What Climate Entrepreneurs Really Need From Investors

Climate change is actively undoing decades of progress against poverty. Only 3% of global climate finance goes toward adaptation and resilience, even though 2 billion people live in the world's most climate-vulnerable countries, precisely where that finance isn't flowing. Entrepreneurs across these markets are already delivering locally-rooted solutions that improve livelihoods and build resilience for low-income communities while mitigating emissions. What's missing isn't innovative ideas or capable leaders. It's the right kind of capital, support, and investors, ready to meet entrepreneurs' ambition. So we asked them directly. Through ‘Founders in Focus: The State of Impact Capital’, Acumen surveyed 140 entrepreneurs — a vast majority working across agriculture, clean energy, and other climate-related sectors — on what they really need from impact investors and where we, as an industry, need to do better. This event is where we share what we heard. Acumen Founders from seed to growth stages will share their own stories: what it actually takes to build a climate business in a developing market, raise capital, and transform the lives of low-income customers. We'll also present the high-level survey findings and have an honest conversation about what impact investors need to change. Rather than a one-way presentation, investors, funders, and partners will sit at the table with entrepreneurs, funders, and practitioners to solve for getting the right kind of capital into the hands of these climate pioneers.