Are You Ready to Change the World?

People are searching for better uses of their charity. After nine years, I feel most strongly than ever that patient capital is a powerful way to build sustainable enterprises that can bring critical services like clean water, health care, housing and energy to low-income people in ways that they can afford and value. Better, investing patient capital (high-risk, long-term investments that can take 10-12 years in order to give entrepreneurs time to experiment and build systems for under served markets) enables enterprises to grow (to reach millions) and sustain themselves for years and years to break the trap of always needing more donor money.

In the past nine years, we've invested $50 million in about 50 companies. This year alone, those companies will bring services to more than 40 million people. Now we're talking....

People often ask us how patient capital works. Our newest video explains in just a few minutes. It highlights one of our recent energy investments in India, Husk Power, which uses discarded rice husks to provide electricity to rural villages in the state of Bihar.

I hope you'll take a moment to watch and pass on to friends -- there is much more to do in changing the way the world fights poverty.