Giving Compass' Take:

• Asian Venture Philanthropy Network (AVPN) delivers a report about what the social investment landscape looks like in 14 Asia-Pacific regions and finds ample opportunities for those looking to dive in.

• Before any impact investor commits, it's worth getting as much information as possible and sticking with one's strength. The emphasis here is how collaboration is the biggest driver of change in Asia.

• This book on Asian philanthropy discusses the importance of social delivery organizations.

Asia is at a critical juncture grappling with societal challenges associated with rapid economic growth. The social economy, rooted in the principles of collaboration and collective impact, holds a tremendous potential to drive social and environmental transformation in Asia towards sustainable and inclusive prosperity.

The different stages and characteristics of social economy development in Asia can be a source of synergy that catalyses cross-border and cross-sector giving and social investment, as well as enables peer learning.

For new investors and investors already present in the region, exciting developments are on the horizon.

An analysis of Asian philanthropists’ giving across the 14 regions provides evidence of multiple motivations to give: realizing religious and ethical conventions, preserving family traditions, supporting native lands in times of crisis, or providing for lesser endowed communities across countries and regions.

Poverty reduction across most social economies has been impressive. However, India, Myanmar, and Cambodia still have over a quarter of the people living below the poverty line.

While emerging economies such as India, Cambodia, Myanmar, Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam have to address pressing social challenges in healthcare, sanitation, education and water, developed economies such as Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong are tackling aging, growing inequalities, declining workforce, labor productivity and gender equality.

Environmental issues are uniformly red on the dashboard across social economies, from issues of energy access and infrastructure in emerging economies, to climate risk mitigation and natural resources management in the island countries of Asia.

Read the full report about what the social investment landscape looks like in Asia at avpn.asia.