Since 2017, Criterion has been working to prove that finance can be a tool to address gender-based violence. These Roadmaps provide guidance on where we see the most significant opportunities and what needs to be done to advance those opportunities. This is not a comprehensive solution to address gender-based violence. Finance is but one tool in the broader work of ending violence. We seek to identify opportunities where engaging systems of finance can fit into the broader landscape of violence prevention and response efforts.
Explore our extensive library of resources on using finance as a tool for transformative social change. Browse by category and sub-categories to find the most relevant materials for your needs. Our library contains reports, case studies, toolkits, and other content aimed at investors, governments, civil society organizations, and anyone interested in harnessing capital for positive impact. Dive in and discover insights and guidance to help drive progress on critical issues.
As funding for feminist movements shrinks, the amount of global capital keeps growing. Over two recent Open House sessions, we explored how finance (understood as a system of power, not a magic bullet) can be repurposed to extend time, manage risk, and build assets for movements. Here are the key shifts and concrete scenarios emerging from that work.
Criterion’s 2020-2030 strategic plan will enable us to demonstrate how finance can be a tool for transforming structural inequality and systemic injustice.
While endowments are often presented as a tool for long-term transformation, in practice their design can constrain flexibility, access, and alignment with mission. Below, we present a few alternative structures for financial sustainability and resilience that bolster movement autonomy in a volatile funding environment
This guide is for people who are attending the 2026 SVRI Forum with expertise in violence and no particular knowledge in finance.
Developed through the Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund, these Learning Books demonstrate how investment systems can be built from local realities rather than external assumptions.
Currency risk is not an unavoidable feature of cross-border finance but a design choice, and funders can use existing tools to shift that burden away from local organizations and toward those better equipped to manage it.
Our work depends on an ever-expanding community of team members, advisors, donors, and other partners who help us achieve our mission.
