JUNE 13, 2023

TELUS Pollinator Fund for Good releases second annual impact report, investing $40 million in 26 companies, with 155 per cent revenue growth

Since its launch in 2020, the Pollinator Fund has backed compelling solutions in four key pillars: supporting responsible agriculture, caring for our planet, transforming healthcare and enabling inclusive communities

VANCOUVER - Today, the

is proudly launching its second annual

, detailing the nearly $40 million of its initial $100M investment commitment which has almost doubled its portfolio to 26 mission-driven startups, and is generating promising early results with portfolio companies delivering a 155 per cent revenue growth.

“The Pollinator Fund invests into early-stage, for‐profit companies where impact is baked into the business model. We support tenacious, mission-driven and diverse founders by leveraging TELUS’ broad network to make introductions, open doors, and guide the portfolio companies to maximum growth and impact,” said Blair Miller, Managing Partner, TELUS Pollinator Fund. “As one of the world’s largest corporate social impact funds, communicating our progress to our stakeholders is an important aspect of our commitment to advancing the impact investment ecosystem. We want to inspire other corporations to step up, and like us, invest in the next generation of responsible businesses.”

Investment with tangible social impacts

Since its launch in 2020, the Pollinator Fund has backed compelling solutions in four key pillars: supporting responsible agriculture, caring for our planet, transforming healthcare and enabling inclusive communities. The Pollinator Fund led numerous investments in 2022 into companies at the forefront of their sectors, including a series A in Virtual Gurus, which provides virtual assistance services while creating meaningful employment for marginalized groups, a bridge round in GotCare, which extends the reach of health care providers into the home setting, and a series A in Flash Forest, which accelerates wildfire reforestation using drones and technology. Highlights over the last year include:

Advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion with 54 per cent of portfolio companies led by Indigenous and racialized people and 42 per cent led by women
More than 1.1 million lives touched through improved services, products or income
22.2 million hectares of land sustainably managed
1.8 times increase in income for marginalized workers.

The Pollinator Fund has been recognized for excellence as an impact investor - not only through the investments across North America, but also by being awarded with Foresight Canada’s 2023 BC Cleantech Awards as Funder of the Year, and being named a finalist for Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas Awards for Social Impact Investing. With a large base of portfolio companies already, including

and

, with even more to come, the future of social innovation through the Pollinator Fund is promising.

Advancing the impact investment ecosystem

The Pollinator Fund is launching the

Pollinator Impact Navigation Tool

which is built to serve the needs of startups and equip them with the information required to begin managing their impact and communicating outcomes to investors. The tool will help early-stage companies assess their progress in developing an Impact measurement and management (IMM) system, identify priority areas to address in order to level up their IMM system, and track, manage and communicate their impact on an ongoing basis in a meaningful way. The Pollinator Impact Navigation Tool is released as an open-source resource to enable other impact investors to improve their own operations by deploying the tool to their portfolio companies.

To learn more about the highlights of the fund and commitments made to date, read the

TELUS Pollinator Fund for Good Impact report

Founders looking for a practical resource for impact management can access the

Pollinator Impact Navigation Tool

About the TELUS Pollinator Fund for Good

The $100 million TELUS Pollinator Fund for Good is one of the world’s largest corporate social impact funds, and focuses its investments on for-profit companies and founders committed to driving social innovation. The TELUS Pollinator Fund is an extension of TELUS’ long-standing commitment to leveraging the power of technology to drive positive social and environmental outcomes for all Canadians by funding the development of solutions for transforming healthcare, caring for our planet, supporting responsible agriculture and enabling inclusive communities. To learn more about the TELUS Pollinator Fund, please visit:

telus.com/pollinatorfund

About TELUS

TELUS (TSX: T, NYSE: TU) is a dynamic, world-leading communications technology company with more than $18 billion in annual revenue and 18 million customer connections spanning wireless, data, IP, voice, television, entertainment, video, and security. Our social purpose is to leverage our global-leading technology and compassion to drive social change and enable remarkable human outcomes. Our longstanding commitment to putting our customers first fuels every aspect of our business, making us a distinct leader in customer service excellence and loyalty. The numerous, sustained accolades TELUS has earned over the years from independent, industry-leading network insight firms showcase the strength and speed of TELUS’ global-leading networks, reinforcing our commitment to provide Canadians with access to superior technology that connects us to the people, resources and information that make our lives better.

Operating in 31 countries around the world, TELUS International (TSX and NYSE: TIXT) is a leading digital customer experience innovator that designs, builds, and delivers next-generation solutions, including AI and content moderation, for global and disruptive brands across strategic industry verticals, including tech and games, communications and media and eCommerce and fintech.

TELUS Health is a global health care leader, which provides employee and family primary and preventive health care and wellness solutions. Our TELUS team, along with our 100,000 health professionals, are leveraging the combination of TELUS’ strong digital and data analytics capabilities with our unsurpassed client service to dramatically improve remedial, preventive and mental health outcomes covering 67 million lives, and growing, around the world. As the largest provider of digital solutions and digital insights of its kind, TELUS Agriculture & Consumer Goods enables efficient and sustainable production from seed to store, helping improve the safety and quality of food and other goods in a way that is traceable to end consumers.

Driven by our determination and vision to connect all citizens for good, our deeply meaningful and enduring philosophy to give where we live has inspired TELUS and our team to contribute $1.5 billion, including 2 million days of service since 2000. This unprecedented generosity and unparalleled volunteerism have made TELUS the most giving company in the world. Together, let’s make the future friendly.

For more information about TELUS, please visit

telus.com

, follow us at @TELUSNews on Twitter and @Darren_Entwistle on Instagram.

For more information, please contact:

François Marchand

Public Relations

[email protected]