ESG in VC

Welcome to the latest episode of the ESG in VC podcast where we are joined by Bill Liao . Bill Liao is a Chinese-Australian-Irish entrepreneur, investor, diplomat, business mentor, author, passionate leader and speaker, with a distinguished record in business development and community activism. Co-founder of the CoderDojo movement and of Weforest, his career in tech and business encompasses two unicorn companies and launching the world’s first bio-tech accelerator, RebelBio. He is a general partner of SOSV, a venture capital fund in excess of $1B, and founder of the SOSV Momentum Pre-accelerator program. Bill’s current focus is Quantum Software.Together with Bill, we tried to identify the most important tools for creating a more sustainable future. We also discussed if ESG needs to be disentangled, can we rely on grit and determination to enable social lifts. We also delved a little bit into what effect the macro economic environment has on climate tech investing. Guest: Bill LiaoFollow us: LinkedinTwitter InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email  oksana@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the latest episode of the ESG in VC podcast where we are joined by Eleanor Kaye. Eleanor built her career in operations, holding roles at MoneySuperMarket and Palantir before joining the Newton Venture Program. Initially taking up the role of Head of Operations, Eleanor was quickly promoted to Executive Director and now leads the team at Newton, which is a joint venture between London Business School and LocalGlobe VC. Launched in 2020, their mission is to make careers in venture capital more accessible and ensure the next generation of investors represents the world that we live in. They do this through bespoke training and development programmes to help people from overlooked and underestimated backgrounds break into venture capital, or for those already in the space to accelerate their careers.Together with Eleanor, we discussed how ESG is taught during the Newton programme, how blind hiring improves the hiring process. This is an honest conversation about the venture capital industry's diversity and inclusion challenges. Guest: Eleanor KayeFollow us: LinkedinTwitter InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email  oksana@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the latest episode of the ESG in VC podcast where we are joined by Eric Rubenstein. Eric is Managing Partner at New Climate Ventures or NCV, a US based fund launched to tackle climate change with a holistic approach. NCV invests in innovative early-stage startups broadly across the carbon reduction and avoidance ecosystems. NCV launched in October 2021, and has invested in companies that span the areas of climate tech, recycling, alternative materials, and food tech, among other emissions avoiding technologies. Prior to founding New Climate Ventures, Eric held investment, fundamental strategy, and trading roles at Citigroup and Louis Dreyfus in their commodities and energy trading divisions respectively. A psychology major with a focus on behavioural neuroscience, Eric graduated from Yale University.Together with Eric, we discussed what is missing in the venture ecosystem to help expedite climate change innovation and how he thinks about about the side effects when making investments and much more. Guest: Eric Rubenstein  Follow us: LinkedinTwitter InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email oksana@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the latest episode of the ESG in VC podcast where we are joined by Victoria Ferguson. Victoria is a Partner and General Counsel at MMC Ventures, one of the most active investors in early-stage tech in Europe. She is an experienced venture capital lawyer, leading the legal work on MMC’s investments, following-on funding and exits. She also leads the firm’s ESG work, including its efforts as a B Corp. Victoria was previously at the law firm Jones Day, where she was an associate in the Business Restructuring and Reorganisation practice, Victoria has an LLB Law from King’s College London and trained and initially practised at Simmons & Simmons in London and Tokyo.Together with Victoria, we discussed what it means to be a B Corp and why MMC has chosen to become a B Corp certified fund. We have also touched on some flaws with B Corp certification and also how they are addressing those. Victoria also shared how MMC is trying to improve its ESG practices. Guest: Victoria Ferguson Follow us: LinkedinTwitter InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email  oksana@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the latest episode of the ESG in VC podcast where we are joined by Bertie Crawley. Bertie is the co-founder and Managing Partner of UNTITLED, an early stage venture fund based in the UK which has backed companies like Fabric Nano, Hide Biotech and Mytos. They are also an investor in venture funds. Prior to this he co-founded Zulu Forest Sciences - an applied science and asset management group focused on financing nature-based carbon offset programmes - and was a Partner at Zulu Group, an investment business focused on high impact start-ups. Together with Bertie, we discussed if ESG leads to value creation at the fund and portfolio level and if ‘ESG’ can be an investment strategy for fund managers to consider. We also tried to tackle a big question that many raised over the course of last year - if ESG should be disentangled as having three big problems mixed up in one is a hard ask and much more. Guest: Bertie CrawleyFollow us: LinkedinTwitter InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email oksana@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the latest episode of the ESG in VC podcast where we are joined by Matt Ward.Matt is a Partner and Syndicate Investor Lead of 4WARD.VC's early stage climate syndicate, he is also the host of The Startup Tank Climate Investor Pitch Show. Since graduating from Georgia Tech with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, Matt spent the last 10 years in technology, startups and venture capital. Matt’s built and exited multiple ecommerce and media companies.Together with Matt, we discussed what are the key differences between traditional venture investing and investing in climate tech and can we use ‘climate economics’ as we have been using unit economics to evaluate companies. We also spoke about ESG frameworks and about Matt’s views about it and which sectors within climate tech Matt finds exciting.Guest: Matt WardFollow us:LinkedinTwitterInstagram  Please do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email oksana@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the latest episode of the ESG in VC podcast where we are joined by Kate Mullord.Kate joined 4impact, an early stage fund investing in tech4good startups, as Partner in 2021, bringing over 20 years of experience in corporate strategy, tech scale-up and private equity, as well as endless enthusiasm for understanding new business models and meeting entrepreneurs. Prior to 4impact, Kate held senior roles at fintech scale-up Jumo World, which provides microloans to the unbanked in emerging markets. Other roles include senior positions at Woolworths Holdings Ltd (South Africa), London-based private equity firm Duke Street, Goldman Sachs and UBS.Together with Kate, we discuss 4impact’s investment strategy while being an Article 9 fund. We also touch on what VCs can do to align performance with impact and why 4impact have not yet invested in any of impact measurement tools launched in the last 18 months. Kate also shared which sectors within climate tech that are on 4impact’s radar at the moment.Guest: Kate MullordFollow us:LinkedinTwitterInstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email oksana@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the latest episode of the ESG in VC podcast where we are joined by Anna Pellicer.Anna is an early-stage VC investor at Abac Capital, a Barcelona-based Private Equity & VC fund investing to improve the sustainability performance of its portfolio companies. She also holds the SASB FSA credential which studies the link between sustainability and financial performance.Together with Anna, we discuss what investing with impact means and that investors are in the privileged position to force change. We also explore how a VC investor can integrate ESG & impact management practices in a way that adds value to entrepreneurs.Guest: Anna PellicerFollow us:● Linkedin● Twitter● InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email oksana@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the latest episode of the ESG in VC podcast where I’m joined by Inês Rocha.Inês is an Investment Manager at Norrsken, an impact VC fund. Prior to Norrsken VC, Inês worked in private equity at Hellman & Friedman in London and as a management consultant at Bain & Company in Iberia and the Middle East, focusing on software investments.Together with Inês, we talk about a selection process at the impact venture fund and if it is possible to measure materiality and impact of startups thar are tackling various SDGs. We also discuss how the market opportunity is increasing for impact investing and this will continue even if experience an economic downturn.Guests: Inês RochaFollow us:LinkedinTwitterInstagram Please do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email me at oksana@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the latest episode of the ESG in VC podcast where I’m joined by Bo Ilsoe and Monica Johnson.Bo is a Managing Partner at NGP Capital. he has developed NGP Capital from initial commitments of $25M to more than $1.6B investing across 3 continents. A technologist at heart, he believes in the positive transformative effects technology has on society and always comes with a global view of the business.Monica is the Operating Partner and Chief Financial Officer of NGP Capital. Prior to joining NCP, Monica was the CFO of CafePress, where she led the financial, accounting and legal functions during the company’s growth from $30 million to $250 million in revenues as well as through its IPO.Together with Bo and Monica, we discuss why sustainability pays (more on this in the recent report that NGP have published after reviewing more than 2,000 startups to understand the impact of the growing ESG focus as well as what is the funding journey of the SDG-focused stratups). We also touched on the current feelings around ESG and if it is truly easier to care about ESG during bull market, but much harder when things are not as rosy.Guests: Bo Ilsoe and Monica JohnsonFollow us:LinkedinTwitterInstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email me at oksana@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the latest episode of the ESG in VC podcast where I’m joined by Hannah Leach and Johannes Lenhard.Hannah is a Partner at Houghton Street Ventures, a new venture firm backing companies founded by students and alumni of the London School of Economics. She is also a co-founder of a global industry-wide non-profit initiative, VentureESG, whose aim is to help the VC sector recognise the importance of ESG and to provide resources and guidance to make ESG a standard part of diligence, portfolio management and fund management.Johannes is an ethnographer of venture capital and homelessness and currently teaching and researching at the University of Cambridge. Having worked towards a better understanding of survival practices of homeless people in London and Paris for his PhD, he has spent the last four years researching the ethics of venture capital investors interviewing 200+ VC General Partners.Together with Johannes and Hannah, we discuss if VCs have time to be good, what factors are contributing to VC’s persistent lack of diversity, especially at the senior ranks and what levers are out there that can help us to scrutinize VCs and much more.Guest: Hannah Leach and Johannes LenhardFollow us:· Linkedin· Twitter· InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email me at oksana@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to ESG in VC podcast. Join me and Lubomila Jordanova in this latest episode.Lubomila is the co-founder and CEO of Plan A, a Berlin-based company developing an end-to-end platform that manages and improves carbon and ESG performance for businesses. She is also the co-founder of the Greentech Alliance, a community of over a thousand startups which are connected to over 500 advisors.Together with Lubomila, we discuss who are Plan A’s customers and who they engage the most from the client side, what challenges do they face internally within their respective organisations. We also explore what are the unintended consequences of ESG frameworks and how we can unify to conquer current challenges.Guest: Lubomila JordanovaFollow us:· Linkedin· Twitter· InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email me at oksana@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to ESG in VC podcast. Join me and Ben Knight in this latest episode.Ben is Head of Environmental Sustainability at fintech company GoCardless, a global payment company with more than 70k customers. He previously worked at space-telecoms start-up OneWeb and was assessing the environmental impact of the space sector.Together with Ben, we discuss how an organisation can have an external impact and influence Its customers to implement various ESG initiatives. Ben also shares if GoCardless had to make any substantial change within their organisation (for example using new tools or changing team structure) to deliver on their ESG and sustainability strategy.Guest: Ben KnightFollow us:· Linkedin· Twitter· InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email me at oksana.stowe@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to ESG in VC podcast. Join me and Henry Philipson in this latest episode.Henry leads marketing and communications for Beringea in the UK and he is also a co-founder of ESG_VC, an industry initiative to help portfolio companies improve their ESG performance.Together with Henry, we discuss how ESG_VC have started and now has 150 firms across UK and Europe trying to build tools and consistent frameworks to use in venture industry, which is based on National Social Value (TOMs) framework. We also dive a bit deeper into how many funds have adopted ESG principles fully and the process they went through and why it is imporant to start as soon as possible.Guest: Henry PhilipsonFollow us:· Linkedin· Twitter· InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email me at oksana.stowe@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to ESG in VC podcast. Join me and Merit Valdsalu in this latest episode.Merit is the CEO & Co-Founder of Single.Earth, a startup tokenizing the world’s nature to save it. She was one of the early employees at Pipedrive as the Head of Localization.In this conversation, we explore how with the help of technology we can turn the existing model of rewarding land owners by paying them for essentially depleting the earth into a model where they are incentivized to nurture bio-diversity. We also briefly touch on Singe.Earth recent funding journey and what they are doing internally to be ESG conscious.Guest: Merit ValdsaluFollow us:· Linkedin· Twitter· InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email me at oksana.stowe@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to ESG in VC podcast. Join me and Tracy Barba in this latest episode.Tracy is currently the Head of ESG at 500 Startups, one of the most active global early-stage VCs. She has been a true ESG leader dedicating her career to be at the forefront of the social and environmental initiatives within private equity and venture capital firms, as well as family offices, and angel investor networks.We discuss when is the right time to start thinking about ESG practices for early stage businesses and what are the main barriers to increase the industry wide adoption of ESG within the venture community.Guest: Tracy BarbaFollow us:· Linkedin· Twitter· InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email me at oksana.stowe@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to ESG in VC podcast. Today we have Alexander Rhodes joining us.Alexander is Head of Mishcon Purpose, Mishcon de Reya's dedicated sustainability business. He works with a variety of clients and helps them navigate the rapidly changing commercial, legal and regulatory environments that underpin the sector.In this conversation, we talk about what ‘purpose’ really means and what role legal frameworks will play in the adoption of ESG in the business community. “Fundamentally the transition that we're looking at, towards ESG, if we articulate it like that is to do with a change in expectations, expectations of the public, expectations of capital providers, expectations of the model.”Guest: Alexander RhodesFollow us:· Linkedin· Twitter· InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email me at oksana.stowe@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to ESG in VC podcast. It is great to have Simon Mundy with us.Simon is currently a Moral Money editor at FT (Financial Times). He began his reporting career in Johannesburg, where he covered Southern Africa for the FT before a period writing on the London financial sector. He then spent seven years in Asia, heading the FT bureaux in Seoul and Mumbai and then two years travelling across six continents while writing a book called, Race for Tomorrow.Simon spared a moment between following the flow of money to chat to me about Moral Money history and how he joined the team. We also spoke about his book, Race for Tomorrow, and how storytelling makes it ever more real about all the current challenges we face as a society. And this is “why when we think about ESG, we do have to think about these issues in the broadest possible sense. Cause it ultimately comes down to the lives of individual people all over the world.”Guest: Simon MundyFollow us:· Linkedin· Twitter· InstagramPlease do not forget to rate and review and to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email me at oksana.stowe@esg-in.vc. You can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to ESG in VC podcast. Join me and Marc Lepere in this first episode of many more to come.Mark is currently researching the link between crisis and ESG at King's college. He is also a fellow of the higher education academy and also serves as a visiting lecture at Wharton business.Listen in as Oksana and Marc talk about what drove him to dedicate his current full time career to ESG and why as some studies show, most of the VC backed companies are slower to become more responsible over time. Marc also shares some of his thoughts on why ESG emerged as the most recognised framework so far despite a myriad of other attempts to draw attention to these issues and what are the risks associated with ESG and automation.Guest: Marc LepereFollow us:· Linkedin· Twitter· InstagramAnd to get in touch with the host, Oksana Stowe, email me at oksana.stowe@esg-in.vc and you can also subscribe to the ESG in VC Insights Newsletter for insights and updates here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is an introductory episode explaining what will be covered and the goals for this podcast "ESG in VC". Thank you very much everyone for considering to listen to this podcast. There are over a million podcast out there and I am grateful for your time and hope that it will be of service to anyone who is interested in this topic.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.