Cover Dawn Chan, CEO of the Centre for Impact Investing and Practices, at the Philanthropy Asia Summit 2024
Dawn Chan, CEO of the Centre for Impact Investing and Practices, at the Philanthropy Asia Summit 2024
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The CEO of CIIP gives insights into how its programmes guide startups towards sustainability, scalable impact, and empowering the next generation of changemakers
What does a luxury dress have to do with solving the world’s sustainable development challenges? More than you might think. Last October, designer Mara Hoffman unveiled “The Dress that Changes Everything”. Crafted entirely from Circ Lyocell—a silk-like fabric made from 50 per cent recycled textile waste—the dress marked the debut of this innovative material in the luxury sector, showcasing the potential of impact-driven startups such as Circ, the US-based company behind the technology. However, many such ventures face a critical challenge: securing sufficient funding to navigate the “valley of death”—a funding gap between early-stage and growth capital that often stifles their growth.
The Amplifier programme, a collaboration between Temasek Trust’s ecosystem entities Centre for Impact Investing and Practices (CIIP) and Philanthropy Asia Alliance, is designed to bridge the chasm. “The success of the Amplifier is underpinned by partnerships,” says Dawn Chan, the chief executive officer of CIIP. Having started her career at Vertex Holdings, a venture capital fund, and spent nearly two decades at Temasek International, where she helmed the Consumer unit, Chan has a deep understanding of the investment landscape and a proven track record of identifying high‑potential opportunities.
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Since 2022, she has steered the strategic direction and growth of CIIP, while managing the investment portfolio for Temasek Trust Capital. CIIP aims to play a larger role in building a robust impact network. It works on a three-pronged approach: equipping impact investors and companies with knowledge and tools; fostering informed decision-making and facilitating collaboration among stakeholders from the impact ecosystem; and driving resources towards impact outcomes. A prime example of this commitment is the Amplifier programme, which exemplifies this commitment to fostering an ecosystem for change. By connecting ventures with industry experts, mentors and funding opportunities, it creates an environment where innovation and positive change can thrive.
The 12-month programme takes a “whole-of-ecosystem” approach, combining capacity building, mentorship and catalytic philanthropic capital to guide high-impact startups toward sustainability and scalable impact.
Central to this approach is the role of mentorship. As Chan explains, “mentors work closely with mentees to set and achieve goals in the Amplifier programme”. They offer strategic guidance on business plans, investor readiness and commercial strategy, and facilitate industry connections.
Above Chan is hopeful that Co-Axis can support impact startups
Chan is hopeful that Co-Axis can support impact startups
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Additionally, mentees gain access to a network of partners offering resources such as pro-bono advisory services, work facilities and technical expertise. “Each mentee will also receive catalytic capital of up to $250,000, with the support of our partner Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, to scale their businesses.”
The Amplifier programme’s inaugural cohort of five impact innovators was unveiled this April at the Philanthropy Asia Summit 2024. Chosen from a competitive pool of 139 submissions spanning 35 countries, the cohort includes Circ, along with ventures from Hong Kong, Indonesia, Philippines, and the US. Chan notes that the selection was a rigorous process “based on impact (mission and impact potential, materiality, and accountability), business (feasibility, viability, and execution ability), and alignment to the programme objectives”.
She adds, “By the end of the year-long programme, the Amplifier mentees should have refined their business models for further investment. To receive funding from the programme, mentees must also provide baseline impact metrics, which will be regularly monitored throughout and beyond the 12-month period, as meaningful impact may take longer to achieve.” Reflecting this focus on impact, the 2024 Amplifier theme was “Climate and Nature”. It highlighted the pressing challenges facing Asia and the potential for innovative solutions to catalyse change.
Next year’s theme is still under wraps. “We are actively developing the theme for Amplifier 2025 and look forward to enhancing future editions based on our learnings and feedback from a fruitful first run.”
Aside from the Amplifier programme, the first digital catalytic capital marketplace, Co-Axis, was also launched at the Philanthropy Asia Summit 2024. A strategic partnership between Temasek Trust, DBS Foundation and UBS Optimus Foundation, Co-Axis aims to address the funding shortfall in Asia’s impact investing landscape. The platform showcases over 70 curated high-impact opportunities from more than 40 countries, connecting funders such as family offices and philanthropists with early-stage businesses and social enterprises seeking capital.
“The impact investing landscape has transformed significantly over the past decade,” observes Chan, citing the Global Impact Investing Network’s estimate of a market exceeding US$1 trillion. “In Asia, the influx of impact dollars is rapidly increasing but remains disproportionately low.” She explains, “Unlocking more capital is crucial to bridging the trillion-dollar financing gap for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals [under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, a global development framework adopted by world leaders at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit in September 2015].”
To address this funding gap and maximise Asia’s impact potential, Co-Axis pursues two primary goals: by directing capital towards solutions for pressing environmental and social issues, and by building a collaborative community to share knowledge and best practices of impact-focused solutions and financing mechanisms. “We hope that Co-Axis can help to create a community of learning and support among stakeholders interested in impact,” says Chan.
Transparency is a cornerstone of Co-Axis. “All projects on the platform commit to impact measurement and management, and clearly state their business stage, goals, and funding needs,” Chan emphasises. “This empowers funders to make informed decisions aligned with their risk appetite.”
Co-Axis currently focuses on matching impact-focused businesses with philanthropic funds from diverse investors, expanding funding options beyond traditional venture capital. “Philanthropic capital, with its higher risk appetite and flexibility, plays a crucial catalytic role in getting early-stage solutions off the ground,” says Chan.
“We hope Co-Axis can support impact startups ... in their fight to bring their ideas to fruition and generate impact,” Chan concludes. “We also hope it will be a platform where global impact leaders come together to spark ideas and spur innovation for a better tomorrow.”
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Nafeesa Saini is the Features Editor at Tatler Singapore, where she shapes long-form stories on culture, business, philanthropy, wellness, and the people driving change in Asia. With a deep interest in storytelling that intersects meaningfully with identity and impact, she has profiled a diverse range of visionaries, from scientific pioneers in AI and health to creative trailblazers and literary minds.
Nafeesa’s writing includes cover stories and profiles that spotlight influential voices, alongside commentary on the trends reshaping our world.
Off the clock, Nafeesa unwinds with fiction, a good thrift hunt, and ‘brainrot’ TikTok scroll—while always keeping one eye on her next cultural getaway, usually to Indonesia.
