Collection: The Impact Papers
Social enterprise and impact investing events in 2025
Ready to network, learn and get inspired? Don't book your diary without the Pioneers Post roundup of social impact events coming soon – for social entrepreneurs, impact investors and all those working within the global impact economy.
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21 May
SEWF Policy Forum
What: A gathering where social enterprise leaders, policymakers, agencies and intermediaries will share best practices in social enterprise policy development.
Who: Policymakers, social enterprise leaders, NGOs, civil society, business leaders and academics.
Where: Online.
Tickets: Free registration.
21-22 May
Upstream Festival 2025
What: A community-driven festival where innovation meets community, offering a blend of inspiration, collaboration and forward-thinking. The event focuses on providing startups with the resources they need for growth, including access to capital, markets and talent. Organised by Up!Rotterdam.
Who: Founders, investors, corporate changemakers and other stakeholders in the startup ecosystem.
Where: Rotterdam, Netherlands, in person.
Tickets: Tickets from €71.25 for startups, available here.
22 May 2025
Social Business Conference
What: Organised by Social Business Earth, a social enterprise dedicated to supporting impact-driven startups, the event aims to connect early-stage impact startups with potential investors and other stakeholders to achieve the SDGs. Expect panel discussions, Q&As, networking and pitching sessions. The event will also include the Sapiens Natura Prize awards ceremony, which celebrates the most promising impact startups.
Who: Impact entrepreneurs, investors and other stakeholders in the impact sector.
Where: Lugano, Switzerland
Tickets: General admission is CHF40 – book your tickets here.
2-5 June
Philea Forum
What: An annual gathering organised by Philanthropy Europe Association (Philea), bringing together philanthropy professionals to explore the theme ‘Power and Equality: A Balancing Act’.
Who: Philanthropy professionals, foundation representatives and stakeholders in the European philanthropic sector.
Where: Lisbon, Portugal, hosted by Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian.
Tickets: Details and registration information will be available on the official Philea Forum page.
3-4 June
Annual Conference on Legal Issues in Social Entrepreneurship and Impact Investing
What: Legal-focused conference addressing issues in social entrepreneurship, hosted by New York University’s Grunin Center.
Who: Lawyers, policymakers and impact investors.
Where: New York University, New York City, in person.
Tickets: Details available here.
4-5 June
The Latin American Impact Investment Summit (CLIIQ)
What: A conference aiming to activate the impact investment community to address key social and environmental issues in Latin America. Key themes for the 2025 event are the intersection between climate and gender; technology for sustainable development and construction of impact ecosystems through collective action.
Who: Impact investors, social entrepreneurs, policy makers and other members of the impact community.
Where: Quito, Ecuador.
Tickets: Available from $550 via the event website.
4-7 June
45th Babson College Entrepreneurship Research Conference (BCERC)
What: An academic conference on entrepreneurial research, hosted by Babson College.
Who: Scholars and researchers in entrepreneurship.
Where: Babson College, Wellesley, Massachusetts, in person.
Tickets: Not yet available. Registration information available here.
11-12 June 2025
Social Enterprise Jobs Summit
What: Australia’s first conference dedicated to jobs-focused social enterprises. The two-day conference will bring together jobs-focused social enterprises with government, philanthropy and corporate partners to work together towards “a future where all have access to decent work”.
Who: Social enterprises that have a focus on creating employment, representatives of government, philanthropy and corporates.
Where: Melbourne, Australia.
Tickets: Sign up to receive a notification when registrations open here.
11-13 June
3rd Africa Impact Summit
What: Event organiser the Africa Impact Investing Group says the event will emphasise building platforms to mobilise capital at scale for impact, especially for small and medium enterprises, policy action to accelerate and scale progress and research and knowledge capture to inform action and enable scaling of what works. The summit will include a pre-event tour of relevant organisations for delegates to learn about the region’s impact economy, and deal rooms facilitated by Deal Source Africa.
Who: People who work in the impact sector from around the world.
Where: Accra, Ghana.
Tickets: Register here.
15-16 June
Social Finance Forum 2025
What: Exploring an overarching theme of ‘investing in our future’, this event will examine the futures of six elements of Canadian society from an impact investment perspective: Indigenous, equity, climate, food, housing, and main streets. Includes keynote speakers, panel discussions and workshops.
Who: Capital managers, representatives of business, philanthropists, family offices, wealth advisors, public policy leaders, social entrepreneurs and rural and Indigenous changemakers.
Where: Toronto, Canada.
Tickets: Available from CA$99 through the event website.
21-29 June
London Climate Action Week
What: A platform for individual organisations to host their own events, which can take place at any time and place during the LCAW dates. Its aim is to bring together London’s climate professionals and communities to find solutions to climate change.
Who: Individual organisers will decide whether their event is open to all or directed at a specific group.
Where: London, UK and online
Tickets: Not yet available. More information here.
30 June-3 July
4th International Conference on Financing for Development
What: The UN-organised conference will address new and emerging issues, the urgent need to fully implement the Sustainable Development Goals and support reform of the international financial architecture. It will also assess the progress made on international commitments, and result in an internationally-agreed outcome.
Who: Global state representatives.
Where: Seville, Spain.
More information here.
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4-5 July
Co-op Congress
What: Co-operatives UK’s annual event will feature sessions and speakers to discuss priority topics for the co-operatives community, with more details to be announced in early 2025. It will also celebrate the UN Year of Co-operatives, which launched in December 2024, in the birth town of the movement, Rochdale.
Who: Co-operators working to build a better economy.
Where: Rochdale, UK.
Tickets: More information to come.
31 August to 3 September
Impact Minds 2025
What: The annual event run by Latimpacto, Latin America and the Caribbean's network for social investment. Further details to be released.
Who: Capital providers from the global social and environmental impact ecosystem, with a special focus on Latin America and the Caribbean.
Where: Medellin, Colombia
Tickets: Not yet available, more information on the Impact Minds conference website.
4-5 September 2025
Social Outcomes Conference 2025 (SOC25)
What: Organised by the Government Outcomes Lab, the event will bring together leading researchers, policymakers and practitioners working to improve social outcomes. Discussions will explore the latest research and look at emerging practice across different geographies, disciplines and policy areas.
Who: Researchers, policymakers, impact investors and businesses, other people involved in the field of social outcomes.
Where: In-person in Oxford and online.
Tickets: Register your interest here.
9-11 September
AVPN Global Conference 2025
What: The annual gathering of AVPN’s network of Asian impact investors, hosted in partnership with the Hong Kong Jockey Club. Attendees can expect talks, networking opportunities and cultural experiences.
Who: Impact investors, philanthropists, and the social impact investing community.
Where: Hong Kong.
Tickets: More information to come.
15-18 September
EU Social Economy Week
What: Annual event platforming the social economy across the EU. Includes the European Social Economy Awards 2025, open for applications until 16 June. Further details to be announced.
Who: Social entrepreneurs, investors and other stakeholders in the social economy in the EU.
Where: Murcia, Spain.
Tickets: Not yet available.
17-18 September
Impact Festival 2025
What: Focusing on sustainable innovation, this event features keynotes, expert talks, panel discussions and networking opportunities focused on driving the green transformation. Organised by Neosfer.
Who: Impact entrepreneurs, investors, corporates, policymakers and other stakeholders committed to sustainability and innovation.
Where: Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Tickets: Start at €99 and are available on the Impact Festival website.
19-20 September
International Conference on Social Entrepreneurship & Innovation (ICSEI)
What: Academic and practitioner-focused conference on social innovation, organised by The International Conference on Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation (ICSEI).
Who: Academics, practitioners, and policymakers.
Where: To be announced, online and in person.
Tickets: Start from US$200. Available here.
30 September - 2 October 2025
ANDE’s Global Annual Conference 2025: Building Tomorrow’s Ecosystems
What: Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs’ annual conference. An opportunity to build relationships and strategies to drive sustainable development and address the biggest challenges facing entrepreneurship.
Who: Thought leaders, corporates, policymakers, innovators and change-makers in entrepreneurship and economic development.
Where: Quintana Roo, Mexico.
Tickets: Places are limited; pre-register now.
1-2 October
Partners for a New Economy Annual Gathering 2025
What: Speakers, panels and participatory workshops addressing economic systems change. Details of the programme are yet to be announced.
Who: People committed to economic systems change in service of people and nature.
Where: Lyon, France.
Tickets: Available through the event website in due course.
7-9 October
GIIN Impact Forum
What: A global impact investing event including keynote speakers, panel discussions and interactive sessions. Organisers the Global Impact Investing Network anticipate more than 1,600 impact investors will attend.
Who: Impact investors from a range of financial institutions, including pensions, venture capital funds, government agencies and NGOs.
Where: Berlin, Germany.
Tickets: To be published on the event website in due course.
8 October
The Road to Impact
What: Organised by SpainNAB, the country’s National Advisory Board for Impact Investment, this is the sixth edition of this annual event. SpainNAB says the event will offer opportunities to reflect, learn, and build valuable connections that will drive change toward a more sustainable and equitable future. Full programme yet to be announced.
Who: Impact investors and stakeholders in Spain’s impact economy.
Where: Madrid, Spain.
Tickets: To be published on the event website in due course.
14-15 October 2025
GAIL Annual Summit
What: The Global Alliance of Impact Lawyers (GAIL) Annual Summit will highlight groundbreaking legal work from around the world, aiming to foster collaboration, innovation and thought leadership.
Who: Open to members and non-members.
Where: Mexico City, Mexico
Tickets: More information including Early Bird Tickets coming soon here.
21 October
The Gap in Between Annual Summit
What: An event that brings together a diverse range of actors to tackle the most pressing social and environmental challenges. Expect panel discussions, networking and startup exhibitions. Last year’s event attracted 1,000 attendees from 43 countries.
Who: Entrepreneurs, corporates, investors, policy makers and members of civil society and academia who seek to create systemic change.
Where: Valencia, Spain
Tickets: Registration opening soon – keep an eye here.
27-31 October
Social Enterprise World Forum and SEWF Week 2025
What: The forum (29-30 October) is the world’s biggest gathering for the social enterprise community, providing an opportunity for entrepreneurs, innovators and changemakers from around the world to learn from each other, connect and get inspired. SEWF 2025 Week (27-31 October) will include social enterprise tours in Taipei and other locations, Fringe Day and evening activities.
Who: Open to all.
Where: Taipei, Taiwan; online and at Community Hubs (locations to be announced).
Tickets: Super Early Bird tickets are now available here, NT$4,500 (US$140) for in-person attendance and NT$585 (US$18) for an online pass.
27-29 October
SOCAP25
What: SOCAP (Social Capital Markets) convenes a diverse group of impact investors, social entrepreneurs, philanthropists, business leaders and innovators to accelerate progress in addressing the world’s toughest challenges through market-based solutions. The conference features keynote speakers, panel discussions, workshops, and networking opportunities aimed at fostering impactful collaborations.
Who: Impact investors, social entrepreneurs, philanthropists, business leaders, policymakers, and other stakeholders committed to social and environmental impact.
Where: San Francisco, California, USA.
Tickets: Are available at US$1,099, visit the SOCAP25 ticket page to purchase here.
29-31 October
Global Social and Solidarity Economy Forum 2025 (GSEF 2025)
What: The 7th edition of the Global Social and Solidarity Economy Forum (GSEF), a biennial international event that brings together stakeholders from the social and solidarity economy (SSE) ecosystem. The forum aims to share visions and practices to position SSE as a standard for the economy of tomorrow, emphasising the primacy of people and collective projects over capital. Organised by The Global Forum For Social and Solidarity Economy.
Who: Local and national governments, institutions, networks, SSE practitioners and civil society organisations from all continents, with strong French and European involvement.
Where: Bordeaux, France, at the Palais 2 l’Atlantique, with additional events at Hangar 14 in the city centre.
Tickets: Registration for the forum will open in spring 2025. Details will be available on the official event website.
3-5 November
AVPA Conference
What: AVPA’s annual conference. The theme for this year is “driving sustainable investments and innovations for resilient growth.” Organisers the African Venture Philanthropy Alliance (AVPA) say the event will feature keynote speakers, panel discussions and breakout sessions exploring how Africa can harness catalytic capital and scale impactful social enterprises to foster meaningful, lasting development across the continent.
Who: Investors, funders, social entrepreneurs, policymakers and academics.
Where: Nairobi, Kenya.
Tickets: Early bird tickets available from US$631.90 through the event website.
3-7 November
10th EMES International Research Conference on Social Enterprise
What: Research-focused conference hosted across two cities to advance the field of social enterprise studies, organised by EMES.
Who: Researchers, academics, and social enterprise practitioners.
Where: Rotterdam and Utrecht, Netherlands, in person.
Tickets: Early bird rates from €300 available here.
10-21 November
2025 UN Climate Change Conference (COP 30)
What: The 30th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 30) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). This conference will bring together global leaders, policymakers, scientists and stakeholders to negotiate and advance international climate action, building upon the commitments of the Paris Agreement.
Who: Representatives from UNFCCC member countries, including government officials, climate experts, non-governmental organizations and other stakeholders dedicated to addressing climate change.
Where: Belém, Pará, Brazil.
Tickets: Participation typically requires accreditation through the UNFCCC. Details on registration and observer status will be provided on the official UNFCCC website.
19-20 November 2025
Impact Week 2025
What: Impact Week 2025 is organised by Europe’s impact investing network, Impact Europe, bringing together stakeholders from various sectors to discuss and promote impact-driven initiatives across the continent. The event aims to foster collaboration, share best practices and drive the impact agenda forward through workshops, panel discussions, and networking opportunities.
Who: Impact investors, social entrepreneurs, policymakers, corporate leaders, foundations, and other stakeholders committed to creating positive social and environmental impact across Europe.
Where: Malmö, Sweden.
Tickets: Registration details and ticket information will be announced closer to the event date. Interested participants can sign up for updates on the official Impact Europe website.
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