This article in Financial Planning magazine takes note of the growing interest among high-net-worth individuals in impact investments that support social and environmental businesses. This interest offers a niche for financial planners and wealth advisors.

From original article:

"The latest catchphrase in the socially responsible investing community is "impact investing," intended to appeal to institutional and high-net-worth investors focused on private equity or nonprofit projects rather than public stock. While much socially responsible investing tries to change or reward the practices of publicly traded corporations, impact investing affects society on a neighborhood or micro-level by helping families, strengthening small businesses or building housing, says Justin Conway, a relationship manager at the Calvert Foundation in Bethesda Md. Calvert's Community Investment Notes, which launched in 1995, lends to a portfolio of 257 nonprofits involved in affordable housing, micro-finance and community development.

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"Impact investing is presenting an opportunity for financial planners who become savvy about potential investments, know how to arrange and pursue deals, and do the due diligence. High-net-worth families and asset managers are exhibiting a growing impatience with the old ways money was used to solve deeply entrenched problems, says Antony Bugg-Levine, managing director of the Rockefeller Foundation and co-author of Impact Investing: Transforming How We Make Money While Making a Difference."

Link to original article