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Agenda

IEN is proud to partner with Second Nature as a Major Strategic Partner to advance impact and sustainability in higher education through the 2025 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit. Learn more about IEN sessions at the Summit below.

Sunday

1:00 - 4:00pm: Endowment Sustainability Lab

The Endowment Sustainability Lab is a dynamic and collaborative space designed for a diverse audience, particularly leaders from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), smaller schools, and equity-oriented partners and supporters. This session connects the dots between financial decision-making, social change, and the success of sustainability initiatives in higher education. Participants will explore how colleges and universities—particularly those with a focus on equity, resilience, and climate action—can leverage endowment strategies to advance equity, grow institutional resilience, and support bold climate action to help institutions navigate priorities and challenges, ensuring long-term impact and success. If you need financial support to attend, please contact Paris Prince: [email protected]

 

2:30 - 4:30pm: IEN Steering Committee Meeting 

This is a private convening for IEN's Steering Committee members, consisting of organizational updates & strategic planning.

Monday

9:30 - 10:30am: Climate Leadership Through the Endowment Impact Benchmark (EIB)

IEN has developed the Endowment Impact Benchmark (EIB) -- an assessment and rating system on sustainable and impact investing for endowments and foundations. The EIB provides a third-party verified rating, customized feedback for improvement, and the opportunity to benchmark progress against peers. Over the past 18 months, 15 endowments have completed the EIB process. In this session, representatives from these institutions will share their experience, the benefits of participation, and how the EIB has the potential to dramatically accelerate climate action and enhance higher ed's climate leadership. The session will provide practical information for all stakeholders, including presidents, senior administrators, investment teams, sustainability teams, and others.

Akasha Absher - Co-President & Head of Impact Investing, Syntrinsic LLC

Jeff Mindlin - CIO, ASU Enterprise Partners

Kristi Petrie - Co-Executive Director, AJL Foundation

Pedro Henriques da Silva - Director of Shifting Trillions, Sierra Club Foundation

 

11am - 12pm: Building Collaborative Partnership Between Sustainability Staff & Endowment Teams: Bridging the Gap to Advance Institutional Sustainability 

Engaging endowments on climate and sustainability can both enhance financial performance and deliver outsized positive impact, dramatically enhancing an institution's climate leadership. However, endowment governance is often complex and sensitive, making it challenging for already over-stretched sustainability teams to navigate how best to engage this critical component of the institution. In this session, attendees will gain a better understanding of the reasons for the gap that often exists between endowment offices and sustainability offices, how to engage endowment decisions-makers, and examples of how teams can collaborate to align endowment investing with institutional climate and sustainability goals, in ways that protect endowment capital and enhance long-term financial performance. All Summit attendees (endowment staff, sustainability office staff, advancement staff) are welcome to join.

Carter Strickland - Chief Sustainability Officer, SUNY

Delicia Nahman - Sustainability Director, Lafayette College

Jeff Mindlin - CIO, ASU Enterprise Partners

 

1:45pm - 2:45pm: Net Zero Endowment Portfolios: How to Advance a Just Transition

Panelists of this session will dive into the tools, challenges, and critical components of making and implementing Net Zero Portfolio commitments for the endowments. The 'financed emissions' associated with endowment investing are a form of Scope 3 emissions for the institution, typically dwarfing Scope 1 and 2 sources. Net Zero Portfolio commitments are a feasible, high-leverage way to dramatically enhance institutional climate leadership, while also positioning the portfolio for long-term financial success. Attendees will walk away with practical insights on how Net Zero Portfolio commitments can contribute to a just transition, action-oriented guidance from IEN's Net Zero Endowments Roadmap, and the importance of centering climate justice in this work. The session will be geared toward all stakeholder groups represented at the Summit (trustees, presidents, endowment staff, sustainability teams, advancement teams, faculty, students, etc.)

Brian Minns - Managing Director, Responsible Investing, University Pension Plans (UPP)

Julianne Zimmerman - Co-CEO, Adasina Social Capital

Tim Coffin - Sustainability Director, Breckinridge Capital Advisors

Tim Dunn - CIO, Founder & Managing Member

 

3pm - 4pm: IEN Sustainable Investing Open Networking Session

Tuesday

11:15am - 12:30pm: Next Level Roundtable Conversations

Marina Severinovsky - Head of Sustainability, US, Schroders

"Scaling Impact: The Pivotal Role of Listed Equities": With a multi-trillion dollar annual SDG funding gap, significantly more capital needs to be allocated towards tackling the world’s most pressing challenges. Public equities present an opportunity to broaden the impact market. But this expansion also presents risks of impact and SDG-washing, underscoring the importance of integrity. At this roundtable, attendees will define "Impact Principles" and how these apply in practice in listed equities, opening pathways that help deliver positive impact and competitive financial returns.  

Scott Ryan - CEO & Founder, Investature

“Intentional Retirement Plans for Both Impact and Employee Wellness”: Retirement plan AUM (assets under management) are at comparable magnitudes to endowments, but often overlooked by university stakeholders. Join a discussion about how offering sustainable investments and differentiated investment education can accelerate university impact goals and increase employee retention. The “financial supply chain” is by far the largest indirect (aka, Scope 3) emission for universities.

Rachel Curley - Director of Policy, US SIF

"What the New Administration and Congress Mean for Sustainable Investment": Sustainable investment has been in the political crosshairs in Washington in recent years, and a new administration and Congress raise questions about what is next for the political attacks on the industry. Join this conversation to tune out the noise and focus on what policies will likely be affected, what policymakers’ priorities are, and where to focus beyond the federal landscape. We’ll cover the SEC, key committees in Congress, and the states – with a particular focus on California’s climate risk disclosure laws.

 

1:45 - 2:45pm: Roadmap to a Mission-Aligned Endowment

IEN's Roadmap for Intentionally Designed Endowments provides a conceptual framework with seven steps for endowments to advance mission-aligned, sustainable investing, including the critical element of climate action. This session will provide an overview of the Roadmap, and explore key steps, including building consensus, engaging stakeholder groups, and the important role of the Investment Policy Statement (IPS) in this process. Panelists will share practical advice relevant to both endowment decision-makers (trustees, investment teams), as well as Sustainability Directors and other key stakeholders.

Lucas Shoeppner - Manager, Sustainable Investment Stewardship, Wespath Benefits & Investments

Mary Cahill - CEO & CIO, Acansa Investment Management

Randy Strickland - Director, Client Portfolio Manager, Westfuller Advisors

Christine Kelleher - Managing Director, Client Portfolio Team, Strategic Investment Group

 

 

View this agenda for more information on Summit programming, including workshops, sessions, and receptions.

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