LINK is a practitioner-led fund that ends extreme poverty and mitigates the effects of climate change.

The LINK Fund bridges the gap between the financial and philanthropic worlds, providing an optimal solution both to funding and implementing integrated development programs. The Fund addresses basic human needs - food and nutrition security, education, women’s economic empowerment and large-scale infrastructure. We provide tools, training, talent and, when needed, funding to meet the basic needs of the world’s poorest population and help them lift themselves out of extreme poverty in a climate smart way.

Our Vision:

The social economy - realized. All individuals, families and communities have the tools to thrive, where they are, wherever they are.

Our Mission:

The mission of the LINK Fund is to enable nations to end their dependence on aid and become economically independent.

Where We Focus:

Our Model:

The LINK Fund melds traditional financing from global financial institutions with an overlay of philanthropic donations and credit guarantees to provide a financial solution for key projects including infrastructure in developing nations. we bring best-in-classproject financing. At the same time, we attract philanthropy to offset the cost of finance, and secure goods and products and services-in-kind. The result: a savings of 1/3 to ½ typical program costs, that result in financially sustainable interventions.  Then the real work begins.  We co-create, field test, and systematically scale solutions whichensure life-changing impact.  

Resources alone without solid business models, accountability and rigorous measurement, however, are an insufficient solution. We activate partnerships with local social entrepreneurs to leverage decades of experience in implementation, promote local ownership based on community demand, and measure both the social and economic impacts of our projects. Taking this holistic approach ensures sources and uses are unified around common goals while meeting all stakeholders’ expectations. It also results in lower overall project costs, bringing them within reach of economic viability.

• Invest: We work with direct funding, equity shares, and traditional development practices. We acquire partial ownership of for-profit companies that serve the lowest income populations, whether through debt, equity investments, or technical assistance, distributing profits to Link-held company employees and, where possible, to the customer.

• Incubate: We create new social enterprises to fill critical gaps. We run a lab for social enterprise to receive mentorship, test, fail and pivot. Change at this level is incremental, and we allow time and space for this while operating efficiently and frugally.    

• Accelerate: We provide acceleration grant funding to high-performing social enterprises to help achieve the SDGs.

• Shift the Ecosystem: We work to create an enabling environment for social enterprise, working with traditional business, policy, and media. We establish benchmarks for high-performance to enable better investment decisions

Unique to this part of The LINK Fund is to multiply social business models adapted for context and culture to promote sustainable livelihoods and keep ownership and wealth creation in- country.