Categories for Field Notes

Field Notes: Impact Investment, Vatican Style

The Vatican hosted an unprecedented conference last month, in which Pope Francis stressed the importance of using capital to address global poverty and inequality.

Field Notes: Corporate Ventures in Social Impact

More companies are delving into social responsibility via venture investment and innovative products.

Field Notes: Debate Over ‘No Strings Attached’ Philanthropy

As more philanthropists explore giving cash directly to the poor, some advocates argue the method works and creates better outcomes

Field Notes: In Social Enterprise, Scaling is Prevailing

Barriers to scale can jeopardize the potential advantages of social enterprises, but authors in Forbes and Pioneer Post provide a few solutions.

Field Notes: The Impossibility of Investing Otherwise

Today in our philanthropy and impact investing mini-roundup: foundations must find ways to align their investments with their values.

Field Notes: Change Ahead for Seattle’s Minimum Wage Jobs

As Seattle addresses income inequality by raising the local minimum wage to $15, how will it affect the low-income job market inside and outside of the city?

Field Notes: Who’s Teaching Whom Philanthropy

Does a five-figure cash pot make it easier for universities to teach philanthropy as a “practical philosophy?” A novel grant from a Texas hedge fund manager provokes debate.

Field Notes: Why the ‘Strategic Model of Philanthropy’ Fails

Could an emergent strategy in philanthropy bring a “brave new world” to complex social problems? A Foundation Strategy Group team suggests a new approach.

Field Notes: Everything’s Coming Up Impact

This week we’re reading about how impact investing continues to grow on Main Street, among millennials and in philanthropy.

Field Notes: Household Debt and the Recovery

Why was the Great Recession so Great? On The Upshot, two professors argue that it was a lack of attention to household debt.