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.
Changes at the base of the pyramid will transform markets in Latin America and the Caribbean
By Lourdes Gallardo, Senior Specialist, Opportunities for the Majority at the Inter-American Development Bank From 2000 to 2010, Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) enjoyed a remarkable wave of sustained economic growth which helped improve the incomes and welfare of millions of people living at the base of the pyramid (BoP). According to the World Bank, nearly 70 million people increased their purchasing power significantly and 50 million Latin Americans escaped poverty over the decade. This sea change dramatically altered their aspirations, priorities, and interactions with their societies.
Expo Milano 2015 – an unlikely place for sustainable business?
While critics call it a bloated global extravaganza for its escalating public expenditure, the 2015 Expo in Milan, Italy, also brings opportunities for sustainable business globally. This year’s topic of the World Fair - Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life – seeks to highlight solutions to one of the greatest development challenges the world faces today. There are still 805 million people suffering from hunger and malnourishment globally, while at the same time an incredible 2.1 billion people are obese or overweight, an increase of 28 percent in adults and 47 percent in children since 1980. In addition, about 1.3 billion tons of food is wasted every year, causing economic losses of about $750 billion.
To Connect or Not to Connect? Shifting Energy Industry Forges Unlikely Partnerships
On the big island in Hawaii, the sun shines 168 days of the year. In Honolulu, it jumps to 271 days of sunshine. That’s the perfect market to launch a new partnership between solar panel supplier SolarCity and electric carmaker Tesla Motors.
What happens when low-income people's disposable income increases?
The base of the pyramid as we knew it ten years ago has changed tremendously. Latin America and the Caribbean’s economic growth between 2000 and 2010 benefited many in the region, from top to bottom. Millions of people emerged from poverty, and the segment of those living on $4-10 a day grew considerably. More than 400 million people in Latin America live at the base of the pyramid (BOP) today. They represent a $760 billion market annually. The Inter-American Development Bank's BASE III Forum will be this year's opportunity to discuss how to tap into this unexplored market and have an impact on low-income people's lives. It will take place in Mexico City on June 29-July 1.
The First Commandment of Social Impact Generation
By Pablo Antón Díaz, Opportunities for the Majority The first commandment for companies and organizations that aim at generating social impact is adopting mechanisms to measure it. Every line is the perfect length if you don’t measure it, and this same rule applies to impact investing. Narratives on a handful of beneficiaries can be useful and serve as great instruments for attracting new investors, but the only sure way of knowing whether your efforts are indeed being relevant in the lives of people is through systematic measurement.
Latin America: The Next Global Breadbasket
*By. Alexandre Fernandes de Oliveira Last month at the inaugural AgroLAC 2025 meeting international experts flew into Sao Paulo, Brazil to promote new financial instruments that could connect with innovative solutions to expand and develop sustainable agricultural production across the region.
