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Episode 80 | April 27, 2020

Lessons from the Pandemic: Ignoring Science Carries Steep Cost

with Georg Kell, Chairman of the Board at Arabesque

Kell, who is also a regular contributor to Forbes and the founding executive director of the UN Global Compact, talks about his recent article on the four lessons we should learn from the pandemic. Our conversation focused on Lesson #2: Prevention is better than cure. Kell discusses the danger of ignoring scientific evidence on climate […]

Episode 79 | April 24, 2020

“Leapfrog” Technologies Make Investing in LDC’s Less Risky

with Esther Pan Sloane, Head, Partnerships, Policy and Communications at UNCDF

Pan-Sloane discusses how UNCDF (United Nations Capital Development Fund) is using advanced technologies, like digital banking and communication platforms, for crisis management (Covid-19 response for example) and to support capital flow for infrastructure investment in LDCs (Least Developed Countries).

Episode 78 | April 23, 2020

Women Tech Entrepreneurs Outperform Men When Given Access to Capital

with Nisa Amoils, Venture Tech investor through Grasshopper Capital

In her book Women Tech Founders on the Rise (WTF), Amoils describes how in 2019 women founders got only 2% of VC capital when there was no male co-founder, while women teams outperform all-male teams by 63% (2015 data). In this podcast Amoils talks about Grasshopper Capital, her VC firm that invests in blockchain and […]

Episode 77 | April 16, 2020

Washington, DC, Restaurant Fuses Food and “Gastroadvocacy”

with Peter Schechter, Co-Founder, and Tea Ivanovic, Dir. Communications & Outreach at Immigrant Food

Former think tank director Peter Schechter and award-winning chef Enrique Limardo, owner of Esquire’s Best New Restaurant in America, opened Immigrant Food, one block from the White House, 4 months before the pandemic. In their unique model, they celebrate America’s immigrant heritage and work with 5 local nonprofits to advocate for immigration by inviting customers […]

Episode 76 | April 9, 2020

Advising Clients for the Long Term during the Pandemic

with Laura J. LaTourette, CFP, Family Wealth Management Group

LaTourette brings more than 20 years of financial planning experience to help her diverse LGBTQ clientele keep focused on long term ESG investment strategies while managing their short term needs during this pandemic. In the podcast she also explains her focus on legacy planning and diversity initiatives.

Episode 75 | April 6, 2020

Morningstar’s 2019 Sustainable Funds Landscape Report

with Jon Hale, Global Head of Sustainability Research at Morningstar, Inc.

A couple of the most encouraging findings from this report are the strong performance of sustainable funds compared to the total mutual fund universe and the dramatic increase in asset flows to sustainable funds during 2019, especially during the record-breaking 4th quarter.

Episode 74 | April 1, 2020

Enviva’s Wood Pellets: A Low Carbon Renewables Solution

with John Keppler, Chairman & CEO of Enviva LP

Keppler explains how 3.5 million metric tons of wood pellets allow heat generators and power producers to reduce their carbon footprint by up to 85% on a lifecycle basis and help meet their renewable energy generation goals. Enviva recently announced its 18th consecutive distribution increase and has generated an annualized total return to unitholders of […]

Episode 73 | March 23, 2020

Climate Risk Is a Present and Future Business Critical Issue

with Joey Lake, Chief Operating Officer at The Climate Service (TCS)

Climate Risk is the largest idiosyncratic risk left unmeasured in the world today by asset managers and companies. Investors can capture climate risk opportunities not yet priced into company data by the markets.

Episode 71 | March 18, 2020

Climate Change a Risk to All Stages of the Corporate Value Chain

with Elliott Harris, UN Assistant Secretary-General, Chief Economist Dept. of Economic and Social Affairs United Nations

Harris explains how 40 years of scientific data from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) shows the potential for Climate Risk to all stages of the business value chain, across all countries and economic sectors.

Episode 72 | March 18, 2020

Harnessing the Power of Science to Build Scalable Impact Solutions

with Michele Demers, Founder and CEO, Boundless Impact Investing

Demers’ science-based research methodology provides investor-friendly, rigorous and cost-effective impact assessments by experts in financial analysis and environmental informatics.