AVPN Global Conference 2023 | 20 - 22 June 2023

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Catalyzing engagement on climate action

Catalyzing Engagement on Climate Action

While climate action has historically not been top-of-mind for social investors in Asia, we are seeing more AVPN members increasing the capital available to fight climate change, emphasizing the power of collective efforts.

Catalyzing the Circular Economy: Investment Potential in Asia

4 min read The most important climate change conference – COP26 – is just around the corner, reminding countries, leaders, media and the public, of the pressing need to fight climate change for a better collective future. Without intervention, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the plastic lifecycle will make up 20 percent of the global […]

CFA Institute Includes Social Element in Mission

The global CFA Institute‘s Singapore chapter, in a concerted decision to give back to society, has included important social elements to its mission, according to Singapore’s Business Times. The society’s president Tan Chin Hwee, also the founder of global private equity firm Apollo Global Management’s Asian operations, said that the members of the Singapore charter’s […]

Changing Business as Usual: How Sustainable Investment Promotes Sustainable Land Use

4 min read

Pioneering companies and financial institutions have been crucial in promoting sustainable agriculture and forestry investment, yet progress has been slow. USAID Green Invest Asia is taking the lead by working with mid-growth enterprises and linking them with investors to scale up profitable and sustainable agriculture and forestry practices.

Changing the Trajectory of the Next Generation: Ranjith M’s Story of Thriving

This story is an excerpt from Dream a Dream’s new book “When we Thrive, Our World Thrives: Stories of Young People Growing Up With Adversity” authored by Dr. Connie K Chung, EdD with Vishal Talreja, Dream a Dream staff and programme participants. 5 min read At the age of 12, Ranjith first encountered Dream a […]

Channel News Asia’s New Series Future Forward: Changing Philanthropy

Oct. 7th, 2014 – Naina Subberwal Batra, CEO of AVPN,  featured in Channel News Asia’s new series Future Forward: Changing Philanthropy. When it comes to philanthropy, how can donors make sure they get “more bang for their buck”? In this episode, we explore new ways of practising philanthropy – it’s not about writing a cheque anymore.

Charting The Path: Insights from India’s Climate Changemakers

8 minutes read In 2022, AVPN embarked on a year-long initiative, to elevate domestic climate philanthropy across Asia, addressing critical challenges in the region. These challenges were twofold: firstly, the need to increase the number and diversity of local philanthropists who are giving to India, and secondly, to increase the amount of funding allocated to […]

China’s philanthropic growth drives world’s next big impact powerhouse

4 min read

Philanthropy in China has grown exponentially, with charitable giving growing 20% year-on-year, compared to GDP growth of between 6% and 7% annually. Despite being a new joiner to global philanthropy (interest in charitable giving surged in 2008 following the Sichuan earthquake and has been growing ever since), Chinese philanthropy is evolving from reactive or cause-driven giving to designing interventions for long-term, transformative change.

Closing the Expectation Gap

The question: “Where does women’s time go?” is significant. How we invest in their time and resources will not only shape communities, but also economies. Yet, we are only working at half-potential. The COVID-19 pandemic is a defining moment for social investors to ensure the decades of development gains do not go to waste. There is no better time for action than the present.

Co-creating an Equitable Workforce for Women

6 min read It’s going to take more than 130 years to close gender gaps across the world, according to the World Economic Forum. This means that half of the world’s population will not have equal access to opportunities and will have to contend with lack of gender equity at their workplaces, in education, in […]

Coca-Cola’s Stuart Hawkins Talks Water and Women

3 min read

As part of Coca-Cola’s ‘5by20’ goal of empowering 5 million women entrepreneurs by year 2020, the team shares its CSR footprint and learning outcomes across Southeast Asia.

Coca-Cola’s programs also provide sustainable water access throughout 8 ASEAN countries.

Collaboration and Enthusiasm on Social Finance in Indonesia

4 min read

In March 2017, OJK (The Indonesian financial centre), UNDP and AGNIN (Angel Investment Network Indonesia) hosted the largest impact investment and social finance event in Indonesia.

Glean key highlights of UNDP’s research on the social finance ecosystem in Indonesia and how social investors can play a key role in improving access to social finance.

Collaborative Trust-Based Funding: Seeking Sustainability In A Complex World

8 minutes read This article is co-authored by Dr. Sherria Ayuandini Addressing the challenges of our time requires addressing complexity In today’s world, simple problems are increasingly difficult to find. As Rittel and Weber (1973) foresaw, many of the issues that confront policymakers and practitioners are  “wicked” problems without clearly-defined solutions that can themselves be […]

Combatting The Socio-Economic Impact of COVID-19 on Girls and Women: Survey Insights

Combatting The Socio-Economic Impact of COVID-19 on Girls and Women: Survey Insights

8 min read

The second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in India has brought unprecedented and unmitigated devastation, with shocking statistics and even more shocking on-ground realities. In its aftermath, not only have the inadequacy of our healthcare system been brutally exposed, but a larger question looms around the future socio-economic implications of such a tragedy. At a time when even the privileged are struggling to access basic healthcare resources – whether it be medication or hospital beds – what happens to the vulnerable and marginalized? What happens to girls and women, who, as historical evidence suggests, have always had to bear a larger brunt of the adverse effects of any large-scale calamity?

Community Giving: Redefining the Equation

The community giving landscape is changing. A shift has begun in the way that people support non-profits and social enterprises and is moving from pure financial support and investment, to looking at how professional skills and time can be donated to create a more meaningful and sustainable social impact. Community giving is definitely being redefined. Empact […]

Compassionate Adults: the Missing Piece in Solving India’s Learning Crises

Co-Authors: Sreelakshmi S., Shruti Hinge 5 minutes read India has one of the largest education systems catering to almost 25 crore children. Despite the scope and expanse of interventions, the issue of low learning levels persists. Only 21% of children in grade 3 can read grade 2 text, and only 26% of them can do […]

Conference Videos Out Now!

Want to relive some of the highlights and speeches from the AVPN Conference 2014? On top of session summaries for all breakouts and sessions, we have also recorded the plenaries and keynotes. More videos at the conference 2014 website.

Connecting Funders, Partners and Beneficiaries for Greater Social Impact

6 min read Managing social impact programs and the funds that enable them isn’t easy. Whether one is attempting to address unemployment, poor health outcomes, homelessness, the impacts of climate change or other crucial local and global issues facing our communities, it becomes evident that these challenges are interlinked, and selecting which projects to fund […]

Continuing Traditional Korean Culture: The Story of YBS EDU, Supporting the Promotion and Distribution of Traditional Korean Culture through Various Businesses

6 minutes read With the support of Google.org, Google’s philanthropic arm, AVPN partnered with Merry Year Social Company (MYSC) to launch the USD 1 Million Digital Transformation Fund in 2021. The Fund aims to support non-profit organisations in South Korea to support small and medium business owners and job seekers from underserved communities who were […]

Convergence Tracks Gender Lens Investing in Blended Finance

Convergence tracks gender lens investing in blended finance

4 min read

Advancing gender equality is key to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To improve women and girls’ access to, and control over, resources and capital, money must move towards projects that integrate gender comprehensively – from design to delivery and assessment.

COVID-19 and the Indian Social Sector: An Overview

COVID-19 and the Indian Social Sector: An Overview

6 min read I am a fairly avid reader of current world affairs and most anything news worthy. It was sometime in January of 2020 that my wife and I had friends from the USA visiting us in New Delhi. I casually asked our group of friends if they had heard about this “Corona” thing […]

COVID-19 Impact on Food and Nutrition Security in Asia

6 min read

How has the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the food nutrition security situation in Asia? The global pandemic of COVID-19 is affecting people all over the world. Beyond its impact on the health sector, the disease has had major implications on social, economic and psychological aspects of life. It has disrupted education, work, and food systems and shattered the livelihoods for millions of people globally. 

COVID-19: A Turning Point for Chinese Private Spending in Health?

COVID-19: A Turning Point for Chinese Private Spending in Health?

4 min read

COVID-19 has underscored the importance of public health capacity in the fight against the pandemic and for future recovery. Investing in R&D provides a firm foundation for capacity building in the health sector. Accordingly, China has seen a tremendous increase in private donations toward health R&D since the outbreak. Chinese philanthropists have donated over $250 million to R&D investments in COVID-19 vaccines, diagnostics and therapeutics, accounting for an estimated 5-10% of the total private giving in pandemic response, compared to only 1.3% in 2018.

Crafting a Defining Conference: In Conversation with the Content Team

3 min read Excitement and anticipation are building as the AVPN Global Conference 2023 draws closer. At the AVPN office, the Conference Director (Christina Ameln) and the Content Team (Roshini Prakash, Ashima Thomas, and Sangeetha Watson) are at the heart of the action, tasked with pulling the agenda together. Intriguing conversations and fascinating insights are […]

Create Fundamental Impact by Investing in Water

4 min read

Water demand is increasing at an unsustainable rate. There will be a 400% increase in industrial water use expected by 2050. While global demand for water has been exceeding its availability, water sources are also increasingly contaminated. As a resource, water is unique in its irreplaceability – There are no substitutes for this fixed supply to meet growing demand.

Creating a Pipeline for Economic Growth in Myanmar

3 min read Short-termism thrives in times of economic crisis, and Russia is offering a quick fix. As oil exports to the West dry up due to the Ukraine conflict, Moscow is looking eastwards for countries in need and has found a buyer in the shape of Myanmar. Fuel prices in Myanmar have more than […]

Creating a Sustainable Future for Businesses With Gender Equality Mainstreaming

Women represent almost half of the global population, but when it comes to economic empowerment and power balance, it will be 132 years to see a world with complete gender equality, unless we dramatically increase the pace of change. Despite the increasing share of women in the paid workforce and leadership roles in recent years, […]

Creating A Sweet and Sustainable Future For The Philippines’ Cocoa Industry

3 mins read All over the world, chocolate is associated with happiness, joy, and celebration. Paradoxically, its production comes with a whole lot of hazardous side effects for farmers and the planet. As the demand for cocoa grows every year, the need for sustainability in the cacao industry remains a remarkably significant concern. In the […]