The Pearl Initiative, a business-led non-profit organisation that promotes corporate accountability in the Gulf region’s private sector, recently hosted an event entitled ”New Trends in Giving – Broadening the Spectrum of Giving”, facilitated by Innovest Advisory (“Innovest”). The virtual workshop introduced participants to emerging trends in venture philanthropy and impact investing and was attended by members of the ‘Circle’, a peer-to-peer network comprising institutional and individual donors connected to the Middle East, by the combined efforts of the Pearl Initiative and its collaborating partner, Philanthropy Age.
During the interactive discussion, participants explored themes such as unpacking next-generation philanthropy, engaging the next generation, introducing venture philanthropy, impact investing, and new investment themes and approaches. Considering that $80 trillion is required for infrastructure investment by 2030 to mitigate the impact of climate change, Innovest outlined key themes such as climate finance, climate and environment litigation, the just transition, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI), and dissected how donors could invest in these trending themes.
According to GIIN, the global impact investing market is worth $502 billion, yet only 1% of impact investment organisations are located in the Middle East and North Africa, which continues to face growing challenges with social and environmental issues, healthcare and waste management.
Highlighting the need to continue investing in companies that provide long-term social or environmental impact and financial returns, Justin Sykes, Founder and Managing Director of Innovest Advisory, said: “The region is making significant strides towards addressing key social and environmental challenges. As part of these efforts, there is plenty of opportunity for impact-focused investors and philanthropists to support these positive changes through backing scalable, impact focused companies across the MENA region and further afield.”
During the workshop, participants were presented with case studies highlighting impact-driven initiatives on the ground carried out by leading global organisations.
Anissa Punjani, Programme Manager at the Pearl Initiative, said: “We were pleased to welcome representatives from various organisations to talk about the innovative financing models that have proven successful at a range of setups around the globe. By sharing these success stories with members of the Circle network, we aim to engage, empower and inspire the next-generation of donors to achieve greater societal and environmental impact through venture philanthropy and effective impact investing.”
Following the workshop, participants reported having a deeper understanding of venture philanthropy, impact investing and an awareness of the leading emerging trends and funding themes.
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