Tuesday, April 20th at 12pm ET   

This webinar will be led by FFI Solutions. 

The transition from fossil fuels to clean energy is critical for society to mitigate the worst effects of climate change. Technological, economic and policy trends will accelerate this transition, heightening risks and creating opportunities for institutional investors. While endowments continue to evaluate and implement fossil fuel divestment strategies, we are beginning to see more nuanced approaches to account for the risks relating to the decarbonization of the energy and transportation sectors. And while investment into clean energy is increasing, the amount of investment required to put the world on a path to net-zero emissions future is far in excess of the amount of capital currently being deployed. The energy transition presents opportunities for endowments to align their portfolios with their mission and to reposition portfolios for this significant economic shift. 

This 60-minute webinar featuring a panel of industry research experts, will focus on the energy transition with a look at the state of the fossil fuel and clean energy sectors, and the steps investors might consider to effectively re-align their portfolios. Following the presentation, participants will be provided ample time to ask questions.

In this informative and dynamic session, participants will get an overview of the Energy Transition. Speakers will address the:

• Current status of fossil fuels, with a specific look at coal, and oil and gas
• Clean energy opportunities, focusing on today’s emerging technologies 
• Action steps for investors to consider in aligning portfolios with the risks and opportunities presented by the energy transition 

The webinar will feature a presentation and open dialogue, providing ample time for Q&A on a major theme in today’s investment marketplace.

Recording:

Resources:

• Presentation slides (download as PDF)

Speakers:

Moderator:

Christopher Ito, CEO of FFI Advisors, Board member of FFI Holdings

Chris is CEO and CIO of FFI Advisors responsible for conceiving and managing the FFI Energy Transition Strategies, a family of thematic strategies that provide investors with exposure to the structural shift currently occurring in the global economy. He draws upon 30 years of experience in the financial services and asset management industry. Previously, Chris served as Head of Portfolio Management at UBP Asset Management, a large fund of hedge funds firm, and spent 15 years at Deloitte, where he was a partner and national leader of the firm’s institutional investment consulting practice. Chris holds a B.S. in Accounting from The Ohio State University and currently Co-chairs the Advisory Board at the University’s Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center.

Speakers:

Lynn Connolly is Director of Research at FFI Solutions

Lynn is Director of Research at FFI Solutions where she manages fossil fuel reserves research and the development of The Carbon Underground 200 family of rankings, as well as research for the structuring of indexes and strategies. She also specializes in identifying market trends, companies and projects and their associated climate and/or environmental impact benefits. In addition, Lynn designs analytical models and processes related to the energy transition, climate change mitigation and adaptation investing strategies. Recently, Lynn co-authored a paper “The Missing Link: How A Distributed Ledger System Can Support Global Climate Action” and participated in the UNEP Finance Initiative and Greenhouse Gas Protocol Technical Working Group. Lynn holds a B.S. in Economics from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Henrik Jeppesen, Head of Investor Outreach, North America at Carbon Tracker

Henrik joined Carbon Tracker in 2017 and is responsible for broadening the distribution and usage of Carbon Tracker’s proprietary research and helping institutional investors better understand carbon and stranded asset risk. He has more than 20 years of experience in the energy and financial services sectors both as a buyside portfolio manager and sell-side research analyst and investment sales roles with leading Scandinavian investment banks. Henrik holds a M.Sc. in Finance and Accounting and a B.Sc. in Economics and Business Administration from Copenhagen Business School. He is also a Chartered Financial Analyst.

 Ron Pernick, Founder and Managing Director of Clean Edge

As Founder and Managing Director of Clean Edge, Ron oversees the development and production of Clean Edge’s thematic stock indexes tracking clean energy, transportation, water and the grid. As of February 2021, financial products tracking the firms’ energy-transition and sustainable-infrastructure indexes exceed $4 billion in assets under management. Ron is the co-author of two books on clean-tech business and innovation, Clean Tech Nation (HarperCollins, 2012) and The Clean Tech Revolution (HarperCollins, 2007). He holds a BA from Michigan State University, including a year of international studies at Konan University in Kobe, Japan. 

 Michael Palmieri, CEO of FFI Solutions

Mike is the CEO of FFI Solutions and as part of the firm’s founding team, he led the development of The Carbon Underground 200™ (CU200) exclusionary screening services and the associated Fossil Free US Index based on the S&P 500 ex-CU200. Mike brings to FFI, extensive energy markets news gathering and price dissemination knowledge earned at Reuters, experience that is helping to spearhead the development of a series of solutions that will help investors manage the energy transition to more sustainable and impact investing strategies. Mike holds a B.S. in Geology from The Ohio State University.

Date: May 5, 2021, 1-2pm ET

Our world is facing the greatest environmental challenges in human history that will disproportionately impact vulnerable and marginalized groups. These challenges provide significant long-term investment opportunities. This panel on climate solutions will address the challenges, but more importantly the investment opportunities presented by climate change, clean water access, air pollution and pandemics - and why doing so is essential for improving social equity and racial justice.

This panel of experts includes public and private equity investment professionals focused on environmental investing for positive social impact, as well as impact consultants supporting asset owners in investing for a stable climate. 

Panelists will address the catalysts for action, the opportunities present in thematic investing, impact management, as well as investment objectives and processes.

It is time to move the needle from climate risk assessment to investing for climate action.

Recording:

Resources:

• Webinar Slides (open/download as PDF)
• Net Zero Asset Owners Alliance slide deck (PDF)
• Diversity VC
• Greening the Brown Space
• Papers from Cambridge Associates: 
  • Sustainable and Impact Investing 2020: Insights and Perspectives
  • Pathways to Sustainable Investing: Insights from Families and Peers
  • Risks and Opportunities From the Changing Climate: Playbook for the Truly Long-Term Investor
  • Cleantech Company Performance Statistics
  • The Materiality of Sustainability for Investors
  • A Summary of Climate Change Science for Investors

Panelists: 

• Elke Pfeiffer, Senior Project Manager at the UN-convened Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance, PRI 
• Temple Fennell, Clean Energy Ventures 
• Liqian Ma, Cambridge Associates
• Bill Page, Essex Investment Management 

Date:  June 29th, 2017

In this webinar, Fran Seegull, Executive Director at the U.S. Impact Investing Alliance at The Ford Foundation, Allison Spector, Senior Manager of Investors' Council & Membership Programming at The Global Impact Investing Network, and Shawn Wischmeier, CIO of Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies, will offer an introduction to impact investing for institutional investors.

 Panelists:

• Fran Seegull, Executive Director, U.S. Impact Investing Alliance, Ford Foundation  

• Allison Spector, Senior Manager, Investors' Council & Membership Programming, Global Impact Investing Network

• Shawn Wischmeier, CIO of Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies

• Georges Dyer (Moderator), Principal, Intentional Endowments Network

Webinar: Sustainable Investing through Hedge Funds 

Date: March 9, 2017, 1:00 - 2:00 PM ET

ESG and sustainable investing strategies have historically been less prevalent in hedge funds than other areas of investment.  However, the same benefits apply to hedge funds that employ these strategies. In fact, because of their ability to sell short, hedge funds can benefit not only from investing long in winning companies, but also from shorting companies on the losing end of the shift to sustainable business models or companies with high levels of ESG risk.  In this webinar, we will discuss five key areas of focus including:

• Sustainable themes, such as renewable energy and global healthcare solutions, are focused on areas of the equity market with significant stock dispersion, making them excellent areas for long/short investing with strong potential for alpha generation.
• There are growing areas of opportunity in sustainable credit strategies, such as expanding access to credit to underserved segments of the population, funding for hospitals and schools, and community development through small business lending.
• A multi-manager portfolio, integrating multiple sustainability approaches, provides important diversification and risk mitigation benefits to maximize risk-adjusted returns, particularly given the high volatility of certain sustainable sectors such as renewable energy.
• Avoiding investments in carbon-related energy companies that are part of The Carbon Underground 200 avoids risks associated with potentially stranded assets and reduces climate change-related tail risks.
• Active ownership through oversight and corporate engagement can achieve positive outcomes.

For additional information, please also see the Alternative Investments White Paper, ESG and Sustainable Hedge Fund Investing: Observations. 

Webinar:  Transitioning to Integrating Investment Practices with Program Mission

Date:  10/19 at 1:00-2:00pm EST

Co-hosted by the Intentional Endowments Network (IEN) and the Network for Sustainable Financial Markets (SFM), this webinar will provide an overview of processes used by the Heron Foundation and Hampshire College to develop investment policies and implement management practices that align investments with their respective institutional missions.

Panelists:  

Webinar:  Investing in Clean Energy for Campuses and Endowments

Date:  12/13 at 1:30-2:30pm EST

Co-hosted by the Intentional Endowments Network (IEN) and the Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA), this webinar will provide an overview of the Intentional Endowments Network's (IEN) new report titled “Investing in Clean Energy: Campuses and Endowments” which was designed to encourage conversation about the financial and societal benefits of clean energy investments higher education can make – both as a customer and an institutional investor through their endowments.

Panelists:  

• John Chaimanis, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Kendall Sustainable Infrastructure
• Nick Hylla, Executive Director, Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA)
• Ken Locklin, Managing Director, Impax Asset Management
• Chris O'Brien, Director, Altenex

Clean energy investment includes everything from stable, capital-intensive, commercially viable infrastructure options to early stage startup ventures, and each carries its own risk and reward profile. As each investment strategy requires differing resources and timeframes, consulting with investment advisors and industry experts is the best way to determine which strategy is most suitable for any individual campus’ needs. There is no barrier to these clean energy investment strategies that cannot be addressed, and participating in peer-to-peer dialogue and forming strategic partnerships is a great way to start finding solutions.  This webinar will explore the current opportunities and barriers to such investments.

This report was developed by and in consultation with members of IEN's Clean Energy Working Group.

 Clean Energy Working Group Members:

• Chris O'Brien (Chair), Director of Higher Education Programs, Altenex; Lecturer and former Director of Sustainability, American University
• John Chaimanis, Managing Director, Kendall Sustainable Infrastructure
• Daniel Dixon, Director, Office of Sustainability, University of Maine
• Kevin Brennan, Principal, Equilibrium Capital
• Alex Bernhardt, Head of Responsible Investment, US Mercer
• Jenny Heeter, Senior Energy Analyst, NREL
• Bracken Hendricks, CEO, Urban Ingenuity 
• Nick Hylla, Executive Director, Midwest Renewable Energy Association
• Ken Locklin, Director, Impax Asset Management
• Michele Madia, Director of Education and Partnerships, Second Nature
• Erik Melang, ‎Senior Managing Director, Clean Energy Advisors
• Mark Orlowski, Executive Director, Sustainable Endowments Institute
• Liesel Schwarz, Sustainability Director, Villanova University 
• Dave Wallace, Managing Director, Investments, Pomona College

Contributing Authors: 

• Georges Dyer, Principal, Intentional Endowments Network 
• Nicole Harman, Program Associate, Intentional Endowments Network
• Jacqui Smith, Senior Fellow, Intentional Endowments Network 
• Yingjie Wang, Intern, Intentional Endowments Network and Student, Yale University

Interview Subjects for Campus Snapshots:

• Gerry DaRosa: Director of Energy Innovation, Arizona State University
• Ryan Ihrke: Director of Sustainability, Green Mountain College 
• Amy Jaffe, Senior Advisor at UC Regents and Executive Director, Energy and Sustainability at UC Davis
• Jim Martin-Schramm, Professor of Religion, Luther College 
• Julie Paquette, Director of Energy Management at Yale University, Office of Facilities
• Cindy Pollock Shea: Sustainability Director, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill 

Webinar:  Carbon and Investment Implications for Fiduciaries

This webinar (from September 27, 2016) provides an interactive discussion with Commonfund experts, Jess Gaspar and Ethan Levine, revealing insights from the extensive research they have done over the past two years into how best to address the challenges of low carbon investing across both public and private markets. Commonfund’s research shows that the risks and opportunities are very real, and may be more urgent than many investors believe.

Panelists: