Name

Criterion Institute

Legal name

Criterion Institute

Website

https://criterioninstitute.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Haddam

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: As a nonprofit organization, Criterion Institute relies on donations and grants from foundations, government agencies, and individual supporters to fund its operations and programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Criterion Institute is a nonprofit think tank that produces research, frameworks, and educational tools that help investors, governments, and civil society organizations use finance as a lever for social change, particularly through gender lens investing. Its portfolio includes the TOOLKIT, Blueprints, Roadmaps, GBV Due Diligence Guides, GBV Curriculum, and the Advanced Practice Framework, supplemented by free online trainings, an annual Convergence gathering, and a podcast.

Product overview

Criterion Institute is a nonprofit think tank operating at the intersection of finance and social change, focused on expanding possibilities for how finance can be used as a tool for transformative systems change, particularly through gender lens investing. The organization does not offer a software product in the traditional sense, but rather provides a portfolio of educational resources, frameworks, and programs. The core offerings include the TOOLKIT (foundational finance education), Blueprints (strategic planning guides), Roadmaps (GBV-focused investment guidance), and GBV Due Diligence Guides. The organization also runs the 1K Churches campaign for faith-based financial engagement, a podcast series, and organizes Convergence events. Strategic pillars include Finance the Reduction of GBV, Power of Policy, and Advanced Practice Framework for gender lens investing standards. The organization functions primarily as a research and field-building institution that produces tools, training, and educational content rather than a technology product company.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• TOOLKIT A comprehensive toolkit that supports individuals and organizations in exploring how finance can be used as a tool to create social change. It introduces finance terminology, familiarizes users with financial logic, and uncovers leverage points and opportunities to influence the financial system.
• Blueprints Demonstration documents showing how various social change organizations can design strategies that use systems of finance as tools to create positive social change. Includes guides for faith-based organizations and specific geographic contexts.
• Roadmaps Strategic guides laying out insights for how finance can be used to address gender-based violence across a range of sectors, asset classes, geographies, and investor types. Includes roadmaps for Christian denominations, Victoria Australia, Kenya, and private investors.
• GBV Due Diligence Guides Gender-based violence due diligence tools that analyze existing due diligence categories including political, regulatory, operational, and reputational risks, and show how they can be affected by gender-based violence.
• GBV Curriculum Educational curriculum on gender-based violence, acknowledging that more than 1 in 3 women worldwide experiences physical or sexual violence, and providing resources for understanding and addressing GBV through financial interventions.
• Advanced Practice Framework A system of standards of practice consisting of coherent logic that explores existing investment practices, analyzes power dynamics within those practices, and names ways to shift them as the standard. Built on four guiding principles: Will to Act, Integrity, Accountability, and Inclusion.
• GBV Risk Prediction Methodology Methodology for predicting gender-based violence risk in relationship to financial material risks, demonstrating that GBV poses multiple risks to investments of all types.
• Criterion Institute Podcast A podcast series hosted by President and Founder Joy Anderson featuring reflections and discussions on how to use finance as a tool for transformative systems change. Part of the Impact Alpha podcast network, with over 80 episodes covering gender lens investing, power dynamics, and systems change.
• Events and Training Online workshops, training sessions, and events including Systems Change Training, TOOLKIT Workshops, and Workshops on Financing the Reduction of Gender-Based Violence. Most events are free and held online, with an annual Convergence gathering of field builders and systems changers.
• Criterion Fellowship A volunteer 6-12 month fellowship program with a minimum commitment of approximately 4 hours per week, designed to prepare participants for inclusion in the trusted contractor pool at Criterion Institute.

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• UNICEFcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUNICEF is listed as a partner collaborating with Criterion on issues at the intersection of finance and social change, including gender-based violence and child wellbeing.
• The Equality InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Equality Institute is listed as a partner working with Criterion on gender equality and violence prevention through finance.
• StardustminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStardust is listed as a partner, with its CEO Kyle Wright serving on Criterion's Advisory Board.
• Coralus (formerly SheEO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoralus partnered with Criterion on a joint initiative bringing together 45 contributors from Coralus and 15 experts from Criterion to explore financial models supporting women and non-binary entrepreneurs.
• 2X GlobalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner2X Global is listed as a partner in the gender lens investing ecosystem, with its CEO Jessica Espinoza serving on Criterion's Advisory Board.
• TIN - The Incubation NetworkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Incubation Network is listed as a partner supporting innovative finance initiatives.
• MEDAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEDA ( Mennonite Economic Development Associates) is listed as a partner working on economic development through finance.
• ANDE (Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerANDE is listed as a partner in the global entrepreneurship development ecosystem.
• MCAGF (Mali-Capacity for Agricultural Growth)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMCAGF is listed as a partner in the Criterion network.
• Fòs FeministacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFòs Feminista is described as a feminist asset owner and intermediary building financial infrastructure that shifts power and facilitates mission-aligned capital flows. Criterion has collaborated with Fòs Feminista on podcasts and research.
• Equality FundcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCriterion and the Equality Fund co-hosted a webinar exploring alternatives to traditional philanthropy and innovative resourcing for feminist movements. The Equality Fund manages a $296M CAD seed portfolio with 100% gender lens focus.
• Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGAIN and Criterion partnered to produce the report 'Putting Nutrition on the Plate' highlighting opportunities for child-lens investors to embed nutrition focus in their work.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN): GIIN is a field-building network for impact investing, developing standards, tools, and research adopted by asset owners globally — directly comparable to Criterion's role in setting gender-lens investing norms.
• US SIF: The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment: US SIF is a membership association advancing sustainable and responsible investing through research, policy, and industry recognition (including the Joan Bavaria Award), closely paralleling Criterion's think-tank-plus-standards role in gender lens investing.
• ImpactAlpha: ImpactAlpha is a news and research platform covering impact investing and gender-lens capital, serving as a media and field-building node very similar to Criterion's podcast, research, and convening function.
• 2X Global: 2X Global is a gender-lens investing industry body with field-building, advisory, and member services; it is a direct partner of Criterion and competes for the same institutional standards-and-convener role.
• Equality Fund: Equality Fund manages a $296M CAD feminist/gender-lens portfolio and partners with Criterion on research and webinars, directly comparable as a feminist finance field-builder and asset owner.
• Fòs Feminista: Fòs Feminista is a feminist asset owner and intermediary building mission-aligned capital infrastructure; a Criterion partner with overlapping field-building work in feminist finance.

Broad incumbents

• Trillium Asset Management: Trillium is an established US sustainable/impact investment manager and co-awarding body of the Joan Bavaria Award that Criterion's founder received — a broader incumbent in the same impact-investing space.
• Cornerstone Capital Group: Cornerstone is an impact-investment research and advisory firm providing frameworks for asset owners, comparable to Criterion's investor research and training offerings for pension funds and foundations.

Emerging players

• Spring Strategies: Spring Strategies is a gender-lens investing and climate finance advisory firm doing research, advisory, and field-building very similar to Criterion's advanced practice and roadmap work.
• Catalyst at Large (Suzanne Biegel): Suzanne Biegel is a recognized pioneer of gender-lens investing (co-awarded Joan Bavaria Award with Joy Anderson) running an advisory and field-building practice — an individual-led peer operating in the same niche.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/CriterionInst
• Facebookfacebook.com/Criterion-Institute-196522490382360
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/2724642

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Criterion Institute