Impact à la carte

There is a long menu of impact investment options available in Canada, each with different risk levels, different impact themes and different geographic focuses. Consider this a nice tasting menu to whet your appetite!

As your friendly neighbourhood financial planner, I want to remind you that impact investments are just the cherry on top of your investment pie, never the main course. It’s better for lots of people to invest tiny amounts than for a few people to invest the bulk of their nest eggs.

Fair Finance Fund

It takes good food to make a nice meal, but have you ever tried buying a farm or starting a business in the food sector? It ain’t easy. Here’s an impact investment that provides loans and mentorship services to local food and farm enterprises, helping build strong local food systems.

Since 2019, the Fair Finance Fund has loaned more than $6 million to food and farm enterprises in Ontario that are committed to strengthening their communities. Think everything from family-run farms to small-batch chocolate to Black-owned breweries. Fair Finance Fund used to lend only to Ontario-based enterprises, so I was thrilled to see a recent announcement that they’ve expanded into British Columbia. The minimum investment is $5,000 and targets a 2% annual interest rate over a five-year term.

Gather community bonds

What good is a meal if you don’t have an affordable home to eat it in? Too many of our neighbours are forced to choose between housing and food, so here’s an impact investment that will build more dining room tables.

Indwell is a Christian charity operating in southwestern Ontario that has been a pioneer in impact investing. It has had an offering for as long as I can remember, but the minimum investment was a steep $50,000. So I was delighted when, in 2024, it launched a new community bond with a minimum of just $1,000. Indwell initially aimed to raise $5 million, but the campaign was so successful that it ended up raising an extra million. That spurred it to launch a spinoff organization called Gather, with the sole mission of raising $15 million through community bonds to build affordable housing for everyday people.

The minimum $1,000 investment offers a 3.75% interest rate over a three-year term.

Housing Forever Bonds

Affordable housing is a hot topic, especially in our nation’s capital. If you care about Ottawa, here’s a two-for-one special that’s sure to hit the spot.

Centretown Citizens Ottawa Corporation has been creating affordable housing in Ottawa for more than 50 years. It has seen firsthand how the housing crisis has worsened and is chock-full of solutions. But how do we pay for it? Well, the Ottawa Community Land Trust successfully raised $3 million in community bonds two years ago. It has a proven financing model for building and acquiring affordable properties.

Each offering their own separate bond, you’d be forgiven for thinking they are competitors. Instead, they are showing that collaboration is the best way to grow the whole pie. Together, these two non-profits make a wonderful pairing that will keep housing in Ottawa affordable.

The bonds have identical terms. The minimum investment is $1,000 per organization – you can choose one or the other, but it tastes best when it’s one of each – and offers a 2.75% annual interest rate over a three-year term.

7Gen fleet decarbonization

It’s important to eat your greens, and I know lots of Corporate Knights readers are looking to invest in the green transition. Here’s an impact investment that should hit the spot.

Lots of companies want to transition their vehicle fleet to EVs, but the upfront costs are intense. That’s where 7Gen comes in. A for-profit company that launched in 2020, it provides financing, software and help with navigating the carbon credit market.

It has already raised more than $300,000 through Goparity Canada, a crowd-lending platform that lets everyday Canadians start investing for impact. It even offers a free $50 voucher so people can make their very first impact investment. It’s almost like the chef sent you a free dessert on the house.

The minimum investment is just $20 and pays a whopping 9% interest rate over a one-year term, but keep in mind that higher returns are almost always accompanied by higher risk.

SPICE

What’s a tasting menu without a little bit of spice? Here’s an impact investment that will add flavour and a solar spark to your portfolio.

The Solar Power Investment Cooperative of Edmonton (SPICE) is one of many local renewable-energy cooperatives that exist across the country. They are at the front lines of the renewable-energy transition, partnering with local non-profits, faith groups and First Nations to install rooftop solar projects that lower energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions.

Renewable-energy co-ops operate a bit differently. You have to become a member before investing (and members have to be residents of that province). In the case of SPICE, a lifetime membership costs $50, and after the first year, members can buy investment shares.

The minimum investment is $5,000 and targets an annual dividend of 5% over seven to nine years.

With so many great options, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. Don’t stress about it too much: just start with the one that you find mouthwatering, invest at the minimum amount, and go from there. Once you’ve had a taste of impact investing, I’m sure you’ll be coming back for more!

Tim Nash is the founder at Good Investing Financial Planners, which offers investment coaching to help people along their sustainable investment journey.

Canadian issuers of community bonds

* This table is intended as a snapshot of known Canadian community-capital issuers and is not necessarily exhaustive.

** Where marked as “Unknown,” we could not verify whether the organization had an active offering at the time of publication.

*** Amounts raised are approximate and may not be current in some cases.

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