PRI Digital Forum:

Sustainability Outcomes

Meet our speakers

Jake Barnett, Director of Sustainable Investment Stewardship, Wespath

Jake joined Wespath in January 2020. As the director of Sustainable Investment Stewardship (SIS) for Wespath and its subsidiaries’ investment programs, Jake leads Wespath’s shareholder advocacy and engagement efforts. Specifically, the SIS team focuses on engagement efforts that align with the values of The United Methodist Church and support the transition to a sustainable global economy.

Previously Jake was an institutional consultant at Morgan Stanley’s Graystone Consulting where he focused on engagement with faith-based and impact-oriented institutional investors. Jake co-chairs the Catholic Impact Investing Collaborative, serves on the Climate Crisis Leadership Group for the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) and serves on the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) Stewardship Advisory Committee. Jake received his bachelor’s degree in Economics, International Studies and Political Science from Ohio Wesleyan University. He also holds the Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA) designation.

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Michela Gregory, Director, Environmental, Social and Governance Services, NEI Investments

Michela Gregory is Director, Environmental, Social and Governance Services at NEI Investments. She is actively involved in NEI’s corporate engagement work and spearheads dialogues with companies across a number of sectors including tech, consumer staples, consumer discretionary and pharmaceuticals.

Prior to joining NEI, Michela was based in Ghana with an impact investor focused on early-stage investment in sub-Saharan Africa. She is a lawyer by trade, and practiced plaintiff-side class actions law in Canada across various legal issues including: securities litigation, product liability, consumer protection and price fixing issues. Michela holds a B.A. in Honours Business Administration from the Ivey Business School and a J.D. from Osgoode Hall Law School.

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Robert Lewenson, Governance and Engagement Manager, Old Mutual Investment Group

Robert joined the Old Mutual Investment Group Responsible Investment team in October 2014, as a Governance and Engagement Manager. He is responsible for proxy voting and engagement, representing Old Mutual Investment Group on various industry bodies and championing responsible investment for the OM group.

Robert’s legal and corporate governance background enables him to bring his knowledge of law and negotiation skills to the fore in promoting clients’ interests. Prior to joining the Responsible Investment team, he was a legal advisor at Old Mutual Investment Group for seven years. Robert has fourteen years of work experience in the legal profession and asset management industry. He holds a BBusSci LLB (UCT) and is an Attorney of the High Court.

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Susheela Peres da Costa, Head of Advisory, Regnan

Susheela has advised domestic and international financial institutions on responsible investment since 2006. She was instrumental in the development of Regnan’s research products, stewardship strategies and advisory programs, and has led or overseen much of this work in her previous roles.   

As Head of Advisory, she has supported some of the world’s largest institutions to achieve strategic and commercial objectives, including an upgrade in stewardship strategy for the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment and a global leadership position in sustainable investment for a global full-service bank based in Zurich.

Susheela chairs the Responsible Investment Association of Australasia and  is a director of the US-based not-for-profit, The Shareholder Commons. She is special adviser to the co-chair of the Australian Sustainable Finance Initiative.  ​

She holds a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) from the University of Sydney, a Master’s Degree in Communication Management and is a licenced Certified Investment Management Analyst professional.​

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Rosie Farr, Stewardship Analyst, PRI

Rosie Farr is a stewardship analyst at the PRI. She is responsible for coordinating collaborative engagements through the Climate Action 100+ initiative, working with a particular focus on companies within the Food and Beverage sector. She also works closely on investor voting practices and tools to support investors through AGM season, and recently launched a publicly accessible database of ESG-related shareholder resolutions.

Prior to working at the PRI, Rosie worked at Cape Town-based consultancy EBS Advisory where she focused on building research to ascertain the impact of investment proposals.

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Chloe Horne, Stewardship Analyst, PRI

Chloe Horne is a stewardship analyst at the PRI. She is responsible for coordinating PRI-led collaborative engagements, supports the PRI’s Active Ownership 2.0 and has recently produced guidance on investors’ approach to shareholder resolutions. 

Prior to working at the PRI, Chloe worked for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) where she focused on bridging the gap between sustainability issues and the FCA’s role as the financial regulator.

Chloe has a BSc in Economics and a MSc in Corporate Governance and Business Ethics.

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Dean Alborough, Head of ESG, Old Mutual Alternative Investments

Dean is the Head of ESG at Old Mutual Alternative Investments (OMAI), the largest private alternative investment manager in Africa with over R60 billion in assets under management. Dean is responsible for ensuring the implementation of all OMAI’s ESG practices, including Impact Investing activities throughout the investment lifecycle, and managing ESG systems and performance of OMAI’s assets.

Since joining OMAI in 2015, Dean has played an active role in the integration of ESG practices into OMAI’s investment decision-making, managing ESG risks and unlocking opportunities across the portfolios.

His experience includes work in the power (renewables and thermal), oil and gas, mining, transport, ports and logistics, ICT, retail, manufacturing, property, medical and financial services sectors, undertaking a full range of integrated environmental management processes.

Dean has been a Non-Executive Director for Cookhouse Wind Farm, Umoya Wind Farm and REISA Solar PV Farm in South Africa, Chair of these Social and Ethics Committees, and a member of other ESG board subcommittees throughout Africa.

He holds an MSc in Environmental Science, a BSc Honours in Integrated Environmental Management from the University of Cape Town, has completed courses in Data Science and is a Registered Principal Natural Scientist (PrSciNat).

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Karine Hirn, Partner & Co-founder, East Capital Group

Karine Hirn is a partner and co-founder of East Capital Group, as well as Chief Sustainability Officer. Founded in Sweden in 1997, East Capital Group is an independent asset management group that comprises several strategies and specialisations to offer active management solutions in equities, bonds and real estate assets with a clear ESG framework and manages a total of USD 5.5 billion for a broad range of international investors. Established in Sweden in 1997, East Capital has expanded its reach from being a pioneer investor in Eastern Europe, and one of the largest investors in this region, to offering global emerging and frontier market strategies. The firm also offers innovative products in the field of sustainable investing, such as East Capital Global Emerging Markets Sustainable. Karine is the vice Chair of the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, Board Director of the European Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, an advisor to Northeastern University Center for Emerging Markets and a French Trade Advisor. 

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Peter Dunbar, Senior Specialist, Investment Practices, PRI

Peter Dunbar is a Private Equity Senior Specialist within the PRI’s Investment Practices team. Peter has 20 years’ experience in the asset management industry, and before joining PRI, was a Senior Manager in the private markets team of Capital Group for over a decade. He has significant in-house experience including; ESG, investor relations and fundraising, and operations.  

Peter holds a BSc in Human and Physical Geography from Reading University in the UK. He is also a CFA charterholder.

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Stéphane Bacquaert, Managing Partner for North and West Africa, Adenia Partners

Stéphane joined Adenia Partners in 2019 as Managing Partner for North and West Africa and member of the Board. Stéphane sits at Adenia IC where he is in charge of ESG & Impact. He was previously Managing Director and CEO of Wendel Africa. He led the investment strategy of Wendel in Africa where the group invested over USD$1bn since 2013. Stéphane was previously a Partner at Atlas Venture, an international venture capital fund with USD$2.5bn under management. 

He began his career at Bain & Company where he conducted studies in the telecom, banking and private equity industry in Europe and Central America. Stéphane graduated from the Ecole Centrale Paris and Sciences Po Paris and holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School (Baker Scholar). 

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Joy Perry, Managing Director and Investment Director, Wellington Management

As an investment director in Investment Product & Fund Strategies, Joy works closely with investors in her coverage to help ensure the integrity of their respective investment approaches. This includes meeting regularly with the team and overseeing portfolio positioning, performance, and risk exposures, as well as developing new products and client solutions and managing business issues such as capacity, fees, and guidelines. She also meets with clients, prospects, and consultants to communicate our investment philosophy, strategy, positioning, and performance.

Prior to joining Wellington Management in 2011, Joy spent four years at Cambridge Associates (2005 – 2009), most recently as an associate consultant within the Marketable Research Group. 

Joy earned her MBA from the University of Virginia (Darden, 2011) and her BA in economics and French cultural studies from Wellesley College (2005).

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Kaori Shigiya, Senior Specialist, SDGs, PRI

Kaori gained a BSc in Economics and Accounting before qualifying as a lawyer. She worked on corporate finance transactions at Norton Rose and Linklaters in Moscow, Prague, London and Tokyo. Kaori studied an MBA at INSEAD, after which she worked for Lehman Brothers, then Nomura. She completed postgraduate certificates in Sustainable Business from Cambridge University, and in Impact Investing from Middlebury Institute and went on to work at Oxfam as a Financial Sector Policy Advisor. Kaori is now Senior Specialist, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). 

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Marcus Bruns, Nordic Head of Sustainability, Storebrand

Marcus is the Nordic Head of Sustainability at Storebrand, Norway’s largest private asset manager. He has a broad area of responsibility, covering work with national and international sustainability networks, strategy, sustainability mapping in procurement, sustainability reporting as well as chairing Storebrand’s Green Bond Committee.

Marcus leads Storebrand’s work in the Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance, where he co-leads the sector target working group. He is also a member of the Expert Advisory Group within the finance industry for the Science Based Target initiative. 

Prior to joining Storebrand, Marcus was a co-founder and CEO of Young Sustainable Impact, a global not-for-profit organisation that helps young entrepreneurs build impact start-ups. He is educated in economics and entrepreneurship and has experience from management consulting.

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Nili Gilbert, Chair, Investment Committee, David Rockefeller Fund

As a Senior Advisor at BCG Nili Gilbert is a member of Principal Investors & Private Equity and Sustainable Investing teams. She has been recruited to California Governor Gavin Newsom’s Climate Risk Disclosure Advisory Group and Steering Committee, which will build on California’s climate leadership through state-wide investment and policy initiatives. Nili has also been named U.S. Policy Chairwoman for the U.N.-Convened Asset Owner Alliance, an organization representing $5.6 Trillion in assets, having previously served as a member of the Economic Policy Advisory Committee for the Biden-Harris Campaign. Nili is the co-founder of the Net Zero+ Investment Collaborative, a group formed in recognition of the urgency of the climate problem and the special role that investment will play in addressing it. The collaborative is designing a malleable framework for portfolio decarbonization, and was launched with net zero investment commitments from three founding Rockefeller Family organizations.

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Elke Pfeiffer, Senior Project Manager, UN-convened Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance

Elke is currently seconded from Allianz SE to the UN-Convened Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance working at the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). She leads work across the Alliance, with a focus on Financing Transition, Sectoral Pathways to Net Zero and Recruitment. Prior to this Elke developed for the Allianz Group the infrastructure of the global investment performance measurement and reporting for more than 50 Allianz entities. Elke developed strategic investment targets and performance analysis/assessment alongside other AIM global functions. Other work areas in which she has expertise are asset management, treasury and planning and controlling.

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Udo Riese, Head of Risk & Monitoring, Allianz Investment Management SE

Udo Riese is the Global Head of ESG at Allianz Investment Management (AIM) SE, based in Munich. AIM SE represents the  asset owner responsibilities of Allianz SE’s 800bn proprietary asset portfolio.  Udo  was instrumental in defining and integrating Allianz SE’s  ESG approach into the steering of all asset classes in its global portfolio.

Udo joined the Allianz Group in 2003, first at Allianz Lebensversicherungs AG in Stuttgart, where he was an expert advisor on derivatives and risk topics before moving to AIM in 2007.

Udo graduated with a PhD in Mathematics from the University of Tübingen. Preceding his private sector career in finance, Udo was a University lecturer and published researcher in pure mathematics. 

Udo serves on the board of IIGCC and co-leads the MRV track of the UN-convened Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance.

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Signe Andreasen Lysgaard, Strategic Advisor on Business and Human Rights, Danish Institute for Human Rights

Signe Andreasen Lysgaard is Strategic Advisor on Business and Human Rights at the Danish Institute for Human Rights. The Institute is a State institution independent of the Government and established by law. On the topic of business respect for human rights the Institute works with a variety of actors including states, international organisations, civil society and the private sector. Mrs. Lysgaard has a background in Political Science and more than a decade of experience advising on business and human rights. Today, she serves as the focal point for the Institute’s work on human rights and finance, where she engages in policy developments as well as project level collaborations. Prior to joining the Institute, Mrs. Lysgaard served as a Director and Senior Advisor with the consultancy GLOBAL CSR. Mrs. Lysgaard’s work experience includes projects in food & agriculture, fashion, pharma, tobacco, finance, shipping, oil & gas, renewable energy as well as construction and engineering. Her in-country experience includes work in Kenya, Angola, Bangladesh and Thailand. Mrs. Lysgaard currently serves as an expert advisor on the EU Platform on Sustainable Finance, the OECD Advisory Group on Responsible Business Conduct for the Financial Sector as well as the Dutch Banking Sector Responsible Business Conduct High Level Expert Pool.

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Matthias Narr, Head of International Engagement, Ethos Foundation

Matthias Narr was appointed Head Engagement International in October 2020. He is responsible for the management of the EEP International dialogue programme and Ethos’ international engagement activities. Matthias Narr joined Ethos as a Senior Engagement Specialist in March 2017 and was appointed Senior Engagement Manager in January 2018. Since May 2020, he has been a member of the Stewardship Advisory Committee of the PRI.

Matthias Narr studied Political Science, Economic History and International Law at the University of Zurich and the University of Paris X and holds a Master’s degree in Political Science.

Before joining Ethos, Matthias Narr had been a manager in RobecoSAM’s Sustainability Services, then he worked as an Engagement Specialist in Robeco’s Governance and Active Ownership department in the Netherlands. His engagement activities focused on environmental issues such as climate strategies and environmental management in the energy, utilities, real estate and mining industries.

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Sabrina Ritossa-Fernandez, ESG Analyst, Human Rights, Sycomore AM

Sabrina Ritossa Fernandez joined Sycomore AM in 2018 as an analyst and ESG specialist, where she is charge of Sycomore AM social sustainability strategy. She began her career in 2015 where she worked in the BNP Paribas CSR Corporate and Investment Banking team. She then moved to Allianz Global Investors in 2017 to work on the implementation of Article 173 of the French energy transition law for sustainable green growth. Sabrina holds a Master’s degree in International Management with a specialization in Social Business from the Nova School of Business and Economics and a certificate in Environmental and Social Risk Analysis from UNEP Finance.

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Elise Attal, Head of EU Policy, PRI

Elise Attal is the Head of EU Policy at the UN-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). She joined the PRI in February 2020 and is based in Paris. She leads a team of analysts working on EU regulations and engagement with policy makers. She has more than 10 years’ experience in the fields of sustainable finance, ESG and CSR.

Prior to joining the PRI, Elise worked at ESG data provider Vigeo Eiris, now part of Moody’s, for four years as the Institutional Affairs Manager. Elise also worked as CSR and stakeholder engagement manager for French NGO Comité 21 for four years, Policy Analyst for the British think-tank Green Alliance and Policy Analyst on energy and climate change at the French Embassy in London for two years. Elise holds a MSc in Public Policy from King’s College London and a Master in Public Affairs from Sciences Po Lille.

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Fiona Reynolds, CEO, PRI

Fiona Reynolds is the CEO of the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). The PRI is a U.N. supported organisation, with more than 3,000 signatories who collectively represent over US $100 trillion in Assets Under Management. She is responsible for the PRI’s global operations.  

Appointed at the beginning of 2013, Fiona has 25 years’ experience in the financial services and pension sector. She joined the PRI from the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST), where she spent seven years as the CEO.  

Fiona also serves on the Board of the U.N. Global Compact, as the Chair of the Financial Services Commission into Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking (The Liechtenstein initiative) and is now a member of the Finance Against Slavery and Trafficking (FAST) Global Steering Committee. Fiona is also a member of the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC), the Global Advisory Council on Stranded Assets at Oxford University, the Advisory Board for the Green Investment Principles for the Belt and Road, the Global Steering Committee for the Investor Agenda on Climate Action and the Steering Committee for Climate Action 100+ which is the largest ever investor engagement with listed companies.   

Fiona was named by Barron’s magazine as one of the 20 most influential people in sustainability globally and has twice been named by the Australian Financial Review (AFR) as one of Australia’s one hundred women of influence for her work in financial services and responsible investment.

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Steve Waygood, Chief Responsible Investment Officer, Aviva Investors

Steve chairs the ESG Senior Leadership Team at Aviva Investors, and is a member of the CIO Investment Committee. Steve founded Aviva Investors’ Sustainable Finance Centre for Excellence. This Centre seeks to transform capital markets so that they support long term sustainable development. He also co-founded the Corporate Human Rights Benchmark, the World Benchmarking Alliance, the UN Sustainable Stock Exchange Initiative and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Coalition. He was also part of the group that helped write the Principles for Responsible Investment.

Steve was appointed to the European Commission High-Level Expert Group on Sustainable Finance, and the UK Green Finance Taskforce, and is also a member of the Financial Stability Board Taskforce on Climate Related Financial Disclosure (TCFD).  

Steve started his career at the World Wide Fund for Nature in 1995, where he chaired the business and industry core group and oversaw the ethical investment policy. He also served on the board of the UK Sustainable Investment & Finance association (UKSIF) from 2003 to 2010, serving as its Chairman from 2006. 

Steve has a PhD in Sustainable Finance from the University of Surrey. He is an Honorary Senior Visiting Fellow at City’s Business School, and also teaches at the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership. His work became a case study in the Harvard Business School MBA in 2012.  

Steve has been nominated by the Financial Times as one of their ‘warriors of climate change’. He has received awards from Brummell, the Chamber of Commerce, the City of London, Financial News, the United Nations Foundation, Yale and Harvard. He has also spoken at the World Economic Forum, Columbia University, the London School of Economics, the Singapore Exchange and 10 Downing Street. 

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Georgia Stewart, Co-Founder and CEO, Tumelo;

Georgia is CEO of Tumelo, a platform designed to engage members with the companies in their pension and to collect preferences on shareholder issues that members care about. Georgia studied Natural Sciences at Cambridge; has experience from across the sustainable investment sector including equity investment analysis at Jupiter, clean tech venture capital at IP Group and Business & Bio-diversity projects at Fauna and Flora International. She now runs a Bristol-based, financial technology start-up with a mission to help all investors contribute to and benefit from a more sustainable investment system.

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