Inevitable

Ep. 183: Nancy Pfund, Founder and Managing Partner at DBL Partners

Nov 15, 2021

Nancy Pfund, Founder and Managing Partner at DBL Partners, discusses double bottom line investing, advice for founders in climate tech, and the importance of prioritizing actions in the transition to a sustainable economy. She also explores past investments in renewable energy and electric vehicles, their approach to investing in fossil fuels, and the value of building networks and collaboration for impactful change.

59:38

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Nancy Pfund

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Quick takeaways

DBL Partners focuses on investing in innovative companies that deliver strong financial returns while driving social, economic, and environmental improvement.

DBL acknowledges the mistakes of CleanTech 1.0 but sees the current wave of clean technology innovation as more promising due to advancements in technology, market dynamics, and public sentiment towards sustainability.

DBL emphasizes the need for better metrics, pricing mechanisms for carbon, and collaborations to drive meaningful change in reducing the carbon footprint.

Deep dives

DBL Partners' Mission and Investment Strategy

DBL Partners is a double bottom line venture capital firm that aims to invest in innovative companies that deliver strong financial returns while driving social, economic, and environmental improvement. With a focus on sustainability, DBL has invested in sectors like solar, wind, energy storage, and agriculture. The firm emphasizes the importance of measuring impact using metrics and believes that impact investing is better investing, leveraging the power of markets and innovation to address critical social and environmental issues.

Introduction

3min

Exploring New Investments in Climate Tech and Advice for Founders

2min

Investing in Sustainable Innovation

16min

Prioritizing Actions in the Transition to a Sustainable Economy

7min

Investments in Renewable Energy and Electric Vehicles

14min

Investing in Fossil Fuels: Collaboration and Alternative Solutions

14min

Engaging with Impact: Building Networks and Collaboration

4min

Today's guest is Nancy Pfund, Founder and Managing Partner at DBL Partners.

DBL Partners is a venture capital firm whose goal is to combine top-tier financial returns with meaningful social, economic, and environmental returns in the regions and sectors in which it invests. The firm focuses on cleantech, information technology, sustainability products and services, and healthcare.

Nancy is the Founder and Managing Partner at DBL Partners. Before founding DBL, Nancy was a Managing Director in Venture Capital at JPMorgan. She started her investment career at Hambrecht & Quist in 1984. Nancy has also worked at Intel Corporation, the State of California, Stanford University, and the Sierra Club. She sponsors or sits on the board of directors of several companies, including Farmers Business Network, Andela, The Muse, Zola Electric, Bellwether Coffee, Spatial, and, before their public offerings, Tesla and Pandora. In September 2020, Nancy was named to the FORBES 2020 Impact 50 List of the most notable impact investors, was featured in the 2014 FORTUNE Inaugural World's Top 25 Eco-Innovators, and appeared on Fast Company's 2016 List of Most Creative People in Business.

I was looking forward to sitting down with Nancy. She explains DBL Partners, why the "double bottom line" is vital to the firm's success, and what led her to focus on climate change. Nancy also shares what she learned from cleantech 1.0, how climate investing has evolved over the past two decades, and the sectors DBL focuses on. In addition, we have a lively discussion on carbon removal, nuclear energy, and the role fossil fuels play in the clean future. Nancy is a fantastic guest.

Enjoy the show!

You can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at info@myclimatejourney.co, where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests.

Episode recorded October 20th, 2021

For more information about DBL Partners, visit: https://www.dbl.vc/

For more information about this episode, visit: https://myclimatejourney.co/episodes/nancy-pfund

Stay Connected with MCJ:

Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.

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Inevitable

Ep. 183: Nancy Pfund, Founder and Managing Partner at DBL Partners

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

DBL Partners' Mission and Investment Strategy

Challenges and Opportunities in Impact Investing

Lessons from CleanTech 1.0 and the Importance of Persistence

Role of Carbon Offsets and Future Policy in Climate Solutions

DBL's Optimism and Call for Collaboration

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Inevitable

Ep. 183: Nancy Pfund, Founder and Managing Partner at DBL Partners

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

DBL Partners' Mission and Investment Strategy

Challenges and Opportunities in Impact Investing

Lessons from CleanTech 1.0 and the Importance of Persistence

Role of Carbon Offsets and Future Policy in Climate Solutions

DBL's Optimism and Call for Collaboration

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