Aaron Tanaka: Creating a Just, Regenerative, and Democratic Economy (Rebroadcast)

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As we dip into the holiday season, we will be reposting some of our most popular episodes of all time from the Next Economy Now podcast. This is from our March 2019 interview with Aaron Tanaka, founder and Director of the Boston-based Center for Economic Democracy. Aaron is also a community organizer, grant-maker, impact investor, and a founding organizer of the Boston Ujima Project, which brings together neighbors, workers, business owners and investors to create a new community-controlled regional economy. He is an Echoing Green and BALLE Fellow, and co-chair of the national New Economy Coalition and the Asian American Resource Workshop.

Some highlights from Ryan Honeyman’s Conversation with Aaron Tanaka include:

• How Aaron got into the work he is doing today

• Aaron’s thoughts on democratizing capital and the launch of the Boston Ujima Project

• How social entrepreneurs can get more involved in grassroots activism and movement building

• The balance between creating examples of Next Economy solutions and organizing for policy change at the government level

• Aaron’s thoughts on how folks can help create the Next Economy 

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The Next Economy MBA is a nine month online course for folks who want to learn key business fundamentals (e.g., vision, culture, strategy, and operations) from an equitable, inclusive, and regenerative perspective.

Join the growing network of 250+ alumni who have been exposed to new solutions, learned essential business skills, and joined a lifelong peer group that is catalyzing a global shift towards an economy that works for all life.

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Show Notes + Other Links

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Music by Chris Zabriskie: https://chriszabriskie.com/

Edgar Villanueva: Wealth, Healing, and Dismantling White Supremacy

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Edgar Villanueva is a nationally-recognized expert on social justice philanthropy. Edgar currently serves as Chair of the Board of Directors of Native Americans in Philanthropy and is a Board Member of the Andrus Family Fund, a national foundation that works to improve outcomes for vulnerable youth.

Edgar is an instructor with The Grantmaking School at the Johnson Center at Grand Valley State University and currently serves as Vice President of Programs and Advocacy at the Schott Foundation for Public Education where he oversees grant investment and capacity building supports for education justice campaigns across the United States.

Edgar previously held leadership roles at Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust in North Carolina and at the Marguerite Casey Foundation in Seattle.

Edgar is the author of Decolonizing Wealth, which offers hopeful and compelling alternatives to the dynamics of colonization in the philanthropic and social finance sectors.

Edgar holds two degrees from the Gillings Global School of Public Health at The University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. Edgar is an enrolled member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina and resides in Brooklyn, NY.

Interview Highlights:

• How Edgar’s work is moving money into communities of color

• What has surprised Edgar the most since his book was released in 2018

• The dysfunctions and realities of philanthropy

• How we can move the needle towards dismantling white supremacy

• Edgar’s plans for the future (including creating a Decolonizing Wealth fund)

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This episode is brought to you by the Next Economy MBA.

What would a business education look like if it was completely redesigned for the benefit of all life? This is why the team at LIFT Economy created the Next Economy MBA (http://www.lifteconomy.com/mba).

The Next Economy MBA is a nine month online course for entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs who want to learn key business fundamentals (e.g., vision, culture, strategy, and operations) from an equitable, inclusive, and regenerative perspective. 

Join the growing network of nearly 250+ alumni who have learned essential skills, increased their confidence in Next Economy business fundamentals, and joined a lifelong peer group that is catalyzing a global shift towards an economy that works for all life.

Courses are offered twice per year. Learn more and/or register today at http://www.lifteconomy.com.mba.

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Chuck Brown: Just Transition, Philanthropy, and The Scourge of DAFs

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Chuck Brown is the founder of Orion Advising, a consultancy in service of social entrepreneurs and investors seeking a Just Transition to the new economy. He sits on the board of Social Enterprise Alliance Bay Area, is a member-leader of Resource Generation Bay Area, and would be glad to connect with you and hear your story: chuck@orionadvising.com. 

Interview Highlights:

• How Chuck first got into the work he is doing today

• Social entrepreneurship that focuses on systemic changes in solidarity with poor and working class folks

• Chuck’s evolving understanding of “giving back” versus “giving it ALL back”

• What Chuck learned as a foundation insider about Donor Advised Funds (DAFs)

• Leaders that inspire Chuck and resources he recommends for folks interested in learning more

Resources:

• Banker to the Poor by Muhammad Yunus

—

This episode is brought to you by the Next Economy MBA.

What would a business education look like if it was completely redesigned for the benefit of all life? This is why the team at LIFT Economy created the Next Economy MBA (http://www.lifteconomy.com/mba).

The Next Economy MBA is a nine month online course for entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs who want to learn key business fundamentals (e.g., vision, culture, strategy, and operations) from an equitable, inclusive, and regenerative perspective. 

Join the growing network of nearly 250+ alumni who have learned essential skills, increased their confidence in Next Economy business fundamentals, and joined a lifelong peer group that is catalyzing a global shift towards an economy that works for all life.

Courses are offered twice per year. Learn more and/or register today at http://www.lifteconomy.com.mba.

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If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes? It really helps expose these ideas to new listeners:

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Cat Berman: Investing in Economic Inclusion

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Catherine is a three-time entrepreneur with experience launching and building scalable businesses. Before launching CNote, Catherine served as Managing Director of Charles Schwab where she led a strategy division focused on the future of finance incorporating behavioral economics and predictive analytics. Her previous company, Global Brigades, is now the world’s largest student development firm operating in 5 countries. Over the last two decades, Catherine has held senior roles in both management consulting and venture capital.

Interview Highlights:

• Cat’s story of how she originally got into the work she is doing today

• What CNote is, why it is important, and how folks can use the platform

• The Wisdom Fund, and how it was designed to bring new thinking, experimentation, and sustainable solutions to drive wealth creation for women, specifically low-income and women of color in the United States.

• How individuals, institutions, and wealth advisors can participate in the movement to invest in economic inclusion

• Next steps for Cat and the CNote team

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LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life. 

Ryan Honeyman is a Partner at LIFT Economy and author of The B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good (Berrett-Koehler Publishers). You can follow Ryan on Twitter @honeymanconsult or email him ryan@lifteconomy.com.

Dana Kawaoka-Chen: Justice Funders' Framework for Philanthropic Transformation

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As the Executive Director for Justice Funders, Dana Kawaoka-Chen partners and guides philanthropy in reimagining practices that advance a thriving and just world.  She is a co-author of “The Choir Book: A Framework for Social Justice Philanthropy,” and frequently serves as a trainer and facilitator for values-aligned practice in philanthropy.  Dana’s leadership has been recognized by her peers–in 2014, she was awarded a Distinguished Alumni Award by Oakes College of the University of California at Santa Cruz, and in 2015, Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy recognized Dana as one of twenty-five national “Leaders in Action.”

Dana has previously served in executive functions for two other non-profit organizations.  She has a Masters of Science degree in Organization Development from the University of San Francisco, Bachelor of Arts degrees in American Studies and Visual Art from the University of California at Santa Cruz, and Non-Profit Management Certification from San Jose State University.

Interview Highlights:

• Justice Funders was born out of community organizing in the wake of the murder of Oscar Grant

• Examining the problematic roots of philanthropy & re-imagining a more values aligned system

• Dana shares her family story, how her father was born imprisoned in Japanese concentration camps in the United States, and how these experiences inform her work

• “The Choir Book: A Framework for Social Justice Philanthropy” and the Resonance: a Framework for Philanthropic Transformation explore what a Just Transition can look like for philanthropy

• Shoutouts to Nwamaka Agbo’s work, It Takes Roots’ Peoples’ Solutions Lens, Movement Strategy Center, Movement Generation, Center for Economy Democracy & Boston Ujima Project, Bay Rising, Climate Justice Alliance, and other grassroots community partners

• Dana explains Justice Funders’ leadership development programs: the Harmony Initiative and the Maestra Program

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LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life. 

Erin Axelrod is a Partner at LIFT Economy, helping to accelerate the spread of climate-beneficial businesses, specializing in businesses that address critical soil and water regeneration. She is an avid ecologist, grassroots organizer and regularly forages for wild food in her home in rural Sonoma County. You can follow Erin on Twitter @erinaxelrod or email her erin@lifteconomy.com.

Nia Evans & Lucas Turner-Owens: The Boston Ujima Project

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Nia K. Evans is the Director of the Boston Ujima Project. Her educational background is in the areas of labor relations, education leadership, and policy. Her advocacy includes a focus on eliminating barriers between analysts and people with lived experiences as well as increasing acknowledgement of the value of diverse types of expertise in policy.

She is a co-creator of Frames Debate Project, a multimedia policy debate project that explores the intersection between drug policy, mental health services and incarceration in the state of Massachusetts.

Ms. Evans has a B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University and a Master of Arts in Education Leadership, with a course of study in Leadership, Policy, and Politics from Teachers College at Columbia University. She also studied abroad at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, where she focused on International Labor Relations.

Lucas Turner-Owens serves as the Fund Manager for the Boston Ujima Project. As the Fund Manager, he is responsible for loan packaging, underwriting, and managing Ujima's portfolio of investments. In addition, Lucas also provides technical Assistance to entrepreneurs, connects them with business support organizations, and gives financial education to Ujima's investor base.

Prior to joining the Project, Lucas worked as an economic policy analyst for Operation HOPE, a nonprofit focused on consumer financial education. In this role, Lucas acted as an advisor to the CEO on government affairs and public policy with a focus on strategies designed to benefit underserved communities. After this time spent working in the economic policy space, Lucas worked as a loan officer for Cooperation DC, providing technical assistance and expansion loans from a network of impact investors to grow social enterprises and worker-owned co-operatives in Washington D.C. Following this Lucas joined Next Street Financial as a senior analyst in their Boston office. In this role, he applied his background in small business development and public policy to support clients making impact investments and strategic growth decisions.

Lucas was a founding member of Youth Against Mass Incarceration and has been active in local grassroots movements in Boston in partnership with groups such as Alternatives for Community and Environment and Reclaim Roxbury. Lucas holds a BA from Wesleyan University.

Interview Highlights:

• How Lucas and Nia first got into the type of work they are doing today

• How the Boston Ujima Project is organizing neighbors, workers, business owners, and investors to create a new community controlled economy in Greater Boston.

• The importance of centering working-class communities of color in the Boston Ujima Project’s work

• Why the Ujima Project demonstrates new ways to invest, work, buy, own, and advocate.

• Advice for other groups looking to start similar ecosystems in their own region

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LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life. 

Ryan Honeyman is a Partner at LIFT Economy and author of The B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good (Berrett-Koehler Publishers). You can follow Ryan on Twitter @honeymanconsult or email him ryan@lifteconomy.com.

Aaron Tanaka: Creating a Just, Regenerative, and Democratic Economy

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Aaron Tanaka is founder and Director of the Boston-based Center for Economic Democracy. Aaron is also a community organizer, grant-maker, impact investor, and a founding organizer of the Boston Ujima Project, which brings together neighbors, workers, business owners and investors to create a new community-controlled regional economy. He is an Echoing Green and BALLE Fellow, and co-chair of the national New Economy Coalition and the Asian American Resource Workshop.

Some highlights from Ryan Honeyman’s Conversation with Aaron Tanaka include:

• How Aaron got into the work he is doing today

• Aaron’s thoughts on democratizing capital and the launch of the Boston Ujima Project

• How social entrepreneurs can get more involved in grassroots activism and movement building

• The balance between creating examples of Next Economy solutions and organizing for policy change at the government level

• Aaron’s thoughts on how folks can help create the Next Economy

Help these ideas reach more eyes & ears:

1. SHARE this post on social media!

2. RATE Next Economy Now on I-Tunes!

3. SUBSCRIBE to Next Economy Now: iTunes | Overcast | Stitcher | Etc.

LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life. 

Ryan Honeyman is a Partner at LIFT Economy and author of The B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good (Berrett-Koehler Publishers). You can follow Ryan on Twitter @honeymanconsult or email him ryan@lifteconomy.com.

Jed Emerson: The Purpose of Capital

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Originator of the concepts of Blended Value and Total Portfolio Management, Jed Emerson has extensive experience leading, staffing and advising funds, firms, social ventures and foundations pursuing financial performance with social/environmental impact. In addition to his writing, Jed currently focuses on working with families exploring how to ensure a long term legacy by managing their full net worth for impact. He also advises investment firms on the implications of an impact investing framework for their practice. He is an internationally recognized Thought Leader in impact investing, social entrepreneurship and strategic philanthropy. Emerson has played founder roles with some of the nation’s leading venture philanthropy, community venture capital and social enterprises.

Some highlights from Ryan Honeyman’s Conversation with Jed Emerson include:

• Jed’s experience working in the non-profit sector before getting into philanthropy and impact investing

• Why we often get sidetracked into the “how” of impact investing, instead of deeply exploring “why” we are doing this in the first place

• Jed’s thoughts on reparations and whether wealthy individuals should give their money back to society

• Comparisons between the books Winners Take All, Decolonizing Wealth, and Jed’s own book, The Purpose of Capital

• Jed’s request for listeners, as they think about how to actualize his thoughts / advice in their daily lives
  

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LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life. 

Ryan Honeyman is a Partner at LIFT Economy and author of The B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good (Berrett-Koehler Publishers). You can follow Ryan on Twitter @honeymanconsult or email him ryan@lifteconomy.com.

Edgar Villanueva: Decolonizing Wealth

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Edgar Villanueva is a nationally-recognized expert on social justice philanthropy. Edgar currently serves as Chair of the Board of Directors of Native Americans in Philanthropy and is a Board Member of the Andrus Family Fund, a national foundation that works to improve outcomes for vulnerable youth.

Edgar is an instructor with The Grantmaking School at the Johnson Center at Grand Valley State University and currently serves as Vice President of Programs and Advocacy at the Schott Foundation for Public Education where he oversees grant investment and capacity building supports for education justice campaigns across the United States. Edgar previously held leadership roles at Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust in North Carolina and at the Marguerite Casey Foundation in Seattle.

Edgar is the author of Decolonizing Wealth, which offers hopeful and compelling alternatives to the dynamics of colonization in the philanthropic and social finance sectors. Edgar holds two degrees from the Gillings Global School of Public Health at The University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. Edgar is an enrolled member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina and resides in Brooklyn, NY.

Some highlights from Ryan Honeyman’s Conversation with Edgar Villanueva include:

• Edgar’s path, as a Native American, to the largely white space of philanthropy

• What it means to “Decolonize Wealth”

• The Seven Steps to Healing that funders can use to better serve the needs of Native/Indigenous people, people of color, and other marginalized communities to close the racial wealth gap

• How Edgar’s message has been received in the philanthropic and financial services industries

• The relationship between white supremacy and colonialism

• What listeners can do to embody the message of decolonizing wealth in their everyday lives
  

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LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life. 

Ryan Honeyman is a Partner at LIFT Economy and author of The B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good (Berrett-Koehler Publishers). You can follow Ryan on Twitter @honeymanconsult or email him ryan@lifteconomy.com.

Berry Liberman: Holding the Grief with the Hopeful Vision for a Resilient Future

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Berry Liberman is the co-founder and Creative Director of Small Giants, the Publisher and Editor of Dumbo Feather magazine and a mum to the three cutest kids in the world. Small Giants was founded in 2007 to create, support, nurture and empower businesses that are contributing to the world in a meaningful way. Dumbo Feather is a labour of love. Designed, edited and printed in Melbourne, Australia, it is a quarterly journal highlighting the stories of extraordinary people, living lives of passion and commitment to changing the world we live in.

Resources:

• info@smallgiants.com.au

LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life.

Erin Axelrod is a Partner at LIFT Economy, helping to accelerate the spread of climate-beneficial businesses, specializing in businesses that address critical soil and water regeneration. She is an avid ecologist, grassroots organizer and regularly forages for wild food in her home in rural Sonoma County. You can follow Erin on Twitter @erinaxelrod or email her erin@lifteconomy.com.

Jabir Faqir: Diversifying Faces and Values in Philanthropy and Business

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Born and raised in Oakland, Ansar Partners CEO Jabir Faqir has been a successful fundraising professional for a variety of social justice organizations. Over the past sixteen years, he has helped raise over $33 million for organizations active in social justice, civil rights, higher education and peace activism.  Most recently, he was the Development Manager at the Dream Corps, founded by Van Jones. He was hired by the then-interim CEO John Anner, and later joined John in founding Ansar Partners. At the Dream Corps, he designed the individual giving program for major donors. Just prior to the Dream Corps, Jabir was the Senior Development Officer at Muslim Advocates, the leading civil rights organization for Muslims in America. There he managed the annual fundraising campaigns and led the development team.  Jabir played similar roles at Peace Action, the nation’s largest grassroots peace and justice lobbying organization. He also managed annual fund campaigns at the University of California, Berkeley, raising money to benefit student aid, faculty excellence, and research across the campus for the College of Engineering, School of Law (Boalt Hall), Haas School of Business, Cal Athletics and many other departments. Jabir is currently on the boards of the Masjidul Waritheen and The East Oakland Collective, and is a passionate community activist, dedicating his time to social justice organizing, youth mentoring, and work in Muslim communities. He spends his free time cooking, enjoying music, and at the ballpark watching the Oakland A's.

Resources:

• http://www.ansarpartners.com/

• https://www.facebook.com/ansarpartners/

LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life. 

Kevin Bayuk, Co-founder and Partner at LIFT Economy, works at the intersection of ecology and economy where permaculture design meets next economy organizations intent on meeting human needs while enhancing the conditions conducive to all life. He is the Senior Financial Fellow at Project Drawdown and a founding partner of the Urban Permaculture Institute.  You can follow Kevin on Twitter @kevinbayuk or email him kevin@lifteconomy.com.

Nikishka Iyengar: Bolstering Entrepreneurial Ecosystems with Equitable Real Estate Development

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Nikishka Iyengar is a entrepreneur and strategist building the next economy. Using a whole systems approach to address social and environmental challenges, Nikishka is Founder and CEO of The Guild – a social enterprise developing co-living spaces to empower changemakers and build resilient communities. An investee of LIFT Economy’s Force For Good Fund, The Guild explores what community-led real estate development could look like, and has raised impact investment dollars to grow its model.  Nikishka is also the owner of Whole Systems Collective, an impact consulting collective helping companies innovate towards systems change. Previously, while earning her dual degree in Finance & Economics  at University of Texas at Austin, Nikishka conducted research on the socioeconomic impact of the e-waste trade in China and India, and on the social impact of microfinance with the Nobel Peace Prize-winning Grameen Bank in Bangladesh.  Originally from Mumbai, India before moving to Singapore and eventually to the US, Nikishka has been recognized by GreenBiz as a "30 under 30" emerging leader in sustainability.

Some highlights from Ryan’s interview with Nikishka include:

• How witnessing stark economic disparity in India, Singapore, & the United States has informed Nikishka’s journey in economics, finance, and social impact

• As Nikishka helped start the sustainability & social impact consulting initiative at Deloitte, she often observed “predatory delay” (see terminology section below) and a spectrum of sincerity in the field with some being lulled into complacency thinking that addressing the issue at all was enough, while others demonstrated steadfast commitment to pushing for real systems change in the world of impact

• How the shifting immigration landscape has shaped Nikishka’s experience and identity

• How Nikishka’s introduction to cooperative living & decision making in college inspired her ideas to create spaces to support the local social entrepreneur ecosystem through The Guild

• A reframe on the degree to which communities front tremendous risk with new real estate developments and how developments might be approached more equitably

Resources:

• The Guild Is Bringing A New Co-Living Concept to Downtown Atlanta

• The 2016 GreenBiz 30 under 30

Videos/Audio:

• PEOPLE TO WATCH 2017 ....Dinner With Friends X Creative Loafing

Terminology:

• Predatory delay

• Transform Finance Principles

People:

• Alex Steffen

• Morgan Simon

Organizations:

• Carbon Disclosure Project

• Housing Justice League

• The Coalition for Community Benefits

• ATL is Ready

• East Bay Permanent Real Estate Cooperative

LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life.

Ryan Honeyman is a Partner at LIFT Economy and author of The B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good (Berrett-Koehler Publishers). You can follow Ryan on Twitter @honeymanconsult or email him ryan@lifteconomy.com.

Morgan Simon: Transformative Principles & Practices Yielding REAL IMPACT Returns

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Building bridges between finance and social justice, Morgan Simon is a widely-recognized leader in impact investment, influencing over $150 billion in investment capital over the past seventeen years.  Morgan co-leads Candide Group, which supports two clients, including members of the Pritzker family on behalf of the Libra Foundation. She is also co-founder and chair of the non-profit Transform Finance.  Morgan previously served as the founding CEO of Toniic, a global network of impact investors, and as the founding executive director of the Responsible Endowments Coalition. She has worked with the United Nations in Honduras, in corporate reform with ForestEthics, and in domestic microfinance with the Women's Initiative for Self-Employment. She currently serves on the boards of the Restaurant Opportunity Center, The Working World, and CARE Enterprises. A graduate of Swarthmore College, Morgan serves as an adjunct professor at Middlebury College's graduate school program. She lives in the Bay Area and is the author of “REAL IMPACT: The New Economics of Social Change.”

Some highlights from Ryan’s interview with Morgan include:

• Morgan’s path to shift economic systems to be more just, moving from activism in immigrant communities in downtown LA to shareholder activism through university endowments to work in impact investing through a constellation of leading finance & social justice organizations

• A review of the 3 Transformative Finance Principles intended to democratically guide and inform non-extractive impact investments and how they are applied in practice as a tool to center impact in every asset class for systemic transformation

• How picking out eggs at the grocery store relates to investment decisions

• Balancing the mindset & practices of financial return with the mindset & practices of impact return

• The genesis of Morgan’s book, the coupling of ethical principles with impact investment, and asking the right questions as the field rapidly scales

Resources:

• Investor, Activist Seeks To 'Transform Finance' For Good

• Harvard Business School Case Study: Pi Investments

• Academic Guide for “Real Impact: the New Economics of Social Change”

• GMJ: Where’s the Community Accountability in Impact Investing?

• Impact Investing: Morgan Simon, Toniic CEO, Offers A Road Map To New Kind Of Financial Backer

• Redefining Community Impact - Andrea Armeni

• 2,934 hours // Buen Vivir Fund

• So, you want to write a book? Here’s what you need to know

Videos/Audio:

• Morgan Simon Interviewed by Cheddar at the NYSE

• SOCAP17 - Morgan Simon, Managing Director, Candide Group

• SOCAP17 Purpose of Capital: Morgan Simon's Remarks

• SOCAP16 - The Transformative Edge of Impact

• Introduction to REAL IMPACT

• FLII CA&C 2017 - Fortaleciendo acciones que disminuyen brechas - Morgan Simon

• Responsible Endowments Coalition Exec. Director Morgan Simon

• Andrea Armeni: Transforming Finance To Finance Transformation

• Regan Pritzker: Teaching, Learning, & Tipping the Scale Toward A Just Transition

• The Working World's Model Works: Non-extractive Finance with Tailor-made Business Support

• Morgan Simon Bioneers Presentation

• “INCREDIBLE DIVERSITY” - Morgan Simon on social entrepreneurship in Oakland

• Real Impact: Bringing communities into impact investing (podcast)

Terminology:

• Registered Investment Advisor

People:

• Andrea Armeni

• Regan Pritzker

• Aner Ben-Ami

Organizations:

• The Working World

• Grupo Yansa

LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life.

Ryan Honeyman is a Partner at LIFT Economy and author of The B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good (Berrett-Koehler Publishers). You can follow Ryan on Twitter @honeymanconsult or email him ryan@lifteconomy.com.

Bettina von Hagen: Blending Capital & Worldviews That See the Forest for the Trees

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Bettina helped launch Ecotrust Forests and joined Ecotrust Forest Management (EFM) as CEO in 2008. Bettina has spent the past 15 years working to promote economic viability, social equity, and environmental health in the Pacific Northwest with a particular focus on forestry. A former commercial banker, Bettina has over 20 years of experience in banking, impact investing, and fund management. She also has significant expertise in emerging markets in ecosystem services, particularly the forest carbon market, where she is involved in developing markets and protocols for high-quality forest carbon projects at the state, regional, and federal levels. Previously, Bettina was Vice President at Ecotrust for forestry programs and for the Natural Capital Fund, a $20M fund which invests in key businesses and initiatives in the conservation economy. Prior to joining Ecotrust in 1993, she was a vice president and commercial lender at First Interstate Bank of Oregon and has been a Member of Environmental Advisory Board of Wells Fargo & Company since March 2006. She currently serves on the board of Forest Trends. Bettina has an MBA from the University of Chicago and a BA from the University of the Pacific.

Some highlights from Erin’s interview with Bettina include:

• The origin story of Ecotrust & Ecotrust Forest Management and the blended capital approaches to addressing complex ecological challenges

• How unlike early U.S. conservation approaches that divorced people from the land, Ecotrust brings an approach that integrates conservation w/ community needs in ways that advances conservation while advancing livelihoods (ie: 100% of the landscape matters & 100% of people matter)

• Ecotrust’s creation of a for-profit bank that targeted enterprises enhancing ecological and social outcomes – a bank that grew into and was acquired by Beneficial State Bank, carrying the same original intention

• Ecotrust describes their worldview & style of forestry as the 5 R’s – Rotation, retention, reserves, resilience, relationships – suggesting practices that foster regional forest systems which yield greater value and health, rather than narrowly managing for a single commodity like timber

• Ecotrust’s deep involvement & relationship w/ tribal communities from elevating indigenous worldviews to repatriating ancestral lands and other natural resources

Resources:

• EFM's B Impact Report

• New Report Shows That Impact Funds Outperform Competition in Timberland Investments

• EFM Sells 3,200 Acres of Ecologically and Culturally Significant Coastal Oregon Forestland to Coquille Tribe

• Ecotrust Blogs on their work with Native Communities

• Project Drawdown Solution #5: Tropical Forests

• Project Drawdown Solution #12: Temperate Forests

• Project Drawdown Solution #15: Afforestation

• Project Drawdown Solution #38: Forest Protection

Videos/Audio:

• Empower Happy Hour | Bettina von Hagen

• Monetizing forest ecosystem services

• 2017 Philanthropy Awards: Ecotrust

• Resilience Project

• Spencer Beebe: Ecotrust & The Redd on Salmon

• TEDxPortland 2011 - Spencer Beebe - The Magic Canoe

• The networked beauty of forests - Suzanne Simard

• How trees talk to each other | Suzanne Simard

• Nature's internet: how trees talk to each other in a healthy forest | Suzanne Simard | TEDxSeattle

• Kat Taylor: Can a Bank be an Agent of Radical Social and Environmental Change?

Terminology:

• Hybrid organization

• Blended capital

• Seral community

• Complex early seral forest

• Monetization strategy/Revenue model

• Salal/Gaultheria shallon

• Huckleberry

• Oregon grape

• Ferns

• Ectomycorrhiza

• Carbon emission trading

• Emissions Trading

• Pine Oil

People:

• Spencer Beebe

• Kat Taylor

Organizations

• Beneficial State Bank

LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life.

Erin Axelrod is a Partner at LIFT Economy, helping to accelerate the spread of climate-beneficial businesses, specializing in businesses that address critical soil and water regeneration. She is an avid ecologist, grassroots organizer and regularly forages for wild food in her home in rural Sonoma County.  You can follow Erin on Twitter @erinaxelrod or email her erin@lifteconomy.com.

Deval Patrick: Bain Capital’s Double Impact Fund

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Politician, civil rights lawyer, author and businessman, Deval Patrick joined Bain Capital in 2015 and is a managing director of the Double Impact business.  He is the only African American to have served as governor of Massachusetts, served from 2007 to 2015 and was re-elected in 2010. A member of the Democratic Party, Patrick served from 1994 to 1997 as the United States assistant attorney general for the civil rights division United States Department of Justice under President Bill Clinton where he worked on issues including racial profiling and police misconduct. He attended Harvard College and Harvard Law School, where he was president of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau. After graduating, he practiced law with the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and later joined a Boston law firm, where he was named a partner, at age 34. Deval is the author of two books, A Reason to Believe: Lessons from an Improbable Life, and Faith in the Dream: A Call to the Nation to Reclaim American Values.

Some highlights from Ryan’s interview with Deval include:

• The two guideposts that have informed Deval’s career: 1) Doing something in our time that leaves something better for those behind us; & 2) No matter what the job is, never leave your conscience at the door

• Deval expresses his frustration that philanthropy and government have been letting business off the hook and he sees impact investing in part as a way to address this

• Deval’s observation that politics punishes failure, so it’s no wonder that we don’t see a lot of innovation in that arena

• Bain Capital’s choice to not create their own impact metric tools but to use B Lab’s GIIRS, a commonly recognized impact metric tool that allows for more direct comparison

• Balancing impact & financial return and challenging the notion that there must be a  tradeoff between the two, Deval poses the question, “why would you trade return for impact if you don’t have to?”

• An exploration of exit innovation and alternative exit strategies like worker-ownership

• The growing trend led by millennials whereby businesses have to actually stand for something meaningful in order to remain relevant

Resources:

• Doing Well By Doing Good: From Governor of Massachusetts to Bain Capital Managing Director, Deval Patrick is Finding the Best Way to Do Good

• An Interview With Bain Capital’s Managing Director in Impact Investing Deval Patrick

• What we know about Bain Capital’s $390 million Double Impact Fund

Videos:

• Asking the Right Questions Across Politics and Business - MLC Interview with Deval Patrick

People:

• Sir Ronald Cohen

Organizations

• Bridges Ventures

• SJF Ventures

• TPG Growth

• Kapor Capital

LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life.

Ryan Honeyman is a Partner at LIFT Economy and author of The B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good (Berrett-Koehler Publishers). You can follow Ryan on Twitter @honeymanconsult or email him ryan@lifteconomy.com.

Kevin Bayuk: Our Journey to an Economy that Works for the Benefit of All Life

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Our dearly beloved co-founding member of the LIFT Team, Kevin Bayuk's has his roots in entrepreneurship, having spent nearly a decade starting and growing technology companies, and activating projects and organizations that regenerate healthy ecosystems and socially just and joyful environments. After immersing himself in all aspects of starting and growing companies, Kevin focused his attention on learning about and teaching eco-systemic design. Nowadays Kevin merges his experience in business with his experience in permaculture to help businesses care for people while enhancing the earth.  

Kevin also serves as the Senior Financial Fellow at Project Drawdown developing the business case to address climate change through existing practices and technologies. He frequently teaches classes, workshops, does public speaking, facilitates meetings, plans events and provides one on one mentoring as a founding partner of the Urban Permaculture Institute San Francisco. Kevin has helped design and start food security gardens and public learning experiences intent on reminding people that we, too, are nature.

Kevin has raised millions of dollars to capitalize business operations, led teams of more than 30 employees, and can speak well to the benefits and pitfalls of raising capital and the many paths of growing a business. He loves spreadsheets and loves to dig into operating models. One investor of Kevin’s last technology company said, “Kevin oozes strategy.”

Some highlights from Ryan’s interview with Kevin include:

• Kevin recounts his process of shifting away from a worldview overwhelmed by proliferation of problems/suffering to one where he recognized countless opportunities to solve problems and inspire a movement of solutions

• How the genesis of Kevin’s interest in business & economy as powerful lever for social change grew from observations that much suffering is rooted in our system of economy that informs our cultural norms and identities

• A leisurely stroll through LIFT’s long term vision, from LIFT 1.0 to LIFT 5.0 and how the LIFT Team balances cynicism and optimism on the path to realizing our vision

• Some resources from which the LIFT Team derives inspiration

Resources:

• Meet Kevin Bayuk, From Dot-Com To Urban Permaculture Leader

• Permaculture Design as a Pedagogical Resource

Videos:

• Empower Happy Hour | Kevin Bayuk

• LIFT Next Economy Leaders Interview Series: Kevin Bayuk

• Kevin Bayuk: Urban Permaculture

• Sacred Economics with Charles Eisenstein - A Short Film

Books

• Tom Sawyer & Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

• Reinventing Organizations by Frederic Laloux

• Ecotopia & Ecotopia Emerging by Ernest Callenbach

Terminology:

• Progressive Utilization Theory (“PROUT”)

People:

• Rebecca Burgess

• Paul Hawken

• Jane Jacobs

• Marjorie Kelly

• E.F. Schumacher

• Charles Eisenstein

• Lynn Margulis

• Joseph Campbell

• Alan Watts

• Robert Anton Wilson

• Elinor Ostrom

• Buckminster Fuller

Organizations

• Patagonia

• Namaste Solar

• VF Corporation

• 7th Generation

• Fibershed

LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life.

Ryan Honeyman is a Partner at LIFT Economy and author of The B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good (Berrett-Koehler Publishers).  You can follow Ryan on Twitter @honeymanconsult or email him ryan@lifteconomy.com.

Regan Pritzker: Teaching, Learning, & Tipping the Scale Toward A Just Transition

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Regan Pritzker is an elementary school teacher and mother of three, whose long sought-after quest for work and family balance led her to the unlikely profession of being a long-term substitute teacher at a San Francisco independent school. Mostly filling in for teachers on maternity leave, she is referred to affectionately as their resident “teaching doula." When not teaching, she is active as a school volunteer. She holds a master’s degree in Developmental Education, a Spanish bilingual teaching credential from University of California at Berkeley, and a bachelor’s degree in Art History from Stanford University. She sits on the boards of the Libra Foundation, a family foundation dedicated to enhancing the human rights movement locally and globally, and co-chairs the Bay Area Advisory Board of New Leaders, working to improve public education through transforming leadership.

Some highlights from Ryan’s interview with Regan include:

• Regan’s journey in aligning her family’s impact investing portfolio with their family values and Libra Foundation’s stated mission

• Challenging the assumptions & structures of our financial system and traditional investing that have created the problems we’re working to solve

• Value systems that prioritize giving that’s motivated, not for personal recognition, but selflessly and discretely elevating the benefit of others

• The Working World’s work building a financial cooperative toward regenerating localized self-determination & community-controlled ownership & power through transformative investment

• Morgan Simon’s leadership in impact investing through Transform Finance, Candide Group, and her new book: Real Impact: The New Economics of Social Change

• Centering women & people of color as a locus for transformative systems change through authentic relationship building & learning from Movement Generation’s work toward a just transition

Resources:

Audio/Video:

• SV2 Learning Session: Voices from the Forefront of the Impact Investing Movement

• Women and Climate Justice with Amy Goodman

• Brendan Martin on Next Economy Now: The Working World's Model Works: Non-extractive Finance with Tailor-made Business Support

Books

• Real Impact: The New Economics of Social Change by Morgan Simon

• The Giver by Lois Lowry

• Rhinos Who Surf by Julie Mammano

Terminology:

• Judaism’s Eight Levels of Giving & Buddhism’s Dāna

• Pogroms

• Market Rate Impact Investing

• Concessionary Investing

• Latkes

• Just Transition

• Financial Cooperative

People:

• Nicholas J. Pritzker

• Kristin Hull

• Carol Newell

• Marian Moore

• Joel Solomon

• Brendan Martin

• Morgan Simon

• Aner Ben-Ami

• Betsy Brill

• Crystal Hayling

• Steve Phillips

• Gopal Dayaneni

• Michelle Mascarenhas-Swan

• Quinton Sankofa

Organizations

• Hyatt

• Marmon Group

• New Island Capital

• RSF Social Finance

• Transform Finance

• Candide Group

• Omidyar Network

• Emerson Collective

• Asset Consulting Group

• Strategic Philanthropy

• Chrorus Foundation

• Fund For Democratic Communities

• Movement Generation

• Movement Voter Project

• Movement For Black Lives – The Electoral Justice Project

• Democracy In Color

• Climate Justice Alliance

LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life.

Ryan Honeyman is a Partner at LIFT Economy and author of The B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good (Berrett-Koehler Publishers). You can follow Ryan on Twitter @honeymanconsult or email him ryan@lifteconomy.com.

Leah Hunt-Hendrix: Building the Next Economy in Solidarity with Resistance Movements

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Leah Hunt-Hendrix has her doctorate from Princeton University in Religion, Ethics and Politics. Born and raised in New York City, she has spent the past decade at the intersection of theory and practice, combining a study of moral philosophy and democratic theory with research around the world in grassroots organizing and social movements. She has lived and worked in Egypt, Syria, and Palestine, where she focused her research on the effects of international aid and development, and the history of popular protest. She is the co-founder of Solidaire, an organization that provides support for social movements.

Some highlights from Kevin’s interview with Leah include:

• How economic justice intersects with racial justice, how economic democracy & political democracy intersect, and how Solidaire brings philanthropic support to these spaces with a vision for inclusive populist movements that tie these threads together

• Leah summarizes Movement Generation’s 3-stage process for advancing & solidifying systemic/structural change

• Leah shares examples of her work advancing the cooperative economy & climate justice

Resources

• Aristotle’s Timeless Advice on What Real Friendship Is and Why It Matters

Videos:

• From Protest to Power: Why movements matter and how they work

• Carlos Saavedra - Momentum Training 2015

Books:

• The Crisis of the Middle-class Constitution: Why Economic Inequality Threatens Our Republic by Ganesh Sitaraman

• This is an Uprising by Paul & Mark Engler

People:

• Jessica Byrd

• Carlos Saavedra

• Taj James

• Gopal Dayaneni

Organizations

• Movement for Black Lives – The Electoral Justice Project

• Movement Strategy Center

• Movement Generation

• Kentuckians For The Commonwealth

LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life.

Kevin Bayuk works at the intersection of ecology and economy where permaculture design meets next economy organizations intent on meeting human needs while enhancing the conditions conducive to all life. He is a co-founder and  partner with LIFT Economy, the Senior Financial Fellow at Project Drawdown and a founding partner of the Urban Permaculture Institute.  You can follow Kevin on Twitter @kevinbayuk or email him kevin@lifteconomy.com.

Liesel Pritzker Simmons: Blue Haven Initiative

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Liesel Pritzker Simmons is Co-Founder and Principal of Blue Haven Initiative.  As an investment strategist, she oversees their portfolio focused on holdings that generate competitive financial returns while addressing social and environmental challenges. The portfolio spans asset classes, from traditional equities and direct investments to philanthropic programs.

Liesel co-founded Blue Haven with her husband, Ian Simmons. Together, they systematically assessed their portfolios based on environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) criteria and financial performance. Together, the restructured portfolios became the foundation of Blue Haven, one of the first family offices created with impact investing as its focus.

Liesel is also Co-Founder of IDP Foundation, a private Chicago-based foundation focused on achieving universal primary education. There, she helped create the IDP Rising Schools Program, which leverages microfinance networks to empower nearly 450 low-cost private schools—established and managed by local entrepreneurs—in some of the least-developed regions of the world.

Liesel, an engaging and sought-after speaker on impact investing and Next-Gen investors, serves on for-profit and nonprofit boards and investment committees of organizations including ImpactAssets, Synergos, Toniic, Eco-Post, and The ImPact, a network of families committed to the conscientious stewardship of wealth.

Liesel attended Columbia University in New York City, where she studied African History. She lives in the Boston area with Ian and their daughter.

Some highlights from Ryan’s interview with Liesel include:

• Liesel’s journey from being a childhood movie star to cultivating interest in the economics of poverty and sustainable international development to becoming an early trailblazing impact investor

• Leisel shares the backstory behind Blue Haven’s relationship with B Lab

• An exploration of the Blue Haven’s nimble and diversified portfolio with a special look into their investments in Sub-Saharan Africa

• Leisel challenges all of us to ask the organizations that manage our investments what kind of impact investment options they have available and how they measure impact because even if they don’t have good answers, asking demonstrates the demand they need to justify making impact options available

Resources

Videos:

• Forbes: Liesel Pritzker Simmons: 'Where You Put Your Money Is A Moral Decision'

• The ImPact: Liesel Pritzker Simmons

Books:

• The Tyranny of Experts by William (Bill) Easterly

• Drawdown edited by Paul Hawken

• Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmieri

Terminology:

• FinTech

People:

• Pierre Omidyar

• Pam Omidyar

• Lisa Kleissner

• Charly Kleissner

• Lauren Cochran

• Jonathan Morduch

Organizations

• Omidyar Network

• The Earth Institute at Columbia University

• Opportunity International

• M-KOPA Solar

• Umati Capital

• The Impact

 You can listen/subscribe to Next Economy Now on iTunes, Overcast, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting platform.

Help these ideas reach more ears by clicking HERE to rate Next Economy Now on iTunes & by sharing on social media.

Ryan Honeyman is a Partner at LIFT Economy and author of The B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good (Berrett-Koehler Publishers). LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life. You can follow Ryan on Twitter @honeymanconsult or email him ryan@lifteconomy.com.

Jennifer Pryce: Wall Street Refugee Champions Gender Lens & Access to Impact Investing

Next Economy Now highlights the leaders who are taking a regenerative, bio-regional, equitable, transparent, and whole-systems approach to using business as a force for good. 

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Jenn Pryce is President and CEO of Calvert Foundation. Having worked at Calvert Foundation for nearly a decade, Jenn has shaped the strategic direction of the organization to lead on rising trends such as investing with a gender lens and making impact investing more accessible to retail investors.

Jenn started off in the Peace Corps working in Africa where she was exposed to the frustrating limited flows of capital to lower income communities. From there she set off to work for major banks in New York and London including NeubergerBerman and Morgan Stanley focusing on capital streams in emerging markets. She then realized she could hone her focus on investing in a socially responsible way supporting underserved communities. She has since committed her career to impact investing at Calvert Foundation.

Jenn has previously served on the boards of the Hitachi Foundation, Institute for Sustainable Communities, Impact Assets, Groundswell, and Apple Tree Institute. She received her BS in Mechanical Engineering from Union College and her MBA from Columbia University.

Some highlights from Ryan’s interview with Jennifer include:

• An overview of the Calvert Foundation and their initiatives including their Community Investment Note, Women Investing in Women (“WIN-WIN”), the RAICES Investment Initiative (now #ParteDeLaSolution), & Capital Aggregation

• Ryan Honeyman’s personal testimonial about Calvert’s Community Investment Note

• How Calvert measures impact and their rather impressive track record – a 100% repayment rate for investors of both their principal and interest, while generating positive social and environmental returns

• Leadership advice and fundraising tips for savvy entrepreneurs & differentiating the variety of folks who refer to themselves as impact investors (Hint: look at where the capital is coming from and the typical investments that capital makes)

Resources:

• Jenn Pryce in Green Money Journal: Building A Career in Impact Investing

• Calvert's Community Investment Note (Factsheet)

• RAICES Investment Initiative (Overview)

• #ParteDeLaSolution

• Capital Aggregation (Overview; Press Release)

• GIIRS Ratings

• IRIS

• Aeris

• 3 Reasons Why It’s Important To Invest in Women

• The Women Investing in Women Initiative (WIN-WIN) Surpasses $20 Million Invested for Women Worldwide (Portfolio Map)

• Do Women Invest Differently?

Videos:

• Jennifer Pryce, CEO of the Calvert Foundation, with Forbes Contributor Devin Thorpe

• SOCAP15 - Jennifer Pryce, President and CEO, Calvert Foundation

• Jenn Pryce of The Calvert Foundation Speaks at NALCAB Nat'l Conf 2014

• Webinar: The Power of Investing in Women

• Calvert Foundation’s Youtube Channel

Books:

• Walden by Henry David Thoreau

Terminology:

• Anchor Institutions

• Retail Investor

Organizations

• Nonprofit Finance Fund

• Slow Money

• RSF Social Finance

• Regenerative Finance

• Investors’ Circle

• Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN)

You can listen/subscribe to Next Economy Now on iTunes, Overcast, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting platform.

Help these ideas reach more ears by clicking HERE to rate Next Economy Now on iTunes & by sharing on social media.

Ryan Honeyman is a Partner at LIFT Economy and author of The B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good (Berrett-Koehler Publishers). LIFT Economy is an impact consulting firm whose mission is to create, model, and share a locally self-reliant economy that works for the benefit of all life. You can follow Ryan on Twitter @honeymanconsult or email him ryan@lifteconomy.com.