From Heinrich Böll Stiftung - Objective: To develop and strategize on recommending possible gender indicators, as well as gender-responsive sector indicators, for climate-relevant funding contexts, such as the Performance Measurement Frameworks (PMF) for the GCF.

The workshop was structured around an introductory presentation on the status of GCF and specifically PMF operationalization, given by Anna Williams, a specialist consulting on monitoring and evaluation with the GCF Secretariat. This was followed by short descriptions of lessons learned and challenges experienced with respect to the integration of gender considerations in the Climate Investments Funds (CIFs), the climate instruments under the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the Adaptation Fund. Gender and sector experts discussed then in small groups possible improvements to the existing GCF PMFs, focusing on the indicators still to be decided. A concluding feedback session in the plenary then collected and discussed small group proposals and formulated some key recommendations. It is expected that these will provide useful suggestions for the finalization of the GCF PMFs, to be decided either at the upcoming 10th or 11th GCF Board meetings later this year.

From United Nations - Just as women and men have unequal access to rights, resources and opportunities, they relate to and interact with the natural environment in different ways, face differing vulnerabilities and impacts, and have unique adaptive capacity related to climate change, disasters and use of natural resources. The nexus between gender and environment has been of interest for decades, with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development providing renewed impetus to the discussion. The Agenda calls for a better and sustainable future for all, making it implicit development cannot progress without addressing inequality, discrimination and exclusion affecting women and men in all spheres, including in relation to the environment. However, the links between gender and environment are not well understood and gaps in data availability impede progress assessment. Regional level follow-up and review form an integral part of the overall accountability framework for the 2030 Agenda.

This paper provides an overview of recent initiatives to measure the gender-environment nexus, identifies priorities and takes stock of related data and capacity gaps in the Asia-Pacific region. The paper puts forward a proposal for a Gender-Environment Indicator Set in Asia and the Pacific, which includes indicators from the global Sustainable Development Goals framework and beyond, capturing issues of particular relevance for the gender-environment nexus in the region.

From Oxfam - This paper shares Oxfam GB’s experience of developing an approach to measuring women’s empowerment over the course of five years, for use in its series of Effectiveness Reviews. Oxfam’s aim is for this to be an easy and practical guide which shares experience and lessons learned in order to support other evaluators and practitioners who seek to pin down this ‘hard-to-measure’ concept. The hope is that the reader will make use of the measurement tools presented in this paper as guiding instruments that can be adapted to their needs.

From Financial Alliance for Women - A wide collection of how-to guides and case studies ranging from data analysis, market research, public policy, women’s market strategy, and more.

From i2i Insights - Pakistan's startup ecosystem has rapidly developed in the past few years. Although currently experiencing an economic slowdown, the ecosystem’s stakeholders continue to demonstrate resilience and a forward-thinking approach.  

From Equileap- This report measures gender equality in the global workplace and provides data and insight into the corporate sector. It ranks 4,000 public companies across the world across 19 criteria.

EMERGE (Evidence-based Measures of Empowerment for Research on Gender Equality) is a project focused on gender equality and empowerment measures to monitor and evaluate health programs and to track progress on UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5: To Achieve Gender Equality and Empower All Girls.

From International Women’s Development Agency (IWDA)- This is a factsheet created by IWDA on the value of care in the time of COVID-19. The COVID-19 crisis has demonstrated more than ever that care work, paid and unpaid, underpins economic and social life in all societies. It is critical to sustaining society’s wellbeing, supporting people to live meaningful and healthy lives.

From Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies- This guide was developed for organizations that seek to apply a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) lens to their internal data collection processes and assess and improve how they collect constituent information through tools such as alumni surveys and program evaluations.

From The GIIN- Drawing on quantitative and qualitative data from institutional asset owners along with qualitative data from asset managers and intermediaries, this research seeks to detail which strategies and mechanisms asset owners may need in place to align with asset managers to achieve impact across their portfolios. The research brief covers the nature of engagement with asset owners, challenges in pursuing impact alongside asset managers, and strategies to align impact incentives with external asset managers.

From The Center for Financial Planning- This report presents articles from academics and practitioners. These articles outline recommendations and lessons learned based on their research and experience with the goal of diversifying the financial planning profession. Each article addresses a different stage and component of the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) journey.

From International Journal of Finance and Economics - This article examines the relationship between gender diversity, selected female attributes, and financial performance of FTSE 100 firms in the UK. This study finds a positive and significant relationship between gender diversity and firm performance. However, the results become highly significant and unequivocal when three or more females are appointed to the board compared to the appointment of two or less females. Further analysis reveals that post-appointment financial performance is positively related to female age, level of education and where female board members also hold executive director positions.

From Fairview Capital- A market update and review of woman and minority-owned private equity and venture capital firms actively raising capital in 2020 based on data collected by Fairview Capital

From Fairview Capital- “In our latest report, we share Fairview’s data on the size, evolution, and current characteristics of the universe of woman and minority-owned private equity and venture capital firms (firms majority owned by women and/or ethnic minorities in the US). In 2021, we found that this set of diverse private equity and venture capital firms is larger and more dynamic than ever before.”

From Top 1000 Funds. Assessing, managing and changing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is set to become the data issue of the 2020s, as investors turn their attention to the power they have to advocate for change in the companies they invest in, and the firms that manage their money.

From the Bank of England. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and Bank of England are seeking views on regulatory plans to improve diversity and inclusion in financial services.

In a discussion paper, the Bank of England has set out policy options including, among others, the use of targets for representation, measures to make senior leaders directly accountable for diversity and inclusion in their firms, linking remuneration to diversity and inclusion metrics and the regulators’ approach to considering diversity and inclusion in non-financial misconduct. The discussion paper also focuses on the importance of data and disclosure in order to enable firms, regulators and other stakeholders to monitor progress.

From the Global Business Certification Standard for Gender Equality. EDGE is the leading global assessment methodology and business certification standard for gender equality. It measures where organizations stand in terms of gender balance across their pipeline, pay equity, effectiveness of policies and practices to ensure equitable career flows as well as inclusiveness of their culture. EDGE stands for Economic Dividends for Gender Equality and is distinguished by its rigor and focus on business impact.

The 2X Challenge serves as one instrument in the DFI toolkit to direct capital towards women’s development. The 2X Challenge calls the G7 and other DFIs to collectively commit and mobilize $15 billion that provide women in developing country markets with improved access to leadership opportunities, quality employment, finance, enterprise support and products and services that enhance economic participation and access.

DFIs can use the 2X Challenge to direct capital towards women, pre- or post-investment by:

• Encouraging investees to collect data on women employees and consumers

• Measuring the development impact of investing with and in women, over time

• Making a business case for investing with and in women

Fulfilling one of the five criteria makes an investment 2X eligible.

Equileap is an independent, specialized data provider with a broad scope of gender metrics. It enables investors to make better investment decisions with data on equality in the workplace. Equileap is assessing over 3,500 companies globally on 19 criteria including gender balance, the gender pay gap, paid parental leave and anti-sexual harassment policies. Equileap data is used for ESG integration, portfolio analysis, stewardship and managing reputational risks.

Several indices have also been designed with Solactive and Morningstar, to track companies leading in gender equality. These indices are used both as benchmarks and underlyings of financial products.

From the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN). IRIS+ is the generally accepted system for measuring, managing, and optimizing impact. All investors and companies create positive and negative effects on society and the environment. Impact investors seek to maximize the positive and minimize the negative by using the IRIS+ system to integrate social and environmental factors into investment decisions alongside risk and return.

Credible, comparable impact data are needed to inform impact investment decisions and drive greater impact results. IRIS+ solves for this by increasing data clarity and comparability, and it provides streamlined, practical, how-to guidance that impact investors need, all in one easy-to-navigate system. It is a free, publicly available resource that is managed by the GIIN – the global champion of impact investing.