The Chronicle of Philanthropy highlights the program-related investment strategy of GIIN Investors' Council member the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which was described in detail by Senior Program Investments Officer Andrew Farnum at the Skoll World Forum.

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"All of the investments focus on the foundation's areas of interest - education in the United States, international development, global health - and are the result of close collaboration between program and investment officers. Since the program was announced in late 2009, the Seattle foundation has made investments totaling $150-million.

"When a program officer suggests a potential investment, the investment team analyzes the deal to estimate what the financial return is likely to be and compares that to the 5 percent annual return that the foundation expects from its traditional investment portfolio."

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