It’s a big deal that Philadelphia is hosting SOCAP’s inaugural Total Impact Conference

If you’re looking for proof that Philly’s impact investing community has real might, here’s some.

Next month, Philadelphia will host the inaugural Total Impact Conference, a two-day conference for impact investors and financial advisers looking to adopt socially responsible investment strategies.

The conference is being produced by Good Capital Project, an arm of international investor network Social Capital Markets, or SOCAP, in partnership with local impact investing advocacy organization ImpactPHL.

Think: panels such as a Sherryl Kuhlman-led intro to basic sustainable investment concepts; a spotlight on Berwyn’s B Lab; breakout sessions on advising women and millennials on impact; and a seminar on measuring impact performance.

The intended audience for the conference, said ImpactPHL Program Manager Cory Donovan, is financial advisers and intermediaries, a key constituent in helping move capital toward impact investing.

“The goal of this conference is educating those people on what impact investing is. We’ll cover everything from public equities to debt instruments to real estate and private equity and public-private partnerships,” said Donovan. “There are a lot of ways to make impact investments.”

But ImpactPHL will also get a chance to highlight what’s happening here in Philadelphia, a city that boasts the most active impact investing group in the country via Investors Circle Philadelphia and the third-most active population of independent financial advisers in the country.

Not to mention an ever-growing pool of social entrepreneurs and a school at an Ivy League university dedicated to churning out relevant talent.

The conference is good news for social enterprise in Philly.

The conference is good news for social enterprise in Philly, said Donovan.

“It’s aligning with the right kind of capital, and more of it,” he said. “This will help align capital with the businesses that are seeking it.”

Social impact has certainly come a long way in Philly. But it’s come a long way nationally, too.

“[Total Impact] is a multi-city effort,” said Sharadiya Dasgupta, director of strategy and partnerships at Good Capital Project Design Lab. “Philadelphia will be the inaugural conference, then we will take it to other cities.”

Dasgupta said the conference will also likely go next to New York City and Atlanta, but Philly has a “sizable portion” of the asset management demo the organization is looking for — plus, proximity to the economic power of New York.

“And a very vibrant impact investing network,” said Dasgupta. “ImpactPHL is a prime example of that.”

“We think it’s significant we’re hosting [Total Impact] in Philadelphia with an organization [SOCAP] that is the center of the universe for impact investing,” said Donovan. “The real opportunity for investors and financial advisers is that there’s a growing movement of capital to seek something more than just financial return.”

Dasgupta said Good Capital is expecting 300 plus attendees, but next year the group is planning on “doing it bigger.”

Register with the ImpactPHL’s promo code here to save $400 off the $1,195 ticket price.

P.S. You can also pick up a discounted ticket to another ImpactPHL/SOCAP event: This Wednesday’s “Building a Successful Investor Ecosystem for 21st Century Philadelphia.”