We launched Paradigm Shifters
…in large part because of the impact we have seen through our own direct endowment investments. We know that most foundations can’t directly follow our path of 100% mission alignment through direct investments, but we hope that our little slice of the Mission Aligned Investing landscape can be an inspiration to others to maximize the enormous untapped impact potential sitting in their endowments.
While we are intent on taking the fight to the highest levels of the industry to influence the influencers who can drive systemic change, it is these small, inspirational stories that drive us forward.
We Recommend
Does investing in businesses led by women or diverse-gender teams mean higher returns and lower risks? Dare we say that those of us who paid attention to the adults in our lives as we were growing up, know this to be true! But now there is proof thanks to the new book The XX Edge, which will be released on June 21st. Pre-order it here on Amazon! Authors Ruth Shaber and Patience Marime-Ball are leaders in the mission aligned movement.
Featured Paradigm Shifter
And speaking of Ruth Shaber,
meet her here – along with Phoebe!
Ruth founded the Tara Health Foundation, a spend-down foundation that meets its mission of improving the health and well-being of women in the US through grants and investing its full endowment toward its mission.
At Work…
What inspired you to align your endowment with your mission?
Investments are a powerful tool for social change. If we only focus on grant making, we miss a huge opportunity to create sustainable enterprises and “make the markets work for justice” (Darren Walker, Ford Foundation).
What have been the biggest obstacles at your foundation for mission alignment?
Having measurement standards that are evidence based and informed by community advocates. Investors are not qualified to decide what constitutes “good” companies. When we first began this work in the gender focused investment space in 2014, I was dissatisfied with the rationale for the existing standards. Tara Health Foundation needed to commission the creation of measurement frameworks in order to proceed with our portfolio creation.
What’s next in your mission alignment?
In 2022 we will be adding a racial equity lens to our entire portfolio. 100%.
What about perpetuity or spending down?
Tara Health Foundation is spending down the assets with the goal of deploying all the assets by 2030.
What’s a favorite mission aligned investment of yours?
Rhia Ventures – a 501(c)(3) with a wholly owned subsidiary venture fund that invests in early stage companies in the contraception and maternal health space. I am also very proud of our loan program to 3 different women’s health clinics in the US.
Have you ventured into shareholder advocacy? How so?!
Yes! We have built a coalition of investors that filed shareholder resolutions demanding transparency of political spending by public companies. We specifically address areas where companies are giving political donations to legislators who are passing laws that are inconsistent with or undermine a company’s stated values (such as decreasing their carbon footprint or being a desirable place for women to work). We also have filed resolutions with a number of companies asking them to consider transportation vouchers for their employees who live in states where abortion care is no longer available.
After work…
Guilty pleasure:
Chocolate and jigsaw puzzles
Last series you binge-watched:
Money Heist!
Favorite caffeine source:
Dark chocolate
Sweet or salty:
Both
Happy place:
Lisbon or my garden in Redwood City
Animal friend:
Phoebe, a “Daisy Dog”
Music that lifts your spirits:
Mission-aligned Investees
Meet Pecan Milk Cooperative
Here’s an example of a business that hit and surpassed the metrics that meet our mission: The Pecan Milk Cooperative, provides dignified work for LGBTQIA, women, people with disabilities, and other marginalized communities in the US South. Ingredients for their Organic plant based milks – all packaged in glass bottles – are sourced thoughtfully including purchasing their pecans from Black Georgian farmers.
These worker/owners are young, enthusiastic, courageous, and committed individuals who are raising the bar on what business can do, but they needed some help that traditional financiers were unable to provide. This is where a foundation endowment can and should jump in to fill the gap. We were proud to be able to play a part in their journey (and also pleased that they paid back our loan in full).
About Us
About the UnTours Foundation
We were born out of Untours travel, the world’s first B Corp, and have since inherited it. We have been 100% mission aligned since our founding 30 years ago. There wasn’t a term or notion of mission alignment back then, but our founder, Hal Taussig, was always ahead of the curve. Yes, Hal inspired the B Corp movement by the way he ran his business, and we launched the Fair Trade town movement in the US making our hometown of Media the First Fair Trade Town in the US, later followed by 43 towns and cities. Now we are taking on mission alignment. We are small but mighty, and we need your help to push this boulder up the mountain!
How can we assist you in your mission aligned adventure? We are here to help!
All good things to you,
Elizabeth Killough and Jonathan Coleman
Co-CEOs
