Jacqueline Novogratz, who recently captured her life-changing story in The Blue Sweater, went to Rwanda in the late 80s and saw a little boy wearing a blue sweater very much like one she’d donated to Goodwill years before. Sure enough, it was her sweater. Her name was still written on the tag. Seeing her sweater on a little boy in Africa brought her to the conclusion that “humanity’s ‘collective future rests upon our embracing a vision of a single world in which we are all connected.'”
Her experience inspired Acumen Fund, a venture capital non-profit. The belief that “traditional charity often meets immediate needs but too often fails to enable people to solve their own problems over the long term” drives this non-profit’s means to providing aid. And that is: using a market-based approach to improving global poverty, specifically in the areas of water, housing, energy, agriculture, and health. Financial investment comes in the form of equity or loans, not grants. Central to the investment strategy is the principle of patient capital. I’m not sure I can describe it any better than what is already on the Acumen Fund website:
For Acumen Fund, patient capital is understood as a debt or equity investment in an early-stage enterprise providing low-income consumers with access to healthcare, water, housing, alternative energy, or agricultural inputs. Our typical commitments of patient capital for an enterprise range from $300,000 to $2,500,000 in equity or debt with payback or exit in roughly five to seven years. The patient capital Acumen provides is accompanied by a wide range of management support services nurturing the company to scale. Our aim in investing patient capital is not to seek high returns, but rather to jump-start the creation of enterprises that improve the ability of the poor to live with dignity.
Acumen Fund’s investment portfolio was $38 million in September 2009, according to Time. Global reach extends from the United States to East Africa to Pakistan and India, helping 36 million people through 35 entrepreneurs.
I think this non-profit is right on track—from its cause and work to its marketing and branding. The concept is incredibly successful and sustainable. The conviction to enable low-income, burgeoning entrepreneurs for success is commendable. And the marketing strategy is solid. Promotion occurs across very relevant platforms: publicity/PR, social media (from Twitter and blogging to hosting Flickr stream and YouTube channel), exposure in reputable news mediums, etc. All messaging has made Acumen Fund a thought leader on non-profit venture capital endeavors, global poverty issues, and where business and social justice can converge to bring the greatest good.
If you want to know more about what the non-profit is doing, check out the Acumen Fund blog.
DIARY OF A HOPEFUL CEO 
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