Venture philanthropy

The term derives from the English " venture philanthropy ". He refers to an approach to philanthropy, is strongly oriented to entrepreneurial principles. The term was first used in 1969 by American John D. Rockefeller III. Venture philanthropy is a private equity or venture capital to support social, environmental or social projects. Unlike foundations or donor, the venture philanthropy use different forms of financing, such as loans and equity. Recipients of the funds provided are for example non-profit organizations and social enterprises. In addition to the financial commitment representatives of venture philanthropy to support the funded projects usually also with mentoring, counseling and networking contacts ( three-pillar model). They use methods of venture capital and the business community to help the particular organization for a long time professionalize and so to make their work as effectively as possible.

Unlike investors in classic venture capital venture philanthropists want with their investment is not primarily a profit. Rather, they are interested in, in terms of sustainability to promote permanent and long -term changes.

The venture philanthropy reached into the 1990s in the U.S. first foot as a relevant model applies the Robin Hood Foundation, founded in 1988. Originated in Europe, among others, CAN ( 1998), Venture Handsome (2002) and Impetus Trust ( 2003) in the United Kingdom, the Noaber Group ( 2000) in the Netherlands, Oltre Venture ( 2002) in Italy, the Canopus Foundation ( 1997) and BonVenture ( 2003) in Germany and the Good Deed Foundation ( 2003) in Estonia. Since 2004, the European Venture Philanthropy Association ( EVPA ), which currently has around 100 members across Europe.