Engaging Diverse Voices: Find Navigators and Translators As Nanako Kudo points out, “We specifically involved the finance sector as we were building the impact investing ecosystem. We believed we need buy-in to bring more resources to impact investing and now the impact economy. Going forward we need to bring diverse perspectives into the conversations—NGO (nongovernmental organizations), development finance agencies—to help us better define and align impact in the next stage of our work. This probably should have happened early on. It may have been a mistake, but going forward, it is essential.” 54 Katsuji Imata adds that Japan’s social sector is often undervalued in the impact economy. 55 Many nonprofit organizations (NPO) lack representation in regulatory processes or in bodies like GSG Impact JAPAN. Much of the leadership in these spaces comes from finance or business sectors, which are not always familiar with community needs or the intricacies of social change. Conversely, NPOs are often dismissed as lacking financial expertise, creating a Lost in Translation dynamic that can get in the way of having positive impact or change at a community level. During interviews for this case, other comments were made that ten years ago, NPOs were believed to be too advocacy oriented, and mainstream finance would neither have taken impact investing seriously nor participated in GSG Impact JAPAN, if nonprofits were present. Other comments were made that NPOs were likely unwilling to be involved because the focus on finance might diminish the social mission. NPOs might also be reluctant as their work is already focused on measuring impact and they are reluctant to include another layer of investor-driven demands. Challenge of Working Local and With Communities The drive to support relocation may meet challenges. For instance, the language of impact may not resonate with the word impact not easily translating with rural community members. Daisuke Maki, A-Zero founder and CEO, featured in the Satoyama case study in this series, says, “I didn’t know what impact meant until SIIF staff explained it to me.” 56 Theories of change and logic models can be jargon-laden terms, and the frameworks have little relevance to the lives of people who are struggling with poverty or struggling to find affordable housing. Entrepreneurs may need to find language that will resonate with mothers, grandparents, and youth in local areas to be successful. It is a cautionary tale that government and investors will need to be aware of to help entrepreneurs get over this potential barrier.
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Ten Years in the Making
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