Lucas Simons, CEO and founder of NewForesight, is as of 2015 a member of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) because of his work with our sister organization SCOPEinsight. Established in 2005 by U.S. President Bill Clinton as an initiative of the Clinton Foundation, CGI convenes global leaders to create and implement solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges.

SCOPEinsight supports farmer organizations in emerging economies to gain access to finance, markets, inputs and other services. The organization developed a unique assessment methodology that scores the level of professionalism and business viability of farmer organizations. The assessments increase market transparency and improve information in agriculture. They are used to segment the more professional farmers and connect them to supply chain actors or financial institutions, reducing due diligence costs and investment risks. Moreover the assessments enable tailor-made and effective training services in line with farmer organizations’ improvement needs. By doing so, SCOPEinsight and its partners create business opportunities for farmer organizations that would otherwise be excluded from the mainstream market.

SCOPEinsight will bring its work in strengthening agricultural sectors in emerging economies to the CGI community. CGI membership will accelerate SCOPEinsight’s growth and will increase the current momentum to work with partners and create a global movement for agribusiness and agricultural finance.

“We are honored, as the first independent assessment agency, to be part of the Clinton Global Initiative. We see this as recognition for our innovative ecosystem approach, which we developed to systemically improve the professionalism of the agricultural sector in emerging economies”, says Lucas Simons. “The support of CGI will enable us to improve our concept and also helps us to build strong partnerships with organizations and corporates that depend on agriculture and share our vision. For all of us to succeed in creating lasting impact, we need to join forces. We will use the momentum to build on the global movement we initiated. We are committed to making this year a success, with the support of CGI.”

As member of CGI, SCOPEinsight will develop a Commitment to Action within their market-based approach and food systems tracks. CGI will support SCOPEinsight using their vast network of global leaders. Lucas is currently in New York City for CGI to participate in a workshop on investing in small and growing impact enterprises worldwide, and how the SCOPEinsight assessment methodology can work as an accelerator in this field. This is the first of a wide range of meetings Lucas will attend, such as the CGI Annual Meeting in New York City in September 2015.