ESG Decoded Podcast

ESG Decoded, Episode #1 “The Genesis of the ESG Decoded Podcast” Welcome to ESG Decoded, the podcast powered by Climeco to share relevant updates related to business innovation and sustainability in a manner that is clear and actionable. Kaitlyn Allen  and Amanda Hsieh guide thoughtful, nuanced conversations with industry leaders and subject matter experts that explore the complexities about the risks and opportunities connected to ESG. In this episode, Kaitlyn and Amanda share why started the podcast and what’s in store for listeners.  They are experts in this space, and excited to share their knowledge and resources with other business leaders. You do not have to be an ESG guru to appreciate the topics discussed on ESG Decoded. Novices are welcome, as this podcast unpacks seemingly difficult topics into easily digestible modules. Stay tuned for future topics, including: *ESG Investing Trends *Decarbonization – Risks & Opportunities *Circular Economy *Evolution of Corporate Social Responsibility and Stakeholder Capitalism *Climate Action from the Business Point of View (Capital Markets, Commercial) Subscribe to ESG Decoded where you consume your podcasts and connect via social media to share your feedback and topic suggestions. Enjoy this episode

ESG Decoded is the podcast powered by Global Affairs Associates, a ClimeCo company, to share relevant updates related to business innovation and sustainability in a manner that is clear and actionable. In this episode, Kaitlyn Allen talks with Bill Davis, founder of Stance Capital. The firm was established in 2016 to bring to market investment portfolios that mitigate material environmental, social, and governance risks and generate excess returns, while at the same time allowing investors to align their portfolios with their belief systems. Bill has a BA from Connecticut College, and he has taught or been a guest lecturer at Columbia University, Harvard College & Harvard Business School, MIT & MIT Sloan, and Vanderbilt University. Bill also serves on the boards of Ceres and the Children’s Environmental Literacy Foundation. For context, in the early 2010’s, asset management firms with “ESG” products really were not in the business of portfolio construction; they were more activist shareholders, using investment fees to pay for future activism. Bill knew there was a better way to align investments with values and generate alpha through rigorous portfolio construction, which led to the establishment of Stance Capital. Listen as Kaitlyn and Bill clarify some common ESG-related terms including: ESG investing vs. impact investing, and greenwashing. They also remind us that the genesis for intentional focus on ESG data gathering started with voluntary CSR reports filed by companies.  (At present, the vast majority of S&P 500 companies are now preparing these filings.)  Bill and Kaitlyn also cover the three key elements of portfolio construction, coupled with the importance of having industry-specific comparisons and measurements. As a point of what we hope is inspiration to our listeners, Bill’s road to this innovation within sustainability stemmed from an epiphany at a transfer station in Winchester, Massachusetts. Another reminder, that amazing things happen for people, business, industries, and society when we dare to lean into seemingly wild ideas! Be sure to check out the resource boosts for this episode: ·  Stance’s Investment Performance Summary | Stance Capital ·  Stance Equity ESG Large Cap Core ETF (stancefunds.com) ·  ESG ETFs, Sustainable Investments | Stance Capital ·  Children's Environmental Literacy Foundation - Children's Environmental Literacy Foundation (celfeducation.org) ·  Ceres Subscribe to ESG Decoded where you consume your podcasts and connect via social media to share your feedback and topic suggestions. Enjoy this episode!

ESG Decoded is the podcast powered by Global Affairs Associates, a ClimeCo company, to share relevant updates related to business innovation and sustainability in a manner that is clear and actionable. In this episode, Kaitlyn Allen talks with Didem Cataloglu, CEO of DIREXYON, a high-tech company specializing in advanced financial modelling tools. Didem brings strong technology and customer centricity to the DIREXYON team as the company looks to rapidly expand. She joined DIREXYON in 2020 as Chief Revenue Officer prior to her appointment of CEO in December 2020. As CEO, Cataloglu oversees a sales and marketing team, delivers exceptional customer experiences, and manages the company's global expansion. Before DIREXYON Technologies, Didem was vice president of global services for Nakisa, a provider of enterprise solutions for organizational design and lease management. Didem holds a BSc in Computer Science from University of Ottawa and an MBA in Management and Information Technology from Bayes Business School. Listen as Kaitlyn and Didem discuss how more advanced financial modeling solutions are empowering leaders in asset intensive organizations (i.e., utilities, transportation, and infrastructure) to make better decisions, with sustainability efforts top of mind. These evolving financial models better equip leaders to establish appropriate long-range goals. They also ‘shout out’ the “three D’s” - decarbonization, digitalization and decentralization - and remind us of the integral roles these concepts will play in financial decisions moving forward. Considerations on how to decarbonize over the next few decades will be focused on integrated processes and automation of decentralized operations, as well as increasingly sophisticated analytics to predict disruptions before they occur. All of this information, and a couple of acronyms to review:  NPV (net present value) and DER (distributed energy resources). On a fun note, Kaitlyn and Didem discuss their shared love for the Turkish culture. Kaitlyn studied in Turkey and reveals some of her language skills. They also talk about some of their favorite Turkish cuisine. If you are hungry while listening to this episode, they may actually give you inspiration for your next meal.  Iskender kebap, anyone? Resource boosts for this episode include: ·  Direxyon Technologies ·  Institute of Asset Management IAM - Home (theiam.org) Subscribe to ESG Decoded where you consume your podcasts and connect via social media to share your feedback and topic suggestions. Enjoy this episode!

ESG Decoded is the podcast powered by Global Affairs Associates, a ClimeCo company to share relevant updates related to business innovation and sustainability in a manner that is clear and actionable. In this episode, Kaitlyn Allen talks with Ryan Calvert, Head of ESG Strategy & Implementation at Kairos Aerospace. Kairos builds instruments that pull data from the physical world and refine it into data products. The company’s hardware and software, attached to Cessna airplanes, focuses on the largest methane leaks in oil and gas operations.  Ryan has had an exciting career in the ESG space with focus in social enterprise, venture capital, and due diligence/governance.  Previously, Ryan was a researcher for NBC Sports and had a financial operations role with the New York Yankees baseball team.  He is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, and holds two degrees from Stanford University. Listen as Kaitlyn and Ryan discuss the origins of Kairos Aerospace and the uniqueness of its technology.  They highlight the importance of the quantification of methane emissions and fixing leaks that the human eye cannot see. Because methane is one of the most potent greenhouse gases, it’s critical to reduce methane in order to reach net zero. We also learn how Cessna airplanes play a key role in Kairos’ work. Kaitlyn also engages Ryan on his personal adventures. Check out ESG Decoded at the link below and let us know your feedback in the comments. Enjoy this episode! https://open.spotify.com/episode/6f64OzGZmBSwJSE6gEAbjr?si=c75217292b444160[LB1]

ESG Decoded is the podcast powered by Global Affairs Associates, a ClimeCo company to share relevant updates related to business innovation and sustainability in a manner that is clear and actionable. In this episode, Kaitlyn Allen talks with Chris Parker, Director of the Plastics Program at ClimeCo.  Chris joined ClimeCo in 2021 with 20+ years of experience in energy and commodity markets, sustainability, conservation, and ESG. He leads ClimeCo’s plastic market program, which partners with projects worldwide to recover and recycle plastic waste. This program expands financing mechanisms to scale the transition to a closed-loop economy while providing companies with ESG & CSR solutions that support ecosystem restoration. Before joining ClimeCo, Chris consulted and led projects in both the corporate and environmental non-profit sectors to create business solutions for a sustainable economy. Chris holds a Bachelor of Science in Corporate Finance & Investment Management from the University of Alabama. Plastic credits are an exciting new environmental commodity meant to clean up oceans!  Plastic credits allow companies to offset their plastic footprint as they represent the recovery and recycling of one ton of plastic material, which can be transferred between companies and organizations. Through ClimeCo Green, individuals can even purchase their own plastic credits to offset their household’s plastic use.  Listen as Kaitlyn and Chris talk about the projects and certifications supporting plastic currency, the positive social co-benefits for communities, and why this should matter to companies and investors. This may be a new topic for even the most season ESG professional, so there are several resource boosts for this episode: --Verra - https://verra.org/ --Ocean bound plastics certification by Zero Plastic Oceans - Certifications for Oceans' Protection - Ocean Bound Plastic Certification (obpcert.org) --TonToTon – Vietnam plastic credits project TONTOTON - Neutralize Plastic Footprint, ONE TON AT A TIME ! --ClimeCo Green – offset your own plastic footprint ClimeCo Green - Carbon offsets | Carbon footprint | Carbon calculator When Chris takes a break from being a true thought leader and innovator in the ESG space, he enjoys his time at home in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, with his wife, two daughters, and two rescue dogs. He also practices Kendo and looks forward to free time spent surfing, climbing, fishing, and playing chess. Subscribe to ESG Decoded where you consume your podcasts and connect via social media to share your feedback and topic suggestions. Enjoy this episode!

ESG Decoded is the podcast powered by Global Affairs Associates, a ClimeCo company to share relevant updates related to business innovation and sustainability in a manner that is clear and actionable. In this episode, Amanda Hsieh talks with Ben Metz, Executive Director of The Chancery Lane Project (TCLP) which is working to rewire contractual law to fight climate change. Prior to TCLP, Ben was a founding member of Big Lottery Funds Community Recycling and Economic Development, Director for Ashoka in the UK, and a multi-faceted consultant in the ESG space.  Ben is energized by assisting people to create systems and networks that enable them to shape the world around them for the better. Listen as Amanda and Ben discuss the origins of TCLP, its mission and its work. TCLP is a collaborative effort of legal professionals from across the globe whose vision is a world where every contract enables solutions to climate change. They create new, practical contractual clauses ready to incorporate into law firm precedents and commercial agreements to deliver climate solutions. TCLP then works with lawyers to ensure effective and impactful implementation of the clauses, across industries, practice areas and jurisdictions.  Once you hear more about the work, you will want to get involved! Resource boosts for this episode: Toolkit | The Chancery Lane Project Net Zero Toolkit Clauses (which enable lawyers to align their work with a decarbonized economy) Salesforce & Practical Law US  (case studies of TCLP’s work with international companies) Subscribe to ESG Decoded where you consume your podcasts and connect via social media to share your feedback and topic suggestions. Enjoy this episode!

In this episode, Amanda Hsieh talks with Ian Van Der Vlugt, VP of Product & Research for Datamaran, a software analytics platform that monitors external ESG risks in real-time and brings a data-driven business process for materiality analysis.  Ian manages product development, working with internal and external stakeholders to deliver the greatest product value for clients. He also oversees the creation of product-related data, content, and research.  Before joining Datamaran, Ian was the head of the data team at CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project), managing the organization's data cleaning and modeling work and associated projects, primarily through a climate change lens. He also previously worked at the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), growing its Sustainability Disclosure Database, and bridging technical and content work. In the space of ESG reporting, policy and technology, things are evolving quickly. From remote sensing, to blockchain, to AI, there is a lot to know…but ESG Decoded has you covered! Listen as Amanda and Ian review the concept of materiality from an ESG perspective and discuss how AI is improving the materiality assessment process and increasing efficiencies related to disclosures and reporting. As with other ESG/Sustainability topics, the views on these issues may vary based on the region of the world. As a resource boost for this episode, it was recently announced that  Deloitte & Touche SpA is also using Datamaran to expand their research and analytics capabilities in conducting assurance of sustainability disclosure by providing evidence-based insights. Subscribe to ESG Decoded where you consume your podcasts and connect via social media to share your feedback and topic suggestions. Enjoy this episode!

ESG Decoded is the podcast powered by Global Affairs Associates, a ClimeCo company to share relevant updates related to business innovation and sustainability in a manner that is clear and actionable.  In this episode, Amanda Hsieh talks with Fariyal Khanbabi, Dialight Group CEO & Chairman of Dialight Foundation.   Dialight is the world leader in LED industrial lighting technology (listed on the London Stock Exchange) with millions of LED fixtures installed worldwide. It launched its first LED product 51 years ago and continues to innovate in LED lighting technology. Fariyal is the 2020 winner of Silver Stevie® Award in the Woman of the Year – Manufacturing category. Prior to Dialight, she held the positions of Chief Financial Officer for Blue Ocean Group Ltd. and Chief Financial Officer at Britannia Bulk Holdings, Inc., and Chief Financial Officer at Britannia Bulk Plc (a subsidiary of Britannia Bulk Holdings, Inc.). Fariyal received an undergraduate degree from the University of Leeds. Listen as Amanda and Fariyal discuss how Dialight is helping its customers meet their environmental and safety goals by focusing on fully recyclable products and lighting designs that reduce pollution. We are reminded of ‘other’ benefits of sustainability: 1) how it can increase employee engagement and strengthen company culture and 2) it can be a driver in meeting company financial goals. They also discuss a topic that has received increasing airplay in the past few years, gender-balanced boards. Unlike many other companies, Dialight did not just talk about gender-balanced boards, they took action! This topic is important for men and women.  While women are navigating the path to leadership opportunities, men need to know how to show up as allies on the journey. We want to engage with you about this episode. Share your best practices related to gender-balanced boards. We still have a lot of ground to cover.   As a resource boost, learn more about Dialight Foundation which is dedicated to transforming the lives of people in need in the communities around Dialight facilities, with a focus on children and youth, providing them with the resources to become beacons of light. http://www.dialight.com/dialight-foundation/ Subscribe to ESG Decoded where you consume your podcasts and connect via social media to share your feedback and topic suggestions. Enjoy this episode!

In this episode, Kaitlyn Allen talks with Erica Lasdon, Senior  Director, Capital Markets for ClimeCo.   Erica joined ClimeCo in 2021 after serving as a Senior Consultant with Global Affairs Associates, LLC. A seasoned ESG professional bringing over 20 years of experience from the investment and non-profit sectors, she specializes in ESG integration, materiality analysis, investment trends, and engagement strategy. Erica has deep expertise in multi-stakeholder engagement, proxy voting, and ESG data analysis and management across a wide range of asset classes. She served on the development team for the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board’s Level II exam for the inaugural FSA credential, the Steering Committee for the Intentional Endowments Network, and as an Advisory Committee Member for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Culture of Health for Business framework. Erica earned a B.S. in Biology and a B.A. in History from the University of California, San Diego. She loves skiing, exploring new places, and any activity involving excellent food. The topic of ESG has come a long way in a short period of time. Establishing an actionable ESG strategy has evolved from a nice-to-have to a business imperative. While this process may appear to be a complicated undertaking, listen as Kaitlyn and Erica provide guidance on how to approach this strategic development exercise...which may be a great way to start the new year.  Erica lends her expertise on areas of focus for planning, frameworks and benchmarks to consider for impact measurement, and the connective tissue between ESG strategy and other corporate strategies.  There is also discussion on ‘green finance’ which are financial instruments created for a better environmental outcome.  We hope that this episode will decode the complexities related to ESG strategic planning and serve as a helpful resource for key stakeholders for these short-term and long-term plans. Subscribe to ESG Decoded where you consume your podcasts and connect via social media to share your feedback and topic suggestions. Enjoy this episode!

In this episode, Kaitlyn Allen talks with Jason Roe.  Jason is CEO & President of EcoVapor Recovery Systems, a company dedicated to helping industries improve their environmental and financial sustainability with innovative technology. Prior to joining EcoVapor, Jason was CEO of Avitas, a Baker Hughes venture focused on emissions monitoring and detection strategies enabled through robotics, AI, and digital techniques.  Before that, he served as President and Chief Executive Officer of XACT Downhole Telemetry. Jason received his B.S. in Finance from the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Flaring and venting of natural gas during oil and gas production operations results in the release of methane, one of the most potent greenhouse gases. Sometimes, flaring is necessary for safety, such as to prevent blowouts. But routine flaring is problematic for a few reasons: harmful releases of methane to the environment, waste of a non-renewable resource, and loss of revenue. Companies are looking for ways to reduce or eliminate routine flaring, as is prescribed by the World Economic Forum, to reduce the impact of methane releases to the environment, reduce scope 1 emissions, and sell instead of waste a product that currently heats homes and powers stoves.     Listen as Kaitlyn and Jason discuss Ecovapor’s technology which helps oil and gas companies to reduce their Scope 1 emissions (direct emissions from company-controlled resources).  Their conversation also touches on: That natural gas is still a fuel source in the International Energy Agency (IEA) Sustainable Development Scenario, so we need to make it operationally carbon neutral. Shared technology from the oil field across other forms of energy  Renewable natural gas How carbon reduction goals can go hand in hand with poverty reduction goals.  The information shared in this episode is solutions-focused with the intention to educate on how we can all make the most impact, especially as we enter in the new year.  Resource Boost: --Ecovapor Recovery Systems - ecovaporrs.com --International Energy Agency Sustainable Development Scenario – https://www.iea.org/reports/world-energy-model/sustainable-development-scenario- sds --Goldman Sachs Carbonomics Report: https://www.goldmansachs.com/insights/pages/gs-research/carbonomics-f/ report.pdf Thanks to everyone who connected to ESG Decoded this year! It’s been a great year and we look forward to all that is to come in 2022.  Subscribe to ESG Decoded where you consume your podcasts and connect via social media to share your feedback and topic suggestions. Enjoy this episode!