Social Return on Investment is the social “good” generated by your investment. This edition of
The Junction focuses on the positive effect your Community Investment Note has on real people in real communities. At Calvert Foundation, we measure SROI in terms of the number of small businesses and jobs created, community facilities developed, houses built or rehabilitated, microloans approved, and the number of coffee farmers in fair trade cooperatives. These statistics, aggregated across the more than 220 groups in our portfolio, make SROI quantifiable.
Other, less quantifiable aspects of social return, however, are the results generated from jobs created and homes built. For example, neighborhoods with homeowners tend to be safer – and the children that live in such neighborhoods tend to do better in school. The unquantifiable SROI is that a family’s life was changed, and they became part of an initiative to build stronger, safer and healthier community. Similar results can be seen with the development of small, local businesses or essential facilities such as childcare centers. You will find many examples of the real-life returns you are generating through your community investment in our 2007 Social Impact Report.
You too will likely be impacted by the SROI of your investment. Calvert Foundation’s partners are building homes, creating jobs and transforming lives in all 50 states and over 100 countries. If you have not already invested in a Community Investment Note, consider a new type of return on investment – one that builds communities while providing a financial return.
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We
are managing our largest portfolio ever, with $123 million at work in communities. An increase in investments has allowed us to add 25 new organizations to our portfolio, while continuing to increase investments with other long-term partners. In the past year, we have added a large number of microfinance organizations in preparation for the launch of 
