Impact Investing
Photo courtesy of WholeTrees Structures
The Endowment continuously seeks ways to increase our impact to benefit the health and vitality of the nation’s working forests and forest-reliant communities.
In addition to supporting partners through grants, we also use program-related investments (PRIs), equity investments, loan guarantees, and mission-related investments (MRIs). In 2021, the Endowment’s Board of Directors approved an impact investing pilot program allowing us to put more of our assets in service to our mission objectives. The Board subsequently allocated additional funding. Impact investing is the concept that strategically invested capital can achieve both a social outcome and a financial return.
Our goal with this new approach is to drive positive program outcomes in accordance with the Endowment’s three focus areas: markets, communities, and forests.
For a downloadable PDF with more detailed information, including investment criteria and process, please click HERE. For questions or inquiries, please email impact@usedowment.org
Our investments to date include:
Indian Land Tenure Fund (ILTF) – In 2022, on behalf of the National Indian Carbon Coalition, an award was made to capitalize a revolving fund that advances tribal participation in ecosystem markets grounded in long-term land stewardship. The fund establishes a dedicated capital pool that enables ILTF to cover third-party costs associated with tribal project development for ecosystem services and stewardship-based outcomes. These funds are reimbursed upon the sale of ecosystem credits, with proceeds returned to the Tribal Nation. The revolving structure then sustains continued investment in future tribal stewardship and ecosystem market initiatives.
Applied Carbon – In 2023, an investment was made with Applied Carbon, a developer of mobile biochar production systems, to advance development of their self-contained, mobile pyrolysis plants. These plants can be towed to remote sites for conversion of waste biomass (wood chips, slash, agricultural waste etc) into biochar. Applied Carbon has commercialized the technology and secured offtake agreements for the biochar and carbon removal credits we generate.
Northern Forest Center, Inc. – This 2024 investment helped the Northern Forest Center achieve its $30 million goal for the Northern Forest Fund, which finances the development of attainable housing across 10 communities in the Northern region, which includes areas in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York. The investment will help the Center address housing shortages by funding projects that make housing affordable for median-income earners in these rural areas.
WholeTrees Structures – A 2024 investment is enabling WholeTrees Structures to grow its sales force and expand its nationwide production capabilities to meet increased market demand for Solid Structural Timber (SST). WholeTrees re-opened a previously dormant forest products facility in partnership with Seven Islands Land Company, the State of Maine, and other stakeholders. SST is in strong demand for commercial construction and represents a high-value use of timber sourced from well-managed forests, the impact of which will benefit forest-reliant communities nationwide.
Tanbark MFP – This 2024 investment will support Tanbark’s expansion of its manufacturing capabilities for fiber packaging, allowing them to operate on a larger scale. Their packaging is a byproduct of working forests and helps eliminate plastic waste.
Rosy Soil – This 2025 investment helped Rosy Soil complete their Series A Financing; read the Forbes feature here. Established in 2022, Rosy Soil is a biochar-based soil company offering sustainable alternatives to peat. Rosy Soil’s business and growth plan aligns with the Endowment’s strategic priority to build markets for products such as biochar, which can be made from low value forestry biomass, including sawmill residuals and unmerchantable biomass from forest thinnings and wildfire treatments.
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