More and more foundations are turning to mission investing as a tool to help achieve greater impact beyond traditional grant making. But many foundations still don't have a good sense of the scope of the mission investing universe, nor do they have access to mission investments that currently exist. Help is on the way thanks to a web portal of mission investment opportunities recently launched by More for Mission, a non-profit organization dedicated to broadly promoting mission investing and encouraging foundations to take up mission investing practices. Mission investors seek opportunities to align a foundation's investments with the mission of the organization.

According to Lisa Hagerman, Director of More for Mission, the portal is part of an effort to simplify a process that can sometimes seem overwhelming, especially to foundations that are new to the field. "The portal is an important step forward in making mission investing an accessible strategy for all interested foundations by enabling them to review the landscape of investment opportunities across product types, themes, and geographies," explains Hagerman. "This new resource helps our network of foundations more readily identify potential investments that are a match with their mission," she says. More for Mission encourages foundations to join its network at no cost to learn more about mission investing opportunities.

The portal provides More for Mission member foundations with restricted access to Cambridge Associates(TM) proprietary database of approximately 250 fund management firms that offer both public and private markets mission-related funds across various asset classes and strategies. Examples include funds focused on community investing, ESG investing, and double bottom line real estate. The portal also provides access to tailored search functions of community investing opportunities in US Treasury certified community development financial institutions (CDFIs). The portal will be updated with new offerings to reflect innovative mission investment products as the field continues to grow.

Early reviews of the portal from members of the More for Mission network have been positive. "The new portal is helping the Skoll Foundation see the universe of mission-related investable opportunities," says Richard Fahey, Chief Operating Officer, at the Skoll Foundation, a new member of the More for Mission network. Sandra Mikush, Deputy Director at the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation notes, "The portal is a useful resource as we develop our mission investing policy and explore investment strategies. I plan to share the data with our Investment Committee, particularly as a way to gain perspective on the most active social issue areas and asset classes for market-rate mission investments."

Cambridge Associates (CA) proprietary database is maintained through its dedicated Mission-Related Investing Group which was launched in 2007 with support from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the F.B. Heron Foundation and the Meyer Memorial Trust, also founders of More for Mission. "By offering the use of our proprietary listings to foundations that have joined the More for Mission network, we hope to help jumpstart the learning curve for foundations that are new to mission investing," states Jessica Matthews, Manager of Cambridge Associates Mission-Related Investing Group. "This new portal is an important way to educate foundations about the investment opportunities available as they begin to develop mission investing programs."

More for Mission is dedicated to broadly promoting mission investing and challenging foundations - private, community, and corporate - to take up mission investing practices. Its network of foundations has more than doubled over the last year and now includes 61 participating foundations that collectively represent $31 billion in total assets. More for Mission aims to help foundations build capacity so that they have the tools and information to better align their investments with the mission of the organization. Additionally, More for Mission helps to link foundations that are pioneers in mission investing and those new to the practice to disseminate information and encourage cross-fertilization in the field. As part of this effort, the More for Mission Campaign Resource Center offers access to research on the field, implementation tools and links to potential investment opportunities through its website. The Resource Center is funded by three pioneers in the field of mission investing: the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the F.B. Heron Foundation and the Meyer Memorial Trust and is affiliated with the Boston College Institute for Responsible Investment. Foundations are encouraged to join the More for Mission network. For more information, visit www.moreformission.org.

More for Mission

More for Mission

More for Mission is dedicated to broadly promoting mission investing and challenging foundations - private, community, and corporate - to take up mission investing practices. Its network of foundations has more than doubled over the last year and now includes 61 participating foundations that collectively represent $31 billion in total assets. More for Mission aims to help foundations build capacity so that they have the tools and information to better align their investments with the mission of the organization.

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