A new episode of SOCAP’s podcast, Money + Meaning, is now available!
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A Conversation with Julie Menter of New Media Ventures on Political Impact Investing and Democracy
“We are facing really deep systemic issues that are all interconnected. There is no single thing that unlocks it all.”
“You can deploy money at this intersection of innovation and politics and help really interesting and impactful things thrive and grow.”
–Julie Menter, Managing Director at New Media Ventures
At the intersection of democracy, impact investing, and progressive media, you will find New Media Ventures (NMV). This organization is a nonprofit seed fund and angel network that is working to create positive change across America by investing in entrepreneurs and activists that are “wrestling with the biggest challenges facing our democracy.”
NMV’s nonprofit fund invests in both nonprofits and for-profits that are addressing fundamental challenges to democracy and working to correct systemic power imbalances. They support organizations that are increasing voter turnout, telling stories and creating different forms of media that are shifting perspectives and culture, creating tech tools that are building and engaging communities, and more. Over the decade since they were first founded, NMV has funded and supported over 85 different startups, including Vote.Org, SumOfUs, Daily Kos, Upworthy, ActBlue Civics, and Blavity.
In our new episode of Money and Meaning, Lindsay Smalling has a conversation with Julie Menter about New Media Ventures. Menter talks about NMV’s growth, the ways they are structured to maximize impact, her own path to this work, questions she has asked herself along the way, and some of the answers. She also shares some of her favorite success stories, ways that you can get involved, whether you are a concerned citizen or an entrepreneur, and the things that are giving her hope for the future.
Featured Voices
Managing Director
New Media Ventures
Host
Additional Resources
- Startup Capital for the Impact Entrepreneur, a whitepaper produced by New Media Ventures
- SOCAP Conversations: Debra Cleaver of Vote.org on Marketing Democracy, Racial Equity, and Lessons from Alabama, an interview with the founder of a New Media Ventures investee on the impact of their efforts to increase voter turnout.
- Check out New Media Ventures’ 2019 Cohort!
About Money + Meaning
Money + Meaning is the official podcast of SOCAP. This series aims to expand the conversation around impact investing and strategies to finance and support social change while stimulating innovative and valuable new partnerships across sectors.
