Book Review-Good Policies For a Great America, published by Opportunity Finance Network (10/06)
A new collection of essays on the impact and possibilities of the opportunity finance industry is a guidebook for the next President and Congress.

Green Fast Food: Really Here or a Green Dream? (07/11)
The fast food industry is seeing a growing demand for environmental sustainability. How can investors, consumers, and other stakeholders know which restaurants are truly embracing sustainable development and which are only greenwashing their practices?

Good Mortgages Still Going to Good People (11/07)
Community development financial institutions and their customers across the country are disproving the idea that low-income people are mortgage risks.

The Growth of Green Building Funds (11/30)
A new urban green real estate fund from Revival Fund Management exemplifies a budding trend toward private funds capitalized by accredited investors.

Merrill Lynch Uses CDFI Assessment and Ratings System on $93 Million Community Investment (11/08)
While many investors use the CARS ratings as secondary information in their community investment decisions, Merrill Lynch will use it as its primary underwriting tool.

Nobel Prize Links Microfinance to Peace (10/17)
The granting of the Nobel Peace Prize to Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank breaks new ground by explicitly linking economic development to peace development.

Microfinance Crosses Continental Divide with $100 Million Commitment from TIAA-CREF (10/09)
TIAA-CREF inaugurated its Global Microfinance Investment Program by purchasing from ProCredit Holdings $43 million in private equity shares, a new strategy in microfinance.

Calvert and Ford Foundations Help Launch Public Radio Fund to Democratize the Airwaves (08/10)
The foundations jointly seeded $4.5 million in the revolving loan fund administered by Denver-based Public Radio Capital to provide low-interest loans to public radio projects nationally.

Missouri Farmers Union Credit Union Supports Sustainability in Low-Income Rural Areas (07/10)
The new credit union supports cooperative entrepreneurial models that advance social responsibility and environmental sustainability in low-income agricultural regions.

The Numbers--and the Stories Behind Them--on Community Development Financial Institutions (06/02)
CDFI Data Project recently released the most comprehensive report on the CDFI industry, with statistics documenting CDFI growth and case studies illustrating positive social impacts.

Wainwright Bank and Equal Exchange Partner to Offer the First Branded Certificate of Deposit (06/01)
This new branded CD model is particularly suited to socially responsible banks, companies, and investors, as the increased social returns can counterbalance the slightly higher financial risks.

Using the Same Tape Measure: MicroRate To Launch Tool for Rating Microfinance Funds (05/24)
The rating tool, a project supported by Gray Ghost Microfinance Fund, Omidyar Network, and Gates Foundation, is yet another step toward establishing microfinance as a distinct asset class.

Ecological Community Loan Pool Directly Links Ecologically Minded Investors to Eco-Preneurs (05/23)
The portal created by Ecostructure Financial tweaks the community development financial institution model to allow investors to lend directly to startups solving environmental problems.

The Case for Categorizing Community Development Venture Capital as a New Asset Class (05/18)
A white paper by Pacific Community Ventures lays out the argument and identifies steps to promote growth in community development venture capital, such as standardizing social return metrics.

Common Good Bank Advances One Branch of Community Investing Evolution (04/05)
The bank promotes the common good by distributing excess profits to the community and by making all lending and spending decisions through participatory democracy.

New International Finance Corporation Sustainability Standards: Watershed or Watered Down? (11/23)
A group of socially responsible investors express concern over perceived shortcomings in the proposed IFC policy revisions, while the IFC points out where the policies break new ground.

Fonkoze Helps Transform Microfinance to Reach the Poorest of the Poor in Haiti (11/18)
After convening a summit on how to modify microfinance to serve the extreme poor, Fonkoze adapts a model pioneered by the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee.

Consortium Advances Microfinance as an Emerging New Asset Class (11/09)
The Global Commercial Microfinance Consortium, with its $75 million fund, links mainstream financial institutions to socially responsible investment practitioners with microfinance experience.

Community Development Financial Institutions Spread Like Wild Grass in Indian Country (10/25)
First Nations Oweesta Corporation serves as a national umbrella organization providing the structural framework and organizational support to fuel current exponential Native CDFI growth.

The Power of Three: SJF Ventures Sets Precedent in Community Development Venture Capital (06/16)
SJF and its partners won all three award categories at the annual conference of the Community Development Venture Capital Alliance, which promotes economic, social, and environmental advancement.

Microfinance and Donor-Advised Fund Provide Tsunami Relief (05/27)
A Grameen Foundation USA report examines barriers and opportunities for using microfinance as tsunami relief, and the Calvert Foundation funnels donations to tsunami-ravaged Sri Lanka.

Measuring Social Returns on Community Development Venture Capital Investment (04/21)
The Community Development Venture Capital Alliance releases the Measuring Impacts Toolkit, which attempts to quantify social returns from community investments.

Not Just for Corporations: Six Microfinance Banks on Three Continents Use GRI Guidelines (03/16)
Microfinance institutions in Africa, Asia, and South America are issuing sustainability reports using Global Reporting Initiative guidelines, as are other non-corporate entities such as GRI itself.

Bush Budget Ghettoizes 18 Community Development Programs, Slashing Their Funds (02/16)
Community development advocates criticize the proposed budget for fiscal year 2006, as the consolidated programs will have to compete with one another for a smaller pool of funds.

Community Investment Surpasses the $1 Billion Mark at The Rock (02/03)
The Prudential Financial Social Investment Program, one of the oldest community investment programs in the country, has distributed more than $1 billion before its 30th anniversary.

Fonkoze Partners With Zanmi Lasante to Link Microfinance and Health in Haiti (10/22)
The largest microfinance institution in Haiti teams with a renowned community health provider to launch a new bank and hospital in a rural village.

FDIC Proposes Rule Watering Down Community Reinvestment Act Requirements (10/19)
The SaveCRA.org website promotes opposition to the rule change, posting information and a sample letter to file with the FDIC before the end of the comment period tomorrow.

First and Largest International Microfinance Bond Issued (08/18)
Grameen Foundation USA joins forces with two socially responsible investment firms to issue a $40 million bond to support microfinance institutions in nine developing nations.

CRAFund Goes Retail (08/10)
Formerly available only to institutional investors, the Community Reinvestment Act Qualified Investment Fund is now available to individuals through Charles Schwab.

Microcredit Development Fund Helps Transform Household Scraps into Sustainable Entrepreneurship (08/05)
The Deutsche Bank Microcredit Development Fund seeks to alleviate poverty worldwide by helping microfinance institutions grow to scale and achieve sustainability.

Assets in CDFIs Grew Twice as Fast as Those in Commercial US Banks (07/20)
A new study of community development financial institutions highlights several key distinctions between CDFIs and mainstream financial institutions.

Community Investment Benefits Middle Income Earners in Los Angeles (06/25)
The Genesis Workforce Housing Fund develops the first institutional investor-backed project promoting home-ownership for middle-income earners in the US.

Community Investment Institutions Managed By and Benefiting African Americans (06/16)
Generations Community Credit Union, Carver Bancorp, and UrbanAmerica are three African American managed community investment institutions.

Sarona Supports Microfinance To Help Alleviate Poverty in Developing Regions (06/03)
The Sarona Global Investment Fund finances starch processing in Paraguay, a foundation supporting small enterprises in Romania, and a savings and loan cooperative in Haiti.

Matchmaker Boosts FDIC Limit to $5 Million for Community Development Banks (05/18)
A new system allows community development banks to trade portions of deposits, upping the amount covered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to $5 million.

CRA Fund Helps Transform Environmental Liabilities Into Social Assets (02/12)
The CRA Fund supports environmental remediation of brownfield sites, helping transform them into socially beneficial projects.

Community Investment Advocates Question Bank of America/FleetBoston Merger (01/23)
Bank of America is responding to critics of its proposed merger with FleetBoston.

Community Development Financial Institutions Help Rebuild Post-9/11 (10/21)
The National Community Capital Association unveils a report on the impact of CDFIs on post-9/11 lower Manhattan.

Jazz and Orchids Provide Inner City Hope and Opportunity (08/22)
An interview with William Strickland, CEO of the not-for-profit Manchester Bidwell Corporation in Pittsburgh, reveals he is continuing to push the boundaries of inner city economic development.

Guide Rates Best and Worst Lenders in Terms of Reaching the Underserved (03/25)
When it comes to reaching minorities, women, and low- and middle-income borrowers, Bank of America rates as one of the best and ABN AMRO rates as one of the worst.

Congress Cuts Funding for New Markets Venture Capital Program (03/05)
The New Markets Venture Capital program, which provides entrepreneurial expertise and equity capital to small businesses in low-income regions, received the Congressional ax.

Top Five Social Investing News Stories of 2002 (01/14)
The major social investing news stories of the year include significant corporate governance reforms and the success of community investment.

Freddie Mac's SHIP Sails Over the Stormy Seas of the Bear Market (11/27)
The Socially Responsible Housing Investment Program (SHIP) run by Freddie Mac earns positive returns while supporting low-income housing.

Community Investing Pays (10/10)
New study refutes the myth that loans to low-income borrowers carry higher risk than loans to conventional borrowers.

CDVCA's Double Bottom Line (09/13)
By investing capital in low-income communities, community development venture capital funds create jobs and foster economic development.

Conference to Consider the Business Case for SRI (07/29)
Institutional investors will discuss SRI at the Green Mountain SRI Summit, to be held in Stowe, Vermont in September.

SRI Simulations Beat Benchmarks (06/26)
The Triple Bottom Line Simulation demonstrates to institutional investors how socially responsible investing generates positive financial, social, and environmental returns.

Ben & Jerry's Co-founder Invests in "Sweat-free" Garments (09/10)
Following the sale of the Ben & Jerry's label to Unilever, Ben Cohen has shifted his focus from ice cream to the clothing industry as a vehicle for social change.

Community Investment As a Means of Competitive Advantage (08/10)
Ford Foundation report illustrates how companies are finding investment in rural and urban markets to be good business.

Budget Proposal Threatens Huge Cut in CDFI Fund (06/28)
House and Senate subcommittees will soon be looking at a Bush budget proposal that cuts CDFI Fund funding by nearly half.

Entrepreneurs Foundation Starts Up Community Service (05/10)
Innovative organization taps the resources of the entrepreneurial sector to strengthen communities.

Louisville Community Development Bank Focuses on Inner City Neighborhoods (05/08)
Unique bank helps turn pockets of despair into pockets of hope.

Bank of America Invests in Affordable Housing (04/11)
Funding of a non-profit syndicator of federal tax credits is part of a 10-year, $350 billion commitment to community development banking.

Mutual Fund Breaks New Ground in Community Investment (03/21)
The CRA Qualified Investment Mutual Fund now allows investors to direct their money to specific communities.

Shorebank Offers National Banking with Community Impact (05/24)
The oldest and largest community development bank in the U.S., Shorebank is uniquely positioned to be the bank of social investors.

California State Treasurer Launches Community Investment Initiative (05/15)
In a report released last week, Treasurer Philip Angelides musters $8 billion of investments in domestic emerging markets to help underserved communities.

Calvert Launches Linked Account for Social Impact (05/09)
A new product combines measurable social returns with the flexibility and liquidity of a money market account.

Ohio Fund Finds Room for Children to Grow (04/29)
Ohio Community Development Finance Fund promotes the social benefits of adequate childcare facilities across the state.

VCLF Makes a Big Difference in a Small State (02/10)
Vermont Community Loan Fund brings a vibrant program of affordable housing, community facilities, and small business to the Green Mountain State.

Delta Community Harvests Sustainability in Sweet Potatoes (01/11)
The Enterprise Corporation of the Delta provides capital for vital community development in rural Mississippi town.

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