This Week in ESG and Impact Investing

On the Black Economics podcast we explore the extended 2025 U.S. federal government shutdown (which began October 1) ( Wikipedia ) and its reverberations across our economy. For readers of ImpactInvesting.Online, the questions we must ask go beyond the headline fiscal impasse: What are the implications for underserved communities, minority‐owned enterprises, and the broader ambition of channeling capital toward impact? In the podcast and in this article, we surface three key takeaways — and propose how impact investors, policymakers and practitioners can respond. 1. The macro disruptor: economic data, market confidence & policy risk The shutdown interrupted delivery of federal economic data, weakened consumer sentiment and rattled markets. One recap notes: “the federal government shutdown worries were cited as a primary reason for the decline” in the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index. ( T. Rowe Price ) For impact investors, this matters because: Less transp...

There are many data collection crises that we, as workers and consumers, should be tuned into amid this era of instability. At a recent event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) titled “Federal Statistics for Economic Security,” leading economists identified quite a few. “We have to imagine a world where technology will outdo the best economists,” said Oliver Wise, executive director of Bloomberg Center for Governance and Excellence, to a room full of economists. As geopolitical tensions rise, there is a demand for constant innovation. After all, policymakers and economists alike are operating under the belief that the country with faster technological advancement will dominate global ideology. Their strategy: integrating artificial intelligence in governance and federal data collection systems. A wide-scale modernization effort. But what will inch us toward the modernization we think we require? Acting directors at the nation’s highest statistical burea...

At SEMAFOR’s “Navigating Regulatory Waves: Pathways Toward Policy Innovation” event on October 28, policymakers and industry leaders spoke on how the U.S. can adapt to new economic and technological obstacles in an era of renewed geopolitical rivalry. The common question they answered was How can the U.S. stay innovative and competitive in this fast-changing world? Out of all the conversations that day, the one with Rep. Deborah Ross (D-NC) stood out to me—she spoke with conviction, humor, and a sense of urgency that cut through the usual talking points. Her first message: innovation shouldn’t come with a price tag. Rep. Ross didn’t mince words about President Donald Trump’s idea to impose new fees on patents. She called it a threat to first-time inventors and minority business enterprises (MBEs)—the people who most need access, not more disadvantages. “We need to support first-time patent holders to uphold the values this country was founded on,” she said. She emphasized that we need ...

North America’s triad has always relied on each other for shared prosperity. The US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), inaugurated in 2020, was built for mutual growth and stability. But now, President Donald Trump’s tariff approach on goods from nations neighboring the US has inflicted damage on Canada and Mexico. By the same coin, it has opened the door for China to become a dominant trade partner—especially with Mexico.  The upcoming 2026 review is no routine check-up. It’s shaping into a renegotiation that will determine the future of North American cooperation.  The U.S.’ greatest strength has always been its alliances,” said Jean Charest, former premier of Quebec.  Three experts, one from each member country, met at the Brookings Institution to discuss the high stakes of the formal review, scheduled for June or July 2026. This economic partnership underpins one-third of global GDP and supports around 17 million jobs. The implications of the renegotiation reach far pas...

The Federal Reserve cut interest rates for the second consecutive time on Wednesday, lowering the benchmark federal funds rate by 25 basis points to a range of 3.75 %–4.00 % . This move follows September’s initial rate reduction to 4.00 %–4.25 %. Together, the cuts signal growing concern about slowing job growth, weakening consumer confidence, and a still-uneven recovery that has left many Black and minority businesses struggling to access affordable credit. A Softer Economy, Not Yet an Easier One The Fed’s policy statement underscored “elevated uncertainty about the economic outlook.” With unemployment edging higher and inflation “still running hot” ( see our analysis ), policymakers are threading a fine line between supporting growth and maintaining credibility on prices. For Black- and minority-owned firms, this caution matters: many operate in sectors tied closely to consumer spending or local service demand. Our September 2025 Unemployment Forecast already showed that job loss...

At a time when DEI initiatives are under attack, MacKenzie Scott continues to prove that targeted, equity-driven philanthropy can be both bold and transformative. As reported by Black Enterprise ( https://www.blackenterprise.com/mackenzie-scotts-42m-gift-shows-her-tenacity-to-supporting-black-students-despite-anti-dei-efforts/ ) , Scott’s $42 million donation to 10,000 Degrees, a nonprofit helping low-income and minority students attend college, is the largest in the organization’s history. It arrives amid a nationwide rollback of diversity programs—making her gift a powerful counterstatement. Scott’s approach—unrestricted, trust-based giving focused on racial equity—mirrors the Creative Investment Research principles of impact investing. It channels capital in a counter-cyclical manner to places where traditional markets and policies have failed: in this case, toward high social return investing....by expanding educational opportunity for Black and Latino students. In a climate of ret...

On October 22, policymakers, advocates, and healthcare leaders came together for a powerful conversation on one clear message: breast cancer screening saves lives. Despite major advancements in detection and treatment, deep disparities remain, especially for Black and Hispanic women and those with lower incomes. The event centered on the Access to Breast Cancer Diagnosis (ABCD) Act, a bipartisan bill designed to make diagnostic imaging more affordable and accessible for all women. By addressing financial barriers and insurance gaps, the act aims to ensure that no one delays or skips critical follow-up testing simply because of cost. Black women face the highest breast cancer mortality rates of any racial group in the U.S. They are 40% more likely to die from the disease and often receive diagnoses at younger ages and later stages. Similarly, Hispanic women and those with annual incomes below $35,000 are more likely to miss follow-up screenings because of cost barriers. Representative D...

The delayed release of September’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) — now scheduled for Friday,  October 24, 2025 — comes at a crucial moment. With Federal Reserve officials weighing whether to cut the benchmark Federal Funds Rate to ease short-term borrowing costs, this data release will heavily influence the next policy move. Forecast: Inflation Running Hot Our forecast projects that headline CPI rose 3.2% year-over-year in September , slightly above expectations, while Core CPI (excluding food and energy) likely came in at 3.3% . On a month-to-month basis, prices probably increased 0.5% , reflecting continuing upward pressure from goods and housing costs. While energy prices eased modestly, tariff-related price pressures and supply-chain re-shoring costs have kept inflation “sticky.” Durable goods categories such as furniture, appliances, and home fixtures — many of which depend on imported materials — remain notably affected by tariffs . These categories alone may have contri...

New Majority Ventures (NMV) hosted a town hall at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in downtown D.C. providing a space for minority entrepreneurs and business-owners to learn from seven-figure-earning DMV success stories. NMV provides feedback and technical training for growing companies that can provide marketing prioritization skills and hiring skills. They also announced the launch of their app that leverages their training modules for mobilized use. The most remarkable aspect of hearing directly from these founders was seeing how humble they were about their rising stardom. Not due to the cameras on them, rather, it was clear they learned the importance of trust between workers and executives. Invest in your team. You can’t grow your product if people don’t believe in the purpose you have set out, and therefore you must also convince people you’d like to hire why your company is different from the white noise in a vast pool of apps and other existing user platforms.  Busi...

The partial government shutdown did not impact all businesses equally. As chief economist for the U. S. Black Chamber of Commerce, my research indicates black-owned businesses were hit harder than most. Many are located in states that receive substantial federal aid, such as Maryland and Virginia, and they tend to be in industries such as health care, administration, transportation, professional services and retail that are sensitive to any decline in federal spending. As a result, these companies can experience a double hit. I estimate there are roughly 1.9 million black-owned businesses in the United States, and they generated $131 billion in 2012. That suggests the monetary impact of the shutdown on their businesses to be $10 million per day. We saw the effects. National parks and federally owned museums closed. Tourism, a major industry in the D.C. area, was, as a result, negatively affected. This impact will be felt for some time, since overseas offices that give visas to foreigne...

Contract and payment delays are among the largest setbacks hitting Black and other minority businesses amid the federal government shutdown. by Jeffrey McKinney. October 18, 2025 Black- and other minority-owned businesses are being slammed by the federal government shutdown, severely hindering their operating ability. Started on Oct. 1, the closure is on pace to be one of the longest in U.S. history. A new survey of those firms by the National Minority Supplier Development Council ( NMSDC ) shows they are being negatively impacted by economic weakness stemming from the shutdown. Simultaneously, the stoppage is projected to bring losses of between $400 million and $450 million for minority business enterprises (MBEs), despite when the government reopens, based on a new calculation by Creative Investment Research. That overall estimate includes $150 million in contract and payment delays, $125 million in reduced demand for business goods and services, $75 million in staffing reductions ...

We’re on Day 8 of the government shutdown and the Trump administration has taken on an aggressive campaign targeting Democrat-led cities. Like many of my peers, I wasn’t nearly as tuned into politics during the last shutdown in the winter of 2018 as I am now. Today, I overheard furloughed workers talking on the Metro and in the advocacy spaces at which I work, waiting and wondering how long they can hold onto work. Small businesses, contractors, and anyone deemed “non-essential” are particularly vulnerable. Not to mention the US’s longest shutdown—also under Trump—spanned two months. So every analyst I’ve listened to give their thoughts on the situation have pledged not to predict how long we will have to endure this. They do, however, all warn that more social programs will be cut as law enforcement troops expand their presence to new states. Shutdowns have become entangled with lawsuits and political maneuvering. Back in 2018, Trump used the shutdown to halt discoveries in a state-le...

At a time when American politics is marked by polarization and fatigue, Georgetown University’s Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life hosted “Renewing Politics from the Ground Up” with a panel that asked what moral and communal renewal might look like in an age of distrust. The event featured Julie Chávez Rodríguez, Nicholas Hayes-Mota, Rosie Villegas-Smith, and Joanna Arellano-Gonzalez, each reflecting on how faith, organizing, and community can reconnect politics with the real needs of people. The First Question: What Principle Guides and Informs Community Organizing? Each speaker began by naming the value that grounds their work. Julie Chávez Rodríguez emphasized solidarity and coalition building, recalling moments when Latino and Filipino workers in Los Angeles stood together during ICE raids and when local businesses joined them in resistance. For Rodríguez, true organizing means unity across struggle and shared survival. Nicholas Hayes-Mota focused on the dignity ...

As first-time attendees of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, the workshops were inspiring. We witnessed the mobilization of advocates, teachers, and entrepreneurs to name a few. Seeing Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) speak to her mega fanbase was moving, including the moment when a ninth grader asked how she could make a difference at her age and how the representative kept going through it all (to which Crockett herself was touched and swiftly answered she has the will to fight on for young people like her). Civic engagement was at the heart of the weeklong, jam-packed conference from impelling Black youth to lead skill-based job sectors to standing strong with Black women in the prevention of further maternal mortality rises. A major toolkit supplied to attendees was the Black political playbook. Wealth builds wealth, and wealth comes from wealth. This was a repeated point of discussion during the “Forward Together” equity panel and similar talks dedicated to building Black wea...

Unemployment rates rose for most groups in August, and our forecast suggests the same trend is likely to continue into September. The numbers are small—but they point to deeper structural issues in the labor market, especially for women of color. What We Saw in August According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), unemployment increased across nearly all groups in August 2025. Black women, Hispanic men, and Hispanic women experienced some of the sharpest increases. The only exception was Asian workers, whose unemployment rate declined. This broad uptick suggests momentum that is unlikely to reverse in the short term. Forecast for September 2025 (Seasonally Adjusted, %) Black Women (20+) : 6.7% in August → 6.9% in September ( higher ) Hispanic/Latina Women (20+) : 4.9% in August → 5.0% in September ( slightly higher ) White Men (20+) : 3.7% in August → 3.8% in September ( flat to slightly higher ) Overall (20+ years) : 4.2% in August → 4.3% in September ( slightly...