Impact players
Opportunities abound for entrepreneurs in socially beneficial fields like clean technology and health care — but new financing methods may be needed to realize their potential, according to scholars and practitioners who attended an MIT conference Thursday on “social impact investing.” This growing field encompasses a broad range of firms, including those driven by cutting-edge technologies, and others that bring new forms of business to communities that have been struggling economically. The effects of social impact investing include jobs as well as the wider benefits some new businesses may yield. “What appeals to me about the social impact investing field,” said former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, a featured speaker at the event, is “doing well by doing good.” Patrick recently announced that he is joining the Boston-based investment firm Bain Capital to launch a portfolio devoted to social impact investing. It is a great time “for social entrepreneurs to seize the moment,” said...