2020 in Review

Now that 2021 is well underway, let’s take a moment to look back at a challenging and unusual year. The year 2020 took an uncanny amount of flexibility, demanded the relinquishing of plans and control, and still delivered much to be grateful for. The effects of the pandemic had dramatic implications for our young, global business and in our community of entrepreneurs, investors, and partners around the world we saw many challenges, some sad defeats, as well as shining moments of perseverance and triumph. Here’s a bit of the story of our 2020 journey…

At the onset of the year, Ian and I set out to Southeast Asia with a draft term sheet in hand to discuss the development of our fund with investors, along with a multiple stop trip ahead to continue our work building a pipeline of investment opportunities and partnership alliances. On this trip we also planned to choose a location in the region to establish our office and deepen our roots in Southeast Asia.

At the Asian Venture Philanthropy Network (AVPN) Southeast Asia Summit in Bali early February, we enjoyed the gathering of the regional impact investing ecosystem and had many rich discussions in sessions and surrounding meetings. After a stop in Singapore packed with meetings along the way, we moved on to Phnom Penh, Cambodia. In addition to meeting with friends and partners there, Lisa presented on a panel at the Gender Lens Investing Forum hosted by SHE Investments which brought together key regional players including investors, NGOs, intermediaries, and entrepreneurs.

We decided during this time to make Phnom Penh the location of our outpost in Southeast Asia, and signed a lease just as news of the pandemic was escalating. We then flew to Thailand and prepared for two weeks of meetings and events in Bangkok. Just as we crossed the border in the air, Cambodia issued a policy banning U.S. residents from entering the country as a protective measure against COVID-19. As news of increasing international pandemic concern and an imminent lockdown in Bangkok reached us, we pivoted our plans and returned to the States.

This sudden return trip allowed us to reach Seattle just in time for the announcement of the first official lockdown. From that point we quarantined and exercised caution and safety, while continuing to operate remotely.

At this point in the year, people around the world entered Zoom life. The workshop we were to deliver for the winners of the UNEP Low Carbon Lifestyles Challenge in Bangkok was moved online. The presentations and meetings we had scheduled moved online. We put the fund development on hold and shifted our focus to pipeline development and consulting and we found that even while operating on opposite sides of the globe, we could serve our clients, meet new clients, and forge new partnerships all online.

In our experience, the global pandemic had the effect at times of bringing the global community closer together. Each day we learned about the current challenges and status across multiple countries, which helped us to keep a broader world view as a bolster against the isolation of lockdown. We heard inspiring stories of positive mindset, agile decision making, and new alliances formed to ensure the access to capital needed to survive.

One of the most exciting accomplishments we had in this new virtual state had to do with a project we had been interested in for years. The Habitat for Humanity International ShelterTech Accelerator project would be running its first program in Southeast Asia. This accelerator is focused on supporting housing affordability and livability innovations for the low income segment, an effort that we saw as unique in the global system and well aligned to our focus area and expertise.

Global Urban Village 2020 Impact Stats:

  • Half a million dollars of capital and program related investments placed/delivered
  • 60 entrepreneurs trained in finance, leadership, and investment readiness
  • 200 investment offerings evaluated in Southeast Asia with social and environmental solutions
  • 7 collaborative partnerships formed to provide catalytic capacity development and funding to entrepreneur

With our partner Villgro Philippines, we were thrilled to win the project as the anchor partners to deliver the first ShelterTech Accelerator program in Southeast Asia. We launched in August, received 100 applications, completed the selection process throughout the fall, and announced our cohort of 10 participants in December. Currently we are delivering the acceleration phase for the cohort including learning labs and mentorship.

At this point in the new year, we are busy continuing to build on the work we have done at Global Urban Village since our launch in late 2018. We look forward to the investment readiness and showcase stages of ShelterTech and to the fruition of multiple client and partner projects we have underway. This year we will expand our work in Gender Lens Investing, pursue new opportunities to bring investment to entrepreneurs, and explore avenues to connect our communities in the U.S. and Southeast Asia.

By Lisa Hanson