Back to Resources
No items found.

Resources

Open Dialogue Series: Shaping the Field of Gender Lens Investing - March 13, 2023

No items found.

Published

February 24, 2023

Type of Material
>
Short Reflection
Type of Material
>
Past Event
Approaches
>
Field-Building
Campaigns
>
Feminist Financial Imagination

Criterion Institute held a quarterly dialogue series on key issues impacting the field of gender lens investing on Monday, March 13, 2023.  Gender lens investing presents an incredible opportunity to activate new resources and engage new actors in the work of advancing gender equality around the globe. Trillions of dollars are already said to be invested across asset classes with a gender lens. As momentum in the field is gathering and increasing amounts of capital are flowing, the urgency to “get it right” is at an all-time high. Will gender lens investing truly disrupt systemic injustices and create pathways to a more equitable distribution of power and resources? How can we ensure that those most impacted by the problems gender lens investing is seeking to solve are meaningfully engaged in the design of new interventions? What standards could be put in place to regulate and guide investments intended to contribute to gender transformative change?

The answers to these questions depend upon how the complex power dynamics involved in the ongoing development of the field are addressed. Without analyzing power – who has it, who doesn’t, and how to change the status quo – gender lens investing could end up replicating and reinforcing the very inequities in systems of finance that the emerging field is seeking to address. The open, interactive dialogues will utilize the Framework for Analyzing Power Dynamics in the Work of Building Fields from Criterion’s Disrupting Fields publication to inform conversations about theories of change, desired outcomes, the design of strategies and standards, and other areas relevant to participants’ areas of work and interest.

This dialogue series is intended for social change leaders who are actively engaged in shaping the field of gender lens investing. The sessions will present opportunities to exchange ideas, deepen understanding, generate new insights, forge partnerships, and uncover pathways to action.  

Additional Resources

No items found.
No items found.

Related Content

Button Text
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

Alice Through the Gender Investing Lens

April 7, 2016

This poem was inspired by a wonderful quote used by both Martin Luther King Jr., and President Barack Obama in their speeches: “the arc of the moral universe — of history — is long but it bends toward justice…”

>
Gender Lens Investing
0
Type of Material
>
Short Reflection
0
Pillars of Our Strategic Plan
>
Value the future of equality
0
Audiences
>
Cross Cutting Audiences
0
Read More >

Our History: Gender Lens Investing

From the beginning, Criterion has played a significant role in establishing the field of gender lens investing. We began with (re)Value Gender, which built key research methodology that bridges gender expertise and finance expertise and creates a space for leaders to practice, build insight, and produce evidence. We looked for examples of bias in investments, where gender patterns were undervalued and, as a result, risks and opportunities missed.

>
Gender Lens Investing
0
Pillars of Our Strategic Plan
>
Shift Narratives in innovative finance
0
Approaches
>
Field-Building
0
Audiences
>
Cross Cutting Audiences
0
Read More >

State of the Field

July 28, 2016

The State of the Field of Gender Lens Investing report was published in October 2015. This groundbreaking piece of research culminated from Criterion’s many years of field building and relationship cultivation through sixteen innovative Convergence gatherings.

Type of Material
>
Full Study or Report
0
Pillars of Our Strategic Plan
>
Invite Financial Imagination
0
Pillars of Our Strategic Plan
>
Value the future of equality
0
Pillars of Our Strategic Plan
>
Shift Narratives in innovative finance
0
Approaches
>
Teaching
0
Read More >

Gender Lens Investing

February 12, 2024

The "Gender Lens Investing" champions a holistic approach towards integrating gender equality into financial systems, underpinning the belief that finance can and should be a force for social good.

>
Gender Lens Investing
0
Campaigns
>
Gender Inequity as a Systemic Risk
0
Campaigns
>
Standards of Practice
0
Type of Material
>
Tool
0
Campaigns
>
Feminist Financial Imagination
0
Read More >

6 Areas of Activity

January 30, 2024

The purpose of Criterion Institute is to expand who sees themselves as able to use finance as a tool for social change. At the core, we are changing “how” social change happens. As a result, over the past 20 years, Criterion has had a significant focus on our “how.”

Type of Material
>
Full Study or Report
0
Approaches
>
Teaching
0
Approaches
>
Learning
0
Approaches
>
Design
0
Approaches
>
Amplification
0
Read More >

Web3 Solutions for Social Change

January 8, 2024

In recent years, a variety of financial innovations enabled by Web3 and blockchain technology have emerged as transformative forces, aiming to challenge the status quo and address the systemic inequities ingrained in traditional financial systems.

>
Gender Lens Investing
0
>
Donor Agencies
0
>
Multilateral Agencies
0
>
National Organizations
0
>
Local Civil Society
0
Read More >

Covid-19 Diligence Tool UNICEF-Criterion

August 6, 2020

Criterion Institute, in partnership with UNICEF, created a guide for investors to understand the risk their investments are exposed to as a result of gender-based violence, and to incorporate that risk assessment into their existing due diligence process.

>
Gender Lens Investing
0
>
Donor Agencies
0
>
ALL Organizations
0
>
ALL Investors
0
Campaigns
>
Gender Inequity as a Systemic Risk
0
Read More >

GBV Approaches to Investing: Values Alignment

December 13, 2023

The Values-Aligned approach is primarily for investors in public markets.

>
Private Investors
0
>
Private Market Actors
0
Campaigns
>
Investing to Address GBV
0
Tools
>
Blueprints
0
Type of Material
>
Short Reflection
0
Read More >

GBV Approaches to Investing: Thematic Strategies

December 13, 2023

The Thematic Strategies approach is for impact investors in private markets who aim to generate positive environmental and social impact while also generating market-rate returns.

>
Private Investors
0
>
IFI/DFI/MDB
0
>
Private Market Actors
0
>
Public Market Actors
0
Campaigns
>
Investing to Address GBV
0
Read More >

Interested in getting involved with Criterion Institute?

Our work depends on an ever-expanding community of team members, advisors, donors, and other partners who help us demonstrate our theory of change and ultimately achieve our mission. Learn more about how you can become more engaged in our work.

Invitations to Engage