Guide for Funders to Assess and Value Impact

Guide for Funders to Assess and Value Impact

Investors and philanthropists hold the power to create large positive impact on society. Impact Institute is proud to publish the Guide for Funders to Assess and Value Impact. It provides impact investors and philanthropists with a sound impact assessment and valuation methodology. This includes step-by-step guidance on how to assess and value the impact of a potential funding opportunity.

The Guide builds on a detailed review of existing knowledge and frameworks and provides guidance on various topics such as:

  • Selecting relevant impacts
  • Forecasting and monetising impact
  • Aggregating results to metrics such as Net Present Value for impact
  • Assessing sensitivity and uncertainty and;
  • Reporting on results

With this open-source methodology, we hope to help funders assess funding opportunities with rigor and consistency. This is an important step, so that impact-driven funders may wield their financial power strategically and effectively to create positive social and environmental impact.

Priority areas

Banks

footprint assessments, sector deep dives, (double) materiality assessments, sustainable finance product development, impact and sustainability reporting

Impact investors

investment strategy and theory of change, impact due diligence, impact adjusted returns, portfolio impact insights, impact and sustainability reporting

Assets

ESG and impact-based asset allocation, fund and portfolio optimisation, (double) materiality assessments, impact and sustainability reporting

Insurers

footprint assessments, (double) materiality assessments, insurance product development, impact and sustainability reporting

Partnerships

We actively work with our clients and other partners to progress impact measurement across the financial sector. We are one of the co-founders of the Banking for Impact initiative, a coalition that came together to develop a harmonised quantitative approach to measuring impact, tailored to financial institutions.

The Netherlands Advisory Board on impact investing is an independent, non-profit organisation that aims to accelerate the growth and improve the effectiveness of the impact investing market.

The Erasmus Platform for Sustainable Value Creation is an academic think-tank at Rotterdam School of Management (RSM), Erasmus University Rotterdam, that collaborates with leading sustainability experts in the financial sector.

Publications

  • Automotive industry

    Impact assessment of lending to the automotive industry

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  • True cost of cotton t-shirts

    This study, commissioned by the Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament, was conducted to get better insight into the social…

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  • Towards the True Price, true value and true profit of food

    Report by True Price, commissioned by Wageningen University & Research. A roadmap to drive the social impact of food.

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  • The true price of Dutch bread

    In 2018, Bakkerij van Vessem wanted to have more insight into the true costs of their ‘Hollandsch Brood’.

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