Impact Cords: This Week's Moves (No. 10) March 15, 2025
As we approach mid-March, the sustainable finance landscape continues to evolve through a complex interplay of policy shifts, market pressures, and innovative solutions. This week brings several pivotal developments that illustrate both the challenges and remarkable resilience of impact investing in a polarized environment. From climate funding battles to healthcare system strain, here's what's hitting-a-cord in the impact world:
Public Health Crisis: Pandemic Lessons Lost?
The COVID-19 pandemic should have strengthened America's public health infrastructure. Instead, it's been dramatically weakened, according to a sobering analysis published in Jama JAMA Health Forum. The public health system faces unprecedented challenges with over 24 states passing laws limiting public health powers, Congressional Republicans calling for CDC funding cuts, and a pivot away from preventative measures under the Trump administration and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
"Imagine if we just had a major fire ripping through our city, and our first instinct once we finally put the flames out is to basically get rid of all of our fire departments," said Jennifer Nuzzo, director of the Brown University Pandemic Center. "That is essentially what we're seeing happen here." (Axios Vitals)
This dismantling extends to regulatory capability - Montana has barred employers from requiring vaccinations, while Ohio law prevents the state health department from issuing quarantines unless a person has been diagnosed with a disease. Stanford Law School professor Michelle Mello didn't mince words: "The idea that you would completely eliminate flexibility to use tools like that without knowing what you're up against is bananas."
The continued Texas measles outbreak (covered in last week's edition) underscores these concerns, with the crisis demonstrating how once-conquered diseases can resurge when public health infrastructure falters.
Climate Finance: The Fight for the Green Bank
The battle over America's green bank has reached a critical juncture, with Climate United filing suit against the Environmental Protection Agency and Citibank to unblock approximately $7 billion in Greenhouse Gas Reduction Funds that have been frozen due to Trump administration pressure.
The frozen accounts have stranded over $400 million in already-approved loans for projects like electric drayage trucks for ports in California and solar power installations across the University of Arkansas system. Beth Bafford, who leads Climate United, told ImpactAlpha: "This isn't about politics; it's about economics."
The GGRF, often described as a "distributed green bank," was designed to finance cost-saving infrastructure and improvements through a network of community lenders. The arrangement to deposit funds at Citibank was specifically structured to guard against impoundment of congressionally approved Inflation Reduction Act funding. If Climate United's suit succeeds, it would allow the coalition to continue funding projects that bring "cleaner air, cheaper transportation, lower energy bills and good jobs to every block, neighborhood and state."
Corporate Sustainability Reporting: A Tale of Two Approaches
The divergence between U.S. and European approaches to sustainability reporting continues to widen. While the SEC under Acting Chairman Mark Uyeda announced it's reconsidering climate disclosure rules (covered in our February 15th edition), the EU is facing increasing pressure to maintain robust standards.
A coalition of more than 160 investors representing €6.6 trillion ($6.9 trillion) in assets, including AXA Investment Managers and L&G Asset Management, has warned the European Commission against watering down the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, which they consider "fundamental cornerstones of the EU's sustainability policy architecture." This investor pushback comes as the EU considers scaling back the directive's scope from 50,000 companies to just 7,000 with over 1,000 employees.
Meanwhile, BlackRock has resumed its corporate engagement meetings with a more cautious approach, now prefacing each company meeting by "highlighting our role as a 'passive' investor." This repositioning demonstrates how major institutions are navigating the new regulatory environment rather than abandoning ESG engagement entirely.
Climate Adaptation Innovation: Emergency Response for Utilities
As climate-related disasters become more frequent and severe, infrastructure resilience innovation is gaining momentum. Kansas City-based Daupler secured $15 million in Series B financing to streamline emergency response for water and electric utilities facing increasing pressure from aging infrastructure and climate-driven disruptions.
"Utilities are under increasing pressure to do more with less, often lacking the staff and resources to efficiently respond to incidents like water-main breaks or power outages at any hour," said Daupler's John Bertrand. The company's AI-powered tools are already helping clients in 38 U.S. states, Canada, and New Zealand respond more effectively to climate-driven emergencies. (ImpactAlpha)
For Durham, North Carolina, which used Daupler's response management software during Hurricane Helene last September, the impact has been transformative. "Daupler has changed the way we do business," said Tim Segard of the city of Durham. "Response times are faster, customer service is better, and crews appreciate having quick access to the tools they need."
Innovation in Healthcare: Tackling Medical Workforce Shortages
The healthcare sector continues to demonstrate a remarkable capacity for innovation despite ongoing regulatory challenges. Last week's bone marrow transplant breakthrough for sickle cell disease has been complemented this week by new approaches to addressing critical healthcare workforce challenges.
The NIH is centralizing its peer review operations for grants and research contracts, a move aimed at removing bias from the grant awards process and making the agency more efficient. However, as many as 300 scientific review officer jobs at NIH institutes and centers could be eliminated, raising concerns about capacity at a time when research and innovation are desperately needed. (Axios Vitals)
This workforce pressure coincides with the continued fallout from the pandemic, with Axios reporting that "doctors are still burned out five years after COVID exposed systemic failures." The strain on the medical workforce is particularly concerning as hospital systems try to rebuild capacity for routine care while preparing for potential infectious disease threats.
A Bold $300M Bet on Sustainable Fashion
While sustainable fashion faces significant headwinds, Suzy Amis Cameron is making a $300 million wager that sustainability can still sell.
As The Business of Fashion reports, Amis Cameron has launched "Inside Out," seeded with $65 million of her own money and plans to raise three additional $100 million tranches. The venture aims to build a "planet positive" conglomerate at a time when many companies are retreating from climate commitments.
Early investments include Italian sustainability consultancy Wrad, a 25% stake in "carbon negative" knitwear brand Sheep Inc., and development of an eco-industrial park in New Zealand combining regenerative farming with manufacturing.
"It's business for the environment," says Amis Cameron, deliberately excluding skeptical investors from her cap table.
In an industry where consumers increasingly prioritize price over planet and sustainability-focused brands struggle to scale profitably, Inside Out represents a high-stakes test of whether environmental principles can translate to commercial success.
Critical Minerals: Resource Race Intensifies
The struggle for critical minerals essential to the clean energy transition continues to accelerate. Trump announced plans to "dramatically" boost U.S. production of rare earths and critical minerals, coinciding with an S&P Global report predicting that copper needed over the next 25 years will exceed all copper consumed in human history.
Despite tripled investments in discovery, only 16 new copper deposits have been found in the past decade, highlighting how resource constraints could bottleneck the energy transition. This challenge is further illustrated by TSMC's announcement of an additional $100 billion investment in U.S. chip production, building on its existing $65 billion Arizona commitment.
The rising importance of these supply chains is driving both political and market responses, demonstrating that regardless of policy shifts, resource security remains a critical economic and strategic priority for both private and public sector actors.
Looking Ahead
As we navigate through these complex developments, several key trends are emerging that deserve close attention:
Institutional Resilience vs. Political Pressure: Public institutions and regulatory frameworks are under pressure, but professional networks and market forces continue to drive sustainability progress.
Infrastructure Innovation Acceleration: From emergency response systems to climate-adapted agriculture, practical solutions are emerging to address real-world climate impacts.
Public Health Vulnerability: The continued erosion of public health infrastructure represents a concerning trend that could have far-reaching consequences beyond immediate health concerns.
Finance Innovation: Despite political headwinds, catalytic and blended finance structures like BlueOrchard's climate insurance fund with first-loss provisions demonstrate remarkable adaptability.
The sustainability journey continues to be defined not by simple linear progress, but by a complex interplay of setbacks and breakthroughs. The most encouraging sign remains the continued development of practical, commercially viable solutions that advance sustainability regardless of the surrounding political climate.
About the Cordes Foundation
The Cordes Foundation was founded in 2006 by Ron Cordes and Marty Cordes. Following the sale of Ron’s investment management business, the couple blended Ron’s experience in financial services with Marty’s work on issues that affect women and girls to create a family foundation focused on social entrepreneurship, impact investing and the economic advancement of women. In 2014, when they were joined by their daughter, Steph Stephenson, and son-in-law, Eric Stephenson, CAIA, CFP®, the Foundation expanded its strategic focus to include ethical fashion brands, sustainable supply chains and engaging millennials in impact investing. Its mission is to connect social entrepreneurs with the resources they need, convene events to strengthen the ecosystems of impact investing and social entrepreneurship and catalyze 100% of its balance sheet for impact.