Impact Strategies
Discover sustainable investment opportunities that align with your values and drive meaningful change
Whatever your vision for positive impact, we provide the knowledge and tools to help align your portfolio with your values.
Chief Philanthropy Officer
Deb Dubin
At Moneta, purposeful giving is a core part of how we help clients build meaningful legacies. Our dedicated Chief Philanthropy Officer offers expert guidance on defining your charitable strategy—helping you identify causes that resonate, choose the right giving vehicles, and establish a rhythm of giving that aligns with your lifestyle and financial goals. When desired, our investment team collaborates closely with our Chief Philanthropy Officer to create an integrated approach that combines charitable giving and impact investing—maximizing both your impact and tax efficiency.
Impact Investing at Moneta
We understand that for many clients, leaving a legacy means creating meaningful impact through both their investment strategy and charitable giving. At Moneta, we recognize that “impact,” purpose, and mission look different for everyone. Our role is to help you define what that means for you—and then bring it to life with a strategy that’s both cost-effective and results-driven.
One framework that can help guide these conversations is the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals. These global goals offer a shared language for identifying the causes and issues that matter most to you—from quality education and clean water to gender equality and climate action. Whether you’re just beginning to explore impact or looking to deepen your approach, the SDGs can be a valuable tool for aligning your capital with your values.
Additional Resources
Sustainable Investment Strategies
Sustainable investing integrates environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into investment decisions to help manage risk and support long-term value creation. These strategies favor companies with strong ESG practices—such as responsible governance, climate resilience, and inclusive workplaces—and may avoid those that fall short. It’s a way to align your portfolio with responsible business practices without sacrificing financial performance.
Renewable Energy and Infrastructure
Renewable energy and infrastructure funds raise capital to support projects such as solar farms, wind funds or biomass funds. See the links below for information on some of the renewable infrastructure resources in the marketplace today:
The Impact Advantage: A playbook for Sustainable Infrastructure Investing
Battery Storage
Funds focused on battery storage focus on financing and operating utility-scale battery energy storage systems. Battery storage systems store electricity generated from renewable sources such as solar and wind energy, which enables these sources to deliver a more reliable and consistent energy supply. See the links below for more information on battery storage funds:
Grasham Home Specialist Investment
Four Factors to Guide Investment in Battery Storage
Elevating the Role of Energy Storage on the Electric Grid
Battery Storage: The Technological Cornerstone for a Sustainable Energy Future
Nature Based Solutions
Nature based solutions involve the investment in natural capital such as forestry, wetlands and oceans. These investments are designed to generate both financial returns and positive environmental and social outcomes.
Forestry Funds: The Emerging Star of Alternative Investments
Impact Strategies
Impact investing goes a step further by seeking to generate measurable social or environmental outcomes alongside a financial return. These strategies are designed with intentionality—directing capital to areas such as affordable housing, clean energy, or community development. With clear reporting and outcomes, impact investments offer a way to see the tangible difference your dollars are making.
Opportunity Zones
Opportunity Zones are a federal program created by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to encourage long-term investment in economically distressed communities across the U.S. By reinvesting capital gains into Qualified Opportunity Funds (QOFs), investors can defer, reduce, or even eliminate taxes on those gains while supporting projects like real estate, businesses, or infrastructure within these zones.
Many specialized funds, such as Fundrise Opportunity Fund, Caliber Investment Partners, and The Rise Fund, focus on deploying capital in Opportunity Zones across various sectors including housing, commercial development, and renewable energy. These funds offer investors access to diversified portfolios managed by experienced teams, helping to navigate the complexities of OZ regulations while aiming for both financial returns and community impact.
Education
Education impact investing focuses on channeling capital into initiatives that improve access, quality, and equity in education, especially for underserved communities. These investments support a wide range of opportunities, including early childhood programs, affordable private schools, edtech companies, and workforce development.
Notable funds like Excolere specialize in innovative education investments designed to improve student outcomes and promote educational equity, while organizations such as Gratitude Railroad partner with communities to create meaningful educational opportunities. Other prominent funds like the Learning Capital Fund, Social Impact Capital Fund, Bridges Fund Management, and the Omidyar Network also invest in scalable education ventures and nonprofits driving measurable impact.
Investors can participate by purchasing shares in these funds, investing directly in affiliated projects, or partnering with organizations through impact investment platforms or private placements. Engaging with financial advisors who specialize in impact investing can help identify the right opportunities aligned with both social goals and financial objectives.
Emerging Managers
Emerging managers are early-stage or first- and second-time fund managers, often led by women, people of color, or other underrepresented groups in finance. These managers bring fresh perspectives and focus on high-impact areas like climate tech, affordable housing, education, and social equity.
For investors, allocating capital to emerging managers offers access to unique deal flow and the opportunity to support diverse leadership in the investment industry. Investors can get involved through direct fund investments, co-investments, or platforms like Illumen Capital, Fairview Capital, Recast Capital, and the NAIC Emerging Manager Program, which specialize in sourcing diverse, impact-driven managers. Some also invest through fund-of-funds or mission-aligned portfolios.
Backing emerging managers not only enhances portfolio diversification but also helps drive innovation, equity, and measurable social and environmental outcomes.
Thematic Strategies
Thematic investing allows you to focus your portfolio on issues that matter most to you—whether that’s gender equity, clean water, sustainable agriculture, or other global priorities. Often aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, these strategies help you express your values through specific causes and trends, while participating in long-term growth opportunities.
Biotech
Biotech funds invest in companies involved in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, medical technology, and healthcare services, aiming to advance human health and longevity. These funds target investments in firms that are leading the way in medical research, developing novel therapies, and providing innovative healthcare solutions to meet the needs of a growing and aging population.
AI and Deep Tech
AI & Big Data thematic funds focus on investing in businesses who are involved in the evolution of artificial intelligence and big data analytics. This sub-theme has become extremely popular as more companies implement AI into their workflow and processes. This sub-theme has seen a large number of inflows over the last 12 months as some of the biggest names in the AI space have led the broader market. AI & Big Data funds focus on investing in companies who specialize in the production and implementation of technologies such as semiconductors, Cloud Computing, and Electric Vehicles. Holdings for these funds often include large cap tech stocks based in the US and regions of Asia.
Venture Capital
Thematic venture capital focuses on early-stage companies driving long-term trends like clean energy, healthcare innovation, and social equity, often supported by NGOs. These funds target scalable solutions that create systemic change and emphasize diversity by backing underrepresented founders. They use rigorous ESG and impact measurement frameworks to align with global sustainability goals. Innovative fund structures provide flexibility for the high-risk, long-term nature of these investments.
Investors can access opportunities through thematic VC funds, direct co-investments, or partnerships with impact networks. Supporting diverse entrepreneurs and emerging markets helps unlock both growth and equity.
Overall, thematic VC combines financial returns with meaningful social and environmental impact through strategic partnerships and impact-driven investing.
Blockchain & Digital Assets
Given the rapid digitization of financial services, the rise of digital-only banking, and the increasing adoption of blockchain technology, Fintech is becoming increasingly more important. These trends are fueled by changing consumer preferences for more convenient and cost-effective financial solutions, as well as regulatory support for innovation in the financial sector.
The integration of AI and machine learning is also transforming the fintech landscape by enabling more efficient and personalized financial services. Fintech funds invest in financial technology companies that are disrupting traditional banking and financial services with innovative digital solutions.
The focus is on companies that are redefining the financial landscape through mobile banking, peer-to-peer lending, blockchain technology, and digital wallets.
Institutional sentiment points to increased adoption of digital assets
Impact Tokens: A blockchain-based solution for impact investing