News

Correlation Consulting releases report on impact investing practices of 51 institutional asset owners

April 25, 2012 By Take Action!

On April 26-27, 2012, as part of the US Secretary of State’s Global Impact Economy Forum, Correlation Consulting releases Insights and Innovations: A Global Study of Impact Investing + Insititutional Investors.

In this report, 51 of the world’s foremost institutional and institutional-sized asset owners — pension plans, corporations, foundations, ultra-high net worth individuals and families and development finance institutions — provide insight into their impact investing activities, case studies that can be used as successful models, and tips for those investors beginning or deepening their impact investing programs. Participating asset owners represent more than $2.5 trillion of combined assets. This report focuses on those impact investments that create a return of capital and competitive, market-rate and premium (above-market rate) financial returns.

Download the executive summary

Download the full report

The author’s and institutions’ views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of
the U.S. Department of State or the United States Government.

In addition to launching the report at this week’s Global Impact Economy Forum, Correlation Consulting’s Georgette Wong will moderate a panel on ‘Sourcing Innovation: Scaling the Impact Economy through Product Development’. Check out the Forum’s agenda to learn more about this Friday session and other topics being discussed.

Filed Under: News

Participants share their view of the 2011 Take Action! Impact Investing Conference

May 15, 2011 By Take Action!

Take Action! 2011 was a huge success. Attendees representing 4.5 Trillion dollars in assets gathered to discuss the latest learnings, trends, challenges and opportunities in impact investing space – pursuing premium rates of financial return and social and environmental value.

A few of the conference’s participants took some time to reflect on their experience. Here’s what they had to say:

Filed Under: News

Recent events

May 15, 2011 By Take Action!

Georgette Wong spoke at three recent events:

National Family Business Council Family/Enterprise/Wealth Conference
Chicago
May 4, 2011

CCC Alliance
Boston
June 8, 2011

Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) & Caribbean Central American Action (CCAA) International Forum on Caribbean Investment & Development
Washington, DC
June 9, 2011

You can keep track of upcoming opportunities to learn about impact investing from the Correlation Consulting team at our Upcoming Events page.

Filed Under: News

Call for participants in our UN PRI/US State Department Survey

May 4, 2011 By Take Action!

As we announced in March at the Take Action! Impact Investing Conference, Correlation Consulting is leading a study on behalf of the United Nations-backed Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI), which is partnering with the Office of the Secretary of State to develop a global asset owner-based research study focused on impact investments.

This study distinguishes itself in three ways:

It would be one of the first to focus solely on the needs and desires of asset owners of $10M+ in assets – high net worth individuals and families, foundations, pension plans, corporations, universities, sovereign wealth funds and government entities.
Our scope is those investments that create return of capital to market-rate and premium financial returns.
The final report will be presented at the UN PRI’s conference in Paris in September and at the State Department’s Summit in the late fall.

We’re very excited about this undertaking, and more importantly the desire of UN PRI and the State Department to share the study’s findings as they work to expand and promote the use of impact investments around the world.

Do you know of an asset owner* with 10 million or more who would be a candidate for our survey? If so, please click here and follow the prompts indicated within the survey. We appreciate your recommendation. Those who participate will be entered into a drawing for $250.

*Asset owners include individuals, families, foundations, pension plans, corporations, universities and sovereign wealth funds. They are looking to place their assets with asset managers; some use financial advisers/investment consultants.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: Correlation Consulting, Georgette Wong, UN PRI, UN PRI / US State Department Collaboration, US State Department

Correlation Consulting’s Georgette Wong leads collaborative study with the UN PRI / US State Department

March 29, 2011 By Take Action!

More exciting news was announced at Take Action! 2011.

This study will be one of the first to outline current practices of institutional and institutional-sized investors interested in impact, track where institutional investors are investing their money, and understand how more dollars could be directed towards impact. The study will focus primarily on institutional investors seeking return of capital to premium financial returns. Our key collaborators are the Office of the Secretary of State and the United Nations-backed Principles of Responsible Investment (PRI), whose signatories currently represent $25 trillion in assets. Soft-launch of the report will be at the PRI’s annual event PRI in Person (Paris, Sept. 15-16). The full launch will be at the invitation-only Office of the Secretary of State’s Forum on Investing with Impact (Washington, DC, Fall).

(updated August 1st, 2011)

Filed Under: News Tagged With: Announcement, Correlation Consulting, Georgette Wong, UN PRI, US State Department

Announcement: Food Systems Reform through Targeted Impact Investments

March 29, 2011 By Take Action!

Our friends at The Springcreek Foundation shared exciting news during Take Action! 2011:

Filed Under: News Tagged With: Announcement, Food Systems, Spring Creek Foundation

Impact Investing: $4.5 Trillion to Save the World – Triple Pundit

March 15, 2011 By Take Action!

Triple Pundit published a story about Take Action! 2011. Here’s an excerpt:

Impact Investing: $4.1 Trillion to Save the World

The Take Action! Impact Investing Conference marks conference founder Georgette Wong‘s fifth year working with asset owners and managers to use their investment dollars for good while seeking premium or market-rate returns. The gathering brings asset owners from families, foundations, major pension plans and corporations together to exchange stories of success and failure, debate ideas and investments, and make the connections they need to move to their impact investing efforts to the next level.

One of the conference’s major thrusts is understanding how investors can move beyond “socially responsible investment” (SRI), which primarily focuses on steering clear of “harmful” companies. The next step is to encourage an improved corporate environment, social performance, or governance practices. While SRI is undoubtedly important, many of Monday’s speakers focused on impact investing’s premium return potential as a catalyst that could affect the entire capital market structure. Attendees discussed challenging old paradigms about wealth and philanthropy, investment policies, addressing fiduciary constraints and standards of conduct, and deal flow in different markets.

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