Builders Initiative Foundation Endowment Portfolio Now 90% Mission-Related!
Profits and purpose are not mutually exclusive. We need companies, organizations, and strategies that prioritize sustainable and equitable solutions.
As an organization committed to shifting markets and minds for good, we are so pleased to announce that Builders Initiative, the philanthropic arm of Builders Vision, has transitioned 90 percent of its $1 billion endowment into mission-related investments.
While we know this is only part of the strategy needed to address the systemic challenges we face, our team believes that driving impact requires that we show profits and purpose are not mutually exclusive.
"If we are going to make lasting change happen, we need our mission to show up in everything we do, especially in how we commit our resources,” CEO and Founder Lukas Walton said. “That’s why we are investing our endowment in companies, organizations, and strategies that prioritize sustainable and equitable solutions.”
Our end goal is to help build and support a movement. We hope to continue learning from our community while catalyzing even more capital and unlocking long-term positive change.
A 2020 survey from the Council on Foundations found just 19 percent of private foundations seek to include investments ranking high on ESG criteria and 20 percent screen out investments that are inconsistent with their mission. In recent years, however, the Ford Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, McKnight Foundation, and the Nathan Cummings Foundation, among others, have publicly committed to aligning their investments with their social and environmental mission. With 90 percent of its endowment aligned with ESG and impact, Builders Initiative is providing another guiding example of what is possible.
“We are proud to have successfully transitioned our endowment to mission-related investments, but we know this is only one part of the solutions that are needed to ensure economic and environmental security for the long term,” said Noelle Laing, Chief Investment Officer of Builders Initiative. “We will continue to find inspiration and collaborate with our partners who are joining us in this journey.”
Speaking directly to an investor audience, our leaders spoke with Robert Frank at CNBC to further explain what this means for BV, ESG, and the impact investment community as a whole. Read the CNBC article on the endowment here, and learn more about Builders Vision in this special broadcast interview featuring Founder and CEO Lukas Walton! You can also find more about this story over on ImpactAlpha.