PHILANTHROPY AND SOCIAL INVESTMENTS FOSTERING RESEARCH AND INNOVATION New forms of financing and partnerships
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INDEX p. 4 - Foreword p. 8 - About the Conference
p. 32 - The role of philanthropy and social investment in fostering R&I Luc Tayart de Borms
p. 10 - Day 1: Showing and growing Caroline Tempel
p. 34 - Taking the long view Steffen Lüders
p. 14 - Solving societal challenges together
p. 40 - Day 2: Panel
Jasper Wesseling
Willemijn Verloop, João Ferrão Dos Santos, Niek Dubelaar, Tom Oostrom, José Moncada, Evita Zanuso, Magnus Magnusson
p. 20 - An EU perspective p. 62 - Panel philanthropy and social René Bekkers, Priscilla Boiardi, Erik Tambuyzer, investments fostering Fredrik Lundmark, Sybrich Zwiers, Wim Post, research and innovation Lenka Surotchak Robert-Jan Smits
p. 24- Philanthropy and social investments regarding societal challenges Theo Schuyt p. 28 - Investment opportunities and new forms of financing to support research and innovations Shiva Dustdar
p. 78 - Closing words Matthew Bishop
p. 80 - Next policy steps Ignacio Puente González
p. 86 -About the Center for Philanthropic Studies at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
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Conference report Associated Conference Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation. New forms of financing and partnerships.
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The conference was part of the Horizon 2020 work programme Access to Risk Finance of the European Commission and was associated with the Netherlands EU Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2016. Natura Artis Magistra Amsterdam 21-22 April 2016
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
FOREWORD This report contains the recommendations from the European conference ‘The role of Philanthropy and Social Investments in Fostering Research and Innovation; New Forms of Financing and Partnerships’ (PHISI), which was held in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, on 21-22 April 2016. It was organised by the Centre for Philanthropic Studies at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam in association with the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Research and Innovation as well as the Netherlands' Ministry of Security and Justice, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science and the Ministry of Economic Affairs.
The two-day event proved to be a platform where ideas for innovative forms of financing to further stimulate research and innovation were developed. As clearly highlighted, philanthropic support cannot be a substitute for public funding but could catalyse and leverage additional financial resources to maximise its impact, address societal challenges, and contribute to the public good. Collaborations between public authorities and private philanthropic support can yield enormous synergies in terms of combined amounts of funding, but what is even more important is when both combine their different strengths. It is our pleasure to thank the speakers, attendees and the organising Committee. The event confirmed that philanthropic funding has a very positive role to play in the field of research and innovation. We expect that future events of this type will enable us to identify how this role can be enhanced. Robert-Jan Smits Director-General for Research, Science and Innovation Jean-David Malo Head of Unit for SMEs, Financial Instruments and State Aids
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The conference examined the best ways to implement the recommendations of the EUFORI Study, the first study ever conducted to map the contributions and collective roles of research and innovation (R&I) foundations in Europe funded by the European Commission under the Framework Programme. It brought together more than 150 participants from a wide variety of European countries and international agencies. For two days, Amsterdam was a meeting place for policy-makers, philanthropists and social investors, social entrepreneurs, researchers, corporations and financial intermediaries. In the Natura Artis Magistra, the participants explored new financing forms to boost research and innovation in Europe, and recognised that R&I requires flexibility and new approaches to create breakthrough change. They explored possibilities for partnerships between foundations, the government, innovation funders and the
business sector and debated mechanisms that help shape and guide early-stage ideas as they move from concept to implementation.
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ABOUT THE CONFERENCE European countries are in transition. Demographic changes, cultural and political developments at national as well as at European level trigger fundamental shifts in economic, social and political institutions. Europe is coping with societal challenges such as economic stagnation, youth unemployment, social cohesion and ethnic diversity. As a result, the transition urges the continuous innovations of governments, businesses and civic efforts to sustain Europe as a prosperous and democratic community. As a response to the economic challenge, the stimulation of growth and the creation of jobs in Europe has become a main priority. Research and innovation are important key factors to accelerate the European economy and in achieving these goals. The European Foundations for Research and Innovation (EUFORI) Study presents an assessment of the contribution of European foundations to research and innovation. The study shows a significant annual contribution of foundations in stimulating research and innovation in the EU. Due to their independent position, their freedom of action and financial autonomy, foundations can play a unique role in society. The EUFORI Study also presents important examples of the significance of foundations in boosting research and innovation projects. The study demonstrates that foundations themselves are innovative in their modus operandi and are exploring
new paths to giving. They become more and more accustomed to giving seed money to social enterprises and start-ups. Relatively new concepts and practices such as entrepreneurial philanthropy, social venturing and social investment are actively being explored by foundations. The Netherlands EU 2016 Presidency Associated Conference Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation (PhiSI) built on conclusions and recommendations of the European Foundations for Research and Innovation (EUFORI) Study. This conference marked the beginning of a joint effort of the EU, business, and foundations to mobilize private investments in research and innovation in Europe. The conference brought different actors together to discuss new financing forms and possibilities for partnerships. The conference Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation was organized by the Center for Philanthropic Studies at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and co-organized by the European Commission’s DirectorateGeneral for Research and Innovation and the Ministry of Security and Justice, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science and the Ministry of Economic Affairs in the Netherlands.
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DAY 1
Caroline Tempel-van den Bout, Coordinating Advisor, Directorate Research and Science Policy, Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (The Netherlands)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
SHOWING AND GROWING THE FUTURE OF FOUNDATIONS THAT SUPPORT RESEARCH AND INNOVATION Caroline Tempel-van den Bout, Coordinating Advisor, Directorate Research and Science Policy, Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (The Netherlands)
Caroline Tempel-van den Bout, on behalf of the Directorate General Hans Schutte, was the opening speaker at this twoday conference about philanthropy and social investments fostering research and innovation. She welcomed the attendees in Natura Artis Magistra (the conference venue), which was founded in 1838 to promote knowledge of nature and its history. In her speech Caroline Tempel highlighted the key role of research in tackling the challenges of modern society. More research on diseases leads, for example, to better treatment and vaccines. More research on food and energy leads to stronger food chains and sustainable sources of energy, and research and innovation are essential for economic growth and job creation. Referring to the results of the EUFORI Study, Caroline Tempel emphasized the importance of foundations in supporting research and innovation. She encouraged foundations to enhance their visibility, which was also one of the recommendations of the study, by showing their impact in the field of research and innovation. Greater visibility could also stimulate public and private partnerships.
She ended her speech by addressing the central questions of the conference: How can foundations and research conducted by universities and start-ups be more closely connected? How to complete the collaboration triangle between the public sector, the commercial sector and foundations? And are there new forms of finance that can help us complete this collaboration triangle?
“WE NEED ROLE MODELS IN VISIBILITY, TO SHOW OTHER FOUNDATIONS HOW IMPORTANT RESEARCH AND INNOVATION ARE AND HOW THEY CAN HAVE AN IMPACT. DO GOOD AND SHOW IT.�
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“WE NEED MORE THAN JUST MONEY. ALSO BRING BRAINS AND IDEAS TO THE TABLE.” EU2016 - 13 Conference report
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SOLVING SOCIETAL CHALLENGES TOGETHER Jasper Wesseling, Deputy DG of Business and Innovation, Ministry of Economic Affairs (The Netherlands)
Jasper Wesseling emphasized the key role of innovation in solving societal challenges. The Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs stimulates innovation through a sectoral approach where industry, research and government are aligned along different sectors such as chemistry, agriculture, and life sciences and health. Entrepreneurs, researchers and the government work together in public-private partnerships in order to create solutions to societal challenges. The government plays a very effective role in getting different players around the table. In order to stimulate these partnerships, the Dutch government has created a public-private partnership (PPP) allowance, topping up the investments of private partners by 25%. Jasper Wesseling ended his presentation with an interesting example of a PPP in the field of oncology, where the Dutch Cancer Foundation is working together with the government to set up a new research institute.
“IMAGINE YOURSELF 50 YEARS FROM NOW IF WE DO NOT INNOVATE. HOW CAN WE FEED 10 BILLION PEOPLE? HOW CAN WE CREATE AN AFFORDABLE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM? HOW CAN WE STILL DRIVE OUR CARS IF THERE IS NO OIL AVAILABLE?”
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Jasper Wesseling, Deputy DG of Business and Innovation, Ministry of Economic Affairs (The Netherlands)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
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AN EU PERSPECTIVE PHILANTHROPY AND SOCIAL INVESTMENTS FOSTERING RESEARCH AND INNOVATION Robert-Jan Smits, Director General, DG Research and Innovation, European Commission (Brussels)
Robert-Jan Smits presented the main conclusions and recommendations of the European Foundations for Research and Innovation Study www.euforistudy. eu. The first study to quantify and assess foundations’ financial support and policies for research and innovation in Europe. The Study, commissioned by the DG Research and Innovation of the European Commission, was coordinated by the Center for Philanthropic Studies at Vrije Universteit Amsterdam, and was carried out by national experts in 29 countries. Many of these experts are members of the European Research Network on Philanthropy. For the purposes of the study, which was conducted between 2012 and 2015, more than 12,000 foundations were approached; almost 1,600 foundations were subject to the study. EUFORI Study estimates that each year foundations contribute at least 5 billion Euros to R&I in Europe. ‘Impressive’ said Robert Jan Smits, ‘as it’s about half my department is allocating to science and innovation in Europe per year’. Although the landscape of R&I foundations in Europe could be characterized as heterogeneous and fragmented, the study shows that foundations could be a significant stimulus for R&I. The report contains recommendations for foundations, national governments and the European Commission.
Foundations should increase their visibility and explore the mutual benefits of cooperation. National governments are advised to develop much better framework conditions and the European Commission is recommended to support networking and explore synergies for cooperation. This conference in Amsterdam and the creation of an expert group to further strengthen the framework conditions for European foundations later in 2016 are concrete implications of this recommendation. Robert Jan Smits pointed out that the societal challenges Europe is facing today require innovative solutions. Therefore, it is important to explore and mobilize new forms of funding; new forms of financing such as microfinancing, crowdfunding, guarantees, investment platforms and social investment bonds.
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Robert-Jan Smits, Director General, DG Research and Innovation, European Commission (Brussels) EU2016 - 21 Conference report
QUOTE “WE COUNT ON EUROPE’S FOUNDATIONS TO CONTINUE TO PLAY A KEY ROLE IN THIS CONTEXT. WE NEED YOU TO SERVE OUR SOCIETY AND TO IMPROVE THE LIFE OF OUR CITIZENS. AND YOU SHOULD KNOW THAT THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION IS YOUR PARTNER IN THIS ENDEAVOR”. Robert-Jan Smits
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Director General, DG Research and Innovation, European Commission (Brussels)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
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Theo Schuyt, Professor Philanthropic Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (The Netherlands) and President, European Research Network On Philanthropy
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
PHILANTHROPY AND SOCIAL INVESTMENTS REGARDING SOCIETAL CHALLENGES Theo Schuyt, Professor Philanthropic Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (The Netherlands) and President, European Research Network On Philanthropy
Theo Schuyt addressed the role of philanthropy in modern welfare states. Philanthropy stands for private actions for the public good. Welfare states, on their part, represent public action for the public good. Both share the same goals, but differ in terms of operating style, legitimacy and constituency. Recently, researchers from the European Network on Philanthropy (www. ernop.eu) estimated that the philanthropic contributions of households (including bequests), corporations, foundations and charity lotteries in Europe are almost 90 billion Euros per year (lower bound estimation).
The various players in the domain of research have their own distinctive roles. Together, the government, foundations and corporations can make a difference in increasing the potential for research and innovation in Europe. This renewed societal contract revives the principles of the French Revolution: Freedom (the market), Equality (government) and Fraternity (philanthropy). EU2016 - 25
“THIS RENEWED SOCIETAL CONTRACT REVIVES THE PRINCIPLES OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION: FREEDOM (THE MARKET), EQUALITY (GOVERNMENT) AND FRATERNITY (PHILANTHROPY).�
The EUFORI Study revealed that the number of (R&I) foundations has increased exponentially since the 1990s. The presence of private wealth in the EU and the growing commitment of citizens to society are important explanations according to Theo Schuyt. The strengths of (endowed) foundations in Europe are related to their unique characteristics. Foundations are able to operate independently; they enjoy freedom of choice in the projects they wish to support and they are flexible in their operations. Besides, foundations, as independent and risk-taking organizations, are well placed to take the role of front runner, long-term investor, broker and innovator. These advantages offer foundations the chance to make a difference in the research domain.
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Shiva Dustdar, Head of Innovation Finance Advisory, European Investment Bank (Luxemburg)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES AND NEW FORMS OF FINANCING TO SUPPORT RESEARCH AND INNOVATION Shiva Dustdar, Head of Innovation Finance Advisory, European Investment Bank (Luxemburg)
Shiva Dustdar gave a blending perspective from the InnovFin program at the European Investment Bank. In her speech, she provided some blending examples that were a result of the Infectious Disease Finance Facility. She also invited the philanthropic community to contact her InnovFin department to explore various collaborations “As a bank, we do two things,” said Shiva Dustdar. “We lend money. We give money to people who need the money, but we also give money to people who don't need it, because that's what also keeps our portfolio in good standing. Next, we do blending. Blending is about using some of the grant funding that is available as a risk buffer to allow the bank to take more risk, to go further, but nevertheless to remain for its own business model to operate within prudential limits, and hence go the extra mile without jeopardizing its own standing financially. This might also provide a nice blueprint for future collaboration with the philanthropic community. Blending has a high leverage and multiplier effect.”
The InnovFin program tries to better understand whether there are bottlenecks in terms of access to finance that cross various segments. Shiva Dustdar: “We know some research is not financed by the private sector because the ROI is out of sync. However, grants cannot provide sufficient means to fund research either. For example, this is the case for research on many infectious diseases. InnovFin explores leveraging these grants. To use a grant, to put it into a financial instrument, a revolving type of instrument that then allows the EIB to have that risk protection and take more financial risk. Blending brings additional private sector investment, bringing additional financial resources.” >>
“WE NEED TO FIND A WAY TO BRING SCIENCE INTO FINANCE AND FINANCE INTO SCIENCE.” EU2016 - 29
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>> According to Shiva Dustdar, more work still needs to be done to achieve the highest potential. “We use our InnovFin experience (the Horizon 2020 financial instruments) and the EC contribution for blending grants with our own capital. You need a grant to cover to highest risks, but then comes the question of how we now improve the potential of getting the money back. However, that needs to be better understood, and then a financial instrument needs to be developed that has a rather high-risk buffer, much higher than what we had in our prior programs. We have carried out a couple of pilots as a part of this program and are looking forward to scaling up, also in collaboration with third-party funding.�
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THE ROLE OF PHILANTHROPY AND SOCIAL INVESTMENT IN FOSTERING R&I Luc Tayart de Borms, Managing Director, King Baudouin Foundation (Belgium)
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Luc Tayart de Borms elaborated on the role of foundations supporting R&I in Europe and how to bring them into more research. He started his presentation by emphasizing that the R&I foundation sector in Europe is very heterogeneous, which is reflected by the different types of foundations and activities. Besides, foundations are not only about money (grants and social investments), but also about partnerships, facilitators (they bring stakeholders around the table) and the governance of data projects. With interesting examples of projects he illustrated a broad range of activities of R&I foundations in Europe. From the support of career development, underfunded areas, unmet needs, research infrastructure, technology transfer and start-ups, innovative research processes, and high-risk and innovative research projects for social innovation/social entrepreneurs. When Luc Tayart de Borms discussed the potential of foundations to invest more in research, he added a critical note: “We should not be too optimistic. Foundations are not that risky players as is often argued. They are not conservative either; however, they don’t take many high risks.” Having said that, he expects most of the new philanthropists to have different backgrounds and different views on philanthropy and the world. He encouraged foundations to use (parts of) their endowments for mission-related investments: “An endowment can be invested in another way such as social investments and social bonds. I think that is a way we have to push the foundation sector further in. Not that we have to push them to do that in 100% of their endowments, the risk would then be too high, but a certain percentage would be possible.”
“FOUNDATIONS ARE NOT THAT RISKY PLAYERS AS IS OFTEN ARGUED. THEY ARE NOT CONSERVATIVE EITHER; HOWEVER, THEY DON’T TAKE MANY HIGH RISKS. WE STILL HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO, AND IT IS ALSO THE WORK OF FOUNDATIONS AND THE FOUNDATIONS LEADERS TO DO THAT.” Watch the video
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
Luc Tayart de Borms, Managing Director, King Baudouin Foundation (Belgium) EU2016 - 33 Conference report
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Steffen LĂźders, Head of Stakeholders Relations and Communications, Novo Nordisk Foundation (Denmark)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
TAKING THE LONG VIEW AN INDEPENDENT FOUNDATION WITH CORPORATE INTERESTS SUPPORTING RESEARCH AND INNOVATION Steffen Lüders, Head of Stakeholders Relations and Communications, Novo Nordisk Foundation (Denmark)
In Denmark, foundations play a unique role as owners of large and research intensive companies. These so-called industrial foundations account for about half of total Danish R&D expenditure. Many of these industrial foundations combine commercial and charitable activity. Novo Nordisk is an example of an independent foundation with corporate interests supporting research and innovation. The history of Novo Nordisk dates back to 1922 when insulin was discovered in Canada. August Krogh (Nobel Prize winner and professor at the University of Copenhagen) received the rights to produce insulin in the Nordic countries, with the condition that the profits were reinvested in research.
“IF YOU LOOK AT THE DANISH MARKET, YOU WILL SEE THAT A GREAT NUMBER OF THE BIGGEST COMPANIES ARE OWNED, CONTROLLED BY FOUNDATIONS.”
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In organizational terms, the Novo Nordisk Foundation awards grants and Novo A/S is the investment company of the foundation. It is a subsidiary of the foundation. The purpose of the foundation is two-fold: first, to ensure that the foundation’s companies create world-class business results, and second to support world class research at universities and hospitals within health sciences and biotechnology. The Novo Nordisk Foundation awards grants for public research in Denmark and the Nordic Countries. It became apparent that the Novo Nordisk Foundation is a very large and important player in the field of R&I. The foundation gives more to public research in these two areas than all public parties together. The positive trends in the financial results of the Novo Group will enable the foundation to increase its total grants significantly in the coming years. In 2016 Novo Nordisk plans to pay out 260 billion Euros. Steffen Lüders emphasized that being such an important player in the market involves responsibilities about transparency. Several interesting activities of the foundation were discussed, such as the establishment of clusters of research centers that can attract and retain the world’s best researchers. The cluster of centers has been established in partnership with public research institutions.
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QUOTE “FOUNDATIONS THAT OWN AND MANAGE COMPANIES AND USE THE PROFIT EITHER TO RE-INVEST IN THE COMPANIES OR FOR PHILANTHROPIC PURPOSES”. Steffen Lüders
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Head of Stakeholders Relations and Communications, Novo Nordisk Foundation (Denmark)
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DAY 2
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
PANEL SESSION: NEW FORMS OF FINANCING TO STIMULATE RESEARCH AND INNOVATION In this panel session six panel speakers focused on new forms of financing fostering research and innovation in Europe. Willemijn Verloop, co-founder & impact partner of Social Impact Ventures NL, was the moderator of this session. How and what forms of finance could leverage foundations’ support for research and innovation was one of the central questions.
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Niek Dubelaar, Senior Advisor Netherlands Investment Agency
Tom Oostrom, CEO Dutch Kidney Foundation (The Netherlands)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
STIMULATING PPPS TO FOSTER RESEARCH & INNOVATION IN HEALTH CARE Niek Dubelaar, senior advisor, Netherlands Investment Agency and Tom Oostrom, CEO Dutch Kidney Foundation (The Netherlands)
Tom Oostrom from the Dutch Kidney Foundation presented an interesting example of the developments in regenerative medicine, showing the win-win situation of PPPs for all the players involved (foundations, corporations, the government, researchers, patients etc). As images can speak more than a thousand words, he proudly showed the audience an animation video of a portable artificial kidney, a breakthrough in medical science and an excellent example of innovation.
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Niek Dubelaar and Tom Oostrom highlighted the stimulating effect of Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) on research and innovation in health care. Dutch Innovation policy is focused on tackling global challenges by creating PPPs using a sectoral approach. Different players (the private sector, the government and research institutes) in the 9 top sectors work together in a so-called triple helix. In order to facilitate PPPs, the Dutch government created a public private partnership (PPP) allowance, topping up the investments of private partners by 25%. Until recently (2014) this allowance was only open for companies and not for philanthropic organizations (e.g. foundations). However, the change in operations of health foundations from a ‘fund and forget’ to a ‘partnership’ approach led to more contact and collaboration between government and health foundations. In 2014, the government opened up the possibility for charitable foundations to participate in the PPP allowance as well. After evaluation, it turned out that the financial scheme for foundations was so successful that the government was forced to put a cap on it of 75 million Euros.
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QUOTE “FOR ALL THESE PARTIES THE MULTIPLIER IS VERY INTERESTING. I CAN SAY TO MY DONORS: THE EURO I RAISE COLLECTING DOOR-TO-DOOR WILL BE PERHAPS FOUR OR FIVE EUROS AT THE END OF THE YEAR. SO I REALLY BELIEVE IN COLLABORATION. THAT’S WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU MEET EACH OTHER AND TRY TO MAKE A PLAN TOGETHER. THEN YOU CAN REALLY CHANGE THE SITUATION.” Tom Oostrom CEO Dutch Kidney Foundation (The
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Netherlands)
Moderator Willemijn Verloop, Co Founder & Impact Partner Social Impact Ventures NL (The Netherlands)
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THE VALUE OF OUTCOME-BASED FINANCING: LEARNINGS FROM THE FIRST SIB PILOT IN PORTUGAL João Ferrao Santos, Senior Investment Analyst, Social Investment Lab (Portugal)
João Santos elaborated on the work of the Social Investment Lab, with a specific focus on Social Impact Bonds (SIBs). Next to some learning from the first pilot of SIBs in Portugal, he addressed the agnostic value of this tool to fund any target outcome. João Santos explained that impact bonds can often be a misleading term and that it would be better to talk about social impact contracts. “In these contracts we have a social investor providing up-front capital and the outcome payer is going to pay back the investor if and only if we see that a service provider was able to generate the targeted outcomes.”
“IN THE NEAR FUTURE PERHAPS WE COULD BE TALKING ABOUT SCIENCE IMPACT BONDS, AND THAT'S A CONVERSATION THAT I WOULD LOVE TO LEARN FROM.”
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SIBs have both advantages and disadvantages for the stakeholders involved. For recipients, SIBS are longer term projects or short to medium term; this allows them to focus on their mission. Next, because of pressure from both investors and intermediaries, they learn a lot throughout the project and they translate this into efficiency gains about their intervention models. “Very often SIBS are the right tool to fund untested and often quite expensive pilot programs.” For investors SIBs provide a channel to diversify their portfolios.
A downside of SIBs is that they come with a lot of communication. Also, an SIB pilot might not be economically viable for everyone involved, but it always adds significant value, which is because you create a scalable base that can be used for market introductions. This is quite important when you are looking at the SIB pipeline.. >>
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JoĂŁo Ferrao Santos, Senior Investment Analyst, Social Investment Lab (Portugal)
>> Intermediaries also play a key role in setting up SIBS, as they can represent the missing stakeholder in the room, thus providing a holistic perspective. “By simply being a single entity that is 100% committed to the success of the program, we were able to accelerate the process.” Next to intermediaries, highly reputable foundations can bring much added value to setting up a SIB, because of the role they play in acting as a mobilizer and getting everyone together and taking the first steps
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The SIB framework can be used to fund and try to achieve any given outcome, possibly also for research and innovation. A foundation could provide up front capital for a research team to carry out its project from end to end and if, and only if, the desired research findings are achieved, an interested research firm could pay back the foundation and the team according to the terms in the contract, which would allow the foundation to recycle its capital and support the second project. After the presentation, Evita Zanuso from Big Society Capital (UK) elaborated on the experience with SIBs in the UK. According to her, both social and financial ROI can be achieved, but not always. The biggest problem in the UK is to find commissioners willing to pay for outcomes, as SIBs as investment vehicle are not considered to be a priority. According to João Santos, Portuguese commissioners would be very much interested in using SIBs as an instrument. At the moment, SIBs are only focused on a national (or local) level. In the future, a European fund might facilitate the financing of SIBs across borders. From the investors’ side, there is a lot of interest in investing in SIBs, and financial intermediaries are willing to add them to their investment portfolio. Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
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JosĂŠ Moncada, CEO and Founder of Bolsa Social (Spain)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
EQUITY CROWDFUNDING THE EXPERIENCE OF PARTICIPATIVE FINANCING OF BOLSA SOCIAL José Moncada, CEO and Founder of Bolsa Social (Spain)
Bolsa Social is an impact crowdfunding platform where social entrepreneurs can get investments from impact investors in Spain. It provides an opportunity for social impact investing, where investors are seeking financial return, but want to invest in companies with a positive impact on society and the environment. José Moncada explained that it is considered that there are four main types of crowdfunding. The first is simply using an online platform to provide a crowd to make donations (with nothing in return). Second, you use the same platform, but the members of the crowd get a small reward for their donations. The others are considered to be forms of financing where at first you lend money to a project for a set time and set interest rate. The final form of crowd funding is equity crowdfunding, in which you invest in a company and become a shareholder of the company.
On the investors’ side it provides easy access to investment opportunities. As due diligence is carried out by the platform, you have access to investment opportunities that were previously the domain of private equity. José Moncada: “We are very rigorous in the selection of the project that we publish. There have to be companies with good business models, already proven growth potential and positive impact. We have a selection committee, we undertake the due diligence analysis and then we publish the projects. If a company gets the money it is seeking then we go to the notary. If not, we give back the money to the investors.”
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The benefits of equity crowdfunding are that it provides an alternative pool of investors for companies, particularly where banks do not invest in SMEs at an early stage. According to José Moncada, one of the best aspects of equity crowdfunding is that it builds a community of people who are committed to a project. The crowd thus functions as a seal of approval and a sign of market interest. Furthermore, an equity crowdfunding platform serves as a marketing tool which enables them to campaign for their products.
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QUOTE “CROWDFUNDING IS NOT ONLY A WAY TO GET FINANCE, IT'S ALSO A WAY TO STRENGTHEN THE FUTURE OF A COMPANY.” José Moncada
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CEO and Founder of Bolsa Social
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Evita Zanuso, Director Financial Relations, Big Society Capital (United Kingdom)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
SOCIAL INVESTMENT FOR INNOVATION IN THE UK Evita Zanuso, Director Financial Relations, Big Society Capital (United Kingdom)
Big Society Capital is best described as a social investment bank. Evita Zanuso from Big Society Capital explains: “If we are presented with a fantastic investment opportunity that is going to make us money, but we don't feel it's socially impactful enough, we will walk away from the opportunity.” Set up by government, but now run independently, it was predominantly funded by using dormant bank account money, but also by investment from major UK banks. Next to investing their own money, they also attract other investors to their investments. Big Society Capital has two roles in the UK. They use their own capital (€600 million) for investments through intermediaries. They use intermediaries because they want to bring in other investors. Evita Zanuso: “€600 million may sound like a huge amount of money, but for the societal problems that we've seen in the UK it's really a drop in the ocean. What we should be here for is to catalyse other investors into this particular market.” Next to being an investor, Big Society Capital champions the social investment market in the UK, for example, the government, charities and companies.
Next, they try to help social enterprises and charities that are innovating, doing something different (e.g. SIBs). Third, mass participation, providing investment opportunities that is accessible to everyone. “See the example of community shares. And we have advocated for the social investment tax relief (SITR).” Within SITR, individual investors can benefit from a 30% tax relief if they invest in SIBs. Evita Zanuso further gives a few example of social investments stimulated by Big Society Capital. Two were already mentioned by other speakers, namely SIBs and crowdfunding. Another example is their support of the Care and Wellbeing Fund, developing and scale community-based health services like palliative care and end of life care for individuals. An important aspect of this fund is the collaboration between operating charities, foundations, and others. Finally, she mentions cross-subsidizing, in which profits from one investment are used to subsidize another, like Big Society Capital did in the Commonweal Housing project.
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Big Society Capital has four main activities. First, they help small to medium-sized charities that have a trading model, and access to repayable finance that they want.
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QUOTE “WHAT WE SHOULD BE HERE FOR IS TO CATALYSE OTHER INVESTORS INTO THE SOCIAL INVESTMENT MARKET.” “OUR CAPITAL IS USEFUL, BUT IT'S REALLY ABOUT TRYING TO BRING IN OTHER CAPITAL.” Evita Zanuso
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Director Financial Relations, Big Society Capital (United Kingdom)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
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Magnus Magnusson, Head of Government Relations for Northern Europe and the Netherlands, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (United States)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
EXAMPLES OF FORMS OF FINANCING BY THE BILL AND MELINDA GATES FOUNDATION Magnus Magnusson, Head of Government Relations for Northern Europe and the Netherlands, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (United States)
Magnus Magnusson from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) advocated for investment in developing new vaccines and drugs to reduce particularly infectious diseases, because those affect the bottom billion and this is still the biggest killer in the world. Besides, Magnusson makes a case for investments in agriculture and livestock, as they matter most in terms of income and their nutritional opportunities for 70% of the world. Next to making this case, he gave a number of examples of forms of financing that are being used by the BMGF. From a study on this subject, Magnusson explains that every Euro invested in R&D support by EU governments in global health and R&D initiated an additional Euro invested by the public, private and philanthropic sectors in European laboratories, universities and companies. “Every investment in R&D is not an expense, but an investment that generates growth, and they also create thousands of high value European jobs that contribute to the quality of European research and the EU growth strategy in itself.”
For the BMGF, there are three things that drive their investments. Magnus Magnusson: “We have the luxury that we can actually invest in whoever we want and we look at who are the best players out there.” So foundations focus on areas of the greatest unmet need, product innovation with an impact and making markets work for the poor.. >>
“TO MAXIMIZE THEIR IMPACT AND ACHIEVE THE GREATEST RETURN, IT'S IMPORTANT TO PRIORITIZE AND CO-ORDINATE INVESTMENTS THAT ACCELERATE THE MOST PROMISING AND URGENTLY NEEDED PRODUCTS.” EU2016 - 59 Conference report
>> An example of this is the Grand Challenges Explorations, which helps build products for global health. It starts with great ideas and early stage research. Magnus Magnusson finds that the BMFG has a special advantage: “Research is risk taking and I think we are fortunate as an organization that we can take risks, and we can also fail and learn and continue our collaboration.” Another example is that the BMGF makes, together with other investors, equity investments in promising start-ups to stimulate private sector innovation, which develops technology to make vaccine development significantly faster and cheaper.
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The BMFG also engages in product development partnerships. Magnus Magnusson: “It uses public and philanthropic funds to bring together the scientific expertise of academic researchers and the product development knowhow of the private sector. For example, in a product development partnership together with GlaxoSmithKline tafenoquine we developed a potentially single dose cure for 40%-50% of malaria cases.” A final example of what the BMFG has done are volume guarantees, where they, together with some other governments, guaranteed a certain volume of contraceptives. This functioned as a procurement guarantee to the market. As a consequence, the market had to compete with the price, and the price came down by 50%. After this, the UN was provided with resources by governments to buy these products.
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
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Watch the video
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PANEL SESSION: THE ADDED VALUE OF PARTNERSHIPS In this panel session the potential added value of (cross sectoral) partnerships was discussed by six panel speakers. The session was moderated by Rene Bekkers, professor Social Aspects of Prosocial Behavior at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. The panel focused on questions such as: Which forms of collaboration work best to produce partnerships fostering research and innovation? Who are the key-enablers, the incubators, that make these partnerships possible? How to close the collaboration triangle between the public sector, the commercial sector and foundations?
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Priscilla Boiardi, Knowledge Center Director, European Venture Philanthropy Association (Brussels)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
WHERE ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND PHILANTHROPY MEET Societal challenges have been tackled with traditional models for a long time. However, considering the persistency of these challenges and the diminishing resources of governments, society needs new models to emerge. Social enterprises and social purpose organizations lack stable funding, organizational capacity and access to partnerships to most effectively resolve the challenges found in society today at the scale that is needed. In her presentation, Priscilla Boiardi elaborated on the Venture Philanthropy (VP) approach, which is one of the new models of tackling societal challenges.
BBVA, one of the largest banks in Spain, invested three million Euros to develop social entrepreneurships in Spain. According to Priscilla Boiardi, this project could never have worked without the help of the ESADE business school in Spain and PricewaterhouseCoopers Accountants (PwC), who brought the skills (knowledge of financial sustainability accounting and fundraising, and management skills). An interesting detail in the context of the subject of this panel session is that the project did not start with an investment, but with collaboration and mentoring.
VP is a high engagement and long-term approach to generate societal impact through three core practices: tailored financing, organizational support, and impact measurement and management. Support of VP actors is not just about money; on top of that they bring a certain set of financial sustainability capability skills, managerial skills and leadership skills. Collaboration is at the centre of the VP approach. There are different ways in which foundations can be engaged in VP. Priscilla Boiardi said: “The King Baudouin Foundation, for example, decided to allocate a certain amount of money to a very different way of doing philanthropy, but also employed the high engagement organizational capacitybuilding driven approach of VP.”
“WHEN YOU SUPPORT AN ORGANIZATION, YOU ARE NOT JUST GIVING IT THE MONEY. YOU ARE ACTUALLY TRYING TO CREATE A STRENGTH INSIDE THE ORGANIZATION, SO THAT AFTER YOUR GRANT OR INVEST, THE ORGANIZATION WILL BE CAPABLE BY ITSELF OF PURSUING ITS SOCIAL IMPACT GOALS IN THE FUTURE WITHOUT YOU.”
She ended her presentation with an interesting example of VP and collaboration in a social investment project, called ‘Momentum.’
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
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Priscilla Boiardi, Knowledge Center Director, European Venture Philanthropy Association (Brussels)
THE BIOPONTIS ALLIANCE FOR RARE DISEASES: A NEW MODEL FOR RARE DISEASE THERAPY DEVELOPMENT
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Erik Tambuyzer, Chairman of the Board, BioPontis Alliance for Rare Diseases (Belgium)
The BioPontis Alliance for rare diseases is a young international non-profit organization with charities in the USA and Brussels, working on rare disease therapy development. There are over 7 000 known rare diseases and less than 5% have any form of treatment. Erik Tambuyzer addressed the lack of therapies for rare diseases affecting the brain and nervous system. He elaborated on the BioPontis Alliance’s new model for rare disease therapy treatment and emphasized the added value of collaboration and partnerships in this model. The BioPontis Alliance aims to fill the gap between basic science and (preclinical) proof of concept by funding projects that are in the translation stage. Industry is often not interested in the risky translational step. The aim of the BioPontis Alliance is to advance promising science to proof of concept for potential therapies, removing sufficient risk for licensure to the biopharma industry for clinical development and industrialization. Tambuyzer: “How do we go from basic research to proof of concept? The researchers, the patient groups don’t know much about industrial development and regulatory rules. So we try to help those groups to cross the bridge, to go to the other side where products
can be developed by companies that take over, either a start-up or an existing company.” The BioPontis Alliance is the strategic organizer of the different components that are needed for therapy development. For each Therapeutic Alliance Program a multidisciplinary team is created with a lot of expertise of experts from industry, regulators, patient groups and academia. The BioPontis Alliance with its regulatory and industry experts use donor funds raised (from corporations, wealthy private individuals and grantmaking foundations) to design and direct discovery and development, directly partnering with patient organizations.
"THERE IS FUNDING FOR BASIC RESEARCH. BUT WHERE IS THE BRIDGE TO PRODUCTS?”
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Erik Tambuyzer, Chairman of the Board, BioPontis Alliance for Rare Diseases (Belgium)
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Fredrik Lundmark, Program Manager, Riksbankens Jubileumsfond (Sweden)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
THE ADDED VALUE OF PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN FOUNDATIONS AS PEERS Fredrik Lundmark, Program Manager, Riksbankens Jubileumsfond (Sweden)
conditions for cooperation. First, the statutes should allow collaboration. Next, foundations need to be flexible as collaboration requires adaptation to the operations and working methods of other foundations. As collaboration is time consuming, human and capital recourses are important conditions as well. Frederik Lundmark said: “In the end money is not the biggest problem, it is often a lack of ambition. It is easier to do what you normally do. It is much harder to encounter additional problems with collaboration. But I think what you can gain is so much more than that.”
THE QUESTION IS: “CAN WE DO EVEN MORE IF WE COLLABORATE?”
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Fredrik Lundmark, chair of the EFC Research Forum (part of the European Foundation Center in Brussels) and representing the Riksbankens Jubileumsfond in Sweden, shared his experiences on the added value of collaboration between foundations as peers. The European Foundation Center was established in 1989 by seven foundations from different countries. Today it has 200+ members and 57 affiliated partner organisations from 42 countries. Some of the largest foundations in the world are active members of the EFC (the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Wellcome Trust, the Ford Foundation, etc.). The EFC Research Forum is a broad-based network of 11 independent research-funding foundations providing a platform to learn, collaborate and advocate together. It represents some of the greatest foundations supporting R&I in Europe. The Research Forum is an excellent example of collaboration between foundations in the field of research and innovation. A few examples of collaborative projects issued by the research platform are: Europe and Global Challenges – a research program on global pressing issues, RRI Tools: Fostering Responsible Research and Innovation (EU Commission FP7 project), and the European Foundations Award for Responsible Research and Innovation (EFARRI). Fredrik Lundmark concluded his presentation by emphasizing that it is not always easy to collaborate. He discussed the most important
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Moderator RenĂŠ Bekkers, Professor Social Aspects of Prosocial Behavior, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (The Netherlands) EU2016 - 71 Conference report
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Sybrich Zwiers, Operations Manager, Major Alliance (The Netherlands)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
THE ADDED VALUE OF CROSS-SECTORAL PARTNERSHIPS: MAJOR ALLIANCE AND THE NOABER FOUNDATION Sybrich Zwiers, Operations Manager, Major Alliance (The Netherlands) and Wim Post, Program Manager, Noaber Foundation (The Netherlands)
Wim Post elaborated on the added value of collaboration from the perspective of the Noaber Foundation. The Noaber Foundation was established by a family involved in the software business. The foundation’s mission is to initiate and accelerate innovations that support solutions for difficult societal challenges/problems. They focus on themes such as healthy lifestyles and healthy aging with a special interest in the application of it-solutions. The Noaber Foundation uses venture philanthropy and impact investing as methods to make sure that they have an impact. They provide grants, investments and networks, and they serve the organizations they are involved in. The Noaber Foundation has created several vehicles to bring research into the market (to bridge the gap of commercialization). Noaber Philanthropy is the grantmaking organization and Noaber Ventures is the investing vehicle of the foundation. He illustrated this by the example of Vita Valley, a partner organization for organizations and companies that are active in healthcare, cures and mental health, initiated by the Noaber Foundation. >> EU2016 - 73
Sybrich Zwiers and Wim Post highlighted the strengths of joint initiatives in the Netherlands. The Major Alliance aims to contribute to a better society by bringing together funds, companies and governments to jointly increase the impact of societal initiatives. The Major Alliance focuses on the following themes: growing up safe and healthy (youth), a healthy lifestyle, migration, cultural heritage and a circular economy. They organize meetings (socalled ‘tables’) with foundations, companies and governments. At these tables different players meet, exchange knowledge and develop a joint agenda and a long-term vision. She illustrated her presentation with two concrete examples. First, the Community Life Centers, a project which was brought to the Major Alliance by a Dutch company (Philips), and other stakeholders such as World Vision (a nonprofit organization). The purpose of this project is to transform health facilities in Africa into community hubs in order to improve the health and the economic status of the population. The second project is a matchmaking tool for and by refugees. The project’s aim is to give refugees the opportunity to make better use of the time they need to wait for a decision about their status. For example, by taking a course, by learning a language, by doing voluntary work or a job.
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Wim Post, Program Manager, Noaber Foundation (The Netherlands)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
>> It started with a grant for a research project on generic disease management and a population management tool, then the Noaber Foundation set up the company Vital Health Software (investment phase) with investments from traditional investors as well. Wim Post said: “It grew into a company with 180 people working for it, having customers in China, Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Germany and the Netherlands, reaching 3.5 million patients per year and 100,000 professionals making use of their applications, and it still impacts investment, because we as an organization do not take care of their financial results.”
“WE BELIEVE THAT AN IDEA CREATED IN RESEARCH IS NOT EASILY GONE INTO SOCIETY. THERE IS A GAP OF COMMERCIALIZATION, HOW TO MAKE SURE THAT THE IDEA IN THE RESEARCH INSTITUTE IS PRODUCTIZED, HAS GONE TO MARKET. THAT’S WHY WE CREATED A FEW VEHICLES TO FUND.”
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BUILDING BRIDGES BETWEEN FOUNDATIONS AND CORPORATIONS IN EASTERN EUROPE Lenka Surotchak, Director, Pontis Foundation (Slovakia)
Slovakia is chairing the European Council in the second half of 2016. Looking forward to this presidency, the second panel ends with a perspective from Eastern Europe. The Pontis Foundation raises € 5 million annually on average but cannot be compared with US foundations such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation or Rockefeller’s.
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Lenka Surotchak explains: “We are focusing on promoting corporate social responsibility, because we believe that companies are the ones who are really able to achieve impact in our societies. Companies can contribute through their production process, dealing with stakeholders and the supply chain. Next, companies can have a major impact on our natural environment. Third, companies have a big impact on the wellbeing of their employees, and fourth, companies can contribute a lot by sharing their expertise with civil society organizations.” In recent years companies have changed in their motives to become engaged in civil society. Where branding was the primary motive, sharing their best strategies or tools, they have now become interested in the societal challenge that they are aiming to
solve. In the last three years they have been collaborating in tackling societal problems. Corruption at the government level is a major issue in Slovakia. By working with different companies on different issues, the Pontis Foundation addresses the importance of rule of law and of working together on transparency issues. “Recently, we were successful in getting our program turned into policy and it is now being implemented by the new government.” According to Lenka Surotchak you still need to work together. She elaborates that in order to get real systematic change, you have to find the change-makers in the government. The tax system can be beneficial, for example. In Slovakia, individuals as well as corporations can assign 2% of their taxes to NGOs. This practice is also known as ‘percentage philanthropy.’ However, there is also a side effect, namely corporations and individuals that stop donating themselves. “You have to take this into consideration, and only with collaboration between NGOs, corporations and the government are you able to address this pitfall.”
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
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Master of Ceremony Matthew Bishop, New York Bureau Chief, The Economist (United States)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
CLOSING WORDS CONFERENCE CONCLUSIONS Master of Ceremony Matthew Bishop, New York Bureau Chief, The Economist (United States)
The conference showed that across the EU there are all sorts of interesting and different ways of approaching the same essential theme of the conference: how do we get more philanthropic money into research and innovation? While there are limits to the amount of money, best practices in one country might be translated (if not strictly replicated) to others.
“BIGGER, FASTER AND RISKIER” Watch the video
Matthew Bishop mentioned an interesting discussion about Social Impact Bonds (SIBs). He noted that SIBs are instruments that can be used as pilots in new initiatives. However, the results of these pilots need to be scaled up by governments if they are really to become part of a new sort of ecosystem with policy development. According to Matthew Bishop, the most important theme that came out of the conversation was the need for an appetite for greater risk. Philanthropy has the unique ability to take risks and pursue controversial agendas. When thinking ahead, three words stand out according to Matthew Bishop: “bigger, faster and riskier.” He noted that a lot of interesting examples from today are still very small scale. It is important to take bigger risks to try some of the new things and to see if we can really discover insights that can dramatically improve our societies. EU2016 - 79 Conference report
QUOTE “I AM HAPPY TO SAY THAT BOTH IN TERMS OF PRIORITIES AND VALUES, THE COMMISSION IS ON THE SAME PAGE AS TO WHAT SOME FOUNDATIONS DO. THAT IS FERTILE GROUND FOR MORE IN-DEPTH COOPERATION.” Ignacio Puente González
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Policy officer at the DG Research and Innovation, European Commission (Brussels)
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
NEXT POLICY STEPS Ignacio Puente Gonzalez, Policy Officer, DG Research and Innovation, European Commission (Brussels)
Ignacio Puente, on behalf of Jean David Malo, emphasized the privileged position of philanthropists, social investors and entrepreneurs to address societal challenges. Foundations are from time to time collaborative partners that contribute specialized knowledge and experience to the common good. Philanthropists and social investors can sometimes be risk-takers by investing the most creative and innovative projects that might turn out to be groundbreaking solutions. Since 2005 the European Commission, DG Research and Innovation, has set up several expert groups, conferences and commissioned studies in the field of philanthropy/foundations. In 2015 the results of the European Foundations for Research and Innovation (EUFORI) Study demonstrated that the activities of many foundations match well with the missions of the EU and national policy makers in tackling societal challenges and improving the social and economic wellbeing of Europe’s citizens.
Mutual advantages can be derived from utilizing expertise, sharing infrastructures, expanding activities, pooling money due to a lack of necessary funds and avoiding a duplication of efforts. A final recommendation of the Study is a call for an integration of philanthropy as a constituent of the EU welfare states. From a policy perspective Ignacio Puente mentioned that policy makers and politicians should help to develop a giving culture with all the relevant stakeholders including universities, research centers, foundations and the private sector. This conference is an example of how to share and explore new forms of financing research and innovation in Europe, to create synergies for mutual benefit and to close the triangle of collaboration between the public sector, foundations and the business sector. Based on the conclusions of this conference the European Commission is planning to set up a high-level expert group on philanthropy and social investments. This expert group will analyze different forms that key stakeholders’ involvement could take in order to contribute to European challenges by means of research and innovation. The output of this expert group will aim to elaborate on the forms of financial support coming from foundations and other suppliers of capital, such as venture philanthropists and social impact investors. EU2016 - 81
Ignacio Puente summarized in brief the main recommendations of the EUFORI Study, which, if implemented well, could further increase the potential of R&I foundations in Europe. The first recommendation is to increase the visibility of R&I foundations. He pointed out: “Less fragmentation could help increase the impact of existing funding and add focus which can raise the appeal of foundations’ activities and lead to a greater number of beneficiaries and synergies among them.” The second
recommendation is about exploring synergies through collaboration.
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“THE MORE RISK YOU TAKE, THE MORE IMPACT YOU WILL HAVE."
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ABOUT THE CENTER FOR PHILANTHROPIC STUDIES AT VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT AMSTERDAM
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The Center for Philanthropic Studies at the Vrije Universiteit (VU) Amsterdam is the leading center of expertise on philanthropy in the Netherlands since 1995. By initiating and developing the longitudinal survey on Giving in the Netherlands, it has established itself as the primary source of information on giving by households, corporations, foundations and charity lotteries in the Netherlands. In 2008, it was one of the founders of the European Research Network On Philanthropy (ERNOP). Since then has become one of the leading research centers studying philanthropy in Europe. The Center produces high quality research and courses, contributing to the professionalization of philanthropy. In its work, the Center exemplifies the movement towards Science in Society and Responsible Research and Innovation, combining academic and policy research, teaching, and valorization activities targeted at practitioners and the public at large. The Center endorses the principles of open science. As Philanthropic Studies are multidisciplinary by nature, both teaching and research at the Center are fed by multiple disciplines, including the social and behavioral sciences (economics, psychology, sociology,
public administration, organizational sciences) and law. The Center is highly visible in the national media and has expanded this position into Europe by its involvement in large and multiyear research projects. In the coming years, the Center focuses on international research projects and will be a key enabler of a Giving in Europe study. Research at the Center for Philanthropic Studies quantifies the origin, destination and effects of philanthropy at the micro, meso and macro level in the form of charitable giving, volunteering, and bequest giving. All sources of contributions are studied, including households, foundations, charities, corporations and lotteries. In addition, the Center studies the behavior of nonprofit organizations, charities and foundations, as well as regulators and governments. As new forms of financing and collaboration enter the stage, the landscape of philanthropy changes. The Center is currently investigating crowdfunding, social enterprises, venture philanthropy and social impact investments For more information and contact, please visit www.giving.nl
Philanthropy and Social Investments Fostering Research and Innovation.
Colofon The conference was part of the Horizon 2020 work programme Access to Risk Finance of the European Commission and was associated with the Netherlands EU Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2016. Organisation: Center for Philanthropic Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam European Commission Government of the Netherlands With support of: The European Research Network On Philanthropy Special thanks to: Nationale Postcode Loterij Authors: Barbara Gouwenberg - Text Barry Hoolwerf - Text Charlotte Porskamp - Magazine Design & Illustration Noortje Holdijk - Illustration Michèle Giebing - Photography Visual report: Visuele Notulen www.visuelenotulen.nl
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With a team of creative professionals Visuele Notulen has cared for the visual report of this event. As an organization we aim to get a longer hold of the message and engage people more closely in the content of the day.
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