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March 17, 2024 | EP. 250

I’m Committed to Africa’s Youth

Amina Zakhnouf, Investment Officer, FID & Co-Founder of “I’m Committed to Africa” (JMA)
Amina Zakhnouf, Investment Officer, FID & Co-Founder of “I’m Committed to Africa” (JMA)

Amina Zakhnouf is an Investment Officer at the Fund for Innovation in Development (FID), which is hosted by the French government to fight poverty and promote sustainable economic growth. Zakhnouf supported the creation of the Hellenic Development Bank in Greece and backed the Tunisian government’s effort to create a favorable investment ecosystem for start-ups. Amina is also a Co-Founder of “I’m Committed to Africa” (JMA), a public policy incubator launched in 2020 with the mission of giving youth a seat at the table when it comes to Euro-African policy making.

March 10, 2024 | EP. 249

Combining Value Investing & Sustainability Opportunities

Roberta Barr, Sustainable Investment Lead, Value Equities & Alex Monk, Portfolio Manager, Global Resource Equities, Schroders
Roberta Barr, Sustainable Investment Lead, Value Equities & Alex Monk, Portfolio Manager, Global Resource Equities, Schroders

As companies and investors continue to navigate the 3D-reset themes of decarbonization, deglobalization and demographic change, Schroders believes that it is important to consider the practical investment implications of these broad trends. In 2024, Schroders sees investors transitioning from simply thinking of ESG risk management and integration to an increasing focus on sustainable opportunities and themes to harness for value creation. But Sustainability need not be simply a growth-chasing exercise! In fact, Schroders believes that the asset managers who succeed in 2024 will be those that can deliver active management alpha around both valuation and sustainability objectives for clients. As a result, Roberta Barr and Alex Monk are focused on balancing both value and sustainability considerations in their portfolios. On one hand, they agree that “in the long run, the price you pay for something really matters,” and at the same time they believe that it is important to invest in sustainability leaders, companies that can deliver positive societal benefit and are best-in-class versus peers, and will therefore be better placed to navigate change in the future.

March 3, 2024 | EP. 248

Eclectic Partners Forge a Successful Sustainability Team

Lenka Martinek, Managing Partner at Sustainable Market Strategies & Nordis Capital
Lenka Martinek, Managing Partner at Sustainable Market Strategies & Nordis Capital

Lenka Martinek belongs to an eclectic team of sustainability investing professionals that are partners at SMS & Nordis Capital. She is a portfolio manager in partnership with an economist from the International Monetary Fund, an environmental engineer and the former CIO of a global asset management firm. Their partnership includes a shared belief that financial markets are an important sphere of influence where they can make a contribution to a more sustainable future while creating their own financial livelihoods. They launched their firm from scratch, which has been exhilarating and exhausting and are still very much a startup operation where all partners wear multiple hats and the firm takes an active management approach to investing in sustainability market risks.

January 21, 2024 | EP. 247

Transforming Desert into Profitable Plantations

Wissal Ben Moussa, Co-Founder & Chief Agricultural Officer of Sand to Green
Wissal Ben Moussa, Co-Founder & Chief Agricultural Officer of Sand to Green

According to the United Nations desertification caused by climate change affects a third of Earth’s land surface. This is a growing problem for the 250 million people directly impacted by the degradation of formerly fertile land. Wissal Ben Moussa, Co-founder and Chief Agricultural Officer of Sand to Green, says this Moroccan startup can transform a patch of desert into a sustainable and profitable plantation in five years and the firm’s technology can be deployed anywhere there is a source of brackish water, which Sand to Green desalinates using solar-powered technology. In today’s SFP episode we will unpack some of the opportunities that Sand To Green offers for investors interested in sustainable and profitable agricultural ventures.

January 14, 2024 | EP. 246

The Slingshot Transition to Sustainable Business Operations

Trent Romer, Sustainability Operational Partner at LongueVue Capital & Co-Owner at Clear View Bag Co, Inc
Trent Romer, Sustainability Operational Partner at LongueVue Capital & Co-Owner at Clear View Bag Co, Inc

When you’re the third-generation co-owner of a company that manufactures plastic bags for your family’s financial well-being, the idea of re-creating your business operations model to be more environmentally friendly and sustainable could easily be the stuff of nightmares, cold sweats and sanity checks. For Trent Romer and Clear View Bag Co., however, sustainability planning has been a way to reduce expenses, increase revenue and generate more profit from the family business. Trent is joining me for this episode of the SFP to discuss how the 60 million small business owners in the U.S. can transition their business operations models toward sustainability by choosing a slingshot versus a moon shot approach.

December 17, 2023 | EP. 245

Banks and Insurers Need a More Resilient Finance Model

Phuong Gomard, Sustainable Finance Global Leader at Mazars
Phuong Gomard, Sustainable Finance Global Leader at Mazars

What sustainability progress have banks and insurers made in the last two years, given the role of financial institutions as a core component of the economy, and bearing in mind their responsibility to uphold the rigour and resilience of their risk management? Equally significant is their social responsibility to offer vital financial support to the development of sustainable global economies. In this episode of the SFP I discuss with Phuong Gomard of Mazars the need for the financial industry to reboot and shift to a more responsible finance model. Gomard is Sustainable Finance Global Leader at Mazars, which has just published it’s 2023 Sustainability practices stocktake for banks and insurers, which contains much of the data we will discuss.

December 10, 2023 | EP. 244

Directing Capital to Drawdown on the Roadmap to Net Zero

Heather Beatty, Founder and CEO, ScopeFour Capital
Heather Beatty, Founder and CEO, ScopeFour Capital

ScopeFour Capital is an investment management firm focused solely on climate solutions in the public equity markets. Founder and CEO Heather Beatty is committed to climate solution investment and the great re-imagination of economic growth by directing capital towards “drawdown”, when levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere stop climbing and start to steadily decline, thereby stopping human-induced climate change. ScopeFour provides investors with a roadmap to net zero and creates an opportunity to invest in the economic transition to decarbonization. Heather also co-founded Women in Institutional Investments Network (WIIIN), a Los Angeles-based 501c3 as part of her dedication to the advancement of diversity, equity and inclusion in sustainable investment.

December 3, 2023 | EP. 243

Why Is Only 2% of Global Philanthropy Climate-Related Giving

Randall Kempner, Senior Advisor, Energy & Environment Program, The Aspen Institute
Randall Kempner, Senior Advisor, Energy & Environment Program, The Aspen Institute

Climate-focused philanthropy has increased significantly in recent years, but it’s still insufficient relative to the size and urgency of the challenge. Randall Kempner is a senior advisor at the Energy and Environment Program of The Aspen Institute, and a global leader in advancing policy solutions for critical issues. He joins me today to discuss why less than two percent of global philanthropy is focused on climate-related giving, while 85 percent of all U.S. foundation funders stated in a recent report that climate change was a top three issue. Nevertheless, only one third reported they were “open to considering funding efforts” to address climate change.

November 26, 2023 | EP. 242

Ownership Works & PE Join Forces for Employee Opportunities

Anna-Lisa Miller, Ownership Works Executive Director & Gloria Mirrione, ED & Head of Sustainable Finance, Acre Americas
Anna-Lisa Miller, Ownership Works Executive Director & Gloria Mirrione, ED & Head of Sustainable Finance, Acre Americas

More successful employees create financial value for their employers and career opportunities for themselves. Our focus in today’s episode is how Ownership Works supports increasing prosperity through shared ownership, and that’s the mission of this non-profit organization. Executive Director, Anna-Lisa Miller joins me and Gloria Mirrione, Executive Director, and Head of Sustainable Finance & Impact Investing at Acre, Americas. Anna-Lisa will share with us how her firm supports the creation of a culture of ownership that aligns an entire workforce around a common purpose, values and goals to maximize shared wealth creation.

November 19, 2023 | EP. 241

The Pathway to Decarbonization for Public & Private Companies

Mark Kroese, GM Sustainability Solutions at Microsoft & Mark Fischel, Carbon Product Lead at Novata
Mark Kroese, GM Sustainability Solutions at Microsoft & Mark Fischel, Carbon Product Lead at Novata

In his role as General Manager of Sustainability Solutions at Microsoft, Mark Kroese leads a team that drives product, customer and market development solutions that help Microsoft realize its goals of becoming a Carbon Negative company. Mark Fischel is the Carbon Product Lead at Novata. They are their launching their brand new tool, the Novata Carbon Navigator in January to radically improve the carbon reporting experience for Novata’s private company platform partners. Both Marks have joined this third episode of the SFP / Novata series on “Demystifying ESG” to help our sustainability-focused investor audience and their companies follow the pathway to decarbonization.

November 12, 2023 | EP. 240

Climate Mitigation Strategies to Achieve Net Zero Emissions

Sean Kidney, CEO at Climate Bonds Initiative
Sean Kidney, CEO at Climate Bonds Initiative

The Climate Bonds Initiative has identified five Hallmarks of a credible climate mitigation transition for companies. Today the SFP is fortunate to have Sean Kidney, CEO at Climate Bonds Initiative, as our guest to update our followers on how companies are using these Hallmarks and what climate mitigation action investors and their financial advisors can expect from companies in various sectors of the global economy between now and 2030. We’re also going to talk about what choices investors can make to support companies in achieving their Net Zero near-term objectives.

November 5, 2023 | EP. 239

Black People Want Opportunities for Economic Mobility

Lenwood V. Long, Sr., President/CEO African American Alliance of CDFI CEOs
Lenwood V. Long, Sr., President/CEO African American Alliance of CDFI CEOs

“Policies and institutions that open opportunities for focus on people of color are not racist. They are not even an attempt to “level the playing field” after centuries of systemic racism. They are an effort to bring Black people onto the playing field of economic mobility after centuries of being locked out…” I’m quoting from a Forbes article published on Oct. 12th and written by Lenwood V. Long, Sr., President & CEO, African American Alliance of CDFI CEOs, my guest for today’s SFP conversation. Lenwood joins me to tell us the story behind the article.

October 29, 2023 | EP. 238

One Platform Can Study Impact, Minimize Risk & Maximize ROI

Karthik Balakrishnan, Co-Founder and President of Actual
Karthik Balakrishnan, Co-Founder and President of Actual

Companies in every sector of the global economy are discovering that the full spectrum of sustainability-focused challenges are more than their own and must be solved in collaboration with their partners in other businesses. My guest is this episode of the SFP is Karthik Balakrishnan, Co-Founder and President of Actual, which has been featured in Fast Company, Forbes and Business Insider among many other publications for it’s Sustainability Transformation Platform, a single place for firms to collaboratively study impact, minimize risk and maximize ROI while meeting strategic priorities.

Open the BrightTalk Episode 238 Attachments tab for links to ACTUAL newsletters providing detailed research.

October 22, 2023 | EP. 237

Asset Allocation with Positive Impact Drives Performance

Emily Chew, EVP & Chief RI Officer and Anthony Eames, MD RI Strategy at Calvert Research & Management
Emily Chew, EVP & Chief RI Officer and Anthony Eames, MD RI Strategy at Calvert Research & Management

I’ve had the privilege to work with both of today’s podcast guests as leaders of their company, the first to launch a Responsible Investment fund and still a leader in the field. Calvert Research and Management is part of Morgan Stanley Investment Management today and traces its roots to Calvert Investments, which was founded in 1976. The SFP is privileged to welcome Emily Chew and Anthony Eames to this episode and we’re going back in time to begin today’s conversation. Responsible Investing was first given official status as an industry concept by the UN Principles for Responsible Investment in 2006, however, Calvert's history in the field stretches back many years before that.

October 15, 2023 | EP. 236

Generative AI Analyzes Climate Bond Market Workflows for Good

Krista Tukiainen, Co-Founder & Chief Commercial Officer at Climate Aligned
Krista Tukiainen, Co-Founder & Chief Commercial Officer at Climate Aligned

Climate Aligned is building the world's first human-led, AI-assisted platform with the ability to analyze any bond issuer, borrower, bond or loan against any standard, framework, taxonomy or expert opinion in a fully customizable way, thanks to Generative AI. I’m excited to have Krista Tukiainen, Climate Aligned’s Chief Commercial Officer as my guest for this episode of the SFP. Building on the new generation of Large Language Models and tools, Climate Aligned is on a mission to change investor and capital provider workflows for the better and for good. Krista believes there is enough money in the world to solve the climate crisis, and much of it is funneled through debt capital markets.
Congratulation to the ClimateAligned team for being recognized by Business Insider Tech as a leading climate tech startup! - http://www.businessinsider.com/sai

October 8, 2023 | EP. 235

IPR’s Forecast Suggests Optimistic Climate Transition

Anthony Hobley, Senior Strategic Advisor & Jakob Thomae, Project Director, IPR
Anthony Hobley, Senior Strategic Advisor & Jakob Thomae, Project Director, IPR

My guests today are coming down on the side of a more positive outcome for a sustainable climate transition rather than the doomsday opinions we read in the media daily. Anthony Hobley, Senior Strategic Advisor and Jakob Thomae, Project Director launched the IPR Forecast Policy Scenario (FPS) 2023 during Climate Week in NYC. IPR, the Inevitable Policy Response (IPR), is a climate transition forecasting consortium commissioned by the PRI. The findings give reason for optimism if we accelerate current approaches, however these policy responses will be increasingly forceful, abrupt, and disorderly. Our program today will be helpful not only to investors navigating the financial markets, but also for governments, policy makers and NGOs.

October 1, 2023 | EP. 234

Capital Meets Purpose in Community Economic Development

John Holsdclaw IV, Rochdale Capital; Gloria Mirrione, Acre; and Harold Pettigrew, Jr., Opportunity Finance Network
John Holsdclaw IV, Rochdale Capital; Gloria Mirrione, Acre; and Harold Pettigrew, Jr., Opportunity Finance Network

Today's podcast guests are a trio of leaders engaged in community economic development. John Holdsclaw IV, Gloria Mirrione and Harold Pettigrew, Jr. are on a mission to lift the banner of "Capital Meets Purpose". I will ask Harold and John to share their thoughts on this theme for the upcoming 39th annual Opportunity Finance Network (OFN) conference next month. Followers of The Sustainable Finance Podcast will be glad to know that John, President and CEO of Rochdale Capital and Harold, President and CEO at OFN joined this episode at Gloria and Acre's request to clarify the important role CDFIs are playing in ESG and Sustainability-Focused economic development.

September 24, 2023 | EP. 233

A Global Reset in Patterns of Market Behavior Lies Ahead

Angus Bauer, Head of Sustainable Investment Research and Lazaro Tiant, Sustainable Investment Analyst at Schroders
Angus Bauer, Head of Sustainable Investment Research and Lazaro Tiant, Sustainable Investment Analyst at Schroders

A new regime in financial policy and market behavior is unfolding and the patterns of the past decade are facing a period of adjustment. Schroders Asset Management believes this new regime will be driven by several themes, including decarbonization, deglobalization and demographic change. In today’s Episode Three of this Schroders and SFP series we’re going to zero in on the impact deglobalization and demographic change are having on sustainability-focused investment strategies. Our guests from Schroders include Angus Bauer, Head of Sustainable Investment Research and Lazaro Tiant, Sustainable Investment Analyst. Let's begin by identifying Schroders’ sustainability considerations related to deglobalization and demographic change.

A new study, released today by Cornell University’s Global Labor Institute (GLI) and Schroders, reveals extreme heat and flooding are threatening key apparel production hubs. See the attachments tab for the link.

September 17, 2023 | EP. 232

The Journey To Smart Mobility Creates Investment Impact

Tonderai Leonel Njowera, Certified Expert in Sustainable Finance & Founder at Mosi Partners
Tonderai Leonel Njowera, Certified Expert in Sustainable Finance & Founder at Mosi Partners

Motivated by a lack of adequate and safe mobility systems and the potential of smart mobility to drastically reduce carbon emissions in emerging markets, Tonderai Njowera has embarked on a journey to catalyze investments in renewable energy and smart mobility in the South African and other emerging markets. Tonderai is a certified expert in sustainable finance as well as a civil and water engineer. He recently founded Mosi Partners, an ESG Consultant to private equity, family offices, microfinance institutions and mid-market companies in Africa. The SFP is excited to feature Tonderai’s story for our growing global audience.

September 10, 2023 | EP. 231

Leadership in Sustainability Joins the C-Suite

Chrissa Pagitsas, Author, ESG & Sustainability & Gloria Mirrione, ED and Head of Sustainable Finance, Acre Americas
Chrissa Pagitsas, Author, ESG & Sustainability & Gloria Mirrione, ED and Head of Sustainable Finance, Acre Americas

Chrissa Pagitsas has been a leader in sustainable finance industry and product development for twenty years. She launched the Fannie Mae Green Financing Business which, under her leadership, issued over $51 billion in Green Bonds, becoming the largest issuer globally. Chrissa is a trusted board member to non-profit and for-profit companies and a sought-after speaker on catalyzing business transformation through ESG, sustainability and green financing. Our second guest for this Acre sponsored Episode 4 is Gloria Mirrione of Acre Americas. We’ll begin this episode with a discussion of leadership, drawing on Chrissa’s recently published and best-selling book, Chief Sustainability Officers at Work and Gloria’s recent appointment as Executive Director and Head of Sustainable Finance & Impact Investing for Acre Americas.

See the BrightTalk Attachments tab for more details on "Chief Sustainability Officers at Work".

September 3, 2023 | EP. 230

Why VCs Should Require Startups to Track ESG Metrics

Elizabeth Meyer, Chief Legal Officer, Novata and Rosalind Bazany, Partner and Head of ESG and Impact at Antler
Elizabeth Meyer, Chief Legal Officer, Novata and Rosalind Bazany, Partner and Head of ESG and Impact at Antler

Why should VC firms require the entrepreneurs they fund to track ESG metrics from day one and for the long-term? We’re excited to bring you Part 2 of our series with Novata, the platform built to empower private companies and investors to collect, analyze and report relevant ESG data. Our guests are Elizabeth Meyer, Chief Legal Officer at Novata and Rosalind Bazany, Partner and Head of ESG and Impact at Antler, the VC/PE firm that launches and scales high potential startups across six continents.

Open the BrightTalk Attachments tab of this episode for links to Novata's 2022 Sustainability Report and other Novata and Antler publications on the value-add to private market companies intent on leading the way in ESG data measurement, reporting and verificaiton.

August 20, 2023 | EP. 229

US Treasuries Blacklisted by German State ESG Law

Arnim Emrich, Head of Treasury, the Federal State of Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany
Arnim Emrich, Head of Treasury, the Federal State of Baden Wurttemberg, Germany

Today we’re going to learn why the German federal state of Baden-Wurttemberg passed a law on sustainable investing that blacklisted US Treasury Bonds as a portfolio holding. My SFP guest is Arnim Emrich, head of treasury in Baden-Wurttemberg. Emrich and his team manage 35Billion Euros of capital market debt and the state’s 10Billion Euros sovereign fund for future pension obligations. They also launched the state’s green bond programme in 2021 and Emrich has authored a law on sustainable investing defining a common standard for any state entity investing in stocks, bonds or other financial instruments.

August 13, 2023 | EP. 228

Creating the Nyx – A Reusable Space Vehicle

Helene Huby, Co-Founder & CEO at The Exploration Company
Helene Huby, Co-Founder & CEO at The Exploration Company

My first conversation with Helene Huby, Co-founder and CEO at The Exploration Company, was “out of this world.” Huby’s company is creating a reusable space vehicle with amazing possibilities. The Nyx will be modular, reusable and in-orbit refuellable, carrying cargo and, in the longer run, humans. The first prototype will launch in 2024, and Huby plans to be servicing the international space station by 2027. In today’s program, Huby joins me to share her journey to develop, manufacture and operate Nyx sustainably, with the goal of democratizing space exploration.

August 6, 2023 | EP. 227

Investing in Water Propels Prosperity & Climate Resilience

Paul O’Connell, President of WaterEquity and Gloria Mirrione, Head of Sustainable Finance & Impact Investing, Acre Americas
Paul O’Connell, President of WaterEquity and Gloria Mirrione, Head of Sustainable Finance & Impact Investing, Acre Americas

Building a global capital market that accelerates universal access to safe water and sanitation is WaterEquity’s mission and is at the core of global sustainable development. In addition to being a key determinant of improved health outcomes, gender equality and resilience to climate change, it is also a driver of overall economic growth. I’m very pleased to have Paul O’Connell, President of WaterEquity and Gloria Mirrione, Head of Sustainable Finance & Impact Investing, Acre Americas as my guests for this episode of the Sustainable Finance Podcast (SFP). They are joining me to discuss how WaterEquity is using the capital markets to tackle UNSDG #6, ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.

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Welcome!

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­­Join Paul as he interviews sustainable finance experts from top companies and global organizations like Schroders, FTSE Russell, Gitterman Wealth Management, Engine No. 1, FINTECH.TV, and the LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group).

Listen to thought leaders like Mindy Lubber, CEO & President at Ceres; Sam Adams, CEO at Vert Asset Management and co-author of Your Essential Guide to Sustainable Investing; and Asha Mehta, Founder, Managing Partner & CIO at Global Delta Capital and author of Power of Capital.

Paul regularly consults with RIAs on ESG marketing and advisor education. He has written for Investments and Wealth Monitor and Financial Advisor magazine, and co-convened the 2021 and 2022 ESG Practice Playbook Course for the RIA Channel, and the 2018 and 2019 Sustainable Investing Conferences at the United Nations.

 

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