The AI revolution has arrived. How can mission-driven investors harness this technology for maximum impact? The tools can analyze investment decisions, identifying opportunities and risks. AI will become more efficient and consistent than people are at underwriting against a credit policy. It could replace whole departments that focus on analysis. Some larger banks already provide credit lines without applications, based on AI analysis of spending patterns and income. To some, this looks like straightforward technological progress, with maybe just a few kinks to work out. But for ma ..read more

A $300,000 mortgage loan from RSF Social Finance supported the organization’s pioneering model for transferring carefully cultivated land and knowledge to a new generation of farmers Barn at Villa Acres Farm, stewarded by The Farmers Land Trust. Credit: Anthony Villa In 2013, Living Lands Trust found itself in a bind: 76 acres of biodynamic farmland in Wisconsin adjacent to fields it had already protected for regenerative agriculture were going on the market. Losing this land could sink the dairy operation of the young farmers the trust was working with, but neither the farmers nor t ..read more

I am a community solar lender. Here’s what I’m looking for. — RSF Social Finance If you develop small- to medium-size community solar projects, chances are you’ve struggled to find the right financing. Maybe equity doesn’t meet all your needs. Or, you’re holding onto the project for the medium or long term, and you want to collect cash flow. In either case, debt is your best bet — but big banks decline deals they deem too small, and many community banks shy away from funding solar because they’re not familiar with the economics of the sector. The solution could lie with funders that ..read more

Interest in community solar projects has grown explosively over the last decade, with 1,600 projects currently operating nationwide. Policies in 22 states and Washington, D.C., now support community solar, and 17 of those states have enacted provisions to encourage projects in low-income communities. This kind of infrastructure serves as an equalizer in the switch to clean power, providing affordable renewable electricity to businesses and households across the economic spectrum. But despite their value to communities, small- and medium-size community solar projects often struggle to find fin ..read more

If ESG is a foot in the door to an economy built around sustainability, inclusion and equity, then governance is the power that’s going to kick that door wide open and make way for real progress on corporate environmental and social performance. Governance doesn’t get nearly as much scrutiny as the other two ESG factors. It’s treated as a dull exercise in compliance and fiduciary duty to shareholders or discussed only in terms of increasing board diversity. Bringing more women and people of color onto boards is necessary, but it is not sufficient to drive the change impact investors and advoc ..read more

Mad Capital uses a $5 million credit facility from RSF to support Midwest and High Plains farmers who are transitioning to organic and regenerative practices Prairie Grass Ranch. Photo courtesy of Mad Capital. Improved biodiversity, carbon drawdown, rural economic development, better water quality — the impact of regenerative agriculture is powerful and systemic. And organic farming, the baseline for regenerative practice, is two to five times more profitable than conventional farming. Yet only 1% of U.S. farmland is certified organic. A major barrier, says Mad Capital CEO Brandon Welch ..read more

A $100,000 recoverable grant from RSF’s Women’s Capital Collaborative helps the enterprise transition to a nonprofit model for easier collaboration with school districts to end plastic waste Photo by Naja Bertolt Jensen on Unsplash Alarmed by the environmental and human health impacts of plastic use and appalled by the disposability culture in schools, Heather Itzla and Nikki Kozlowski started Wisdom Supply Company in 2017 to tackle the plastic waste crisis. Initially, Wisdom worked directly with schools to provide zero-waste supplies in bulk — including binders, planners, noteb ..read more

Sustainable investing is here to stay, despite confusion around ESG funds , and regenerative finance is a clear path forward Photo by Dan Meyers on Unsplash The environmental, social and governance field is undergoing a reckoning on both its identity (“What is an ESG fund? I literally have no idea myself,” one industry insider told Bloomberg) and its credibility, with critics including the Securities and Exchange Commission calling out greenwashing and unproven sustainability claims. That doesn’t mean sustainable investing is going away: In a Morgan Stanley study, 79% of individ ..read more

Institutions must genuinely commit to creating equitable organizations and systems Photo by Edgar Chaparro on Unsplash In 2013 I became a named plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit against Wells Fargo filed on behalf of more than 300 Black employees alleging discrimination. It was the start of a grueling four-year journey to a settlement. I recently reflected on that experience with fresh eyes when I was interviewed for a Washington Post article on the NFL’s failed Rooney Rule for increasing diversity among head coaches — and its equally ineffective adoption by large corporations. My ..read more

RSF Social Finance has been ‘a wildly fantastic partner’ to Geos Institute during the pandemic and beyond 2019 Geos Institute community meeting in Louisville, KY. Photo by Geos Institute. Local conditions require communities to adapt differently to climate change. But many struggle to identify the best ways to protect themselves from rising temperatures, extreme weather conditions, and other impacts — especially those with the fewest resources to tackle these challenges. The Geos Institute was an early actor in recognizing and seeking solutions to this problem. Founded in 1974 as a forest ..read more