Sustainable BusinessRecent posts
IDB Invest Structures the Largest Blue Bond in History: $1.35 Billion
The transaction supports the expansion of wastewater collection and treatment in the State of São Paulo and improves living conditions for 2.5 million people through an innovative financing solution.
Governance and Succession: Securing the Future of Mexico’s Nonbank Financial Institutions
IDB Invest study: key findings and a roadmap to strengthen governance and CEO and senior management succession planning in nonbank financial institutions (NBFIs).
Korea's Cutting-Edge Innovations to Transform Agribusiness in Latin America and the Caribbean
Discover how IDB Invest connects regional agribusinesses with leading innovators in Korea to accelerate smart agriculture, agritech, and sustainable growth.
10 things a company needs to know about the market at the base of the pyramid
Seventy percent of the population in Latin America and the Caribbean – more than 400 million people – live on less than $10 a day. Even though their income is low, this segment of the population still demands goods and services, and represents a market of $760 billion per year. Hundreds of pioneering companies see opportunities in this market to do profitable business while improving the quality of life of low-income people. But where should they start?
The “Latinization” of public-private partnerships: What the world can learn from Latin America and the Caribbean
*By David Bloomgarden The world can learn from the experience of Latin American and the Caribbean in mobilizing private investment in public infrastructure and services.
What is the Value of Nature?
An apple at a supermarket: $0.50. 1,000 gallons of tap water in New York City: $4.95. Annual value of pollination to agriculture: $200 billion. Cost savings from good land management in New York City's watershed: $8 billion. Total value of benefits from nature: priceless? Robert Costanza, a leading environmental economist, just published the article: "Changes in the Global Value of Ecosystem Services," where he estimated the total value of these benefits at $145 trillion per year. That’s about twice as much as the total output of the global economy. Some of the value that nature provides has an obvious cost. Other values don't directly affect your wallet and are less visible. But just because we don't pay for some of nature's benefits doesn't mean they have less value.
Is Sustainability a Business Opportunity?
Today, forward-thinking companies understand the “why” behind investing in sustainability. Simply put, it makes business sense. However many companies, large and small, are still looking for the “how to”.
WANTED: Innovative companies for a $760 billion market
It has been more than ten years since we first read about the base of the pyramid (BOP) and the large and virtually untapped market represented by this socio-economic segment. People at the BOP in Latin America and the Caribbean live on less than $10 a day, but they have benefited from the region’s economic growth between 2000 and 2010 and their incomes have been growing ever since. Latin America’s BOP now encompasses 406 million people and represents a market of $760 billion. A market segment that awaits for innovative companies.
Surprising ways that biodiversity is linked to sustainable development
On the International Day for Biological Diversity, it’s a good time to reflect on the ways that biodiversity contributes to sustainable development. In an age of smartphones and super computers, it’s easy to overlook how dependent we are on the simple technologies of nature.
