This Week in ESG and Impact Investing

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...

This week, at the Congressional Black Caucus Annual Legislative Conference (CBC ALC) , we are proud to launch the  Black GDP Report — a groundbreaking analysis that quantifies the economic contributions of Black Americans to the U.S. economy. For decades, policymakers, investors, and business leaders have overlooked the measurable economic power of Black communities. By applying the proven framework of the Latino GDP model, this new report captures the size, scale, and trajectory of Black economic activity—shedding light on both its resilience and its untapped potential. Key Findings Black GDP (2023): $1.6 trillion, comparable to the Canadian economy. Black Purchasing Power: $1.8 trillion in 2023, driving growth in housing, retail, technology, and cultural industries. Entrepreneurship: Over 3.5 million Black-owned businesses employ 1.2 million people and generate $200 billion annually. Labor Market Role: Black workers make up 13% of the U.S. labor force, concent...

Four months ago, our nation was made host to a virulent, deadly visitor, brought to this continent surreptitiously. A new virus, uncovered in China, unsparing in occurrence. Now we are engaged in a great experiment, testing whether any nation with significant divisions based on politics, race and wealth, can survive in the face of such a disease. We have come to give our testimony while we still can, to help insure the survival of all who participate in this society. We are writing not as millionaires but as common people, like the medical and public safety workers who gave their lives that this nation might live. As citizens of the world, we have an obligation to speak out. As citizens of the US, we have the right to do so. We offer an independent view on the economic impacts, having gained relevant insight from American history – in this case, from Black Wall Street/Tulsa, Oklahoma, to better understand the exact nature of the economic problem the country now faces. Of course, i...