Social Impact

The funding source: Jay-Zs new $10 million fund that will invest in minority-owned cannabis startups

Why? Minorities are convicted more often under drug laws & comprise a fraction of cannabis business in the legal market

What does the data say?

• 5-7 times higher incarceration rate for similar drug crimes -2017 study for the National Institutes of Health
• fewer than 6% of the almost 7,000 agents registered to sell or grow cannabis in Massachusetts are Black
• under 6% Black ownership of cannabis businesses in Denver
• 3% Black ownership of cannabis businesses in Washington
•  4X as likely for a Black person to be arrested for marijuana possession in the U.S. in 2018

What states have created programs to bolster minorities in the cannabis business? California, Illinois, and New York

Wall Street Journal | Jay-Z Joins Push to Boost Minority-Owned Cannabis Businesses

How much has Google dedicated to fighting misinformation over COVID vaccines? $3 million injection into its COVID-19 Vaccine Counter-Misinformation Fund

How is Google fighting misinformation over COVID vaccines? support journalistic projects that look to broaden the audience of fact checks

The Hill | Google launches $3 million fund to fight coronavirus vaccine misinformation

Everyone’s dear old pal, Yelp, is here to help.

How will Yelp add in COVID compliance? crowdsourced through customer input

Will Yelp track only restaurants? Nope, Bars and other businesses too

Engadget | Yelp will tell you which restaurants aren’t following COVID-19 guidelines

Eater | Yelp Will Now Display How Well a Restaurant Is Observing COVID-19 Guidelines

@Eater

When was the initiative announced? June 2020

What’s the goal of the initiative? help reduce barriers and opportunities for people of color across the country

What did Apple CEO Tim Cook say? We are all accountable to the urgent work of building a more just, more equitable world — and these new projects send a clear signal of Apple’s enduring commitment,”

What funding has been announced?

• Propel Center, an Atlanta-based innovation and learning hub for historically black colleges and universities
• Will found a Detroit-based Apple developer academy to support coding and tech education
•  Invest in New York-based Harlem Capital, which focuses on diverse entrepreneurs. 

What about Apple’s diversity? 53% of new hires in the U.S. are from historically underrepresented groups in tech including women and people who identify as Black, Hispanic, Native American or Native Hawaiian & Other Pacific Islander

Austin American Statesman | Apple says it will spend $100 million to promote diversity and racial equality

Where:Israel

How is the crowd funding for the social impact bond working?

• 1.6 Million in funding is anchored with investors and philanthropic funds
• 700,000 will be crowdsourced

What’s the social impact? To improve the life of 200 seniors in Televiv over 2.5 years to help with loneliness, quality of life and community

How does COVID factor in? COVID has exacerbated these challenges in the senior community

Pro Bono Australia | World first crowdfunded social impact bond launches

Who is focused on men’s sustainable fashion?  Seasons, a men’s rental platform that launched in New York in 2019

How much did Seasons membership grow in 2020? 800%

How does the company say Seasons fits the new economy? “There can be an alternative to traditional ‘ownership,’ where you’re creating opportunities for people to be a part of something without committing to it.”

Is it expanding in 2021? Yes, it will link directly to fashion brands e-commerce sites for purchase

Vogue | This Men’s Rental App Is Rethinking Fashion’s Sharing Economy

The App: Cluster

How does Cluster work for brands?

• “Brands partner with CLUSTER
• To give purpose to their marketing campaigns
• Uniting with Creators and individuals to champion social causes and drive positive change in the world.”

How does Cluster work for creators?

• “Creators use CLUSTER to (partner with Brands)
• To turn their passion for social causes into actionable events
• That drive positive change in their communities and the world.”

What’s the short hand in all this? Helps amplify causes by using your digital networks

KLTA 5 | New platform ‘Cluster’ aims to promote positive social action

Meet Helping Hands Community, an app that connects volunteers to food banks and social service organizations.

What does Helping Hands Community offer? streamlines how food banks and social service organizations deliver food, medicine and other necessities to senior citizens and those who are immunocompromised

Who is delivering to those in need?

• Volunteers sign up in the app to deliver goods to people in their local communities.
•  The APP also connects service providers to drivers with ride-sharing applications such as Uber and Lyft

How is the app structured? It is a nonprofit platform is completely volunteer-run with about 150 people from companies such as Google, Apple and Amazon

The Bulletin | Bend man creates online platform for those in need during pandemic

It’s the perfect time:

• NASDAQ has new diversity requirements for listing
• Securities & Exchange Commission have new proposed rules on ESG investing which includes a diversity component
• Impact of COVID
• Impact of Social Justice Issues like Black Lives Matter

What do most corporate boards look like? “male, pale and stale” 

Deadline has a great overview of diversity on media corporate boards.

Deadline | Corporate Boards Will Get More Diverse In 2021 With Social Justice Jolt, New Regs, Covid Impact

MIT Sloan School has identified the behavioral practices necessary for leading in the new economy.

What will leaders in 2021 need to be?

• empathy
• authenticity
• curiosity
• resiliency
• mindfulness
• being purpose-driven
• guided by analytics and data
• trust
• integrity
• straightforward communication
• role modeling

@MITSLOAN

Where: Los Angeles based

Why now? “Companies and investors across all sectors of commercial real estate — and the financial institutions that fund them — pledged billions to close the racial wealth gap and work to undo the financial legacies of systemic racism. “

How will the funding work?

• Black Impact Fund $1 Billion
• $500M for qualified opportunity zones
• $500M fund for projects near but not in those federally designated areas
• asset appreciation and fees earned to fund the affiliated nonprofit Black Impact Community Fund

Bisnow | LA-Based Fund Aims To Raise $1B For Investments In Black And Brown Neighborhoods

Congressman Andy Levin (MI-9th) legislation looks to have retirement benefits, like in pensions, reflect an individual’s social and political values.

What would legislation require?

• retirees would have be given information about ESG options
• investment managers would also have ESG-oriented financial portfolios available

How are ESG portfolios performing? Generally outperform their counterparts

WDET | Congressman Andy Levin Introduces Legislation Aimed At Sustainable Investments

The local farm: Laughingstock Farm in Maine

What happened 1 day in March: Their sales plummeted by 75% once a lockdown was in effect

So what did the farm do? Road Side booth

What did neighbors do? Bought their products, shared the farm’s information

What did the farm do? Partnered with local ranchers for their meats & local dairy farmers, and saw their business grow

NY Times | A Farm Family’s Business Caved In. Then the Neighbors Showed Up.

This year, consumers are watching corporations like old school spies. They watch how supply chains & employees are being treated, sustainability efforts, diversity, inclusion, and whether companies speak up when it matters. Corporations are watching too. Watching investors fund ESG, sustainability, diversity & inclusion. It matters because people are paying attention. Data is tracking all of this. Investments are going up. Diversity is inching up.

Why is this happening now? I thought shareholders and trickle down were still en vogue. COVID is the common denominator. People weren’t stuck on commutes. People had time to ask- where is that retailer buying its products? Where is that coffee sourced & how is the labor treated? Did that company speak up to support diversity and inclusion? Did it take action? So many eyes are watching now.

What is IoT? the Internet of Things- everything can get hacked- cars, electric locks, pacemakers…

How can consumers get notice of “hack-ability?” Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University’s CyLab Security and Privacy Institute are developing a consumer warning label

Are companies on board? Yes, On December 8, 2020 Apple took a step forward in this direction by requiring App developers to disclose privacy practices.

WSJ | Imagine a Nutrition Label—for Cybersecurity

Where: Georgia

What? The University of Georgia Athletic Association has appointed Courtney Gay as assistant athletic director for diversity, equity, and inclusion.

How did we get here? This summer the Athletic Director called for real responses to our social issues

Atlanta Journal Constitution | Georgia names assistant AD for diversity, equity and inclusion

Meet chief diversity and inclusion officer of Duke Energy, Joni Davis. Get know some of their public statements:

• “2020 really catalyzed those efforts after George Floyd and the race equity movement. Diversity and inclusion were top of mind for so many of our employees and within our communities. “
• “I believe that 2020 ushered in the opportunity to accelerate and really sustain diversity, equity and inclusion like never before. “

Meet chief diversity office of Chevron, Lee Jourdan. Get to know some of their public statements:

• “We are, I think still, the only oil and gas company to use the term “Black Lives Matter.”
• “That was important to us because we recognize the true intent of that term. So, we became public in our support of what was happening in the black community.”
• “That set the tone for our organization to have more vulnerable conversations about what was going on, which built a foundation for sustainable conversations in the future. It has changed a lot. “

CERA Week Conversations

Some say the Biden Administration may call for rules that require greater sustainability disclosures.

What disclosures could be included?

• carbon emissions
• corporate diversity 
• sustainability metrics

Is industry following suit? In 2019, 90% of companies in the S&P 500 index issued sustainability reports, in 2011 it was 20%

What is industry looking for? globally recognized and adopted standard

WSJ | Companies Could Face Pressure to Disclose More ESG Data

Does NASDAQs board diversity proposal mirror other proposals? Yes, it mirrors California’s board diversity requirements

What is NASDAQ calling for its listed companies?

• at least one woman
• at least another director who is either a racial minority or lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer

How do NASDAQ listed company boards currently stack up? 3/4 of its 3,000 companies don’t meet the standard.

Who else is on board for diversity? Institutional investors like  BlackRock Inc.and State Street Global Advisors have also actively pushed for greater board diversity

WSJ | Companies Face New Pressures to Diversify Boards. It’s Sensitive.

Summer of 2020 shall be defined by the Black Lives Matters.

So, along comes this question to the Texas Attorney General: What duty does an officer have to intervene if he sees another officer violating someone’s rights.

The answer, in Texas: Can’t say that there is an “absolute duty for an officer to intervene”

It gets muddier- the opinion says maybe there is a duty, but it’s a question of fact and our opinions don’t answer questions of fact.

What you need to know: The code sections that would be amended to change this answer: Code of Criminal Procedure article 2.13, Penal Code section 39.03

KP-0343 (2020)

How are shareholders getting companies to act?

• Company engagement
• Proxy Voting
• Shareholder Resolutions

What were the hot topics?

• Political Activity- taking specific positions e.g. Black Lives Matter, MeToo 18%
• Climate Change 15%
• Board Diversity 13%
• Decent Work 12%

CNBC | Shareholders challenge the companies they invest in to promote good in the world

The EU is enacting disclosure rules for ESG investments.

Who is impacted?

• banks
• insurance companies
• pension funds
• investment firms

What would be disclosed?

• Disclosures related to the integration of sustainability risks in the investment decision making process
• The pre-contractual disclosure requirements applicable when products are promoted as having an ESG focus or investment objective
• Disclosures related to whether an investment manager or financial product considers the adverse impacts of investment decisions on sustainability.

Chief Investment Officer | Europe’s ‘Ambitious Plans’ for ESG Disclosure Rules

Legislation in Texas, HB 669 ( 2021 | TX), would allow a judge to order a defendant to make a donation to organizations that assist veterans or organizations that provide charitable services for defendants under community supervision

Where: North East Oklahoma City, an area where more than 1/2 the population is Black

It had been 22 years since the area had a new grocer

The partners for the project:

• Homeland, will operate an employee owned grocery store
• $300,000 Funding from a Social Impact Fund,  Metafund
• Alliance for Economic Development—a private nonprofit—is lining up about $8.5 million through the New Markets Tax Credit program
• $3.5 million in tax increment financing from Oklahoma City

Route Fifty | Two-Decade Push to Build a Grocery in a Food Desert Finally Pays Off

What does Unilever New Zealand hope to achieve with a 4 day workweek?

• improved productivity
• a greater work life balance
• measure performance on output not on time
• keep salaries the same

What is NOT the goal: “If we find that we’re all working the same number of hours as before but in four days, then we’ve missed the opportunity this trial presents us with”

New York Times | A 4-Day Workweek for 5 Days’ Pay? Unilever New Zealand Is the Latest to Try

The study: The 2020 Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report

The results: 92% say investors should apply a premium valuation to companies that excel in environmental, social impact and governance (ESG) initiatives

What else did the study discover from its proprietary investor analysis?

• “social” jumped in ranking from number three last year to number one as the most important ESG factor in the U.S
• “investors clearly believe that a robust ESG strategy has a positive impact on share price and resilience,””
• 89% say shareholder activism will increase as the economy rebounds
• 93% said they are more interested in taking an activist approach investing (up 12% from 2019)

Edelman Study Finds Investors Plan To Intensify Focus On ESG With COVID-19 Recovery; “Social” Jumps To Top Priority Among ESG Factors

The Industry: British Retail Consortium

The advice from the head the British Retail Consortium: “doing the right thing as a board makes for better business for the company, and the environment in which it operates”.

Why does this matter? European Countries are leaders in ESG initiatives with EU rules on EU and active ESG investments

UK Consumer polling:

• 74% think businesses have a responsibility to do social good
• 59% are more likely to shop at a business that is clear about their ethical stance

Professional Jeweller | Socially responsible businesses more likely to survive pandemic, suggests BRC chief

A restaurant in D.C., Mannan, began its story with the usual restaurant service, but at the same time, the owner provided meals to homeless.

When COVID closedowns began Mannan continued feeding homeless even as it saw revenue declines.

Facing closure- its customer base, because of Mannan’s strong community presence from providing food to those in needed, raised the capital for Mannan to continue.

Why is this important? Because when you leave your community with warm and fuzzy feelings about you, they remember your good deeds and offer you their good deeds.

@WashingtonPost on Instagram

The Texas Legislature’s Black Caucus has re-established its Black Caucus Foundation.

The goals of the Foundation:

• provide research and policy analysis
• covering policy issues from curbing police brutality to providing health care for the uninsured

Will the Foundation partner in its work? Yes, it will partner with universities, businesses, religious institutions and other non-profits 

Dallas Morning News | Texas lawmakers revive Black Caucus Foundation to push social justice, empowerment issues

• $791 million to 16 environmental organizations
• favor mainstream organizations
• The mainstream organizations must be innovating and looking for new methods
• Includes Hive Fund for Climate and Gender Justice
• Includes the NDN Collective that funds and supports indigenous-led movements and sustainability initiatives

When did Bezos create the Bezos Earth Fund? February 2020

Wait, isn’t there also an Amazon climate change fund? Yes, Amazon has a $2 billion climate fund will go toward getting more electric vehicles on the roads

The Verge | Jeff Bezos announces first beneficiaries of his $10 billion climate fund

Why are we still talking about more women in business leadership? Because a 2020 study from LeanIn.org & McKinsey & Co. found that American women held less than 40% of corporate management positions

What strategies are employed?

• mentorship
• women speaking up
• recommending women for opportunities
  • Don’t let leaders assume what women want- she just returned from maternity leave so she won’t more work or travel. Let it be her choice.

MIT Sloan School | This KPMG principal leads a team to accelerate women’s careers

Who: The Impact Finance Research Consortium (IFRC)

Who composes the IFRC? Chicago Booth’s Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation, the Harvard Business School Impact Collaboratory, and the Wharton Social Impact Initiative of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School

The database goals:

• financial performance
• due diligence practices
• investor relations
• legal governance
• strategy
• management of impact investing funds across the world

U Penn Almanac | Collaboration on Impact Investing Data Collection

SXSW announced its 2021 festival would be virtual/online.

Anyhoo…they opened registration.

@sxsw

What’s the Big Good? A nonprofit to support good doers making a big impact

Who? Grammy winner Leon Bridges, Former TCU Football Coach Gary Patterson & tv Host Chris Harrison

Where is the Big Good Focusing? Ft. Worth/North Texas

The Big Good

The healthcare start up: Ro

Its COVID pivots:

• In March it launched a bill board campaign for staying apart, together.
• Created a free telehealth triage service for people who are seeking guidance and information about the novel coronavirus.
• Developed a support system for mental health care for its employees with a collaborative remote work environment and fostering personal connections

The Drum | Ro the Patient Company: Stay Apart. Together. by Wieden+Kennedy

@initialized on instagram

What does greenwashing mean according to Statestreet? To “give misleading claims about their products or ESG credentials”

Why should we care?

• Big money is flowing into ESG … In Quarter 2 of 2020, $71 billion went into global ESGfunds, making total assets $1.1 trillion across 3,432 funds
• ESG determinations are subjective

What’s an example of an industry not thought of as ESG, but actually is making sustainability strides? Oil and Gas

Wall Street Journal | What Is Greenwashing? Here Is What Investors Need to Know

The winner: UPS

What did the winner do financially ?  Its stock has an above-average ”DividendRank” statistics including a strong 2.4% yield

What ESG, socially responsible investment, characteristics of UPS stock?

• achievements in efficiency in terms of its use of energy and resources
• policies tied to tied to weapons, gambling, tobacco, and alcohol

Nasdaq | UPS Named A Top Socially Responsible Dividend Stock

When “me too” came to the top of zeitgeist, the best advice I heard form a male to other makes was “Don’t be an asshole.”

Apparently this advice wasn’t heeded by the Court of Master Sommeliers. Male court members resigned as investigations over “disturbing patterns of sexual misconduct” that negatively impacted careers of women

Up Next for the Court: Organizational reforms and then new Court leadership

Food & Wine | Chairman of the Court of Master Sommeliers Resigns, Entire Board Will Be Put Up for Election

Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has 5 members, after the election all 5 members will be women.

The County Board of Supervisors budget oversight: $35 billion

The constituency: Serves 10 million people

ABC 7 Los Angeles | Holly Mitchell makes history with win over Herb Wesson for LA County Board of Supervisors seat

Why did COVID shed light on ESG investing importance?

• COVID reinforced our global interconnectivity
• COVID showed that company’s resilience and contingency planning ability is crucial (this is the S in esg)
• COVID shined sunlight onto how employers viewed labour standards, and employee health and safety measures

National News | How Covid-19 has highlighted the importance of ESG investing

Who received an award for socially responsible sports betting operator in North America? Points Bet

Where does Points Bet have enabling legislation and regulatory approval?

• New Jersey
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Colorado
• Michigan
• Kansas
• Louisiana
• Missouri
• New York
• Ohio
• West Virginia

PointsBet Wins Sports Betting Operator, Socially Responsible Operator and US Rising Star Honors at EGR North America Awards 2020

The UK is adding new elements of social benefit into its contract awarding system.

It’s coming across the pond. Think of the changes to pension investments in major pensions like CALPERs, its happening, and it will happen more.

Procurement Policy Note PPN 06/20 – taking account of social value in the award of central government contracts

Restaurants and kitchen gardens have a long, historical relationship.

COVID is seeing a renaissance in restaurant gardens.

3 Michelin starred restaurant, SingleThread, in Healdsburg, CA is adding 20 acres of gardens.

Not only do the gardens have produce and make their own olive oil to grace their 3 Michelin star tables, but the restaurant also:

• donates to victims of disasters like wildfires through Sonoma Family Meal
• produce goes to local hunger relief organizations through Farm to Pantry

San Francisco Chronicle via Apple News | Michelin-starred restaurant SingleThread is set to dramatically grow its farming operation

This November voters in several states voted to amend their state constitutions to remove racism.

The list of BLM constitutional amendments:

• 67% of Alabama voters approved the removal of language that bans mixed-race marriage, allows poll taxes and mandates school segregation
• 68% of Nebraska voters approved the removal of slavery or involuntary servitude as criminal punishments
• 81% of Utah voters approved the removal of slavery and involuntary servitude as criminal punishments
•  72% of Mississippi voters approved a “In God We Trust” flag to replace the state flag that contained a Confederate battle cross
  

Forbes | Alabama, Utah, Nebraska Remove Racist Language From State Constitutions

Where: Louisville, KY

Who: Lindsey Ofacek & Edward Lee co-founders of the Lee Initiative

What did the Lee Initiative Do? Joined forces with Maker’s Mark and and 19 partner restaurants to provide 400,000 meals

What initiatives came from the food relief? a program to help local farmers & a relief program for local restaurants

leeinitiative.org

featured in Southern Living November 2020

How many governmental entities have declared racism a public health crisis?  more than 130 cities, counties, and states

What does this mean? It means recognizing the connections when there are high maternal mortality rates for Black women or high asthma rates because of pollution in black neighborhoods

What changed to make this switch? COVID. Racial inequalities were highlighted & policymakers began to see examples of how things like housing and education and health care connect

Policymakers believe COVID became the paradigm shift that was needed to effectuate change.

Route Fifty | Cities Declared Racism a Public Health Crisis. What Now?

1st it makes news.

Here’s why the CEO did it:

• It was a necessity
• “We needed to stand true for what we believe in and hope that most people agree with us,”
• “If President Donald Trump were reelected it would “damage our democracy to such an extent, I’m obligated on behalf of shareholders to take any action I can to avoid it.”

Could it be the CEO’s midwestern roots? Maybe

Bloomberg | Expensify CEO Emails 10 Million Customers Urging Them to Vote for Biden

Local news digging into corporate social responsibility. This is AFLACs 6th year of a survey of its customers on the importance of AFLAC engaging in community issues and stakeholder capitalism.

COVID and generational difference in viewing whether companies should act for the better of society. GenX and younger are more apt to support corporate social responsibility.

Experts say more money is flowing into companies that have a track record of social responsibility.

512 EXPERTS | Aflac Talks Corporate Social Responsibility

@mhaestheticsusa suggests cutting the straps on your mask before disposing of it so as to not cause harm to animals that could get caught in the straps.

New Jargon: Corporate Citizenship

Who is using the term? Accenture

What elements are they attaching to corporate citizenship?

• Social impact. Closing the skills gap in tech
• Environment. Climate Change. Yes, they use this exact phrase.
• Inclusive. No barriers.
• Supply chain. Safe and responsible.
• Core Values. Doing Business ethically and with integrity

What the CEO says: “The time for increased commitment and action is now, and SDG Ambition is a bold and practical response to this timely and urgent call to action.” – Julie Sweet, CEO

Accenture | Corporate Citizenship Report

Who is making the community gift? Bank of America

Which community? North Texas

What will the Bank of America $920K gift fund? helping youth in low-to-moderate-income communities including Boys & Girls Club, Big Thought, and 24 other non-profits

Dallas Innovates | Bank of America Is Making a $920K Investment in North Texas Nonprofits to Advance Economic Equity

Hotels and COVID not a great match.

Some property developers, thinking outside the box, are taking abandoned hotels and converting them to affordable living for seniors.

In addition to affordable housing to seniors, the project’s social impact will include:

• No fossil fuels. fully electric building.
• Energy-efficient lighting and kitchen appliances
• High-quality ventilation
• Community space with indoor and outdoor areas

West Side | Former Hotel is One Step Closer to Becoming Senior-Friendly Affordable Housing Using ‘Fully Electric’ Energy

The Insurance Company? Nippon

The ESG call: ESG standards for all Nippon investments and loans

Why?

• High ESG ratings = superior in management transparency

Japan Times | Nippon Life to adopt ESG evaluation for all investments and loans

Who: Repair Smith

What’s Repair Smith’s goal? to reimagine car repair, make it more convenient and help non-profits

Where is RepairSmith operating? California, Nevada, and Arizona

What pledges did it make during the pandemic?  $125,000 worth of repair services to those in need–namely essential workers on the frontlines

Inc. | This Startup Is Rethinking How to Do Car Repairs–and How to Give Them Away for Free

• 62.5% of the global asset managers who responded to an  ISS ESG survey highlighted labour practices, diversity and safety
• 44.1% expect future ESG ratings to place a greater weight on issues of workplace safety, diversity and supply chain labour
•  37.5% have added staff to cover ESG issues

Covid-19 pandemic has had a major influence on many investors’ thinking in terms of ESG research and integration

Investment Executive | Social issues rising on asset managers’ radar: ISS ESG

Who did the analysis? The Wall Street Journal

What did the WSJ produce?  A Ranking of the top 100 companies in the world’s most sustainably managed companies.

What factors are considered?

• A scoring system compared 5,500+ publicly traded companies world-wide
• considering social capital
• the environment
• human capital
• business model/innovation
• following the framework of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board

The industries leading in social responsibility?

• Pharmaceuticals
• Biotech
• Banking

Wall Street Journal | Pharmaceutical, Biotech and Banking Companies Lead the Way in Social Responsibility

What 3 tech innovations can build CSR?

• Open Source. Open Source fundamentally requires collaboration
• Shared Purpose lead to interoperable solutions
• Cross sector collaboration to innovate across sectors to provide broader societal impact

Jaxenter | Technology as a Source for Good

New York Governor signed legislation declaring Juneteenth an official state holiday.

@NYGovCuomo on Twitter

Where: Australia

Which social impact bond in Australia? Newpin Social Benefit Bond that sought to  restore children in out-of-home care to the care of their parents by creating and supporting safe family environments.

How did it perform over 7 years?

• 400 children restored to the care of their families
• 10% return to the bond investors

Keys to the social impact bond success:  An institutional investor

Pro Bono Australia | Australia’s first social impact bond delivers for families and investors

The App: Zoom Ride

The safety options:

• female riders can request female drivers
• the app has a panic button for safety that sends live audio and video inside the vehicle to Zoom Ride headquarters
• sanitizing lights
• sneeze guards
• free masks for all drivers and riders

MyZoomRide.com

Detroit Metro Times | Michigan-based rideshare app has panic button, ability for female passengers to request female drivers

This caught our attention this week: A tech hub for the public good? Developing technology that matters in Northern Virginia

Why is it attention getting?

• it’s the sign of the new economy
• it’s economic development recruitment using social impact as a lure
• it’s tech focused specifically

Vital Farms had an IPO this year raising $200 million in capital.

Vital Farms by the numbers:

• 2007, 20 hens on 27 acres
• 2020 joined a small group of publicly traded B Corps
• In 13 years became the largest U.S. pasture-raised egg brand in the U.S.

Forbes | Vital Farms IPO Shows Acceptance Of Stakeholder Versus Stockholder Values On The Market

@VitalFarms on Instagram

Hint: There are none.

We all know we’re in a new economy that has a greater emphasis on social impact, esg investing, and corporate responsibility.

What economy were we in before? Stakeholder Capitalism as coined by Milton Friedman

What was the first step to the new economy? The August 2019 announcement by the Business Roundtable in D.C. that the purpose of business is changing

Did the Business Roundtable statement work? Yes according to this analysis by the Wall Street Journal , this analysis also by Just Capital & this analysis of profit in doing good by Motley Fool

What faulty assumptions are made by both sides on whether social impact acting businesses are good or bad for profit?

• that businesses should be run like activist social organizations
• that companies never have to choose between business success and social responsibility 
• that social impact changes will occur overnight in their business structures
• that every company works on the same time table, software companies can reach carbon neutrality faster than fossil fuel companies

What’s the timeline to transition into an economy focused on social impact? it took 2 decades to adopt shareholder capitalism

Washington Post | The right formula for managing a socially responsible company? There is none.

Le Bron James has recruited 10,000 poll volunteers in Black districts in 3 cities- Detroit, Philadelphia & Cleveland.

How did he do this? Through his voting organization,  More Than A Vote 

The voting volunteer program,  “We Got Next,” is a partnership with the NAACP Legal Defense Fund

Phase 2 will add 11 cities, including 2 in Texas: southern Black voter hubs such as Birmingham, Ala.; Jackson, Miss.; Houston and San Antonio.

@theHill on Twitter

The Hill | LeBron James recruits 10,000 poll volunteers to assist in Black districts

The NFL Team: Carolina Panthers

The cleaning method: a UV light robot that can eliminate COVID in minutes

Who makes the robot? San Antonio-based company Xenex

Which industry typically utilizes this form of cleaning? Health care

The science: “pulsed xenon, a noble gas, to create Full Spectrum, high-intensity UV light that quickly destroys infectious germs.”

CNBC | The Carolina Panthers will use a $125,000 virus-killing robot in their stadium as fans return with Covid-19 restrictions

The country: Iceland

Why did Icelandic leaders do this? Because “Investors, financial companies, institutions and governments therefore play an important role in shaping the economy and communities.”

Which 3 entities work together to ensure the economic success in Iceland? governments, private industry and financial institutions

Environmental goals of the signatories?  

• national carbon-neutrality by 2040
• Paris Agreement goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions to keep global warming below 1.5°C
• United Nations’ global goals for sustainable development

Is the letter open for additional signatures? Yes

IPE | Iceland’s pension funds sign sustainable investment declaration

How is California integrating ESG into its investments and policies? A partnership between the U.N.-supported Principles for Responsible Investment & UC Berkeley Law’s Center for Law, Energy & the Environment.

There’s 40 recommendations, and here are the high priority items:

• The State of California, led by the Governor or State Treasurer or State Controller, should convene a Task Force on Responsible Investment.
• All institutional investors should integrate material ESG factors into investment processes and decision-making to the fullest extent possible.
• Public pension funds should develop governance structures that encourage better long- term and data-driven ESG investment decision-making.
• Public pension funds should require that investment consultants and investment managers consider ESG factors in providing investment advice or investment management.
• The state legislature should enact legislation directing financial advisors (including investment advisors, broker-dealers, and others) that are licensed and regulated by the Department of Business Oversight to ask retail investors if they have a preference for investments that consider ESG factors and to offer them ESG-aligned investment opportunities.
• The state legislature should mandate climate risk disclosure or Task Force on Climate- Related Financial Disclosures reporting for all publicly traded companies incorporated or headquartered in California.
• The state legislature should direct mandatory climate risk stress testing for financial institutions (state-chartered banks, credit unions, mortgage lenders, and others) under the jurisdiction of the Department of Business Oversight.
• The State Treasurer, Controller, and Director of Finance should leverage their positions on the boards of state financing authorities to add ESG-related disclosure requirements for state financing.
• The Department of Insurance should undertake climate risk stress testing of insurer underwriting and investment portfolios, annually conduct climate risk scenario analysis of insurers’ investment portfolios, and require insurers to identify, analyze and address climate risks to their underwriting and investment portfolios.
• California insurers should integrate ESG considerations into their operations and investment decision-making.

Pensions & Investments | Road map for California ESG integration unveiled

Principles for Responsible Investing | The California Responsible Investment Roadmap

Who: American Homebuilders of West Africa & Genuine Interest

What will be funded: Social housing focused on homes that will sell for $10,000 to $20,000

American Homebuilders of West Africa | Impact Fund Genuine Interest Announces Strategic Investment in American Homebuilders of West Africa

The State: Missouri

The data to be collected concerning the social and economic impact of COVID:

• Food Bank levels
• Food Samp Assistance
• Unemployment Assistance
• Childcare Assistance
• Energy Assistance
• TANF
• Abuse Rates
• Building Permits
• Consumer Spending

Show Me Strong Recovery Plan | Data

KMOU | State expands COVID-19 dashboards, includes social and economic impacts

We’ve seen the bubbles or pods for outdoor dining.

Meet the dog that carries a long stick to keep people the right distance from their humans.

Even if this dog is an internet meme, some company is going to take the idea and run with it OR maybe this is a new regulatory category for service dogs. What do your state’s regulations say about service animals?

Republic World | ‘Socially Responsible’ Dog Carries Stick Along To Keep People Away Amid COVID-19

• She suggested that Uber could provide 10 million free rides and meals to people in need around the world.
• Julia Page started her position at Uber in February 2020 she added these COVID related measures for Uber:
  •  coordinating ways for essential workers to get to and from work
  • helping medical equipment companies to transport resources to hospitals

Best Advice she ever received: “They’re going to think you got something because you’re Black. And they’re going to think you got something because you’re a woman. You prove you got it because you’re the best, and don’t worry about anything else.”

Worst Advice she ever received: “You really need to think about your career path and what you’re going to do down the line.” She chose to follow her interests and curiosity

Bustle | Uber’s Julia Paige On Navigating A Male-Dominated Industry

Who: The American Sustainable Business Council  + Social Venture Circle

Why did the join forces?

• To create the United States’ leading socially responsible business group
• Unite top U.S. entrepreneurs & leaders of mission-driven companies
• To amplify and extend the collective voice of the sustainable business community in previously impossible ways

Is this only about environmental or sustainable issues? No, they say

• “It is urgent that we move beyond sustainability to regenerative systems
• Expand diversity to include true social and economic inclusion
• Broaden the definition of success to include all Stakeholders (including our global community and our planet)”

ASBC/SVC partnership | Join The Next Economy

What is Shopping Gives?  Social Impact Commerce platform  that allows consumers to search and support their cause of choice from over 1.5M nonprofits while shopping, without leaving the retailers website.

Who is backing it? Caffeinated Capital Tuesday Capital, SciFi VC, Background Capital, Red Dog Capital, 20VC, Global Founders Capital, Big Future Fund, Rogue Capital, Night Capital, Manresa Ventures, & Sugar Capital

Why is the new economy the right time for ShoppingGives?

• unprecedented eCommerce growth because of COVID
• COVID and BLM have shown that society is compelled to create change as customers align with brands that make statements and stand 
• Founder, Big Future Fund: Social Impact is a requirement for success

Market Technology Insights | ShoppingGives, A Social Impact Commerce Platform Announces Series Seed Financing Led By Caffeinated Capital

Which company has an unlimited vacation policy? Netflix

How has the policy worked out?

• The company also has (1) no approval required for expenses (2) no dress code & (3) criticism of the company can earn you a promotion
• The CEO credits the NO RULES policy for its economic success. The company’s 2000 IPA was $1/share. The current value is $500/share

Why the employee freedom? Because it is “essential in creative companies where you have much greater risk from lack of innovation”

Classic Gen X mindset folks.

NPR | Netflix CEO Embraces ‘No Rules,’ But Work Is Anything But Chill

Which industries have the highest rates of ethnic and racial diversity on their boards? Tech & Utilities

Which industries have the lowest rates of ethnic and racial diversity on their boards? real Estate & Energy

• 40% of the US population is underrepresented ethnic and racial groups
• 12.5% of board directors are of underrepresented ethnic and racial groups
• up from 10% in 2015
• 4% are Black directors
• 1.5% are Black women

Last week The Board Challenge asked companies to take the pledge to appoint a Black director within the next year. 

The Board Challenge supporters are largely investors and tech, but some big corporate representation too. Read the list of supporters.

New York Times | Diversity Push Barely Budges Corporate Boards to 12.5%, Survey Finds

Missouri Legislature’s Joint Committee on Agriculture is discussing incentives to helps the agriculture industry “to adopt best practices to scientifically address Missouri’s carbon footprint.”

The Missourian | Planning underway for legislation focused on Missouri’s agriculture industry

How did Starbucks get involved in this? By having conversations between managers and nearly 200,000 partners

What is Starbucks wanting to do? Help their employees and customers have access to information o register to vote and voting tools

Employees created a portal with tools and resources, like how to register to vote, requesting a mail-in ballot and volunteering as poll workers.

Starbucks CEO: no partner (employee) will have to choose between working their shift or voting on or before Election Day. 

Starbucks Stories & News | Starbucks unveils plan to support partner and customer voter engagement

USA Today | Starbucks encouraging their employees to go vote on Election Day

Who: Wardrobe

What is Wardrobe? A peer to peer clothing rental, like Airbnb but for your clothing

How does Wardrobe work?

• You contact Wardrobe’s headquarters and sends the clothing you want on the platform
• The Wardrobe team photographs and posts the items on a virtual personal closet
• The virtual closet can be viewed on the Wardrobe’s website
• With rental prices and minimum terms, from 4 days to 4 months
• You can refresh or reduce the items in the virtual closet at any time

How do renters collect the wardrobe items rented? At a participating dry cleaner

One of Wardrobe’s value propositions: sustainability

How does Wardrobe differ from other clothing rental services?

• Wardrobe retains no inventory
• Wardrobe has no warehouses, no trucks, no pick ups and no delivering items
• All items are insured by Wardrobe

Payments.com | Wardrobe: Recommerce Meets The Sharing Economy In Bid To Become The ‘Airbnb of Fashion’

The Governor: Colorado Governor Jared Polis

The Executive Order, D 2020 175, will require:

• State agencies must develop plans to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion in Colorado’s workforce
• State agencies must promote inclusive workplace cultures
• Required reporting on progress
• Review all buildings, systems, procedures and websites for accessibility and address any inequities that may be posed by contracting barriers
• Mandates that all state workers, including supervisors and executive leaders, receive trainings on equity, diversity and inclusion
• Build anti-discriminatory workplaces with “equitable hiring, compensation, and retention practices.”

Governing | Colorado Governor Orders More Workplace Diversity

How is the pivot to viewership working for the NBA? Recent games are seeing 16% viewer increase from before the pandemic.

Twitter @MCuban 2 September 2020

Started with Old Navy. Old Navy partnered with partnering with the Civic Alliance and Power the Polls to recruit 250,000 new poll workers.

Can Old Navy make an impact? it has 50,000 store employees nationwide.

It is being expanded to other Gap Inc related brands.

CNN | Old Navy to pay store employees to work election polls in November

CEO of the Packers met with his players, talked with and listened to his players, and they agreed to the following 5 social justice initiatives:

• pushing for more body cameras on police officers
• getting people registered to vote
• using the Johnsonville Tailgate Village as a polling station for the upcoming election
• continuing discussions with Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers and Wisconsin State Assembly Majority Leader Jim Steineke
• making a $250,000 social justice impact grant (the team has already provided $500K in social justice grants this year).

Was this new for a Packers organization? No. Coach Vince Lombardi informed local businesses they would be blacklisted by the team if they discriminated against any of its players.

NFL.com | Packers CEO Mark Murphy challenges NFL owners regarding social justice: It’s time to make changes

Which State legislature passed this bill banning 12 chemicals in cosmetics and personal care products? California AB 2762 (2020 | CA)

Which types of chemicals are prohibited?  toxic fluorinated chemicals known as PFAS, mercury, formaldehyde, + endocrine-disrupting phthalates and long-chain parabens, preservatives used in skincare products

Is this unique to California? No, 40 other countries prohibit the use of these chemicals in personal products

EWG.Org | Legislation protects Californians from 12 toxic chemicals in personal care products

Who: Burger King,  Cargill and the World Wildlife Fund

What: Recently Burger King introduced the low methane Whopper. To get there, Burger King partnered with Cargill & WWF to work with ranchers in the US’s Northern Great Plains on a 3 year initiative to return cropland to native grasslands through a restoration program

The goals of the partnership:

• Convert 8,000 acres of marginal cropland throughout Montana and South Dakota to diverse grasslands
• Introduce cattle to those diverse grasslands
• Sequester the carbon equivalent of driving 70 million miles in an average vehicle

Agfundernews | Burger King, Cargill & WWF team up to reseed grasslands in the Northern Great Plains

Instagram: @dasrobbwolf

The Kentucky Secretary of State partnered with the  Kentucky Guild of Brewers.

Because young voters like beer, the information about becoming a poll workers is advertised on local beer cans.

From the news release ” We need younger generations to step up and be good citizens, and so we enlisted the help of Kentucky’s craft breweries to reach them.”

The campaign name:  “SOS From Your SOS”

Louisville Courier Journal | You heard it from the beer: Kentucky needs volunteers at the polls in November

The Big Picture: Nordstrom Stands Firmly Against Racism & Injustice

How? As c commitment to be more diverse, inclusive & anti-racist

What did they do to get there? Listened to their stakeholders, their employees, their boards, their communities

Did they set measurable goals?

• By 2025, increase Black and Latin mangers by 50%
• Increase internship program to have 50% of its participants from underrepresented populations
• Examining all their policies to ensure that they are anti-bias and anti-racist
• Renewing Supplier Diversity Program with new goals to set in February 2021
• Improving metrics in their annual employee survey to limit favoritism and improve inclusion
• Expand Employee Resource Groups
• Measure Leadership by Inclusion and feedback from employees
• Double charitable contributions to anti-racist organizations

@Nordstrom on Instagram | We Stand Firmly Against Racism and Injustice

How are tech companies staying woke?

• VCs are looking to fund Black founders
• Calls to hold tech companies accountable for their diversity
• Appointing Black Board members
  • Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian stepped down from its board & urged the addition of a Black individual to its board

Tech Crunch covered by Best Gaming Pro | What’s next in Uber and Lyft’s court battle and a look at board diversity in Silicon Valley – TechCrunch

1. Support your community over marketing. Prioritize spending and put that spending into your community. Think about Walmart, Target, Glossier, Sephora and many others that quickly donated to social justice organizations.
2. It’s more than giving money. Lip service isn’t enough. Recognize and be Aware of significant dates like Juneteenth- give your employees the day off, take actions that support employee activism like providing rides to events
3. Do the right thing. Be on the right side of history.

Most importantly, when you’re doing the right thing, it has to be authentic and fit your brand. Do good, and do it your way.

WWD | Three Pillars for Social Impact Relevancy

A new global study, Advancing University Engagement: University engagement and global league tables, published by the Univ. of Chicago, Kings College, the University of Melbourne, & the Nous Group, sets 8 standards to rank universities for social impact.

The eight standards:

1. University responsibility for social commitment
2. Community/Partner opinion of the university:
3. Student Access
4. Volunteer Commitment
5. Scope of research outside of academic journals
6. Community-service learning within the university curriculum
7. Socially responsible purchases
8. Carbon footprint

Why is this important now with a pandemic? InfoHive is revisiting this topic as it was picked up by a Monterey, Mexico publication that stressed “The current crisis only underscores the need to measure and publicize the social value that higher education brings.”

Observatory of Educational Innovation | New Report Highlights the Need for College Rankings Based on Social Impact

•  Gen Z prioritizes the impact of their work relative to financial gain 
• Gen Z is focused on the impact of their investment having grown up with access to abundant and incessant information
• GenZ favors personalized and not algorithm generated advice

Market Watch | Opinion: Gen Z is starting to make their own money — so pay attention to how they’re spending and investing it

Belgian psychotherapist Esther Perle, who practices in the U.S., says the Identity Economy is:

• rests upon a work environment where millennials want to be, and show, the best version of their true selves
• People signaling, through their platform and within their work environment, that they want to be part of the solution, not the problem
• People want a workplace that gives them a sense of personal development, purpose, and meaning.
• It asks “Who am I going to be next?” It does NOT ask ‘What am I going to do next?’
• The Identity Economy is driven by people who “need to know what you believe in and then pursue it.”

Is this limited to millennials? NO.  80% of business leader responses to PwC’s Putting Purpose to Work  agree that having a sense of purpose is central to success.

Strategy + Business | A new measure of success for sporting superstars: Social impact

Let’s look at the social impact actions of European athletes:

• Majority of F1 drivers took a knee for Black Lives Matter on July 5th during the Austrian Grand Prix
• Manchester United soccer striker Marcus Rashford persuaded the British government to continue funding free school meals voucher through the summer due to COVID

Is this new? No, stand out historically is boxing legend Muhammad Ali

What are leagues saying?

• Premier League supports players ” using their platforms to push good causes”
• In June 2020  U.S. Soccer Federation rescinded a 2017 rule that banned protests

Business + Strategy | A new measure of success for sporting superstars: Social impact

The business: Tides of Kindness

The founder’s goal: “… changing the way people look at disabilities by showing abilities first.”

How is she achieving her goal: products promoting kindness, public speaking engagements, and as a correspondent that leads with kindness

Her motto: “Kindness spreads kindness.”

Tides of Kindness

Sony Studios created a brand new drive-in experience for 12 films to sell out capacity.

What did Sony Studios do?

• Made the drive-in experience more- colorful lights, masked staffers and classic movie props
• Drive through red carpet experience
• vehicles could have no more than four people — all from the same household
• vehicles must be hard-topped and masks were required whenever out of the car
• questionnaire for screening COVID-19 symptoms
• masked and face-shield-ed employees took guests’ temperatures and again asked about symptoms

What are the practicalities?

• Sony Studios utilized its parking lot
• Tickets at the socially distanced events sold out in 24 hours.

Was there a partnership? Yes, Sony Studios partnered with Porche

Hollywood Reporter | Sony Debuts Sold-Out Drive-In Experience With Masks and Memorabilia

A record number of women CEOs on the current S&P 500 has been reached. 38 women CEOs. 38 of 500.

The move to 38 came after Clorox named Linda Rendle its new CEO.

 Women make up less than 8% of the leaders on the Fortune 500 list.

None of those women are Black or Latina.

Beyond diversity and inclusion why should I care about this? Data shows women leadership increases profits. COVID data shows women leaders did the best job of leading countries through the pandemic.

CNBC | Clorox names Linda Rendle as its next CEO, bringing the number of Fortune 500 women leaders to a record 38

• Donate to charities.
• Spend responsibly.
  • Ask “How many Blacks do they have on the board or in leadership positions?” 
  • Ask “How many women are on the board or in leadership positions?”
  • Ask “How many people of color are on the board or in leadership positions?
  • Does the leadership team look like the community?
• Boycott problematic brands.
• Invest in socially conscious businesses.
• Use community banks.

US News | Money | 5 Ways to Be a Socially Conscious Consumer and Financial Activist

Apple announced its goal to be 100% carbon neutral by 2030. 75% reduction in emissions + developing innovative carbon removal solutions for the remaining 25%.

What parts of Apple business are included in the goal? All of it.

• its entire business
• manufacturing supply chain
• product life cycle

What Apple’s CEO is saying: “Businesses have a profound opportunity to help build a more sustainable future, one born of our common concern for the planet we share…Climate action can be the foundation for a new era of innovative potential, job creation, and durable economic growth. With our commitment to carbon neutrality, we hope to be a ripple in the pond that creates a much larger change.”

Apple | Apple commits to be 100 percent carbon neutral for its supply chain and products by 2030

COVID is often equating to greater sustainability and greater interest in diversity and inclusion, and this week’s release of new sustainability standards by Nordstrom joins the trend.

What the Nordstrom CEP is saying: “As a company, we believe the impacts we have on our employees, customers and communities extend well beyond the walls of our stores. The idea that we have a role to play in building and shaping a positive, more inclusive and sustainable future isn’t new to us, but it’s become more important than ever.” 

Nordstrom’s updated corporate responsibility goals:

• By 20205 halve its use of single use plastics
• Promoting recycled beauty packaging
• Helping consumers recycle and donate clothing
• $1 million in grants to support industry innovation for textile recycling
• $250,000 in grants toward slowing and preventing climate change
• disclose traceability to the factory for 90% of Nordstrom Made products by 2025
• 90% of products from factories that invest in women’s rights 
• Living Wages for products that are Nordstrom Made
•  invest more than $50 million in communities where it operates
• Increased charitable matching

Financial news | Inside Nordstrom’s Plan to Become More Sustainable & Improve on Corporate Social Responsibility

The Partnership: The Cherokee Nation, the Oklahoma Film + Music Office, and FireThief Productions

What: Creating an animated series to preserve the Cherokee language

Another takeaway: Information comes from many places- don’t ignore reddit and other social media sites

Anadisgoi | Cherokee Nation partnering with state film office, FireThief Productions on new Cherokee language animated series pilot episode

Reddit | Cherokee Nation partnering with state film office, FireThief Productions on new Cherokee language animated series pilot episode

www.Cherokee.film.

The tweet by @elonmusk:
Tesla is open to licensing software and supplying powertrains & batteries. We’re just trying to accelerate sustainable energy, not crush competitors!

Which aligns with the Business Roundtable August 2019 Announcement to change the purpose of business in the US.

Connecting the dots…as business adapt to the new world.

@JohnSanei on Instagram

@elonmusk response to @teslarati