investing Research at Evaluation Associates explores various approaches to "creating a virtuous circle establishing underserved communities as viable economic entities" in her report on "Community Investing: Opportunities Across Assets." Evaluation Associates provides investment guidance and research on behalf of insitutional investors.
  • Consider It an Investment, Shelly Banjo, The Wall Street Journal, November 9, 2009
  • Blueprint R&D Inc and GPS Capital Partners have published a new report entitled Equity Advancing Equity that describes how community foundations are deploying social investments to increase their impact. The paper is part of the Futures Project and is supported by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation and the Ford Foundation. It builds on the framework outlined in the 2005 report, On the Brink of New Promise: The Future of U.S. Community Foundations. This report, a series of Future Matters reports and a user’s toolkit are all hosted on The Future of Community Philanthropy.

    Look for these opportunities to learn more about social investing and network with peers and partners in your areas of interest:

  • PRI Webinar Series: This webinar series will introduce key concepts, discuss critical questions, and provide a general overview on the steps needed to establish a PRI program. The program is designed for foundations considering making program-related investments as well as for individuals who are new to the field, and will serve as a useful preparation for more intensive, in-person training programs such as PRI Fundamentals and the PRI Institute.

  • Katrina at 5 Conference : March 22–24, 2010
    Members of the philanthropic community will gather for Katrina at 5 March 22–24 in New Orleans. The Association of Small Foundations and more than 30 other organizations representing national and regional funders groups, including PRI Makers Network, are collaborating on the event. The conference will explore philanthropy’s role as a partner in disaster response, rebuilding, recovery, and transformation. Sessions will include a workshop on "Beyond Grants: Mobilizing Program-Related Investments for Rebuilding" that will discuss on the impact of PRI's made by local and national foundations as part of the effort to rebuild New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.For information on the conference or to register, visit www.katrinaatfive.org.

    Recent PRIs:

  • December 15, 2009 - The Skoll Foundation is investing up to $2.5 million in the Middle East Venture Capital Fund where there is an opportunity to improve conditions in the Palestinian Territories. The Fund will invest in IT and communications technology companies to enhance the local economy.

  • December 12, 2009 - Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced Root Capital, a nonprofit social investment fund that finances grassroot businesses in developing countries, as its first PRI recipient from its Agricultural Development initiative. The $10 million PRI over the course of six years, will help Root capital to extend access to credit, financial management training, and global market ooportunities for those living in Sub-Saharan Africa.
  • December 8, 2009 - Mitsubishi Corporation Foundation of the Americas (MCFA) is also dedicating its first PRI of $300,000 to Root Capital. The PRI will expand lending to sustainable small and growing businesses and help sustain environmentally vulnerable regions of Latin America.
  • November 17, 2009 - Goldman Sachs has announced that it will invest $300 million in loans and grants to Community Development Institutions (CDFIs) , as part of a $500 million campaign to launch of 10,000 small businesses across the country. The initiative will include support for business and management education, mentoring and Networking for small business owners, and increasing access to capital to businesses through CDFIs.
  • November 11, 2009 - The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will provide a $30 million credit support agreement to help secure $300 million in tax-exempt bond issuance to further high-quality public charter school expansion in Houston. This marks the foundation's first US investments as part of an initiative announced in September that commits a total of $400-million in PRIs. The PRI will be managed and supported by a $3 million guaranty from the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC).
  • October 12. 2009 - The 85-year-old Kresge Foundation awarded Feeding America, the nation's largest domestic hunger-relief agency, a $2.5 million program-related investment to finance the purchase of 20 to 25 refrigerated trucks. The trucks will be used by organizations in their 63,000-member network of food banks and mobile pantries to acquire and distribute donated food.
  • September 24, 2009 - The The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has set aside $400 million for program-related investments, a new strategy in maximizing impact while facing budget cuts. The current focus is on areas such as charter school expansion, agricultural financing for small farmers in Africa, and investment in global health technologies. (The Seattle Times, September, 2009)
  • September 21, 2009 - In response to the growing need for affordable rental housing, the Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties announced $4 million low-interest loan to the Florida Community Loan Fund (FCLF), a nonprofit statewide lending institution. This investment in affordable housing is one of the largest made by a community foundation to a Community Development Finance Institution. The Community Foundation utilized a grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, a national leader on affordable housing, to fund its loan to FCLF. The FCLF will invest the $4 million loan in a new $25 million Affordable Housing Preservation Loan Pool Demonstration Program and other affordable rental housing projects in Palm Beach and Martin counties. FCLF financing will be available to non-profit organizations and their community partners to develop and preserve affordable rental housing units. Click Here for Article.
  • September 17, 2009 - Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Foundation and the Lutheran Community Foundation made $2.25 million in charitable loans to the Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota for capacity building. The three Lutheran organizations are working together to help those faced with reduced income, debt, and home foreclosure.

    Getting Started:

  • PRI Primer including What is a PRI?
  • Building a PRI Program - Information and useful resources

    • Tools and Resources for Network Members:

  • Check out PRI opportunities in the interactive, dynamic Deals Clearinghouse.
  • Join an e-mail discussion group.
  • Get in touch with other PRI Makers.
  • Don't start from scratch! We have boilerplate and template documents for many stages in the PRI process.
  • Check out the Member's Only PRI Activity Database of more than 1,400 searchable transactions and add your new data now!
  • Plan to attend the next PRI Institute, an intensive, in-depth seminar for grantmakers and other social investors.
  • Look up consultants and other service providers who work with PRI funders.

    • Interested in joining?

    See information to become a member or contact Peter Berliner 206.443.8430.

    Upcoming Events
    Click HERE to continue as a guest. Please note that you will not have access to all resources available exclusively to members. Want to join?