Join Us Today for the First Impact Cherub Club Meeting
At 3:00 Eastern, Noon Pacific We'll Review Social Enterprise Startups for Investment
To join today’s first-ever meeting of the Impact Cherub Club, register here. You are welcome no matter who you are!
Today’s meeting will begin at 3:00 Eastern/Noon Pacific with a bit of an orientation and a discussion of protocol and procedures. Then we’ll move to review three startups with the potential to have significant impact on climate change, global health and poverty. They may also generate positive financial returns to investors. We’ll attempt to scrutinize both.
Sirocco Energy, a startup that has patented small wind turbine technology for urban and suburban deployment, will be our first candidate investment. Putting energy production nearer the use of energy reduces transmission and distribution losses. Supplementing solar power, which switches off every night for some reason, with wind is tantalizing. The potential for addressing climate change merits consideration.
Leanmed sells solar-powered oxygen concentrators in the developing world to address a critical shortage in remote locations. Pneumonia is the leading cause of death among children in places where oxygen is not available. The device can be deployed in low-income communities in small clinics and hospitals. The potential to save lives at scale over time justifies our taking a thoughtful look.
Ziba Foods exports dried fruit and nuts from Afghanistan for sale in the U.S. and Europe. The crisis that has continued to worsen in Afghanistan since last August has cut off the funding for Ziba, threatening the survival of the business—and the farmers and employees who depend on the company for income. The company has a specific focus on empowering women. The focus on addressing an acute poverty crisis suggests this company is worth discussing today.
To be clear, at this point, I am not recommending an investment in any of these businesses. Instead, we’ll be discussing them to determine whether the collective wisdom of those assembled suggests further investigation and “due diligence” is warranted.
Speaking of the collective wisdom of the Impact Cherub Club, let’s talk a bit about how this meeting will work.
Today’s agenda:
Welcome
Review of protocol
Education
Company presentations and group discussion
Sirocco Energy
Leanmed
Ziba Foods
The aspects of protocol we’ll review are these:
The Club’s goal is to aggregate wisdom and share the work of considering impact investments.
While we will seek a group consensus on whether a company merits investment, ultimately, whether or not to invest will remain an individual decision.
There is no requirement that you invest in any company to participate in the Impact Cherub Club.
Members are encouraged to suggest companies for consideration at future meetings.
For the time being, there is no fee to participate, no membership dues or structure.
Each month, our meetings will include three essential parts: education, due diligence reports from impact cherubs and preliminary looks at new social enterprise startups.
We hope to see you this afternoon. Bring a friend!
P.S. Please forgive a second newsletter today. As a reward for enduring a second one today, we’ll skip one tomorrow. We’ll be back on Thursday with another podcast episode.