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Impact Principles Supporter Pilot Initiative

A global pilot initiative helping asset owners and allocators advance impact integrity, rigor and market-wide best practices

The Need for LP leadership in Impact Management

 

Asset owners, allocators and investment advisors – collectively “asset allocators” or “Limited Partners/LPs” – wield powerful levers of influence in capital markets. As stewards of capital, they are uniquely positioned to help shape the future of impact investing. Their consistent support for disciplined, transparent, and scalable impact management practices can strengthen the integrity of the entire ecosystem and the effectiveness of the impact investing market in driving outcomes.

 

At the same time, the success of their portfolio-level impact depends critically on the quality and integrity of asset managers’ impact practices and performance. For these reasons, Impact Principles has launched the Supporter Pilot Initiative, a new global pilot initiative dedicated to helping asset allocators advance impact integrity, rigor and market-wide best practices.

 

 

 

Who is a Supporter?

 

Impact Principles Supporters are asset allocators who actively use and support the Impact Principles to enhance how impact is managed across their investment portfolios and in the broader ecosystem. By using and supporting the Impact Principles in their engagement with asset managers (or “General Partners/GPs”), Impact Principles Supporters can:

 

  • Ensure consistent, disciplined impact management practices across their portfolio holdings,
  • Incentivize the adoption of best practices in impact management to drive outcomes,
  • Champion the Impact Principles as an important voluntary standard, and
  • Promote impact integrity, transparency, and credibility, ultimately advancing market-wide impact practices and driving greater outcomes at scale.

 

The Impact Principles Supporter Pilot Initiative is engaging these leading asset allocators to share their experiences engaging with managers related to impact management practices for peer learning, provide input to enhance the Impact Principles’ value for asset allocators, and contribute to the development of targeted resources and related thought leadership, including a practical guidance publication with case studies and examples.

 

 

 

Purpose of the Pilot Initiative

 

The Pilot Initiative is designed around two interconnected deliverables:

 

  • A peer network of asset allocators with a shared interest in advancing best practices in impact measurement and management aligned with the Impact Principles, and
  • Practical guidance and examples of how asset allocators can engage with managers and the broader ecosystem to enhance impact discipline, credibility, and ultimately outcomes.

 

Together, these deliverables are aimed at bringing:

 

  1. Greater LP leadership and confidence in IMM when engaging managers, leveraging the Impact Principles,
  2. Enhanced asset manager discipline and credibility in IMM practices, incentivized by coherent LP expectations in the market, and
  3. Increased investor confidence in impact investing more broadly, enabling growth in capital mobilization and greater impact outcomes.

 

The Pilot is building the knowledge, practical tools, and peer community to advance LP leadership in impact management in the market.

 

 

 

Participants 

 

The Supporter Pilot currently includes 34 asset allocator participants across six subgroups, reflecting the diversity of LPs working to advance impact in the market:

 

  • Institutional Asset Owners (pensions, insurance companies, sovereign wealth funds)
  • Development Finance Institutions and Multilateral Development Banks (DFIs & MDBs)
  • Foundations
  • Family Offices
  • Funds of Funds
  • Investment Advisors

 

This diverse group of impact leaders contributes to the Pilot through surveys, roundtable discussions, interviews, and input into thought leadership.

 

 

 

Timeline 

 

The Pilot is running from January through December 2026.   

 

Completed 

  • Survey, Kickoff and Roundtable 1: Discussion of challenges and current practices in engaging with fund managers (~January 2026) 
  • Phase 1 Interviews (February – March 2026) 
  • Roundtable 2: Discussion of LP leadership levers (April-May 2026)  

 

In Progress / Upcoming 

  • Phase 2 Interviews (June-July 2026) 
  • Roundtable 3 (July-August 2026) 
  • Review and feedback on practical resource draft (July-September 2026) 
  • Roundtable 4 (October-December 2026)  
  • Publication and dissemination of practical resource (October-December 2026) 

 

 

 

Get Involved 

 

The Pilot’s findings will be shared progressively with the Signatory community and the broader field starting in the second half of 2026. 

 

Signatories are invited to join Signatory Open Forums (upcoming session in July), where we will share early findings and gather input that will inform the final guidance.  

 

Asset owners, allocators, and investment advisors interested in joining the peer network or learning more about the Pilot are welcome to get in touch.  

 

Ecosystem partners who are interested in hosting roundtable discussions on the topic of LP challenges, opportunities and leadership in impact management – including discussing early findings from the Supporter Pilot Initiative – are welcome to get in touch.   

 

For all inquiries, please contact us at [email protected].