Activities and IMM Milestones The Hataraku Fund has successfully raised capital from institutional investors to establish Japan’s first VC-type impact fund, setting a precedent that inspired other banks and institutional investors to follow suit. In addition, the fund’s experiences have led to the creation of new impact investing models and frameworks that are now referred to by financial institutions, companies, and the government. This includes contributing to the development of the GSG Impact JAPAN’s Guidebook for Impact Measurement & Management , later influencing the creation of the Guidance for Impact Companies on Disclosure and Engagement in Capital Markets – Version 1. As an illustration of investee utilization of IMM, Life is Tech (LiT), a coding and data science education company for junior high and high school students, rigorously tests its curricula by conducting research with academic experts. The program, which employs a project-based learning approach, aims to foster critical and creative thinking among youth. Importantly, LiT incorporates girls’ empowerment as a key focus of its evaluation process, collecting feedback through surveys and interviews to enable continuous improvement. The company has also partnered with academics to assess the effects of its interventions on youth, particularly in building self-belief and self-confidence. Testimonials from students reflect the program’s impact: “I realized that my ideas could really be shaped, so I will continue to try to make my ideas a reality,” said one participant. “I started to think that I wanted to try various things and find other skills besides design.” 27 LiT has also demonstrated measurable impact, with 54.2 percent of participants reporting increased self-esteem and belief in their ability to change society, compared to only 30.2 percent of youth in Japan as a whole. 28 In recognition of its achievements, LiT became the first Japanese educational company to receive the B-Corp certification, granted to companies that meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance. 29 It was also selected as one of thirty companies to be featured in the METI’s “J-Startup Impact” program, which supports promising impact startups. 30
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Ten Years in the Making
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