Description

Standardized frameworks for measuring and reporting social and environmental outcomes from investments. This primitive enables investors to quantify impact alongside financial returns, creating transparency and comparability across impact investments. Rather than treating social/environmental outcomes as externalities, impact metrics integrate them into investment evaluation and monitoring.

Technical Specifications

• Primary Function: Standardize measurement of non-financial returns
• Standards: IRIS+ metrics; Social Return on Investment (SROI); Impact Measurement and Management (IMM); IMP Common Standards
• Technology Stack: Impact measurement platforms; data collection systems; reporting infrastructure; dashboards
• Dependencies: Agreed-upon metrics; data collection capacity; third-party verification; investor commitment to transparency

Civic Applications

• Use Cases: Evaluating community development investments; social enterprise funding; environmental restoration finance
• Examples: IRIS+ operating in 150+ countries; EVPA SROI methodology; Global Impact Investing Network standards