Builders Vision
Builders Vision
An Impact Platform Allocating Capital for Transformational Goals
Builders Vision (BV), founded by Lukas Walton, is moving beyond traditional distinctions in capital types to build a holistic and diverse toolkit in its pursuit of transformational environmental and societal goals. Builders Vision allocates capital through direct investment, philanthropic support, and fund investments - depending on the need in the market - toward shared overarching goals in energy, food and agriculture, and oceans. The evolution of the BV platform and the impact it is measuring, as shared in its 2023 impact report, make clear its approach to seed ideas and scale them beyond their direct investments. The Baumhart Center for Social Enterprise and Responsibility, along with expert judges in the fields of social and environmental impact, awarded Builders Vision the Parkinson Award for Purpose and Profit at the 2024 Leading for Good Conference.
Introduction
“The great challenges of our time cross sectors, and Builders Vision is building an approach to flexibly and tactically match that need,” said Matt Knott, President and COO of Builders Vision. Knott works with his team to drive innovation and scale in a rapidly changing and integrated world as they address overarching challenges in major sectors. Knott and his team are guided by the philosophy that their company’s capital needs to be aligned with their values and mission – and that market returns and environmental returns combine to create a long-term, inclusive and healthy future.
About Builders Vision
In 2014, Lukas Walton founded S2G Ventures, a multi-stage impact investment firm with deep expertise in food and climate. He launched his philanthropy Builders Initiative in 2017. In order to harness the power, influence and expertise of the investment and philanthropic sectors, Lukas combined these efforts and launched Builders Vision in 2021 with an ambitious vision of an impact platform that can deploy more capital to more solutions that range from “NGO to IPO” in order to move the climate transition forward faster.
Builders Vision continues to break new ground with the types of innovation and flexible capital deployment tools. It continues to build partnerships, funding collaboratives, and co-investor communities that drive targeted and collective action towards a common set of near- and longterm outcomes. This approach encourages multi-faceted and often systems-based strategies towards meaningful impact. According to its impact report released in 2023, Builders Vision “has already deployed more than $3B towards the three sectors and worked alongside nearly 450 partners to drive societal and environmental change. Together they have mitigated, sequestered or avoided over 4 million metric tons of CO2e, helped generate more than 42,000 jobs, and supported the development of more than 170 sustainable products, technologies, or solutions.”
Traditional Approaches to Collaborative Investments
People and organizations often work in silos to address social and environmental challenges and opportunities. This is particularly true in investing which is typically focused on one type of capital deployment. Accelerating change in spaces such as energy, food and agriculture, and oceans — where larger investments, community engagement or policy change would drive greater societal benefit — is often piecemeal and uncoordinated.
Cross-Sectoral Collaboration
The term collaboration is often overused in the investment space. Builders Vision, however, takes the idea farther than most through cross-sectoral collaboration. Solutions to problems require work across government, private sector, financial markets and philanthropy. This atypical approach requires key elements to thrive:
- Shared Visions and Goals Diverse Across Sectors
- Commitment to Equity and Inclusion
- Buy-In from Diverse Sectors
- Transparency
Aligning and Scaling Capital Across the Impact Spectrum
Builders Vision has an innovative and multifaceted approach to financing and structuring their investment portfolio that sustainably intersects profit and purpose. Their capital tools and investment vehicles provide flexibility to operate across the capital spectrum (see Exhibit 1).
Exhibit 1: Builders Vision Across the Capital Spectrum (Adapted from Deloitte)
Source: Builders Vision, “2023 Impact Report"
Exhibit 2: Builders Vision Across the Capital Spectrum
Source: Builders Vision, “2023 Impact Report”
The challenges and opportunities in energy, food and agriculture and oceans reach into the trillions of dollars, well beyond the capacity of any singular firm, no matter its scale. In order to catalyze more capital into these sectors, in May 2024 S2G Ventures launched as a separate company and became a registered investment advisor.
This change opened the doors for S2G to continue its growth trajectory and drive further positive outcomes. As its founder, Lukas continues to support S2G.
Conclusion
Builders Vision works to catalyze more capital into the climate transition through their funding model, investments, and a new pathway for outside capital with the climate-focused investment firm S2G. Through this innovative model, they continue to build new approaches to greater impact.
Questions for Discussion
- How does Builders Vision’s approach to impact investments differ from traditional approaches?
- What factors should be considered in a change like the transformation of S2G?
- How does Builders Vision align capital across the impact spectrum to achieve both profit and purpose?
- What elements of the IMM framework ensure that investments align with the organization’s mission?
Prepared by the Baumhart Center, Quinton R. Arthur, Caitlin Osei, and Karen Weigert. Special thanks to Matt Knott, President and COO, and Kathleen Strand, Head of Communications, Builders Vision.
Funding for the development of this case was provided by the Baumhart Center for Social Enterprise and Responsibility at the Quinlan School of Business, Loyola University Chicago.
BAUM003: This article is part of a collection of mini-cases.
Builders Vision (BV), founded by Lukas Walton, is moving beyond traditional distinctions in capital types to build a holistic and diverse toolkit in its pursuit of transformational environmental and societal goals. Builders Vision allocates capital through direct investment, philanthropic support, and fund investments - depending on the need in the market - toward shared overarching goals in energy, food and agriculture, and oceans. The evolution of the BV platform and the impact it is measuring, as shared in its 2023 impact report, make clear its approach to seed ideas and scale them beyond their direct investments. The Baumhart Center for Social Enterprise and Responsibility, along with expert judges in the fields of social and environmental impact, awarded Builders Vision the Parkinson Award for Purpose and Profit at the 2024 Leading for Good Conference.
Introduction
“The great challenges of our time cross sectors, and Builders Vision is building an approach to flexibly and tactically match that need,” said Matt Knott, President and COO of Builders Vision. Knott works with his team to drive innovation and scale in a rapidly changing and integrated world as they address overarching challenges in major sectors. Knott and his team are guided by the philosophy that their company’s capital needs to be aligned with their values and mission – and that market returns and environmental returns combine to create a long-term, inclusive and healthy future.
About Builders Vision
In 2014, Lukas Walton founded S2G Ventures, a multi-stage impact investment firm with deep expertise in food and climate. He launched his philanthropy Builders Initiative in 2017. In order to harness the power, influence and expertise of the investment and philanthropic sectors, Lukas combined these efforts and launched Builders Vision in 2021 with an ambitious vision of an impact platform that can deploy more capital to more solutions that range from “NGO to IPO” in order to move the climate transition forward faster.
Builders Vision continues to break new ground with the types of innovation and flexible capital deployment tools. It continues to build partnerships, funding collaboratives, and co-investor communities that drive targeted and collective action towards a common set of near- and longterm outcomes. This approach encourages multi-faceted and often systems-based strategies towards meaningful impact. According to its impact report released in 2023, Builders Vision “has already deployed more than $3B towards the three sectors and worked alongside nearly 450 partners to drive societal and environmental change. Together they have mitigated, sequestered or avoided over 4 million metric tons of CO2e, helped generate more than 42,000 jobs, and supported the development of more than 170 sustainable products, technologies, or solutions.”
Traditional Approaches to Collaborative Investments
People and organizations often work in silos to address social and environmental challenges and opportunities. This is particularly true in investing which is typically focused on one type of capital deployment. Accelerating change in spaces such as energy, food and agriculture, and oceans — where larger investments, community engagement or policy change would drive greater societal benefit — is often piecemeal and uncoordinated.
Cross-Sectoral Collaboration
The term collaboration is often overused in the investment space. Builders Vision, however, takes the idea farther than most through cross-sectoral collaboration. Solutions to problems require work across government, private sector, financial markets and philanthropy. This atypical approach requires key elements to thrive:
- Shared Visions and Goals Diverse Across Sectors
- Commitment to Equity and Inclusion
- Buy-In from Diverse Sectors
- Transparency
Aligning and Scaling Capital Across the Impact Spectrum
Builders Vision has an innovative and multifaceted approach to financing and structuring their investment portfolio that sustainably intersects profit and purpose. Their capital tools and investment vehicles provide flexibility to operate across the capital spectrum (see Exhibit 1).
These diverse investment and grantmaking approaches are then collectively assessed and tracked through their impact, measurement, and management (IMM) framework through screening, analysis, articulation, utilization, and aligned positioning (see Exhibit 2).
The challenges and opportunities in energy, food and agriculture and oceans reach into the trillions of dollars, well beyond the capacity of any singular firm, no matter its scale. In order to catalyze more capital into these sectors, in May 2024 S2G Ventures launched as a separate company and became a registered investment advisor.
This change opened the doors for S2G to continue its growth trajectory and drive further positive outcomes. As its founder, Lukas continues to support S2G.
Conclusion
Builders Vision works to catalyze more capital into the climate transition through their funding model, investments, and a new pathway for outside capital with the climate-focused investment firm S2G. Through this innovative model, they continue to build new approaches to greater impact.
Questions for Discussion
- How does Builders Vision’s approach to impact investments differ from traditional approaches?
- What factors should be considered in a change like the transformation of S2G?
- How does Builders Vision align capital across the impact spectrum to achieve both profit and purpose?
- What elements of the IMM framework ensure that investments align with the organization’s mission?
Prepared by the Baumhart Center, Quinton R. Arthur, Caitlin Osei, and Karen Weigert. Special thanks to Matt Knott, President and COO, and Kathleen Strand, Head of Communications, Builders Vision.
Funding for the development of this case was provided by the Baumhart Center for Social Enterprise and Responsibility at the Quinlan School of Business, Loyola University Chicago.
BAUM003: This article is part of a collection of mini-cases.