Central Okanagan Foundation invests in housing, seeks both return and positive impact

Foundation charts new path

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Five Interior community foundations closed the Propolis bond campaign.

Central Okanagan Foundation has made its first impact investment.

The foundation normally gives grants to organizations throughout the region, but it recently purchased $20,000 of Propolis Co-operative Housing Society bonds to close the latter’s $1.1 million bond campaign.

COF was one of five Thompson Okanagan community foundations that made $20,000 investments in the Kamloops-based society, including BC Interior Community Foundation, Shuswap Community Foundation, Community Foundation of North Okanagan and Community Foundation of South Okanagan Similkameen.

“This is a milestone for our foundation,” COF chief executive officer Kristine Bugayong said in a press release. “This is a small but meaningful step towards moving beyond traditional philanthropy. Impact investing allows us to increase and broaden our ability to do good while earning a return and ensuring we are being good stewards of people’s trust.”

Impact investing is a strategy that seeks to generate financial returns while creating a positive social or environmental impact. Propolis is a B.C.-based, non-profit housing co-operative that is building a 53-unit net-zero affordable housing project.

“We are humbled to see the ways that the community has rallied together to support our first community bond campaign,” Propolis executive director Lindsay Harris said. “It is so inspiring that the community foundations’ mission to make transformative social impact through local investment coincides with our goal to increase housing affordability.

“This impactful contribution moved us to the finish line for our bond campaign and demonstrates what is possible when we take action together.”