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About this book
Venture philanthropy is giving that works. It's bold, structured, and built to solve real problems—not just fund them.
Venture philanthropy (VP) offers a different path. It combines the heart of philanthropy with the tools of business. It's not about making money—but it is about making change. Whether you're a foundation leader, a donor, a social entrepreneur, or someone who just wants to do good differently, this guide is for you.
In traditional philanthropy, you give a grant. The money is usually unrestricted. The organization thanks you, runs its program, and maybe sends you an annual report. It's well-intentioned—but sometimes it's hard to know if your donation really made a difference.
In venture capital, you invest in a startup. You check their business plan, negotiate terms, expect results, and if things go well, you get a return. The process is rigorous, data-driven, and aimed at success.
Venture philanthropy takes the best of both. You fund organizations or projects that are tackling big social problems—but instead of walking away, you stay engaged. You measure progress. You fund in stages. You offer advice, tools, and support. And if there's a financial return (like a loan repaid or an equity stake), you reinvest it in your next impact project.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Professor James A. LEVINE, MD PhD
Dr. Levine, President Fondation Ipsen, has three decades of experience in the healthcare sector principally at Mayo Clinic. For the last 6 years he has been President of Fondation Ipsen, an international science foundation focused on biotech innovation in Rare Diseases. A physician and scientist, James has published more than 200 articles, six papers in Science and Nature plus articles in journals such as, the New England Journal of Medicine, Lancet and JAMA. He has written four books published in 19 languages in 37 countries. His business training, focused on entrepreneurship, was from Harvard Business School. With a background in wearable technologies, data gathering and data analytics, and with more than 100 patents and trademarks, Levine helped found 35 companies. He was the Innovator of the Year in the state of Minnesota, the World Trade Fair and NASA. Under the Mayo Clinic NEAT Trademarks, Levine's team delivered scalable health solutions to 72 US corporations. A great deal of James' work focusses on biotech development, scalable health solutions and business opportunities in underserved regions in the United States, France and low/middle countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Afghanistan, Jamaica, Asia, Kenya and India. Consulting to the President of the United States, the US State Department, US Army and internationally, James in 2018 was awarded the President's Medal for promoting social embeddedness. 300 million people live with rare diseases without effective cures. Sustainable solutions require the efficient use of capital to optimize biotechnology companies, maximize impact and minimize suffering.
Venture philanthropy (VP) offers a different path. It combines the heart of philanthropy with the tools of business. It's not about making money—but it is about making change. Whether you're a foundation leader, a donor, a social entrepreneur, or someone who just wants to do good differently, this guide is for you.
In traditional philanthropy, you give a grant. The money is usually unrestricted. The organization thanks you, runs its program, and maybe sends you an annual report. It's well-intentioned—but sometimes it's hard to know if your donation really made a difference.
In venture capital, you invest in a startup. You check their business plan, negotiate terms, expect results, and if things go well, you get a return. The process is rigorous, data-driven, and aimed at success.
Venture philanthropy takes the best of both. You fund organizations or projects that are tackling big social problems—but instead of walking away, you stay engaged. You measure progress. You fund in stages. You offer advice, tools, and support. And if there's a financial return (like a loan repaid or an equity stake), you reinvest it in your next impact project.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Professor James A. LEVINE, MD PhD
Dr. Levine, President Fondation Ipsen, has three decades of experience in the healthcare sector principally at Mayo Clinic. For the last 6 years he has been President of Fondation Ipsen, an international science foundation focused on biotech innovation in Rare Diseases. A physician and scientist, James has published more than 200 articles, six papers in Science and Nature plus articles in journals such as, the New England Journal of Medicine, Lancet and JAMA. He has written four books published in 19 languages in 37 countries. His business training, focused on entrepreneurship, was from Harvard Business School. With a background in wearable technologies, data gathering and data analytics, and with more than 100 patents and trademarks, Levine helped found 35 companies. He was the Innovator of the Year in the state of Minnesota, the World Trade Fair and NASA. Under the Mayo Clinic NEAT Trademarks, Levine's team delivered scalable health solutions to 72 US corporations. A great deal of James' work focusses on biotech development, scalable health solutions and business opportunities in underserved regions in the United States, France and low/middle countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Afghanistan, Jamaica, Asia, Kenya and India. Consulting to the President of the United States, the US State Department, US Army and internationally, James in 2018 was awarded the President's Medal for promoting social embeddedness. 300 million people live with rare diseases without effective cures. Sustainable solutions require the efficient use of capital to optimize biotechnology companies, maximize impact and minimize suffering.
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Please note we cannot support devices running on iOS 13 and Android 7 or earlier. Learn more about using the app.
Yes, you can access From GIVING to IMPACT: Venture Philanthropy. by James A. Levine in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Business & Corporate Finance. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
Information
Table of contents
- Cover
- Title
- Contents
- What Is Venture Philanthropy? - Explains the concept clearly: where traditional charity meets business thinking.
- Why Use Venture Philanthropy? - Shows when VP is better than a grant or traditional investment—especially for tough social problems
- The VP Mindset - Describes the attitude: patient-focused, results-driven, risk-tolerant, and willing to fail smart.
- Building Your VP Toolkit - Introduces key tools: impact metrics, milestone funding, term sheets, and stakeholder alignment.
- Choosing What to Fund - Walks through how to assess a problem, define success, and pick investable social ventures.
- Working With Partners - Covers how to work with charities, startups, governments, and other funders for shared goals.
- Making the Investment - Practical steps: due diligence, contracts, risk sharing, governance, and measuring progress.
- Using the DACMAR Framework to De-risk Investments - Disruption, Adoption, Collaboration, Management, Adaptability, and Resource Optimization—six domains that determine whether a venture is built to succeed or likely to falter.
- What to Expect Along the Way - Addresses common roadblocks and how to navigate failure, pivoting, and staying mission-aligned.
- Exiting, Reinventing, and Reinvesting - Explains how VP projects wrap up, how returns (if any) are reused, and how to build long-term change.
- Start Your Own Venture Philanthropy Project - A step-by-step guide: from your kitchen table to making your first strategic investment.
- References
- Copyright