Sustainable BusinessRecent posts
Digital Innovation Expands Financing for Women-Led SMEs in Latin America and the Caribbean
Loans and disbursements approved in less than 24 hours, enabled by artificial intelligence, and early invoice payments powered by fintech solutions are transforming access to credit for MSMEs, especially those led by women.
Fixing the Broken Rung: How Data Can Help Advance Women’s Careers in Latin America and the Caribbean
In Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), the greatest disruption in women’s career progression occurs during the transition into managerial roles. A collaboration between IDB Invest and LinkedIn, within the framework of the Development Data Partnership, uses large-scale labor-market data to identify where women’s participation declines and what barriers exist across sectors and career stages.
Addressing gender-based violence from the private sector: the experience of Laboratorios Bagó
Francisco Méndez, CEO of the pharmaceutical company, shares his company's efforts and achievements in fostering an inclusive and safe work environment.
Can the private sector feed the world?
To feed the world by 2050, global food production must increase 60 percent on as little as 12 percent more arable land. This will require avoiding environmentally-sensitive areas while planning for the unexpected events of climate change. Increased floods, droughts, storms, heat and evolving insect resistance are changing how the world farms. Food security and agriculture are part of an ongoing dialogue at this year’s World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, where experts are identifying ways to replicate what works and tackle what doesn’t.
Green infrastructure: protect your oceanfront with a coral reef
Hurricane Matthew just swept across the Caribbean, leaving behind destruction and crumbled infrastructure. In Haiti, impassable roads and destroyed bridges between the capital Port-au-Prince and the areas most impacted by the hurricane pose the biggest challenge in reaching the affected population. The overall damage of the hurricane is estimated in the billions of dollars.
Local investors jumpstart capital markets and green energy matrix
Last night’s Latin Finance Deal of the Year Awards dinner in New York City highlighted some non-traditional deals. The Best Renewable Energy Financing Award went to Colonia Arias – a Uruguayan wind farm project with a unique structure to both tap local capital markets and mitigate the effects of climate change.
How Argentina can attract the private sector
This week I had the opportunity to participate in the Argentina Business and Investment Forum in Buenos Aires. The world has been watching as the country took center stage to start the conversation with the private sector and discuss ways to open its markets to the world.
Five Fintechs Disrupting MSME Finance
Big data is changing everything from the way we shop to how we travel. Financial technology companies (fintechs) are now following in the footsteps of giants like Amazon, Airbnb and Uber to transform the banking industry in the digital age. Fintech solutions have shown particular promise across emerging markets where big data is used in advanced credit analytics to help determine a borrower’s creditworthiness based on non-traditional indicators like cell phone usage and social media activity.
Can an entire city switch to LED lights?
Over the past few years, LEDs have become increasingly common, as they provide long-lasting performance for a fraction of the energy used by traditional lights. Think of the latest generation of LED TVs, modern car lights or even household light bulbs. Many LEDs today have an expected lifespan of over 20 years while using 80% less energy to produce the same amount of light. With savings like this, imagine switching over an entire city to LED lighting.
