Tag Archives: impact investing

March 22, 2016 · 4:29 pm

BLOOD CENTER

Jayson Kurfis

Adapted from News From Heartland

Since the early 1900s, the state of Wisconsin has been at the forefront of commercializing great scientific discoveries. With the renewal of a 5-year, $20 million competitive grant to the Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI), funding will go to a consortium of eight regional organizations whose mission is to advance the health of the community through research and discovery. This will offer significant opportunities for investment. The article focuses on the innovations of one of those groups, BloodCenter of Wisconsin. Continue reading →

MAY THE FOREST BE WITH YOU

Using Whole Trees in Building Construction

Neil Kane

If there was ever a way to combine high tech and high touch as John Naisbitt stated in High Tech, High Touch, his 1999 follow-up to his 1982 bestseller Megatrends, “embracing technology that preserves our humanness”, WholeTrees Architecture & Structures of Madison, Wisconsin epitomizes it. WholeTrees is an innovative company that has hit it out of the park in terms of innovating on technology while providing a substantial impact return, all while having one of the most gorgeous and aesthetically pleasing product lines you’ll ever see. Continue reading →

CLEANTECH TRUTHS DEBUNKED

Generally Accepted Truths of Cleantech Investing – Debunked

Laurance K. Hayward – The Venture Lab

It is generally accepted in Cleantech investing that:

(1) the companies are capital intensive,

(2) there is a sustainability premium associated with buying the companies’ products and

(3) the adoption of the companies’ technologies requires a change of behavior.

All three can slow adoption and negatively impact scalability and internal rate of return. Certainly this can be true for many Cleantech companies, but it isn’t true for many others. Continue reading →

KILLING IT

Impact Engine – Part 8

By Jeff Segal – message therapist

Less than a year ago, I asked a prominent figure in Chicago’s startup community about local investors’ interest in the social enterprise model.

She told me flatly, “No one cares.”

Well, they care now. Continue reading →

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Filed under Education, Entrepreneur, High Tech, Low Tech, Poverty

Tagged as give a man a fish, impact investing, social entrepreneur, Social venture, teach a man to fish

May 1, 2013 · 12:22 am

WHAT’S CLEAN

Impact Engine – Part 6

John Jonelis

~ VERBATIM from a special correspondent ~

Loop Lonagan here. I’m at a place where my natural greed ‘n’ avarice can do some good fer dis poor worn-out world. This is the Chicago CleanTech Competition—what you might call a race between high-tech global janitorial services. Ten distinguished judges will pick the best o’ da best—companies that’re really doin’ somethin’ to deal with the mess we’re makin’ outa our little corner o’ God’s creation. What we got here is da last ten finalists in our great city and tonight that gets cut down to five. Continue reading →

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Filed under Characters, Entrepreneur, High Tech, Low Tech, Poverty

Tagged as angel, angel capital, angel investor, bacteria, Big Money, Chicago, chicago clean energy alliance, chicago ventures, clean water, cleantech, dirty water, drinking water, e. coli, entrepreneruship and politics, Entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, events, filter, gcca, global cleantech cluster association, Impact Engine, impact investing, innovation, innovation and culture, invention, investments, investor, Jobs, Kellogg, Loop Lonagan, new companies, Northwestern, philanthropist, pitch, portapure, social entrepreneur, vc, venture capital, virus, water, water contamination, water pollution

March 12, 2013 · 5:00 am

GIVE IT AWAY

Impact Engine – Part 5

John Jonelis

Verbatim transcript from a special correspondent

Loop Lonagan back at Impact Engine Investors Day. The Chase auditorium’s packed with angel investors and venture capitalists AND philanthropists that’d rather invest in self-sustaining ventures than just dump their money down the old rat hole. Continue reading →

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Filed under Characters, Entrepreneur, Giving, New Novel

Tagged as bob hope, Charity, costs of a charity, crowd funding, giving, impact investing, NGO, overhead of a charity, percent giving, the lemon drop kid, the nellie thursday home for old dolls

February 11, 2013 · 11:22 am

THE TWO WHEELS OF CHANGE

Impact Engine – Part 2

John Jonelis

Verbatim transcript from a special correspondent

Loop Lonagan here at IMPACT ENGINE Investor Day. This is the new Chicago incubator fer companies that do well by doin’ good—and doin’ it profitably! Think of it—we’re gathered here to get richer by makin’ all them other poor slobs around the world prosper! This I like!

The keynote speaker is FK Day. (He calls hisself FK fer short.) And he tells us a story that knocks us outa our seats. This is a real unusual chain of events that speaks about the virtues of capitalism doing alotta good by helping folks raise their own well-being. Continue reading →

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Filed under Characters, Entrepreneur, The Economy

Tagged as africa, andromeda strain, bicycle, bicycle brakes, bicycle shifters, bicycles, bike, bikes, Buffalo Bicycles, business, charities, Chicago Cubs, Chicago Cubs Charities, cicycles, doing well by doing good, economic development, education, feeding a family, FK Day, getting to school, getting to work, healthcare, Impact Engine, impact investing, Kellogg, long distance, maintenance, Northwestern, poverty, rough roads, rugged terrain, SRAM, standard bicycle, standard parts, standardization, supply chain, third world, transportation, tsunami, walking, World Bicycle Relief, zambia

January 30, 2013 · 8:00 am

WHAT’S GOOD?

Impact Engine – Part 1

John Jonelis

Verbatim transcript of a recording by a special correspondent

Loop Lonagan here. Dis is somethin’ can change da world. It’s called IMPACT ENGINE ‘n’ it’s dare first investor showcase.

Already met one o’ da founders, Linda Darragh and she made a big-time impression on me. I saw dis gal charge-up a roomfulla sleepy thought leaders with da energy of an oxyacetylene torch. Ideas and plans fly off her like da Fourth o’ July. She’s the reason I’m here. Continue reading →

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Filed under Characters, Entrepreneur, The Economy

Tagged as big data, change the world, doing well by doing good, fail fast, give a man a fish, impact investing, new horizon, new paradigm, s.w.a.g., social entrepreneurship, swag, teach a man to fish