Bridges Not Walls: Interdependence Powering Greater Impact in North America and Beyond

Our world is facing a rising tide of nationalism that threatens to divide us, and a related rise in skepticism for well-established facts that threatens our ability to address our most pressing problems from climate change to inequality. We recognize that our communities, countries, and ecosystems are interdependent. It has never been more necessary to create genuine connections between nations and regions for talent, capital, and expertise to effectively mobilize impact entrepreneurs and investors. We can also save valuable time and resources and achieve greater impact and results if we learn from and work with each other. But what can we really do as an impact investing sector and as a movement to create bridges between nations to help us tackle the urgent problems we face? SVX has worked with partners across borders to support the development of local ecosystems of impact ventures and investors. We will explore SVX as a case study to explore a model of bridge-building and interdependence in impact investing in North America, from Canada to Mexico. This will kickstart an interactive workshop to design and build practical bridges between nations outside of large scale institutions and processes. Help us build bridges by identifying common challenges, discussing cross-border collaboration opportunities, and sharing assets with your fellow workshop participants.