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Bailey McCann, Opalesque New York:

Impact investing is often lumped into corporate social responsibility, philanthropic investing, and other sorts of "feel good" investment schemes where investors have a cause and don't look much at the return. However, through the growth of technology and new industries, impact investing is beginning to mature. Impact investment funds and mandate polices are less about philanthropy and more about aligning high minded goals with investment return objectives.

The current impact investment market is estimated at between $30bn and $50bn and the current renewable energy market roughly $250bn. Impact will reach $1tn over the next decade, according to some estimates from Madeira Global an investment advisory firm focusing on impact investments. Madeira has grown with the industry and now provides advisory services for investors and funds looking to craft an impact program.

"What we're seeing today in the market is more entrepreneurs are developing innovative business models that are incoprorating social responsibility elements into their business objectives," Madeira Global CEO Christina Alfonso, tells Opalesque.

She says that impact investing has grown in popularity as investor interest in areas like clean tech, biotechnology, education and infrastructure grows. These areas have a natural fit for high impact objectives like improving education through technology, or bringing the costs down for clean tech like solar. A......................

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