The REAL: Racial Equity Assessment Framework
Applying a racial equity lens to the investment process
While there are a variety of tools and frameworks focused on operationalizing racial equity across a range of sectors and types of organizations, there are few resources available for aligning racial equity in the capital chain. To this end, The REAL has designed a set of resources and a unique framework, The REAL: Racial Equity Assessment Framework, to support transformational change in investment decision-making.
This systems-level approach engages decision-makers in a set of activities that address institutional policies, practices, and cultural norms/representations through a DEI lens.
- Stakeholder Survey to assess baseline measurements of stakeholder knowledge, skills, and competencies essential to advance racial equity in investment practice
- Learning Agenda + Workshop Series to develop shared understanding of terms, concepts, and racial history creating structural barriers in access to capital; models and vehicles for racial justice investing; and deep-dive sessions on features of The REAL: Racial Equity Framework Assessment
- The REAL: Racial Equity Assessment Framework to evaluate organizational and investment process under nine features and across a four-stage continuum from color-blind to equity-focused to set a baseline for activities and guide planning and implementation to advance racial equity in investment decision-making.
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Is your organization stalled on its journey to advancing equity? Is the investment process a challenging domain to address through a racial equity lens? Not sure how to operationalize equity?
There are all common challenges as institutions seek to align their capital with their values. The REAL was established to address racial equity in impact investing and has created a set of tools specifically to assess organizational activities and workforce competencies and skills necessary for change; identify the policies and practices in the investment process that are barriers to racial equity; and map strengths and opportunities for shifting toward equity.