The Green Register - Spring 2011

8/6/2019 The Green Register - Spring 2011

1/11

Investing With An Eco-Ethic:The BasicsBasically, its aligning your investments with your values

Self-Help: A Green HistoryRecent projects include green product retailers, sustainable

agriculture practitioners, recycling and biofuels companies...

Put Your Money Where

REGISTETHE GREENLOCAL & WORLDWIDE GREEN NEWS COMMUNITY


2/11

3 Impact InvestingInvestors are looking for a new type of capitalism.

7 Investing With An Eco-Ethic: The Basics So whats a socially and environmentally

responsible person like you to do?

9 Self Help: A Green HistoryRecent projects include green product retailers, sustainableagriculture practitioners, recycling and biofuels companies,

solar installers and major solar energy providers.

13 Put Your Money Where Your Heart IsWere learning the real risks of our past patterns of behavior,but what are our alternatives now?

18 What Does $100 Oil Mean For The Alternative Energy Sector?

20 Mission Markets Advances Impact Investing

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REGISTERTHE GREEN

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3/11

I recently had the pleasure of speaking with Gabriel Rabinovici,

Managing Partner of Willow Tree Impact Investors. During our

interview I quickly, understood the important statement on theirwebsite about Innovative Investing. Deploying capital in a cre-

ative and innovative manner can have a measurable and sustain-

able impact on people and the planet while being protable. It

doesnt take one long to learn that Gabriel is passionate about his

company and the subject of Impact Investing.

Green investing is no longer just about the environment,

according to Gabriel. Today, he continued, it has to encompass

whats perceived to be socially good. The Social Entrepreneur

also has to be green. The two are interrelated when a positive

social impact is also green, it has an environmental impact. Today

a social entrepreneur means something completely different than

it did a few years ago. It used to mean a person that grew organic

vegetables from the farm and sells at an outlet.

Companies like Patagonia, which manufactures eece jackets

that are made out of recycled bottles, is now perceived to be

socially responsible, and they are a major company. Today,

all companies are trying to be green and social. All green

initiatives used to be associated with a cost center. Today, its

Goes Main StreamBy David Long

ImpactInvesting

Gabriel Rabinovici,

Managing Partner of Willow Tree

Impact Investorspage 4

changed and is now a source of

prot because consumers now

speak detrimentally to society about

companies that are not green and

sustainable. Consumers want to do

business with socially conscious

companies.

Investors are looking for a new

type of capitalism. Continued

systemic failures have caused this

shift. They have been the black

swans, according to Gabriel.

Black swans are now mainstream

when you consider how they hap-

pen more frequently. Earthquakes,

tsunamis, and other disasters, public

and private indebtedness in educa-

tion and private health continue to

deplete natural and energy sources.

Is it sustainable?, is todays big

question. Although not yet accepted

as mainstream, a portion of our

population wants to

align themselves with a social

consciousness. Consumers do value

green creation as well as nancially

and economically rewarding ROI.

This has been coming about for

many years with Clean Tech and af-

fordable housing. No one thought of

marketing from a social/environ-

mental standpoint or arena until

now, he says.

J.P. Morgan & Rockefeller Funds

are legitimizing Impact

Investments as they are classifying

them as an Asset class. Impact In-

vesting is really more of a strategy

as opposed to an asset class. Is it

equity or debt? All this can be in-

cluded in the strategy. When impact

investing is more mainstream it will

be called asset class.

A lot of talent is converting or

jumping the fence, and within thenext ve years Gabriel believes it

will ow in development of

new nancial strategies. He also

points out that momentum

and advancements become quicker

at the end of the cycle.

Investors wish to align ones portfo-

lio and money with ones

beliefs and values. This is whats

making impact investing

more popular today,

especially with the

younger gener-

ation. Today it

would be chal-

lenging to put a

large portion of

ones portfolio into

impact investing.

Gabriel goes on to s

stronger with the yo

generation, which w

invest between 5% a

of their portfolios in

ing. However, peopl

associate this with a

theres really no trac

Historically, foundat

away 5% of their as

and that has impact.

magnify their impac

part of their endowm

investing funds.

The old dogma has b

but the black swans

we have to question

Impact investing is b

asset class in respon

paradigm. Its tough

able, socially responable and to attract c

measurable impact o

it is impacting is alw

this endeavor.

When asked to give

of a company that h

with that is making

Green investingis no longer justabout the envi-ronment, it has toencompass whatsperceived to besocially good.

,

,


4/11

sustainable, Gabriel shared one of his favorites. Although he is not able to d isclose the name of the company, this is still

an amazing story. A company manufactures light bulbs with a solar panel Gabriel Rabinovici attached to the bulb.

When the bulb is left out in the sun during the day to harness the energy and at night when its fully charged it provides

light. This is a phenomenal invention for areas of the world, like Africa, where people dont have access to electricity.

Its big because they heat and light their homes with kerosene, which is so dangerous. Inhaling the kerosene fumes is

unhealthy,

potentially deadly and kerosene is blamed on home res. So the impact in this instance is quite clear you avoid re

risk and damage and save money too. It saves lives provides light and saves money from government. It also generates

income because of production costs and they are marketable. In many parts of Africa and Latin America many houses

do not have electricity, so a light bulb like this can really be important.

When asked if it will be to marketplace soon, his response was most interesting. For years campers have been using

this type of technology to light their campers when electricity isnt available. So there are alternative users for this

product. Willow Tree is targeting early stage investors, not angel investors. Some social entrepreneurs learn about im -

pact investment funds. We do research and source deals via our networks. They also seek companies that seek investors

that t. However, they are looking for risk adjusted above market rate or better. They are clearly not a foundation. They

would like to have a foundation.

Willow Tree believes they can play a part in shaping the future in social impact investing in a big way. Theres a conu-

ence of factors to conventional wealth and private banking. Financial markets are in trouble. Its tough to market hedge

funds and mutual funds and conventional products because everyone has these in their portfolios already, and lately

their performance rate has been poor.

Impact investing is a fantastic commercially viable and valuable idea to do something more meaningful. Fully com-

mitted, he and partners have given up comfortable jobs to start Willow Tree because of this commitment.

When asked how this affects

global markets, such as the

Middle East, he responded,

We have access to the Middle

East where theres such a need.

Some of the governments in the

region have compromised their

youth. In some cases, more than

50% under 25 or 30 were not

provided a proper education or

access to jobs. They view social

entrepreneurship as the answer.

The youth there see entrepre-

neurialism as the way to make

things happen and transform

their lives. This is opportunity.

Links: [email protected],

Willow Tree: http://www.willowimpact.com/company/personal_commitment.php

page 6

picture of Willow Tree homepage

Do Your Investments Match Your Values?

Virginia F. Moran, AIF

First Afrmative

Financial Network

303-215-1950

[email protected]

Consulting and Asset

Management Services

Ofces in Golden, Colorado

accepting clients from all 50 states.

Virginia F. Moran is an Investment Advisory Representative o FirstArmative Financial Network, LLC, a Registered Investment Advisor(SEC fle # 801-56587).

A Respons

Way To InMarket rate savings, money markets, IRAs, and term

Accounts are federally insured

up to $250,000 by the NCUA

Creating Ownership and Econ

Opportunity Through Responsible

30 Years Of Sustain

Community Develop(800) 966-7353 www.self-he
mailto:[email protected]://www.willowimpact.com/company/personal_commitment.phphttp://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.self-help.org/http://www.self-help.org/http://www.self-help.org/http://www.self-help.org/http://www.self-help.org/http://www.self-help.org/http://www.self-help.org/http://www.self-help.org/http://www.self-help.org/http://www.self-help.org/http://www.self-help.org/http://www.self-help.org/http://www.firstaffirmative.com/http://www.naturalinvesting.com/http://%20http//www.willowimpact.com/http://www.willowimpact.com/company/personal_commitment.phpmailto:[email protected]


5/11

S

sometimes I get funny looks when I tell people what I do: socially & environmentally responsible investing and

nancial services. Whats that, they ask. Basically, its aligning your investments with your values.

In many areas of your life, you are probably very eco-conscious: you believe in the ethic of reduce-reuse-recycle, you

eat local and organic, you ride your b ike when possible, etc. But what about the way you invest your money? Do you

know what you own? Are you putting your money where your mouth is?

Take a few moments to pull out your investment statements and check it out. If you have managed investments, you

may have to dig a bit further. You can use Calverts Know What You Own tool at www.calvert.comto help you out.If you havent indicated to your investment advisor that the environment and social issues are important to you, then

youll probably nd some companies that you may not be proud to own: big oil, war proteers, polluters, etc.

So whats a socially and environmentally responsible person like you to do? Tell your advisor that you

want to invest with your values, or fnd someone who specializes in socially responsible investing (SRI.)

InvestingWith AnEco-Ethic:The BasicsSo whats a socially and environmentally

responsible person like you to do?By Peter Krull

page 8

To get started in your SRI quest, you should know the basics. There are three parts to investing respons

shareholder activism and community investing. Ill break them down for you.

You screen your investments based on the criteria that is important to you. The screening process is typ

a number of factors including:

Corporate governance & business ethics

Environmental track records and sustainability

Fair & Safe Workplace

Safety of products manufactured

International human rights

Community involvement

You start out by running negative screens to exclude companies. For example, companies that do not pr

corporate governance documentation would be screened out, or companies manufacturing products uns

or the environment would be removed.

Conversely, you will also run positive screens. These screens strive to include best in class companies.

several companies are very proactive in reducing their carbon footprint, and using non-toxic ingredient

ucts. Other companies work to improve their communities, making signicant investments in housing,

social programs.

While screening is very important, it is only a portion of the process. Few stock holdings fall into the becategory. We believe that the most important aspect of socially responsible investing is shareholder adv

activism. Institutional investors including pension funds and others will le shareholder resolutions on

topics, from executive compensation to global warming liability. Their goal is to get these middle of th

companies to change for the better. There are many examples of companies changing their policies to b

or environmentally friendly because of shareholder pressure. The most recent example is asking compa

transparent regarding their political contributions, especially in the wake of the Citizens United case wh

legal for corporations to make unlimited campaign contributions.

The third component in the SRI process is community investing.

This typically involves dedicating at least one percent and many

times as much as ve percent of the investment assets toward com-

munity investing projects. These projects are both domestic and

international in scope and focus on micronance, affordable housing

and job retraining.

If you live your life based on your values, then I believe that you

should consider using a socially responsible investing strategy. You

can consider it putting your money where your mouth is.

(Peter Krull is President of Krull & Company, a Darien, GA based

socially responsible nancial services rm. He can be reached at

877-235-3684 [email protected].

Visit www.investwithyourvalues.comfor more information.)
http://www.calvert.com/mailto:[email protected]://www.investwithyourvalues.com/http://www.investwithyourvalues.com/mailto:[email protected]://www.calvert.com/


6/11page 10

Self-Help, headquartered in Durham, NC and with over 30 ofces in NC, CA, and W

has a long history of being green before green was cool. With a mission of creati

and economic opportunity for all, especially people of color, women, rural residents

wealth families and communities, Self-Help has long been aware of the connection b

economy, our communities, and the environment. In fact, low-wealth communities h

disproportionately affected by poor environmental quality, high energy prices, and u

policies. So our work, and especially our lending, has always stressed a triple bottom

Since 1980, Self-Help has provided almost $6 billion in nancing to more than 71,00

businesses, non-prots, and homebuyers. Our lending and advocacy efforts have be

and communities both in North Carolina and nationwide. One way we have translate

into action is through our Environmental Stewardship Initiative, made up of the follo

important ventures:

Recent projects include green product retailers,

sustainable agriculture practitioners, recycling

and biofuels companies, solar installers and

major solar energy providers.

Self Help:

A GreenHistory


7/11

Green Lending:

Self-Help has provided over $36 million in loans to

businesses that are manufacturing, selling, or purchasing

environmentally friendly goods and services (as of

4/1/2011). Recent projects include green product

retailers, sustainable agriculture practitioners, recycling

and biofuels companies, solar installers and major solar

energy providers. In addition, we have provided loans

to nonprots specializing in land conservation, such as

Carolina Mountain Land Conservancys purchase ofWorlds Edge, a 1500-acre tract, now preserved as a state

park. We also provide guidance to our borrowers on how

they could save money by greening their own buildings

and businesses.

Green Commuting:

Self-Help offers a green commuting program to encourage

our employees to walk, bike, and carpool or ride public

transportation.

Green Deposits:

Self-Help offers a Green Term Certicate (CD), which

pays the same competitive market interest rates as Self-

Helps standard term certicates and helps to supportgreen lending and other initiatives.

Green Partnerships:

We collaborate on projects with key environmental

organizations, such as the Department of Energy and

Natural Resources, the Carolina Recycling Association,

the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association, and the N.C.

Sustainable Energy Association.

Green Downtowns:

Self-Help supports downtown revitalization, a key

strategy in combating sprawl and encouraging inll,

through investment of over $62 million in the purchase

and renovation of buildings in downtown areas. An

example of Self-Helps work in this area are the

landmark American Tobacco and Golden Belt mill

renovations in Durham.

Green Facilities:

Self-Help operates 16 commercial ofce buildings

in downtown locations. We believe that the re-use of

historic buildings and downtown locations near public

transit is an inherently green activity. In renovating these

buildings, we have sought cost-effective green upgrades,

and we have a robust program of evaluating capital

investments for energy efciency. In addition, we have

made a concerted effort to establish energy-saving and

green practices in all of our buildings, including digital

HVAC controls, efcient lighting, and low-VOC nishes.

Green Homes:We develop healthy and affordable homes by applying

SystemVision and Healthy Built Homes guidelines and

materials in new home construction. Our homeowners

enjoy energy efciency and improved air quality, while

saving up to 50% on their heating and cooling costs.

page 12

Self-Helps dedicated staff resources for green initiatives include:

Melissa Malkin-Weber, Green Initiatives Manager. Melissas background is in industrial pollution pre

efciency and indoor air quality.

Jane Hatley, Business Development Ofcer for Green Lending. Jane is an experienced loan ofcer wi

in environmental protection.

Other staffare volunteers with grassroots groups including Clean Energy Durham, the Eno River Asso

Stakeholders in Asheville, and the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy.

For more information on Self-Helps green initiatives, visit http://www.self-help.org/about-us/policy-in

environmental-stewardship-initiative-1 To make a green deposit that will further Self-Helps work, go

http://www.self-help.org/invest-with-us/why-self-help/were-green
http://www.self-help.org/about-us/policy-initiatives/environmentalhttp://www.self-help.org/about-us/policy-initiatives/environmentalhttp://www.self-help.org/invest-with-us/why-self-help/werehttp://www.gafunds.com/http://www.self-help.org/invest-with-us/why-self-help/werehttp://www.self-help.org/about-us/policy-initiatives/environmentalhttp://www.self-help.org/about-us/policy-initiatives/environmental


8/11

Put Your

MoneyWhereYour

HeartIs!Were learning the real risks of ourpast patterns of behavior, but whatare our alternatives now?By David Long

page 14

Mission Markets launched its

investment platform connecting

companies, funds and projects

with accredited investors, in

July 2010. The equity and debt

investments offered on the

platform create both prot and social/environmental impact. The platform

currently hosts private placements but is opening its doors to publically

listed companies and funds that have a high sustainability focus, and inves-

tors that use SRI and ESG frameworks to assess investment opportu-

nities as well. Currently their investment marketplace hosts

around 300 members, half investors and half issuers

seeking capital.

Olivia likes to think of it like this we

work at the intersection of money

and meaning where investors, inves-

tor groups, and businesses are

coming together to build a new

form of capitalism. The new

emerging operation model is

a hybrid space which is grow-

ing in popularity throughout the

investment industry, leading to

a world hopefully not too far in

the future where a single bottom

line is not competitive enough, anddouble and triple bottom lines of

social and environmental, as well as

nancial impact - are seen as not only

altruistic, but nancially smart. A couple

of generations ago this type of investing

was hardly considered, much less prevalent.

Back then companies were only focused on

the single, bottom line prot. Mission Markets is

We recently had the pleasure of interviewing O

Frazao, Associate Business Development at

Mission Markets in New York. A nancial s

company, Mission Markets operates an impact investme

online platform which supports investments in the socia

environmental markets. The investment side of the platf

helps sustainability-focused companies and funds raise

by connecting them with investors who are searching fo

and triple bottom line investment opportunities. Mission

not only creates ways for people to meet and interact onnew platform, but also aggregates information, metrics,

key providers in the eld to create a real community aro

sustainable businesses and sustainability-focused nanc

end result is centralization, efciency, and liquidity for t

and environmental capital markets.
http://missionmarkets.com/


9/11

operating in a hybrid of both, where it believes the new economy lies. The

return on investment now includes satisfaction added to the community.

Groups that have pioneered this type of thinking and investing have existed

for decades, but in the past few years sustainability has become a prevalent

movement, currently hitting its tipping point and on its way to become

mainstream. One new indication would be J.P. Morgans new recent report

on impact investing where it denes impact investing as a new asset class.

Mission Markets offers investments with triple bottom line returns any-

where from above to below market rate, in both the social and environmen-tal spaces. Within the social space, some sectors include micro nance;

social funds, and social enterprises. Examples of sectors hosted in the

environmental space include clean tech and renewable energy, sus-

tainable agriculture, sustainable infrastructure, and environmentally

focused enterprises.

Mission Markets is a hub not only for buyers and sellers to interact

with each other, but also aggregates information on all social and

environmental sectors, through news, reports, webinars, and other

educational materials. Social networking functions allow investors to

do due diligence together, and to co-invest. Third party service providers

are also hosted on the platform to market their services (such as consulting,

or PR) to current members. Mission Markets also offers Private Por-

tals through a white label for groups that would like to administrate theirown members within the platform, with unique communications within a

certain group, while also keeping that group integrated within the greater

network. Groups of companies and investors in a certain niche, like the

Slow Money Alliance (a network for the slow food movement) are using

Mission Markets to bring their off-line network into a space where the

members and their information and interactions can be organized through

Mission Markets.

Alongside the impact investment platform, Mission Markets also operates

an environmental credits platform (the Earth Exchange) with over 160

members launched October 2010, that brings together buyers and sellers of

all types of environmental credits, including carbon credits, water qual-

ity, wetlands, biodiversity, and renewable energy credits, among others, as

well as an environmental nance platform (the CXSE network) to structureenvironmental projects for large companies. All three platforms intersect,

as for example an environmentally focused company raising capital on the

investment platform for a project that generates carbon credits can then sell

those credits on the credits platform. Alternatively, an organization can

come to Mission Markets to use only one of its platforms.

page 16

We asked if the devastating earthquake, tsunami and

nuclear catastrophe that have recently occurred in

Japan will cause a renewed focus on R&D and in-

vestments in the alternative energy space. Olivias

response was, I believe so. Now everyone is seeing

rsthand the limitations and dangers of the way we

rely on current energy and economic systems through

a few major events in the past few years: the nuclear

catastrophe in Japan following the earthquake and

tsunami; political unrest in Libya and Egypt causing

oil prices to skyrocket; BPs environmental devasta-

tion, which caused investors to rethink how to assess

risk in investment opportunities; and the 2008-9 global

nancial crisis leading people to reconsider the way

capitalism has been run. These events have opened

peoples eyes to reconsider the way we look at risk

and opportunity in business and investment decisions.

Were learning the real risks of our past patterns of

behavior, but what are our alternatives now?

Mission Markets: http://missionmarkets.com/

Now everyone is seefirsthand the limitatiand dangers of the wrely on current energ

economic systems thfew major events in few years

,

,
http://missionmarkets.com/http://www.gafunds.com/http://missionmarkets.com/


10/11

With continued unrest in North Africa and the Middle East we have seen another step up in the oil price to aprice above the key psychological level of $100 per barrel. A higher oil price does not directly benet the

economics of most alternative energy technologies because oil is rarely used to generate electricity. The vast

majority of the worlds electricity is generated from coal, natural gas and nuclear power. However, oil is criti-

cal as a transport fuel and the need for countries to rely less on foreign imports of oil is driving a shift towards domesti-

cally sourced clean electricity generation and the move to electric vehicles.

The last time we saw $100 oil was in 2008. Since then we have seen the worst nancial crisis since the Depression

which has presented numerous stumbling blocks for this emerging sector. Despite this over the same period the alterna-

tive energy sector has grown substantially in scale, technological advances have been sustained and many new coun-

tries are building clean electricity generating capacity.

The last time oil reached $100 per barrel in 2008 public concern surrounding the issue of Climate Change was ac-

celerating. Green was the new buzz word, celebrities were turning up to the Oscars in hybrid cars, and Al Gore was

spreading the word with his Inconvenient Truth. The nancial crisis that started to grip the world in 2008 and 2009

caused a dramatic shift in sentiment towards the issue of Climate Change. Understandably people were more worriedabout keeping their job and their house than the level of CO2 in the atmosphere. Governments could no longer afford to

prioritise debating international ways to tackle Climate Change when the banking system was in meltdown and unem-

ployment was rising. The oil price had fallen to $40 per barrel by the end of 2008 which meant that one small relief to

the consumer was a lower cost to ll up at the pump. But with oil back over $100 per barrel today headlines are being

generated, businesses and the public are feeling the pinch at the pump, debate is being fuelled and the public will begin

to ask governments what they are going to do to tackle it. Government rhetoric is likely to move back towards the need

for less reliance on foreign oil and more domestically generated clean electricity and this may well be sold to the public

through the Climate Change prism.

What Does $100 OilMean For The

Alternative EnergySector? By Matt Page and Edward Guinness,Portfolio Managers at GuinnessAtkinson Asset Management

page 18

While the start of the nancial crisis put the brakes on some policy developments in

2008, governments remained concerned about energy security and the threat of a sup-

ply shock. Those countries that are most reliant on energy imports or high electricity

prices have typically continued supportive policies since 2008 to encourage growth in

their alternative energy industries. Imports account for 50% of EU energy consumption

and therefore the motivation to tackle this is high. In Germany supportive policies have

encouraged annual installations of solar to grow from 1.5GW in 2007 to 7GW in 2010

while generating new sources of employment. European countries that had no policy

in place in 2008 such as the Czech Republic have emerged as signicant sources of

demand over the last three years. Outside of Europe, China is similarly concerned by

the quantity of energy and natural resources that it needs to import to continue the rapid

growth of its economy. China has therefore emerged as the largest market for wind

turbines and the largest manufacturing base for solar panels in the world. $100 oil will

seek to bring the issue of energy security higher up the agenda.

In 2008 Germany was the manufacturing heart of the solar industry but China had a

small emerging solar module manufacturing industry. The Chinese government recog-

nized the potential for developing an alternative energy industry that could reduce its

needs for imported fossil fuels and encouraged the expansion of the solar industry in

China. The Chinese manufacturers were playing catch up in terms of module quality

but their approach was to rmly focus on reducing manufacturing costs. These Chi-

nese companies listed their shares in the US and used the proceeds to rapidly build out

their manufacturing capacity, invest in research and development and start to develop

sales channels into the key European markets. Since 2008 annual global installations

of solar modules have more than doubled and solar modules have become a commod-

itized product with cost being the key differentiator, which is itself an indication of the

increasing maturity of this industry. The Chinese companies have been so effective

at lowering their manufacturing costs that today they make up the majority of global

module manufacturing capacity and the best companies can sell a solar module at less

than half the price they did in 2008 while still maintaining a decent margin. The Chi-

nese modules are now as good, and in some cases better quality, than German mod-

ules and the German manufacturers are struggling to compete with them.

Examples of Chinese solar companies such as Trina Solar and Yingli

Green Energy are trading on mid-single-digit P/Es which despite

some near-term European demand uncertainty offers attractive

valuations when you consider how large the solar industry

could be in 5 or 10 years time when we wont be talking

about $100 oil but maybe $200 oil.

We therefore believe that the most important fac-

tor from $100 oil is an improvement in sentiment

towards the sector. If the current high oil price turns

out to be just a spike and we quickly return to a

more normalized oil price then the sentiment shift

will likely be short lived. However, if we see the oil

price remain high for a sustained period, then we

would expect to see growing support for the alter-

native energy sector from the public and positive

shifts in government policy and this could trans-

late into higher equity valuations for companies in

this sector. Guinness/Atkinson:

http://www.gafunds.com/lp36.asp

solar mhave bcommprodubeing

differewhichindicaincreamaturthis in

,

i i klif h h li d h ll h i d h d d li d hi d if
http://www.gafunds.com/lp36.asphttp://www.gafunds.com/lp36.asp


11/11

Impact Investment is an emerging market thats becoming recognized as a new

asset class in its own right. Its generally dened as direct investment aimed at

solving social or environmental challenges while generating nancial prot. It

differentiates itself within the arena of Socially Responsible Investment in that

Impact Investment is proactive, direct investment in positive solution-oriented

enterprise that takes place outside of standard stock market investments, includ-

ing mutual funds.

Impact investment is gaining attention as a key piece of the puzzle for address-

ing social and environmental crises. But, still in its infancy, theres

a continuing need to develop the landscape of Impact Investing

on many levels. Investors need to hear about it, understand how it

works, and have a means to evaluate the myriad of opportunities

in terms of both nancial and social performance. Investors, Social

Finance intermediaries, and those organizations and companies do-

ing the work of addressing critical problems in the world are work-

ing together to develop organizational capacity and build an infra-

structure that can support a ow of new investment capital into this

area; some estimate that up to one trillion dollars could ow into

these high-impact opportunities over the next ten years.

An exciting new arrival to the Impact Investing landscape is Mis-sion Markets (www.missionmarkets.com). Mission Markets is a

rst-of-its-kind on-line transaction platform connecting high net-

worth individuals and institutional investors with a growing number of invest-

ment offerings from organizations and enterprises that are directly addressing

social and environmental problems. Mission Markets was founded by Michael

Van Patten and Steve Rocco, both of whom have extensive expertise in tradi-

tional capital markets coupled with a passion for advancing social welfare and

environmental conservation. Van Patten has described the turning point in his

By Malaika Maphalala

Mission MarketsAdvances

ImpactInvesting

life when he realized that all the time and energy hed de-

voted to nancial markets on Wall Street served no mean-

ingful value; he then turned his efforts toward creating a

career path that would allow him to use his expertise to

make a positive change in the world for those who really

needed it. Determined to make a difference, Van Patten

worked to develop an efcient, transpar-

ent arena for the Social and Environmental

markets to get a foothold, understanding

that the industry could only grow if it had

the right infrastructure to support it.

Mission Markets is in its start-up stages

and sits very much on the cutting edge,

working to expand emerging social andenvironmental capital markets by provid-

ing a centralized marketplace with detailed

information about offerings from a wide

range of sectors: Community Investment,

Social Enterprise, Micronance, Sustain-

able Agriculture, Cooperatives, Water, Re-

newable Energy, Sustainable Fisheries, and

Sustainable Infrastructure. In compliance

with Securities and Exchange Commission regulations,

the site only allows access for those who can shoulder the

higher risk of untested investments, including accredited

investors individuals who have at least one million in

assets (not including a home) or who earn over $200,000

annually and institutions with over $5 million in as-

sets. Investors can register to become members, and once

approved, are able to view current offerings, learn about

them in depth, make investments, and trade holdings on

Mission Markets Secondary Trading Platform.

For issuers, Mission Markets provides multiple layers

of support. They help social enterprises and organiza-

tions extend their reach through their support of alterna-

tive capital raising structures like direct public offerings,

cooperative shares, private equity, private placements, and

unregistered debt offerings. They provide marketing for

offerings through widespread promotion of the platform

itself, as well as via what they call a Virtual Road Show,

in which investor members are invited to online presen-

tations, where individual issuers create video presenta-

tions describing their work and investment opportunities.

Mission Markets also helps strengthen the organizational

capacity of potential issuers, and thereby the entire Impact

Investment landscape, through their Minimum Listing Re-

quirements which require not just submission of legal and

corporate documents along with nancial disclosure, but

demonstration of commitment to tracking and evaluating

social and environmental impact. All issuers must have a

qualied third party assess, rate, or certify

as well as provide annual reporting using q

metrics that follow the newly developed I

ing and Investment Standards (IRIS). IRIS

initiated by a collaborative effort between

Foundation, Acumen Fund, and B Lab, to

mon framework for denin

the non-nancial performa

investment capital, using a

new metric: Social Return

(SROI). Its adoption stand

organizations communica

about their social/environm

mance and allows investor

performance of individual other companies within Im

sectors. Those organizatio

panies able to show the mo

dollar invested (SROI) wil

nancing opportunities. SR

sential element for buildin

of Impact Investment and

the infrastructure developm

attract big money into the eld.

Another exciting Mission Markets project

entry point for grassroots organizations fo

investment in sustainable community ente

piece of developing a diverse ecosystem o

ing. Soon, grassroots organizations, like th

Alliance, which creates investment vehicl

local, sustainable food systems and small

velop portals where investors within spec

access investment opportunities of their re

As of April 2011, Mission Markets has ov

members and dozens of investment-ready

$336 million. In rapid early development p

Markets holds the potential to play a signi

expanding the Social and Environmental c

and become a valuable tool for accredited

their advisors to access Impact Investmen

__________________________________This article is for educational purposes only and is not intende

dations or solicit sales of any specic investment. Please discuyour investment advisor for a complete discussion of your goa

other factors before making any investment decision.

Malaika Maphalala is a Financial Advisor with Nnational investment advisory rm committed to hcreate portfolios that reect their own social prioring healthy returns while cultivating opportunitiesral Investments has been at the forefront of the socworld for over 25 years, and wrote two of the leadInvesting from the Heart (1992) and InvestingMoney and Making a Difference (2000). They aregistered advisory rm with ofces in 8 states. Mland, Oregon ofce and can be reached at 877-424investing.com.
http://www.missionmarkets.com/mailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationmailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationmailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationmailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationmailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationmailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationmailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationmailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationmailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationmailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationmailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationmailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=mailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationhttp://www.naturalinvesting.com/mailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=mailto:malaika%40naturalinvesting.com?subject=Informationhttp://www.missionmarkets.com/

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The Green Register - Spring 2011