Stories of Impact

For decades the Navajo Nation powered the American Southwest. The coal under Black Mesa ran the Navajo Generating Station, 2.25 gigawatts that lit Phoenix, Las Vegas and Los Angeles, while thousands of Navajo families lived under the transmission lines with no electricity of their own. Brett Isaac grew up next to the Kayenta mine, in a family that worked in coal. As a kid he rode with his uncles to load trucks with coal for the winter, came home covered in black dust, and started wondering who was going to clean it up. In his twenties he started putting solar panels on off-grid homes in his father's community of Shonto. About 200 homes later he co-founded Navajo Power, a Native-owned developer building utility-scale solar and storage on tribal land, with the Nation sharing in the ownership. Its Painted Desert Power project is 750 megawatts on nearly 5,000 acres, one of the largest solar and battery projects in the Southwest, and the first commercial lease for a utility-scale project on the Navajo Nation. Its residential arm, Navajo Power Home, has put solar and batteries on more than 600 homes, with a goal of 3,000 by 2031. The first money behind it was not bank money. It was impact investors and foundations: Candide Group, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the Sierra Club Foundation, Halloran Philanthropies, the Schmidt Family Foundation, and sixteen CataCap donors who have put more than $360,000 into the Navajo Power fund. In this episode: • The elder in Shonto who had no light bulbs, so the first proof her house had power was the refrigerator light, after years of keeping food on dry ice • Why coal workers were the most skeptical customers for off-grid solar, and what changed their minds • Nicole Horseherder, the Navajo matriarch and activist who was the toughest skeptic of Painted Desert, and how she became a supporter • The Turquoise Share: how Navajo Power gives communities equity in the developer instead of handing them a power plant and its liabilities • What Brett got wrong early on, and why eight years of development on tribal land opens the door for every other tribe • What he would tell a friend with a donor-advised fund who has never made an impact investment Brett's line to remember: "Your light switch at some point is tied to one of our facilities." Mentioned: Navajo Power, Navajo Power Home, Painted Desert Power, Shonto, Kayenta and Black Mesa mines, Navajo Generating Station, Nicole Horseherder, Turquoise Share, Mission Delta fund, Candide Group, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Sierra Club Foundation, Halloran Philanthropies, Schmidt Family Foundation, CataCap. You can invest alongside the sixteen donors already in the Navajo Power fund, starting at $250, at https://catacap.org/investments/navajo . If this conversation inspired you, share it with a friend who gives, and follow Catalytic Capital so you don't miss the next one.

The People Planet Purpose Fund (PPP Fund), a new multi-donor fund for impact investment created by the Investors Circle angel investing network and hosted on the CataCap platform (www.catacap.org), has made its first investment of $25,000 in it’s electric (itselectric.us), a Brooklyn-born company, co-founded by Tiya Gordon and Nathan King, that builds curbside electric vehicle (EV) charging for cities. it’s electric was recently selected by the City of New York to build out the city’s permanent curbside EV charging network across all five boroughs. The company will replace the city’s pilot chargers and install hundreds of new curbside chargers over the next three years. The chargers, designed by it’s electric, will be manufactured at Boyce Technologies in Queens, so the network will be made entirely in New York.

Each donor gets one vote, whatever the size of the gift

It may come as a surprise that impact investing has grown, not retreated, in the past two years. In its biannual state of the market report, the Global Impact Investing Network estimated today’s impact investments under management at $1.76 trillion – a $200 billion gain since 2024. That’s despite geopolitical headwinds, largely in the US, and market uncertainty that has made fundraising and exits a slog for many impact allocators and fund managers.

Tracey Turner has spent three decades proving that the best answer to poverty is often a business. She started at Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, founded MicroPlace, one of the first online platforms that let everyday Americans invest in microfinance (later acquired by eBay), and founded Copia, which turned 52,000 small shopkeepers across Kenya into e-commerce entrepreneurs and hubs for their communities simultaneously increasing their financial earnings 2-3x. Today she is early to an exciting new way to use philanthropy. She has CataCap invest a meaningful share of her giving in early-stage companies in East Africa, in the cause she cares about most: lifting people out of poverty. When those investments return capital, it returns to the charitable assets held by CataCap and is credited to her charitable account to recommend again, multiplying the impact of every dollar she gives. This conversation is a field guide for anyone with a donor-advised fund, a foundation or an annual giving budget who wants their money to do more. Tracey takes us to a roadside shop in rural Kenya where a woman named Teresia doubled her income and sent her kids to school, and to a hillside near Mombasa where six women farmers may become the country's first coastal cocoa growers. She explains what she looks for in a founder, why she goes to see every business in person, and why the fact that less than 1% of global venture capital reaches Africa is the opportunity, not the obstacle. In this episode: • Why Tracey thinks of her philanthropy as capital, and how the returns get recycled into the next investment • The criteria she uses to back an entrepreneur • What she learns on the ground that never shows up in a pitch deck • How a DAF can fund for-profit social enterprises, and what to check in the fine print If you give generously and have ever wondered whether your philanthropy could work harder, this is the episode to start with. Companies mentioned: 10X Nutrition, Nuru Solutions, Copia, MicroPlace. Learn more and see current investment opportunities at catacap.org. If this conversation inspired you, share it with a friend who gives, and follow Catalytic Capital so you don't miss the next one.

What happens when technology helps human creativity thrive instead of replacing it? In this episode of Catalytic Capital, host Ken Kurtzig speaks with Roberto Milk, co-founder and CEO of NOVICA and Handmade.com, about his 25-year journey building a global marketplace that connects artisans directly with customers. Roberto shares how an unexpected conversation in a Stanford Portuguese class inspired NOVICA, how the company pioneered online artisan commerce before Etsy existed, and how it has delivered more than $144 million to artisans worldwide. He and Ken also explore NOVICA’s impact on women, families and local economies; the importance of preserving cultural traditions; and how Handmade.com plans to use AI to help millions of artisans reach global customers while protecting the authenticity of human-made products. NOVICA has already raised more than $100,000 from 15 donor-investors through CataCap. Learn more about NOVICA, its impact and the opportunity to support its next chapter: https://catacap.org/investments/novica Follow Catalytic Capital for more conversations with entrepreneurs using business and investment capital to address some of the world’s most pressing social and environmental challenges.

A donor-advised fund DAF) is a philanthropic account through which you can contribute your capital, receive a tax benefit, and grant and invest the pool for impact. Read this excellent deck to learn more about impact investing. CataCap thanks DAF Commons for use of their materials.

What if seaweed could help replace petroleum-based plastics, restore ocean ecosystems, and transform everyday consumer products? In this episode of Catalytic Capital, host Ken Kurtzig speaks with Katie Weiler, founder and CEO of Viable Gear, and Justin MacNaughton, co-founder of 4Kelp Skincare. Katie shares how Viable Gear is turning seaweed into SeaTwine—a marine-degradable, compostable alternative to plastic twine used in agriculture and aquaculture. Justin explains how 4Kelp is developing clean, kelp-powered skincare in plastic-free, home-compostable packaging while supporting kelp restoration and ocean advocacy. They discuss the science behind seaweed-based materials, the challenge of competing with inexpensive conventional products, the journey from an ambitious idea to a market-ready product, and why patient, mission-aligned capital is essential for building a more regenerative economy. Learn more and invest through CataCap: Viable Gear: https://catacap.org/investments/ViableGear 4Kelp Skincare: https://catacap.org/investments/4kelpskincare

Impact Entrepreneur publishes CataCap's ocean campaign press release

Hosted by Tim Freundlich, the webinar will feature Laura Francis, Matthew Stotts, Brandon Chen, and Mick Liubinskas as they discuss the investment opportunities driving innovation across the Blue Economy.

CataCap has launched a first-of-its-kind initiative that gives donor-investors an opportunity to participate in philanthropic impact investments focused on a sustainable ocean.

How donor-advised funds are becoming catalytic capital platforms, an article by Jordana S. Grunfeld published June 1, 2026 in https://impactentrepreneur.com/

In this recorded webinar, Lily Kanter and Beth Stelluto discuss the vision behind Empower Her and the launch of Empower Her Fund II — a philanthropic investment initiative supporting high-potential, women-led ventures. The conversation explores why Empower Her was created, the momentum and successes from Fund I, and how donor-investors are helping expand access to capital for women founders building innovative, mission-driven companies. In this session, you’ll hear: • The story and mission behind Empower Her • Highlights and lessons from the current portfolio of women-led ventures • Results from Fund I, including over $650K raised and deployed into multiple investments • The launch of Empower Her Fund II and opportunities for participation • How donor-advised funds (DAFs), foundations, and philanthropic giving can be activated for impact investing Lily and Beth also discuss the broader opportunity to unlock philanthropic capital for innovation and impact — and why supporting women-led businesses represents both a financial and societal opportunity. Whether you’re an investor, donor, entrepreneur, or simply passionate about advancing women-led innovation, this webinar provides insight into how values-aligned capital can help shape a more inclusive future.

CataCap is a technology platform that enables foundations, donor-advised funds (DAFs), family offices, and others to channel a portion of their capital into high-impact, mission-aligned investments in climate, health, and equity, alongside financial returns.

Park Rangers Capital quietly closed their first fund earlier this year: a $4.3M debut fund backed by 130 LPs. Park Rangers Capital believes capital, content, and conviction compound together. Distribution is the moat, and they're building their own every day. Park Rangers Capital completed an investment on CataCap, successfully raising $28,900.00.

There's a paradox at the heart of modern philanthropy: a gap between mission and intent. Each year, billions of dollars flow into charitable vehicles such as foundations, trusts, and donor-advised funds (DAFs). Yet an estimated 95% of that money is parked in traditional public markets — stocks, mutual funds, and bonds — often invested in companies whose activities directly contradict the donor's stated mission or values.

Billions of dollars intended for good are stuck in limbo, rather than flowing toward mission-driven investing. Donor-advised funds (DAFs)—charitable vehicles where donors receive an immediate tax deduction but can decide later where the money goes—hold more than $250 billion in assets. Yet most of this capital sits in traditional stock and bond portfolios rather than supporting entrepreneurs.

Sea Forward is proud to announce a new opportunity for individuals to 'donate to invest' in ocean health, made possible through a launch on CataCap, a first-of-its-kind platform democratizing access to impact investing with philanthropic assets. Individuals can now contribute as little as $250 to support ocean health in high-impact areas with the potential to see returns to reinvest or grant out again.

What if our capital actually reflected the future we want? For decades, capital in the social sector has been trapped in a binary: grants on one end, venture capital on the other. But that split has left too many visionary founders stranded in between – too early for VC, too catalytic for traditional philanthropy. The solution may lie in a quietly growing model: philanthropic impact investing.

Join Investors Circle and CataCap, with Charlie Crystle of Cooler, the climate tech startup helping businesses take real, scalable action against global warming. Explore how Cooler's API enables businesses to embed climate action into everyday operations, why philanthropic investors are rallying behind Cooler's mission, and what it means to be 'Cooler Certified'.

As the world changes, so do the priorities of modern investors. Today's most visionary investors are looking beyond just financial returns—they're investing in purpose, people, and planetary impact. Explore what 'return' really means in 2025, how to identify companies that do good and perform well, and the role of values, mission, and brand in investment decisions.

Join us for an inspiring conversation with the founders of Navajo Power, a trailblazing clean energy company led by Native visionaries and committed to a just, inclusive transition. Explore how Navajo Power's model redefines ownership and justice in energy, why now is the moment to back Indigenous-led infrastructure, and the catalytic role of philanthropic capital in unlocking long-term self-determination.

Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs) are often seen as passive vehicles – but what if they became engines for real change? Join us for an energizing conversation with investors Diane Keefe and Babbie Jacobs, as we explore how DAFs can be activated to fuel bold, catalytic impact. We'll unpack emerging strategies for deploying DAF capital and stories from those challenging the status quo.

What exactly is philanthropic investing – and why are so many change-makers saying it's time for a new model? Join us for a LinkedIn Live conversation with two pioneers in purpose-driven capital, Babbie Jacobs & Annarie Lyles. We'll explore their personal journeys from philanthropy to investment, why the old models aren't enough, and how the Impact Showcase is spotlighting what comes next.

Sea Forward supports innovative and effective solutions in the ocean space with a focus on sustainable aquaculture, science-based monitoring tools, biodiversity, climate and regenerative nature-based solutions. This press release covers their collaboration with CataCap to support Global Fund for Coral Reefs and the broader Sea Forward portfolio.

What happens when visionary women lead with bold ideas and unapologetic purpose? Real change. In this empowering conversation, Dr. Sophia Yen, CEO of Pandia Health, and Brook Dougherty, Founder of JustUs Skincare, share personal stories, hard-won lessons, and actionable insights about what it really takes to close health equity gaps – and how catalytic capital and community can accelerate women-led innovation.

Play Money makes angel investing 'deliciously easy for everyone,' and is built on over a decade of data and math on how to optimize for angel returns. This video conversation includes Cheryl Kellond, Founder at Play Money and Ken Kurtzig, Founder at CataCap discussing why charitable dollars for startup investing and how it works.

In this episode of Catalytic Capital, host Ken Kurtzig dives into the transformative world of Pandia Health, a company revolutionizing women's healthcare by making birth control, reproductive care, and menopause treatment more accessible, affordable, and stigma free. Today, Pandia is the highest-rated women's online hormonal health clinic with 4.9/5 stars from >3K women.

Carbon Counts is a trailblazer in the 'Play-to-Plant' gaming sector, leveraging mobile gaming to inspire and empower players to combat climate change. Their flagship game, EverForest, transforms reforestation into an engaging gaming experience, allowing users to actively participate in global tree-planting efforts with every level they complete.

In this episode of Catalytic Capital, host Ken Kurtzig dives into the transformative world of women-led ventures with Lily Kanter and Beth Stelluto, co-founders of the groundbreaking Empower Her initiative on the CataCap platform. Together, they explore the unique challenges women face in raising capital and the game-changing mission of Empower Her.

QBE North America has launched a first-of-its-kind initiative in the US that gives employees a vehicle to participate in philanthropic impact investments made through the CataCap platform.