Impact Investing
Putting Philanthropic Capital to Work
We offer a range of choices for creating change: from traditional investments and grantmaking to values-aligned investment pools and innovative impact lending programs.
Impact Lending
The Federation is working with leading partners in the US and Israel to support underserved communities by making loans of pooled capital from donor-advised funds and supporting foundations. Unlike grants, capital that is loaned from donor-advised funds is expected to be returned at the end of the loan term and can then be re-deployed for other charitable purposes. Recycling philanthropic capital is a great way to amplify our impact.
Our Impact Lending program supports small business relief, affordable housing, economic equity, and other pressing environmental and social issues. Our portfolio includes direct investments in the Bay Area’s Jewish community.
With a Federation donor-advised fund or supporting foundation, you have access to innovative philanthropic programs that leverage our collective community strength to create immediate and lasting change.
Ready to get started?
Investment Options
Align Your Investing with Jewish Values to Create Positive Change
We offer three categories of investment options for your donor-advised fund:
Core Pools: These values-aligned, actively managed investment portfolios are made up of stocks that score well on Environmental, Social, and Governance factors (ESG). We offer both Moderate-Term and Long-Term portfolios that invest in companies that are strong in areas such as renewable energy/climate change, affordable housing, equitable employment practices, and management stability.
JLens Jewish Advocacy Strategy: This values-aligned, actively managed strategy is for investors who want to fully embrace Jewish values-based investing. Starting with the 500 largest US public companies, JLens excludes companies not deemed to align with Jewish values. JLens also advocates to positively influence corporate behavior in areas of concern to the Jewish community, such as best practices for religious coexistence, BDS, lack of accommodation for religious minorities, and other social and environmental concerns viewed uniquely from a Jewish lens.
The highest impact an investor can achieve with large public corporations is to own and advocate to move the needle on corporate behavior, an approach that aligns with the Jewish value of constructive rebuke (hocheach tocheah). For example, in 2020 JLens presented a shareholder resolution to Amazon calling on the corporation to address food waste – an issue deeply in alignment with Jewish values, involving both environmental pollution and hunger.
Learn more about JLens »
Passive Pools: These pools use only index funds for investments, seeking to follow and replicate the broad universe of the global stock market and the U.S. bond market. There is no use of responsible investment strategies (“ESG” – Environmental, Social, Governance) as there is in the Core Pools.
Learn more about the investment options for donor-advised funds »
Compare our values-aligned, actively managed investment options:
| Core Pools | JLens Jewish Advocacy Strategy | |
| ESG Approach: | Portfolio managers deliberately select and invest in companies scoring higher on environmental, social, and governance factors (“ESG”) | Strategy excludes companies not deemed to align with Jewish values |
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| Industries and Companies excluded from investment portfolio: |
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Reports
2023 Impact Investing Report
The 2023 Impact Investing Report charts the growth of our Impact Lending program in its second year. Over $40 million now at work with 18 community-based lenders using our loans to address critical social issues in the U.S. and Israel.|
2022 Annual ESG Investment Report by Mercer
Overview of Long- and Moderate-Term ESG investment pool strategy, performance, and composition
Hebrew Free Loan Pooled Impact Loan - August 2021 Report
Update on loan totals, types of loans made, repayments, and impact through loan recipient stories
Tanya Shadoan
Chief Operating Officer
TanyaS@sfjcf.org
“I am passionate about creating new opportunities to mobilize and leverage philanthropic capital at scale. Streamlining systems to make deploying philanthropic capital easier and finding new ways to engage philanthropists are exciting challenges.”
About Tanya:
- More than 2 decades of experience in global financial services, marketing, operations, and corporate innovation
- Volunteer mentor, recruiter, and advisor to SHE-CAN, a nonprofit that builds female leadership in post-conflict countries through education and mentorship
- B.A. from Wellesley College; M.B.A. from UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business
Andrew Schneiderman
Director, Impact Investing
AndrewS@sfjcf.org
"Bringing new tools to our donors’ philanthropic toolkit motivates me every day. My entrepreneurial journey inspires me to create pathways to provide fair and affordable credit to underbanked communities locally and nationally.”
About Andrew:
- Over 10 years of experience in investment management, business development, and public-private partnerships
- Board Treasurer for Kristin Damrow & Company, a Bay Area modern dance company
- B.A. from Washington University in St. Louis; M.B.A from University of Southern California
