Story by Sara Carbone, CollectiveSun Content Marketing Manager
Have you ever been curious about how to use finances to create change that advances the causes and issues that matter the most to you? Have you wondered exactly what it meant to make a responsible and sustainable investment? The UK based Good Money Week is a terrific way to explore these and other questions.
Good Money Week is a campaign that raises awareness about sustainable and ethical choices around banking, pensions and investments. It seeks to educate people around the world about making responsible decisions about how they spend and invest their money. An annual event since 2008, this year’s Good Money Week runs from October 24th-30th and focuses on helping people ensure “a green and fair” recovery after COVID-19 such that the world can build from a place that supports “people, planet, health and wealth.”
The comprehensive and visually engaging Good Money Week website features a large interactive map about the various ways to address the world’s pressing issues through investment and financial management. It also includes a listing of online events on impact investing as well as financial case studies and a whole host of educational resources and calls to action for groups ranging from women, people of color, and young people to charities, faith groups, and financial advisors.
One example of this kind of values aligned investing is the SunForAll Solar Fund, a new solar funding program for nonprofits that we created with lead investor BQuest Foundation. SunForAll provides 100% of the upfront costs of solar in the form of a hybrid grant and low interest loan. Given the savings involved with going solar, this allows the organizations that serve our communities to redirect their resources away from operating expenses towards direct mission support.
SunForAll has already awarded two rounds of funding, totaling $5,694,394, that have helped a number of organizations go solar. These include nonprofits like Vista Community Clinic, provider of health services and education to underserved communities, and Casa Familiar, a provider of advocacy and community development services for low-income clients.
SunForAll represents the kind of thinking promoted by Good Money Week. It involves a fund of values aligned investors who want to realize solutions in the world that address social and environmental problems, all while providing modest financial returns to impact investors. It’s the kind of innovative financing that increases sustainability in local communities and helps create the change people want to see in their world.
Learn more about about how SunForAll is having an impact on our community, the environment, and how to get involved!
