Podcast Episode 42
#42: 10 Years On: Reflecting on the State of Gender Lens Investing
In this episode, Joy reflects on the 10-year anniversary of the State of the Field report on gender lens investing, co-authored with Katherine Miles in 2015. She revisits the report's framework, which categorized the field into three key areas: ideas, activity, and people and organizations. Joy highlights the progress made over the past decade, including advancements in metrics, new products, and the emergence of organizations driving the field forward.
With Criterion’s Convergence XXI conference on the horizon, Joy calls for renewed energy to push the field further. She emphasizes that while the structure and groundwork are in place, continued experimentation, critical dialogue, and collective effort are essential to reimagine a future where gender lens investing can drive transformative systems change. Join the conversation as we reflect on where we’ve come from, and where we need to go.
Episode Highlights
00:27 - Introduction
03:02 - Reflecting on the State of the Field Report
05:55 - Understanding the Framework of Gender Lens Investing
09:01 - The Evolution of Ideas in Gender Lens Investing
11:52 - Activity and Progress in the Field
14:51 - Standards, Metrics, and Accountability
18:06 - Building Community and Organizations
21:02 - Training, Expertise, and Future Directions
Relevant Links
The Blueprints demonstrate how a variety of social change organizations can design strategies that use systems of finance as tools to create positive social change.
These roadmaps lay out insights for how finance can be used to address gender-based violence in a range of sectors, asset classes, geographies, and investor types.
The TOOLKIT is designed to support your journey as you explore how finance can be used as a tool to create social change.
1K Churches was launched in 2012 to galvanize a movement in the faith-based community and engage US churches to invest in the local economy.
These gender-based violence due diligence tools analyze existing due diligence categories – including political, regulatory, operational, and reputational risks – and show how they can be affected by gender-based violence.
Gender-based violence is ubiquitous. More than 1 in 3 women worldwide experiences physical or sexual violence, and millions of men, boys, and gender-diverse individuals are affected by physical, sexual, and emotional abuse daily.