Introduction: SDGs and Impact Investing

So far we have discussed a number of key concepts such as social entrepreneurship, social innovation, collective impact, and so on. These ideas are all about making the world a better place, which is a noble aim. However, to turn these ideas into reality, you need resources, especially financial resources. To achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, approximately 4 trillion USD is needed, whereas only 1.4 trillion USD is currently pledged. This gap of 2.6 trillion USD needs to be filled somehow. Impact investing seems like a promising approach, because it aims to generate both social impacts and financial returns, which can be used to achieve sustainability (longer impacts) as well as scalability (bigger impacts).

Today we will discuss the concept of impact investing, and look at impact investing in the current global landscape. We will also explore impact investing in Korea specifically, meeting with key impact investors and listening to their ideas and plans for the future.