Builders Vision Releases 2023 Impact Report

CHICAGO – Oct. 17, 2023 – Builders Vision, an impact platform supporting people and organizations building a more humane and healthy planet, today announced the release of its inaugural Impact Report. The report shares data collected from the organization’s partners, which include 450 grantees, portfolio companies, and fund managers, and details for the first time the specific outcomes Builders Vision is pursuing across three major sectors: oceans, food & agriculture, and energy.

“Builders Vision works in service of those closest to the ground who are pursuing solutions to some of the most systemic environmental and social challenges. We take great pride in our ability to provide flexible and innovative capital to help our partners seed, scale, and succeed,” said Lukas Walton, Founder and CEO at Builders Vision. “While our journey is just beginning, we believe it’s important to share where we are and where we are hoping to go. We’re incredibly proud of the work and progress our partners are making and grateful for their commitment to collaboration and continued learning.”

Builders Vision works across philanthropy, investing, and advocacy to shift markets and minds for good. Its teams collaborate to deploy unique strategies and tools that help address environmental and sustainability issues across three interconnected sectors: oceans, food & agriculture, and energy. In 2022, Builders Vision reached an important milestone by developing frameworks that outline the organization’s intended impacts in each focus area.

Its first-ever report highlights how Builders Vision uniquely approaches its work and measures its impact. Across its key sectors, the organization has already deployed more than $3B towards the three sectors and worked alongside nearly 450 partners to drive societal and environmental change. Together they have mitigated, sequestered or avoided over 4 million metric tons of CO2e, helped generate more than 42,000 jobs, and supported the development of more than 170 sustainable products, technologies, or solutions.

A Commitment to Impact

Builders Vision established an Impact Measurement and Management (IMM) team to collect, report, and apply data about the contributions of its grants and investments within the context of its impact frameworks. This data informs strategic decisions and guides conversations with other organizations about creating long-lasting, positive change for people and the planet.

The Impact Report exemplifies the platform’s commitment to learning, accountability, and transparency. It synthesizes impact information shared by Builders Vision’s partners between January 2020 and June 2023, which was subsequently verified by a third-party partner, Dalberg Advisors. The report revealed several findings across Builders Vision’s three focus areas that demonstrate how broad, diverse investment approaches, building trust, and community engagement can transform strategy into impact.

Sector-specific findings from the report include:

• Oceans: With 158 unique partners, Builders Vision has:

  • Created 2,100 jobs that promote ocean health.

  • Developed at least 49 products, technologies, or other solutions that promote ocean health and sustainability.

  • Restored and helped protect 1.96 million hectares of marine or coastal habitats

  • Mitigated, sequestered, or avoided 876,928 metric tons of CO2e.

  • Along with other members of 1000 Ocean Startups, helped lead the development of a first-of-its kind IMM guide for ocean investors, the Ocean Impact Navigator.

  • Committed $260M to ensure healthier and more resilient oceans and help protect and restore marine and coastal habitats.

• Food & Agriculture: With 166 unique partners, Builders Vision has:

  • Committed over $1B to create a sustainable and healthy food & agriculture ecosystem.

  • Created 14,328 full-time jobs.

  • Sustainably managed 2.6 million acres of land.

  • Mitigated, sequestered, or avoided 3,145,927 metric tons of CO2e.

  • Developed at least 114 products, technologies, or solutions that promote the production and consumption of healthy/environmentally sound food.

• Energy: With 125 unique partners, Builders Vision has:

  • Created 25,909 clean energy jobs.

  • Committed nearly $1.8B to fund partners working to make the energy system cleaner and more equitable.

  • Installed 15,685 megawatts of new renewable energy capacity.

  • Helped launch the Venture Climate Alliance (VCA) alongside over 20 other venture capital firms.

  • Developed at least 10 new products, technologies, or regulatory changes to accelerate the clean energy transition.

“We believe that IMM creates the most value for Builders Vision and our partners when it’s integrated into each step of our investment and grantmaking process,” said Joanna Cohen, Head of Impact Measurement & Management at Builders Vision. “IMM is much more than a box-checking exercise. It’s core to helping us articulate and remain accountable to our near- and long-term goals, measure, and manage progress toward those goals with integrity, and provide transparency around those learnings with others.”

Centering on the Changemakers

The changemakers and innovators working to build a better future (referred to as partners) are at the center of Builders Vision’s mission. The report features spotlights of individual grantees, companies, and fund managers throughout that showcase how they are working to drive change. Some of those partners include:

Nick Dyner, CEO of Moleaer: “Our mission is to help industries that depend on water do more with less. We know that water security leads to energy and food security for a growing planet with finite resources. Without water, you can’t grow food and you can’t mine materials needed for the transition to a green economy. As we focus on how to make industries utilize this ever-finite resource more efficiently, we're proud to have the support and partnership of Builders Vision and the S2G Ventures team.”

Justin Bruch, Co-Founder, CEO and President of Clear Frontier: "We're focused on supporting family farmers in their transition to organic because we believe helping them adopt more sustainable farming practices will lead to positive change for the environment and improve their livelihoods. Builders Vision and S2G Ventures share in this principle that sustainable land management is critical to the future of our planet and partnering with them has further demonstrated their commitment to real results for our food and agriculture ecosystem.”

Jason Giffen, Vice President of Planning and Environment at the Port of San Diego: “As a port of communities, we are focused on how we're going to bring environmental solutions, not just to San Diego Bay, but how we can expand those to ports across the world. Working in partnership with Builders Vision has allowed us to bring new, innovative thinking to our important work, which is centered around health equity for all and building a more resilient and sustainable port in San Diego and beyond.”

Kusi Hornberger, Partner & Global Knowledge Lead at Dalberg Advisors: “To unlock the full potential of investing for positive change, we must move beyond good intentions to robust yet practical IMM practices that have data transparency and learning at the heart of it. We are excited to see Builders Vision committed deeply to this mission across its portfolio teams.”

About Builders Vision

Builders Vision is an impact platform dedicated to supporting people and organizations building a more humane and healthy planet through philanthropy, investment, and advocacy. The organization aims to shift markets and minds for good by offering a range of tools to help seed and scale sustainable solutions to societal and environmental issues across three key focus areas: Oceans, Food & Agri­cul­ture, and Ener­gy. Builders Vision includes three teams totaling nearly 100 diverse specialists, grant makers, and investors, who expertly deploy capital across the capital spectrum — Builders Initiative, S2G Ventures and Builders Asset Management. You can learn more at www.buildersvision.com.