Social Finance

Social finance is the blend of money and mission – using financial tools to support the expansion of social and environmental work in community. It covers a wide continuum of types of financial support, but effectively fills the gap between the financial profit-driven returns of conventional business and the charitable financial support of traditional philanthropy.

Social finance seeks to leverage the mechanisms, expertise and capital of the investment community to scale up the capacity and impact of social and environmental organizations. CapacityBuild Consulting is actively involved in working one-on-one with organizations and in the development of market mechanisms to support the expansion of social finance systems in Canada.

“Scott Hughes has been an important player in the advance of the Social Finance universe in Western Canada. In his role at Vancity, he was a consistent initiator of both innovation in thinking, and in the practical skills to move the agenda forward systematically step by step. He has been a mentor and guide to numerous social enterprise leaders and projects. His skill set is grounded in a strong understanding of finance and creative solutions.  Scott’s commitment and drive in Social Finance offers dynamic leadership as part of moving this sector forward.”