Dolores de Rooij, CFA

Finally taking a moment to reflect on #GIINForum2024 in Amsterdam🌷🚲. Thought-provoking conversations, reconnecting (IRL! 🙏) with sector colleagues, meeting new collaborators. A few take-aways: 📈 On the growth of the sector The Global Impact Investing Network revealed the impact investing market to now be at $1.571 trillion and growing at a 21% compounded annual growth rate. This is great news! And also... I loved these comments from the Member's Day Great Debate: 👉 "Exactly why do you want growth if it's not addressing the needs of people?" - Jeffrey Cyr 👉 "I get frustrated about size being a target if we're not focused on areas of greatest need." - Otho Kerr 👉 "We should instead focus on fit for purpose so we achieve our impact aims, this includes sizing... with purpose." - Tara Sabre Collier 👉 "We need a bias for action, not just a bias for scale. We need to share failures so others can learn. The quantum of capital alone will not fix what needs to be fixed." - Upkar Arora, FCPA, FCA, ICD.D 🏥 Investing in health equity A number of us had engaging sideline conversations on the difference between investing in health and investing in health equity. Yes, there is a difference! I always appreciate the shared commitment in this field to do what we can to learn from each other. James Bair, Monika Schlesinger, Eunice Chapon, Lilly deSouza Burr, Mauricio Preciado-Awad, Nikesh Arya - appreciate the dialogue. 🎉 It's important to celebrate along the way Huge thanks to the Philips Foundation for giving so many of us an excuse to come together in person, for curating important conversations, and for ensuring entrepreneurs doing the real work were at the center every time. Bahaa Eddine Sarroukh, Margot Cooijmans - "Making Impact Last" highlighted the transformative power of collaboration; thank you! It was such a joy getting to spend time with Guillermo Pepe, Amr Abodraiaa, Gajanan Sakhare, Taewee Kahrs, Annette Jung and so many others. 🌎 Latin America - the time is now The region is ready and in need of health equity innovation. Appreciate all the insights shared by the LIVHealth - LatAm Impact Ventures for Health team, Miguel Herrera, Danilo Gaspar, Femke Smeets. It was great to gather as a group of investors to exchange ideas for catalyzing the scale-up of tech-enabled health ventures providing equitable, quality care. Kenneth Gustavsen, Labeeb Abboud, Christian Bausch, Julian Peat, Sandra Y Sainz Heredia, Laura Daily, Emily Troyer. 🍽️ Connect outside your box, preferably over food I loved catching up with previous #ImpactVenturesbyJNJFoundation intern Devon Sanford and meeting Graham Macmillan and the fab team at VISA Foundation and Sonen Capital LLC. I was the luckiest getting to join in a feast with new friends - Raul Pomares, Sandeep Farias, Amie Patel, Ramez El-Serafy. I also loved celebrating with LeapFrog Investments and learning more about their incredible reach and impact, thanks Julie Wallace!

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Great article from Dick van Ommeren of Triodos Investment Management (one of the global leaders in impact investing) on why we need to stop ESG Investing and Sustainable Investing and funnel more resources into Impact Investing. Impact Investing, ESG Investing and Sustainable Investing often get lumped together but the differences are significant. As van Ommeren explains, Impact Investing "looks to the future and actively seeks to create and accelerate positive change" while ESG and Sustainable Investing "looks backward and evaluates corporate behaviour." #ImpactInvesting #ImpInv

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This article explains “regenerative finance”: investing to fix broken systems while generating a modest return. You can participate by investing in RSF notes, providing RSF the capital to make loans to companies which have a direct impact on their communities and the environment. #impactinvesting #impactinvesting #regenerativefinance

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How to report on impact is much-debated. In this episode of the ‘Inside Impact Investing’ podcast Triodos Investment Management’s Rebecca Spohrer and Rosl Veltmeijer discuss the general challenges and pitfalls of impact performance reporting, and how Impact Frontiers has created a set of impact reporting norms. #ImpactInvestment #ImpactReporting #PensionsforPurpose https://ow.ly/w6FL50RBaAA

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We are glad to have been featured through our advisory work on Energy Entrepreneurs growth fund (#EEGF), A fund created in 2019 by Shell Foundation and FMO - Dutch entrepreneurial development bank, managed by Triple Jump in the Inclusive Business Investing Guide.   The "Inclusive Business Investing Guide," developed by IFC - International Finance Corporation, leverages sectoral experience from DFIs like British International Investment (BII), FMO - Dutch entrepreneurial development bank, and itself. This guide serves as a comprehensive resource for impact investors aiming to foster sustainable development and social impact for low-income populations that enhance livelihoods and provide essential, affordable goods and services. Other Key aspects of the guide include understanding inclusive business, establishing intentional investment approaches, incorporating inclusive business into pre-investment processes, managing impact, and utilizing advisory services and technical assistance. Interested in reading further? Check here: https://lnkd.in/d9k7RpaF #goodread #investing4impact #EEGF

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According to GIIN research, a majority of impact investors target positive impacts for climate mitigation in their investment strategies to support limiting emissions and meeting climate goals. At the GIIN Impact Forum 2024 in Amsterdam on October 23-24, academics, policy leaders and climate finance experts will come together for a series of discussions on innovative strategies to close the gap in the march towards a net-zero economy. Register today and be part of crucial conversations aligning impact strategies with climate solutions like the ones below: https://lnkd.in/gmixJTZY 💡 How Renewable Energy Manufacturing and Gender are Interlinked Gender equality plays a crucial role in shaping the future of renewable energy. Damilola Ogunbiyi, CEO and special representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All, will discuss how gender inclusivity in renewable energy manufacturing can enhance innovation and drive sustainable development. 🌎 Planetary Boundaries The stability of our planet is at a critical juncture, with planetary boundaries defining the safe operating space, marking critical thresholds for increasing risks for humanity and ecosystems. Johan Rockström, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and professor in earth system science at the University of Potsdam, will discuss these crucial thresholds in a video interview with GIIN CEO Amit Bouri, exploring the urgent actions needed to protect our Earth’s future. ⌛ Countdown to 2050: Prioritizing Climate Solutions Portfolios The GIIN has been working on landscaping the climate solutions space. It is clear that we need to direct capital into climate solutions portfolios that are impactful enough to meet the net zero challenge. Join this panel session to hear our findings and exchange views on current approaches. Featuring: Danielle Brassel, Head of Responsible Investment, Zurich Insurance Company Ltd. Sarah Wilson, Managing Director, Head of Climate Solutions, Nuveen Alexandra Harbour, Founder & Chair, Venture Climate Alliance P.S. - We will be hosting our Transforming Your Portfolio training on October 22 in Amsterdam alongside the Forum. Empower your impact investing portfolios with cutting-edge techniques and insights. Space is limited, so register today. 🔗 Register for the GIIN Impact Forum and Training: https://lnkd.in/gmixJTZY

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💡 Battery storage: the cornerstone of a resilient energy future. The expanded partnership between Triodos Energy Transition Europe Fund and GridBeyond marks a critical leap toward accelerating the adoption of behind-the-meter battery energy storage systems (BESS) in the UK and Ireland. With a fresh €11.25M commitment—part of a €12.5M joint investment—this venture paves the way for 8MWh of ready-to-build BESS projects in Ireland and Scotland. Battery storage is essential to stabilizing renewable energy integration, addressing intermittency challenges, and enhancing grid reliability. In 2023 alone, energy storage demand surged by over 50% globally, highlighting the increasing reliance on flexible solutions to meet net-zero targets. This collaboration extends beyond storage to explore cutting-edge solutions like solar PV and EV charging. Such diversification strengthens resilience and reduces carbon footprints across industries, with potential to mitigate up to 200 tons of CO2 annually per site. The takeaway? Partnerships like this are the backbone of a sustainable energy transition. To succeed, industry leaders must align capital, technology, and policy for a unified push toward decarbonization. The future demands bold action—Triodos and GridBeyond are setting the standard. 🌱🔋 #EnergyTransition #BatteryStorage #RenewableEnergy #NetZero #ClimateAction #ImpactInvesting #Decarbonization #SmartEnergy #Sustainability #GreenInvestments

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Back from two days in The Hague with Impact Europe on the themes of #BusinessofImpact and #CapitalIdeas. A good time to meet, share and learn and most importantly to contribute to creating a bigger eco system of impact investors. Two interesting reports were presented if you are curious to learn more: - How to do Corporate Impact Investing https://lnkd.in/dd4iCNRU - Social Procurement https://lnkd.in/d43i35gt With the Corporate Leadership Council for WEF Global Alliance for Social Entrepreneurship we discussed some joint challenges as corporate social investors and in a couple of sessions we made deep dives into impact and CSRD. How do we keep social impact at the forefront? Let's continue the movement and make sure that our joint global aspiration of leaving noone behind gets the attention and action it needs 💥

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The Netherlands is Europe’s second-largest user of gray hydrogen, which is typically made using fossil fuels in a carbon-intensive process. To replace the currently used gray hydrogen with renewable hydrogen requires enormous investment in capacity for electrolysis and the renewable electricity to power it. Given that extra electricity equivalent to more than half of the current Dutch electricity consumption would be needed, we think there is a good chance much of the renewable hydrogen will be imported. Therefore, we see the Port of Rotterdam playing a crucial role as a hydrogen hub, not only for the Netherlands but for all of northwest Europe. #RaboResearch #EnergyTransition #hydrogen #investments #netherlands RaboResearch

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Great to be in KL again and to talk about #carbonmarkets for the #ArgusAsiaCarbon conference! We have experts flying from London for the occasion and I’m looking forward to meet everyone there. Carbon Markets are seeing more focus from companies on their decarbonisation journey, from banks who are increasingly active as advisers in this space and finally investors who both see nature based projects and carbon credits as investable assets while also starting to assess the credibility of the decarbonisation strategy of their invested company. Looking forward to discussing this in more details! #climatechange #sustainableinvestment #climateinvesting

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Climate litigation works! 💠 Climate lawsuits are increasingly used to push governments and corporations for more decisive climate actions. 💠 Landmark cases, like those against the Dutch and German governments, have led to significant policy changes and commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (and the same might happen because of the ruling last week (https://lnkd.in/eEAgp8nq). 💠 Even when climate lawsuits fail, they can raise public awareness and influence future legal and policy outcomes. 💠 Litigation against corporations often results in financial repercussions and motivates better environmental disclosures to avoid reputational damage. 💠 Future climate litigation will likely focus on compensation for climate-related damages and ensuring governments meet their commitments to mitigate climate effects. I think it would be better if governments and companies respected our laws and that litigation was unnecessary. However, since it is clear that this is not the reality that we live in, I am grateful that we have NGOs, activists, and citizens who go to court. https://lnkd.in/ew8Sztpm

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Remarkably Shell mentions 'ensuring future competitiveness and current market conditions' among the reasons to pause its European #biofuels facility in Rotterdam. Yes, prices dropped recently, but that should be a temporary phenomenon as ambitious 2030-targets will force #airlines to ramp up blending #biokerosine (#SAF) quickly and demand for #HVO from road #transportation seems to mount as well. Possibly deliveries from elsewhere are part of the explanation. https://lnkd.in/ewc8DKsA https://lnkd.in/e5ZdmKvT

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🌱💼 Exciting Opportunities in Emerging Markets: Harnessing Nature for Sustainable Growth 💼🌱 The recent surge in prices of essentials like rice, sugar, and cocoa due to climate change effects underscores our dependence on nature for sustenance. As ecosystems face depletion, businesses and investors are reevaluating their approach towards nature. Emerging markets present unique opportunities for impactful investments, particularly in integrating sustainability measures. Companies aligning with natural processes or leveraging ecological wisdom offer significant green investment prospects. While established markets in Europe and America attract green investment, smaller enterprises in emerging markets often struggle to access funding. Integrating conservation into business models not only safeguards ecosystems but also enhances long-term profitability. The challenge lies in enabling accessibility for smaller enterprises in emerging markets. The Just Sustainability Transitions (JuST) Institute aims to address this by enhancing transparency for investors. Collaborating with global institutions like GEF, IFAD, and BNP Paribas, JuST has developed a robust methodology to measure the impact of financing, ensuring accountability and clarity for investors. Jason Spensley from GEF emphasizes the importance of accessible financing in bolstering climate resilience and empowering communities. By embracing sustainable practices and fostering financial inclusivity, we can drive positive change, safeguard biodiversity, and fortify communities against climate risks. Join us in reshaping finance for a greener, more resilient future! #Sustainability #GreenInvestment #EmergingMarkets #ClimateResilience #BiodiversityProtection #FinanceForGood

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Key take-aways of Triodos Bank's position paper on responsible AI: 🏦 Financial institutions have a crucial role to play in shaping the responsible development and use of AI technology. 🧕 People should always be in control. AI systems must have human dignity at their core, and be humanity-centred, upholding fundamental rights and benefitting broader societal wellbeing. 🚫 Triodos Bank strongly condemns the use of AI systems for lethal autonomous weapons, biometric identification in public spaces, biometric categorisation, social scoring and cognitive and behavioural manipulation.

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95% of homeowners in the Netherlands can afford to make their homes more climate-friendly through savings or loans. Yet, progress of making homes more climate-friendly lags behind set targets. Why is this the case? - Uncertainty about investment payback periods - Lack of awareness about favorable loan options and subsidies What can be done about it? - Clearly communicate the costs and benefits of climate-friendly investments - Provide better information on loan options and subsidies - Establish a "one-stop-shop" for homeowners to access advice, information, and apply for subsidies and loans Learn more about the topic here: https://lnkd.in/eG4e4KwT Thanks to Camille Mehlbaum and Guido Schotten for the hard work and collaboration!

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In line with Triodos Bank's science based target to reach net zero by 2035, we initiated a climate change engagement project with the goal to encourage companies in our Impact Equities and Bond portfolios to set science-based GHG emission targets, in line with the 1.5°C trajectory. "Our approach is two-fold. One, we focus on companies that are still in the early stages of establishing a climate change strategy. These companies can greatly improve their approach by setting targets that are science-based. Two, we focus on the highest emitters in our portfolio, as reducing emissions for this group can substantially and efficiently decrease the emission intensity of our portfolio," explain investment analysts André d'Ursel, Luc van Haaren, and Lilia Feghiu. Read the full report on the outcomes of this project on our website, including concrete examples of what has been achieved with companies like Wolfspeed and DS Smith. #ImpactInvesting #EmissionsReduction #CleanEnergy #ScienceBasedTargets #GHGEmissions

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In a recent piece in Impact Entrepreneur, our CEO Jasper van Brakel highlights the work of regenerative finance pioneers – and shows investors how regenerative investments can offer holistic returns and visible impact with relatively low risk. Read the full piece: https://lnkd.in/etKS2isN

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What would pension fund members really say if they could tell their pension fund how to invest responsibly? In a pioneering project, Emmeline C. worked with a group of facilitators to find out directly from a mini public of 50 Pensioenfonds Detailhandel members on what was important to them in terms of their future and the future of society. Recommendations were then co-developed with the members. This is the very first deliberative mini-public to address responsible investing for a pension fund. It’s a big innovation – bringing member voice on investment decisions into an industry governed by trusteeship. The project addresses the wider conversation of how members can engage with, participate in and effectively influence the decision-making of their pension fund. Sophie Robinson-Tillett covers the initiative in this Investment & Pensions Europe (IPE): https://lnkd.in/eYQPBHm6 Cranfield University Cranfield School of Management

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Triodos Bank and Triodos Investment Management - together with 160 other financial institutions representing 15.5 USD trillion combined assets- are calling for an ambitious international treaty to end plastic pollution by backing the Finance Statement on Plastic Pollution. #PlasticPollution exacerbates the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, with plastic projected to double and account for 15% of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. By signing the Finance Statement on Plastic Pollution, we are calling on governments for an ambitious international treaty to end plastic pollution ahead of the fourth round of international negotiations (#INC4) taking place next week in Canada. A reduction in our economy’s reliance on single-use plastics translates into a reduction of the environmental and public health toll of plastic production, waste management, and pollution throughout plastic supply chains. #BeatPlasticPollution

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