The Chicago Community Trust Launches Impact Investing Platform

CHICAGO (June 16, 2020) – The Chicago Community Trust, through its corporate affiliate, The Chicago Community Foundation, is proud to launch an impact investing platform that will empower donors to invest in social change and connect them to opportunities that address pressing regional and global challenges. Impact-first investments, which are made before grants are distributed to nonprofits, can double the impact of charitable dollars—mobilizing additional resources that advance equity and opportunity. 

The Trust is partnering with CapShift, a technology platform, to provide expanded opportunities for donor advised fund-holders to invest in focus areas such as financing affordable housing and entrepreneurship in Chicago and global agricultural enterprises and microbusinesses.   

“The Trust is committed to supporting donors who want more opportunities to invest in causes that matter the most to them,” said Kristin Carlson Vogen, senior director of philanthropic services for The Chicago Community Trust. “By launching this pilot phase of the platform, the Trust is empowering donors who are seeking to generate measurable social impact and financial returns.” 

The Trust launched the pilot in May and will be expanding opportunities for its donor advised-fund holders to participate in the platform through June 30.  

The Chicago Community Foundation aligns its impact investment with U.N. Sustainable Development Goals, and will measure impact based on the following metrics:

• Access to capital for entrepreneurs of color or women/minority owned businesses, with a primary geographic focus on the Chicago region.
• Access to capital for commercial growth predominantly for and in communities of color, with a primary geographic focus in low-to-moderate income neighborhoods in the Chicago region.
• Access to affordable housing as well as increased housing ownership by communities of color, with a primary geographic focus in low-to-moderate income neighborhoods in the Chicago region.
• Access to capital for green industries (e.g., energy efficiency, pollution prevention clean transportation and new green technologies), with a specific focus on increasing services to underserved communities. 

Following the pilot phase, the Trust will assess expanding to a wider set of donor advised funds in 2021. 

About  The Chicago Community Trust  
The Chicago Community Trust is a community foundation dedicated to strengthening the Chicago region and improving the lives of the people who call it home. For more than 100 years, the Trust has served as a trusted philanthropic partner, connecting the generosity of donors with community needs by making grants to nonprofit organizations working to create lasting change. Following the creation of a new strategic plan in 2019, the Trust stands committed to addressing Chicago’s legacy of systemic inequity and closing the racial and ethnic wealth gap, while continuing to respond to the critical needs of our most vulnerable residents. The Trust administers more than $360 million in annual grant making as part of its commitment to equity, opportunity and prosperity for the Chicago region. To learn more, visit cct.org.