A vibrant, catalytic platform to advance and strengthen the practice of social investment globally to deliver sustainable, high-impact solutions to pressing social challenges
The Opportunity
Global social challenges require new solutions and theories. Their scale and complexity is such that current public-sector resources and traditional investment and grant theories are not sufficient to address these challenges. Innovative models which combine private, public and social sector strengths are needed which can deliver more efficient and effective societal impact. Throughout the world, Venture Philanthropy (VP) and Social investment (SI) has proven to be a powerful way to create social impact, by utilizing the same tools applied by the Private Equity/Venture Capital industry to successfully address social problems. VP/SI enables individuals and organizations with high aspirations for making a difference by deploying their financial, human and intellectual resources strategically, with discipline, transparency and accountability.
There is opportunity to expand and advance the adoption of VP/SI theories. Two organizations are doing so already very successfully in Europe and Asia:
Together these organizations have over 800 members in 52 countries, who – since the inception of these organizations – have mobilized more than USD 7 billion helping create substantial social change and impact. While these theories are being developed on a region-by-region basis, there is opportunity to catalyse these methods on a global level.
Our Mission
IVPC will pursue its mission primarily by building and strengthening the social purpose investment community through regional membership associations and affiliate organizations aiming to increase social impact.
- To engage more human, intellectual and financial capital to support social-purpose investment globally.
- To increase the effectiveness of that capital in generating meaningful social impact.
Theory Of Change
IVPC will pursue this mission in three primary ways:
Building additional regional membership associations throughout the world: currently working in Latin America, after finalizing the creation of African Venture Philanthropy Association, and evaluating the opportunity for a Middle East and North Africa Network.
Helping each partner network maximize their impact leveraging synergies between them.
Promoting and advancing venture philanthropy and social investment globally.
IVPC will be a facilitator of collaboration, connection, capacity building, resource mobilization and advancement of VP/SI globally, it will not be an association itself.
Key IVPC value-added activities include:
Facilitating synergies between VP/SI regional organizations on a global basis.
Sharing research and best practices across regions and sectors and developing new global insights.
Supporting the creation and growth of VP/SI practitioners through support of fund formation and scaling.
Promoting public policy dialogue to encourage more conducive conditions for the social economy.
Launching specific sector, geographic and issue focused initiatives to address areas in need of further action.
Who We Are
Board
Douglas Miller
Founder and Chairman
Chairman
Former private equity professional and founding board chair of the EVPA and AVPN.
Cliff Prior
Non-Executive Director
Non-Executive Director
Chief Executive at Big Society Capital. Civil society organisation leader with a track record of successful transformational change and strategic development.
Paul Shoemaker
Non-Executive Director
Non-Executive Director
Senior Consultant & Speaker, Author of Can’t Not Do, Founding President of SVP International.
Steven Serneels
Non-Executive Director
Non-Executive Director
In 1992, Steven started his own company specialized in Supply Chain and Operations Strategy. As business entrepreneur, he grew the company internationally before selling it in 2008.
In 2011, he joined Ashoka Global in Washington as strategic advisor, focussing on how social entrepreneurs and corporations can work together successfully.
Today, Steven is impact investor, supporting (social) enterprises, as well as investor & board member of SI², a for profit social impact fund, and chairman of Kampani, a social impact investment fund unlocking the potential of entrepreneurial farming in the South.
He was appointed CEO of EVPA in April 2018.
Naina Batra
Non-Executive Director
Non-Executive Director
Naina joined AVPN as our CEO from September 2013, and has been appointed as Chairperson in May 2018. Naina’s leadership over the past 6 years has grown the AVPN membership by more than 4x and elevated the organization into a truly regional force for good. Under her direction, the organization has grown from focusing only on Venture Philanthropy to supporting the entire ecosystem of Social Funders from philanthropists to impact investors and Corporate CSR professionals. She was instrumental in developing AVPN’s innovative services that connect, empower and educate the now 600+ members of AVPN. In 2019, Naina was awarded one of Asia’s Top Sustainability Superwomen.
Prior to joining AVPN, Naina was a member of the senior leadership team of a purpose driven unit of The Monitor Group, a leading global strategy consulting firm, aimed at catalyzing markets for social change. Naina was also partner and Co-Founder of Group Fifty Private Ltd, curating contemporary Indian art with a view to provide a medium for upcoming and established Indian artists to showcase their work directly to a large and diverse audience.
Naina has a master’s degree in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University where she graduated at the top of her class. She also holds a bachelor degree in Economics and International Relations from Mount Holyoke College, Massachusetts, USA and a General Course Diploma in economics from The London School of Economics.
Team
Partner
Founding director of the US Social Innovation Fund; former Executive Partner at New Profit, Inc.; senior advisor and co-founder of the Bridgespan Group.
Partner
Former European director of the Inter-American Development Bank; former Partner, Monitor Group strategic consultants.
Andrew Muirhead
Senior Advisor
Senior Advisor
Founder of Inspiring Scotland, a major VP fund in the UK, and former vice-chair of AVPN overseeing its early development.
José Luis Ruiz de Munain
Senior Advisor
Senior Advisor
Founder of UnLtd Spain, affiliate of UnLtd; former Consultant at the Multilateral Investment Fund (IDB Group).
Carolina Suarez
Senior Advisor
Senior Advisor
Mrs Suarez is the founding CEO of the Association of Family and Corporate Foundations -AFE Colombia.
Karen Wilson
Senior Advisor
Senior Advisor
Expert in entrepreneurship and finance (OECD, Bruegel, VC, etc.); former World Economic Forum; former Harvard Business School Global Initiative.
Juan David Ferreira
Consultant
Consultant
Consultant in the space of sustainable development, with experience in impact investing, venture philanthropy, social business models and Base of Pyramid strategies, he has provided consultancy services to organizations such as FUNDES in Mexico and AFE in Colombia.
Present Activities
The IVPC is currently focusing on:
- Disseminating the African Venture Philanthopy Alliance, which was launched in 2018
- Facilitating the creation of the Latin American Venture Philanthropy Network to be launched in 2020.
- Starting to explore the conditions for the establishment of a future Venture Philanthropy/Social Investment Network in the MENA Region
- Working with existing Venture Philanthropy/Social Investment regional networks to identify synergies and opportunities to build upon best practices.
- Laying the groundwork for the development of the global IVPC Platform to accelerate the Venture Philanthropy/Social Investment market on a global scale.
