The Future of Finance Podcast

The Intentional Endowments Network's 2026 Virtual Forum convenes June 2–4, bringing together institutional investors, legal scholars, climate strategists, and asset management practitioners for three days of structured dialogue on system-level investing, fiduciary duty, and long-term capital markets reform. Register using code IENGUEST at https://www.intentionalendowments.org/2026_virtual_forum In this preview episode, IEN Executive Director Georges Dyer walks through the full agenda — offering context on why each session was designed and who it's for. Key themes across the three-day forum: System-level investing frameworks and the newly published Handbook of System-Level Investing, featuring co-editors John McCormick and Bill Burkhart Fiduciary duty in the context of climate and ESG — legal perspectives from Keith Johnson and Susan Gary Climate solutions and portfolio alignment, including sessions with Project Drawdown, Climate Interactive, and Cambridge University's fossil-free cash fund case study Responsible AI, diversity in asset management, and the role of consultants in sustainable investing   The forum runs June 2–4, 12:00–2:30 PM Eastern daily. Registration and full agenda available at intentionalendowments.org.

Akasha Absher, Co-President at Syntrinsic — an institutional advisory firm managing approximately $3 billion for foundations, endowments, and nonprofits — offers a rare inside view into how investment consultants evaluate mission-aligned managers, advise fiduciaries on portfolio construction, and help clients navigate the tension between financial objectives and long-term systemic risk. As OCIOs and consultants become central to how institutional capital is allocated, Absher's perspective bridges the gap between investment theory and on-the-ground practice.   Key themes covered in this episode: Manager Due Diligence & Mission Alignment — How consultants evaluate ESG and impact managers beyond labels, including the role of intentionality, measurement, and outcomes across asset classes Fiduciary Duty Redefined — Why aligning investments with institutional mission is not in conflict with fiduciary responsibility — and how boards can reframe the performance conversation Systems-Level Investing in Practice — How endowments and foundations are beginning to address systemic risks (climate, inequality, AI disruption) through capital allocation, stewardship, and coalition engagement Emerging Managers & Access to Capital — The structural barriers new and diverse managers face and what asset owners can do to responsibly catalyze emerging strategies This conversation is essential for investment committees, OCIOs, and institutional advisors seeking a grounded, practitioner-level perspective on sustainable portfolio construction. – Resources: Impact Management Project framework - https://impactfrontiers.org/norms/ Endowment Impact Benchmark - https://endowmentimpactbenchmark.org/ Winners Take All by Anand Giridharadas -https://share.google/jze1kMR1TpXmVJsBo Syntrinsic - https://www.syntrinsic.com – General Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction & IEN 2026 Virtual Forum Announcement 02:30 About Syntrinsic: Firm Overview and Client Base 05:30 Akasha's Path from Wall Street to Institutional Consulting 10:15 Mission-Aligned Investing: Client Adoption and Common Concerns 16:00 Navigating the Financial Performance Question 22:10 Manager Due Diligence: Evaluating ESG and Impact Strategies 29:45 Asset Class Differences: Public vs. Private Markets for Impact 36:20 Systems-Level Investing and Systemic Risk Management 42:00 Emerging Managers and Access to Institutional Capital 48:30 The Endowment Impact Benchmark and Reporting Best Practices 55:10 Rapid Fire: Advice for Institutional Investors and Young Professionals   -   *Disclaimer* The information presented in this episode reflects the views and opinions of the guest and does not constitute investment, legal, or regulatory advice. The Intentional Endowments Network does not endorse any specific products, services, or organizations referenced herein.

Register for IEN's Virtual Forum here: https://www.intentionalendowments.org/2026_virtual_forum Emily Goldstein-McGowan, Vice President and Head of Growth & Venture Capital at Malk Partners, the foremost ESG advisor to private market investors, joins Georges Dyer to examine how institutional asset owners and GPs are navigating the governance, risk, and due diligence dimensions of responsible AI. Drawing on Malk's landmark 2024 quick guide for asset owners (developed with ILPA) and two years of evolving LP-GP conversations, Emily offers a grounded, practitioner-level view of where responsible AI integration stands today and where it is headed. Key themes covered in this episode: How LP questions have shifted from "are you using AI?" to "how are you governing it?" — and what best-practice oversight structures look like at the GP level The five responsible AI risk categories for private market investors (bias, privacy, job displacement, carbon emissions, lack of diversity) and which are gaining urgency AI-native companies vs. AI-adopting portfolio companies: why the diligence framework differs and what LPs should be requiring from GPs during holding periods The regulatory landscape — EU AI Act, U.S. state-level proposals, and why investors should be preparing portfolio companies now, regardless of enforcement timelines The Future of Finance podcast is produced by the Intentional Endowments Network, advancing the alignment of institutional capital with long-term value and systemic resilience. – Resources References: ILPA x Malk Partners: Responsible AI Quick Guide for Asset Owners - https://ilpa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Responsible-AI-Quick-Guide-for-Asset-Owners.pdf ILPA ESG Quick Guide Overviews - https://ilpa.org/resource/esg-quick-guide-overviews/ Malk Partners: Responsible AI in Private Markets - https://malk.com/responsible-ai-in-private-markets-risks-regulations-and-best-practices/ NIST AI Risk Management Framework - https://www.nist.gov/itl/ai-risk-management-framework Partnership on AI (PAI) -  https://partnershiponai.org/ EU AI Act: Official Overview - https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/regulatory-framework-ai Reframe Venture: Responsible AI Due Diligence Toolkit - https://www.reframeventure.com/vcs/ai-dd IEN Responsible AI Investor Hub -  https://intentionalendowments.org Planet Money Podcast (NPR) — https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510289/planet-money – General Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction & Overview of Malk Partners 04:10 Origins of the ILPA Responsible AI Quick Guide 08:30 Five Core AI Risk Categories for Private Market Investors 14:00 The Evolution of LP-GP Conversations on AI Governance 19:45 Best Practices: Oversight Structures, Policies & Training 25:20 AI-Native vs. AI-Adopting Companies: Diligence Differences 31:00 Data Center Environmental Impact & Net Zero Considerations 36:15 AI Regulation: EU AI Act, U.S. State Laws & Investor Preparedness 42:00 Frameworks & Resources for Resource-Constrained Teams 46:30 The Future of Finance: Moving Beyond Labels to Materiality   The Future of Finance podcast is produced by the Intentional Endowments Network, advancing the alignment of institutional capital with long-term value and systemic resilience. The information presented in this episode reflects the views and opinions of the guest and does not constitute investment, legal, or regulatory advice. The Intentional Endowments Network does not endorse any specific products, services, or organizations referenced herein.  

Maurits Dolmans, Senior Counsel at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton and co-author of Sustainable Fiduciary Duty: How Fiduciary Duties Can Be a Key to Escaping the Climate Prisoner's Dilemma (Net Zero Lawyers Alliance, November 2025), joins Georges Dyer on his own behalf to make a precise legal and economic argument: existing fiduciary law already requires institutional investors to address systemic climate risk, and he lays out five concrete principles for how to do it. No new legislation required. For CIOs, pension trustees, endowment leaders, asset managers, and their legal counsel, this conversation reframes the entire climate-and-capital debate as a question of legal duty and long-term financial obligation, not values. Key themes: The Climate Prisoner's Dilemma: Why rational actors keep financing high-emission projects against their own long-term interest, and why fiduciary duties, applied consistently, are the coordination mechanism that breaks the cycle without requiring new regulation or bilateral trust The Economic Evidence: Rebonato's finding of 40% asset devaluation under business-as-usual, the UK Institute and Faculty of Actuaries' Planetary Solvency Report projecting 30–50% GDP loss, and why this loss, unlike 2008 or Covid, would be permanent 5 Principles for Action: Avoiding new unabated fossil fuel finance, internalizing the social cost of carbon in ROI assessments, pursuing transition investment opportunities, active stewardship of investee companies, and advocating for aligned regulation, each grounded in existing fiduciary law Case Law & What's Coming: What Spence v. American Airlines, McRitchie v. Zuckerberg, and ClientEarth v. Shell actually says beneath the surface, and why Hirji v. CPPIB (Canada) and Kvek/ClientEarth v. Cushman & Wakefield (Washington State) are the cases to watch next. This episode is part of IEN's ongoing series on fiduciary duty and system-level investing. -- Resources References: Sustainable Fiduciary Duty — Net Zero Lawyers Alliance (2025) → https://www.netzerolawyers.com/publications/sustainable-fiduciary-duties-for-investors → Full PDF: https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/65bb9ebee081d228a8003b56/690cb02c2d3dfd4b5c3fabca_Sustainable%20Fiduciary%20Duty%20-%20FINAL%20(6%20November%202025)%20(Compressed%20-%20Guru).pdf Moving Beyond Modern Portfolio Theory: Investing That Matters — Jon Lukomnik & James Hawley → https://www.routledge.com/Moving-Beyond-Modern-Portfolio-Theory-Investing-That-Matters/Lukomnik-Hawley/p/book/9780367760823 How to Think About Climate Change — Riccardo Rebonato (Cambridge University Press) → https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/how-to-think-about-climate-change/6F6AAB54523738CC7CF83B0EEFECD3A2 Making Sense of Chaos: A Better Economics for a Better World — J. Doyne Farmer → https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300283327/making-sense-of-chaos/ Planetary Solvency: Finding Our Balance with Nature — Institute and Faculty of Actuaries & University of Exeter (January 2025) → https://actuaries.org.uk/news-and-media-releases/news-articles/2025/jan/16-jan-25-planetary-solvency-finding-our-balance-with-nature/ Recalibrating Climate Risk — Carbon Tracker & University of Exeter (February 2026) → https://carbontracker.org/reports/recalibrating-climate-risk/ – General Timestamps:   00:00 Introduction & The Net Zero Lawyers Alliance Report 02:21 The Climate Prisoner's Dilemma Explained 05:38 How Fiduciary Duties Solve the Collective Action Problem 07:22 The Three Core Fiduciary Duties: Purpose, Loyalty, and Care 09:43 The Economic Evidence: 40% Asset Devaluation & Permanent GDP Loss 13:54 Climate Tipping Points Investors Are Not Pricing In 16:20 Why Existing Law Already Applies — No New Legislation Required 18:56 Principle 1: Avoid Finance for New Unabated High-Emission Projects 23:12 Principle 2: Internalize Climate Risk in ROI Assessments 24:49 Principle 3: Pursue Viable Impact Investments in the Transition 27:09 Principle 4: Active Sustainability Stewardship 29:04 Principle 5: Advocate for Aligned Regulation and Policy 31:14 Case Law Deep Dive: Spence, McRitchie, ClientEarth v. Shell 36:46 How to Make the Case to Skeptical Trustees and Boards 43:48 Addressing the Main Objections to Sustainable Fiduciary Theory 52:34 Pending Cases and the Five-Year Outlook for Fiduciary Law 56:45 Rapid Fire: One Action, Recommended Reading & Vision for Finance

  Artist, National Geographic Explorer, and Chief Network Architect of the Shareholder Democracy Network, Asher Jay, joins host Georges Dyer to examine one of the most underleveraged mechanisms in institutional investing: proxy voting. For endowment leaders, CIOs, and asset managers navigating pressure to demonstrate mission alignment, this conversation offers a practical and structural framework for how shareholder voice can be restored to public markets, and why the same governance deficit is now showing up in AI. How pass-through proxy voting enables values-aligned shareholders to aggregate governance power at institutional scale, and what the Sierra Club pilot signals about the potential ahead Why asset managers retreating from ESG commitments under political pressure may find shareholder democracy a more durable and bipartisan path to mission-aligned governance The unpriced risks embedded in AI company valuations: environmental liabilities, regulatory exposure, and the epistemic dangers of black-box architecture What ontological AI design offers as a more efficient and governable alternative to large language model scaling, and why institutional investors should be asking these questions now The Future of Finance podcast is produced by the Intentional Endowments Network and explores how institutional capital can be deployed in alignment with long-term fiduciary duty, systemic resilience, and the evolving standards of responsible investment. – General Timestamps:   00:00 Introduction — Asher Jay: From Creative Conservationist to Systems Strategist  09:30 Systems Thinking and Causal Loops: Why Externalized Costs Are a Market Risk  13:45 Shareholder Democracy: The Premise, the Model, and the Governance Gap  20:00 Pass-Through Voting Infrastructure and Fintech Integration  25:30 Endowments, Foundations, and Family Offices: Institutional Applications  28:00 The Sierra Club Pilot: Assets Under Stewardship and the Path to $1 Trillion  38:06 Responsible AI: Governance Deficits, Hallucinations, and Who Pays the Cost  41:30 The Black Box Problem: Transparency, Plagiarism, and Epistemic Trust  44:45 Investor Risk in AI: Environmental Liabilities and Regulatory Exposure  52:00 Rapid Fire — Biggest Driver of Responsible AI Going Forward   –   Resources:   Asher Jay - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/asherjay Shareholder Democracy Network: https://www.shareholderdemocracy.org Iconik: https://www.iconikapp.com Tumelo: https://www.tumelo.com Bast.ai: https://www.bast.ai Book: AI for Humanity: Building a Sustainable AI for the Future by James Ong, Andeed Ma, and Siok Siok Tan https://share.google/IgRMYS9EqfvifCSbI Book: Enlightened Bottom Line by Jenna Nicholas: https://share.google/yx44JcezuI4r4cufo

Paul Fehlinger, Senior Director of Policy, Investment & Innovation at Project Liberty, a 500 million initiative building an AI and data economy that advances voice, choice and stakes, joins Georges Dyer on the Future of Finance podcast to unpack what responsible AI actually means for institutional capital markets. Drawing on his decade leading the Internet and Jurisdiction Policy Network and his current work convening LPs, GPs, policymakers, and entrepreneurs globally, Fehlinger brings a rare cross-sector perspective to one of the most consequential questions in finance today. AI is no longer a thematic investment trend but it’s a digital infrastructure, and its architecture will determine the structure of investable markets for decades. This conversation examines the governance gap that institutional investors must close before AI risk compounds across portfolios, and makes the case that safety and trust are not ESG overlays but core competitive variables in sourcing, due diligence, and long-term returns.   Key themes covered: - Why 75% of major LPs acknowledge systemic AI risk, yet only 19% report knowing how to respond, and what that gap means for fiduciary duty - The distinction between investing with AI and investing in AI, and why the data economy itself is emerging as an underappreciated investable vertical - How the automation-versus-augmentation question directly threatens the size of investable markets if left unaddressed - Why VC investors with 5+ years of experience increasingly believe strong responsible AI practices correlate with financial outperformance—and what the 83% and 91% survey figures actually signal - The case for protocol-level infrastructure as a scalable alternative to company-by-company AI due diligence, and why this needs to become a C-suite conversation, not a sustainability team assignment - For institutional investors, endowment leaders, asset managers, and anyone responsible for capital allocation in a world defined by AI, this episode is essential listening.   Resources: Responsible AI Due Diligence Toolkit for VCs —https://www.impactvc.co/ai, https://www.projectliberty.io/news/venture-capital-tools-for-responsible-and-impactful-investment-in-ai/ The ReframeVenture x ImpactVC x PLI white paper: https://www.projectliberty.io/news/pioneering-vc-survey-nine-in-ten-investors-see-financial-opportunity-in-a-responsible-ai-stack/ The ReframeVenture x ImpactVC x PLI Responsible and Impactful AI DD Toolkit: https://www.reframeventure.com/vcs/ai-dd StepStone: "Do No Harm — How GPs and LPs Can Use Responsible AI to Build Trust" - https://www.stepstonegroup.com/news-insights/do-no-harm-how-gps-and-lps-can-use-responsible-ai-to-build-trust/ "LPs Are Grappling with AI and Data Risks, but Incentives Are Misaligned" - https://www.newprivatemarkets.com/lps-are-grappling-with-ai-and-data-risks-but-incentives-are-misaligned/ The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, Thomas S. Kuhn (1962) - https://share.google/6BBq516A0e8sGkDep   General Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction & Overview of Project Liberty 03:10 AI's Systemic Risks: From Data Agency to Market Structure 08:30 What Responsible AI Actually Means for Investors 11:30 The Framework Proliferation Problem (and the Contrast with Climate) 13:30 The Fair Data Economy Task Force: Four Pillars of a Good AI Economy 15:00 Ecosystem Building in Action: LP and VC Engagement 18:30 VC Survey Results: What the 73%, 83%, and 91% Statistics Signal 21:00 Investing With AI vs. Investing In AI 25:00 The Data Economy as an Emerging Investable Vertical 31:30 The Due Diligence Problem: Auditing AI at Scale 36:30 The Aviation Analogy: Why Infrastructure-Level Trust Changes Everything 43:00 Bridging Risk Governance and Systemic Investment Approaches 49:00 What Comes Next: LP Tools, VC Guidance, and Entrepreneurial Centers of Gravity 53:30 Final Questions: C-Suite Priority, Book Recommendation, Vision for Finance   --   The Future of Finance podcast is produced by the Intentional Endowments Network, serving institutional investors working to align capital with long-term financial and systemic goals.

Institutional investors are increasingly exposed to AI-driven risks that operate at the system level — spanning climate commitments, labor markets, and democratic governance. Whitney Shepard, Co-Executive Director of Majority Action, joins Georges Dyer on the Future of Finance podcast to lay out the research, frameworks, and stewardship strategies that investors need to navigate this moment responsibly. Majority Action's emerging technologies research series makes a rigorous case that AI is not a siloed technology risk — it is a capital markets risk, one that intersects with concentration of corporate power, inadequate disclosure, and misaligned proxy voting by large asset managers. For fiduciaries managing public pensions, endowments, and foundations, understanding these dynamics is not optional; it is central to long-term value creation and duty of care.   Key themes covered: - AI's three system-level risk categories for diversified investors: climate, inequality, and democratic backsliding - XAI's Colossus data center case study — public pension capital financing projects with significant environmental and community harm - Proxy voting trends: why the largest index funds diverged from public pensions on AI governance proposals last season - What "active client" stewardship looks like in practice — engaging asset managers, not just portfolio companies - First-mover frameworks from SFERS, CalSTRS, and Railpen that investors can learn from and adopt For institutional investors, academics, and policy leaders working at the intersection of technology governance, fiduciary duty, and long-term capital markets resilience.   General Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction — Whitney Shepherd and Majority Action 06:30 Bridging Grassroots Voices and Institutional Capital 14:45 Why Majority Action Turned Its Focus to AI 22:50 Three System-Level Risk Categories: Climate, Inequality, Democratic Backsliding 28:30 The XAI Colossus Case Study: Public Pensions and AI Data Center Financing 42:10 AI in the Boardroom: Proxy Voting Trends and the Index Fund Divergence 51:20 AI Stewardship in Motion: First Movers and Global Policy Benchmarks 57:40 What Endowments and Foundations Should Be Doing Now 1:01:30 Closing Takes: System Stewardship as the Core Ask   Resources: Majority Action AI Accountability Hub: https://www.majorityaction.us/ai-accountability Book: Poor People's Movements: Why They Succeed, How They Fail — Frances Fox Piven and Richard Cloward: https://share.google/EKDxYky1Qm1CYMN5g   --   The Future of Finance podcast is produced by the Intentional Endowments Network, serving institutional investors working to align capital with long-term financial and systemic goals.

Drake Hicks, Vice President and Head of Impact at Variant Investments, joins host Georges Dyer for a grounded, practitioner-level conversation on how private credit can be structured to deliver measurable social and environmental outcomes without sacrificing market-rate returns. Before joining Variant — an alternative credit manager with nearly $3 billion in AUM specializing in uncorrelated, income-generating assets across niche private markets — Drake built the impact investing mandate at the JPB Foundation (now Freedom Together Foundation), a $5 billion private foundation, and served as Head of ESG at Base Ten Partners, one of the largest Black-led venture capital firms. For institutional investors, this conversation offers a rare inside look at how impact discipline is operationalized at the deal level — not just articulated at the strategy level. Variant's impact fund deploys capital across 27 countries and nine thematic areas aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and this episode examines the frameworks, governance structures, and measurement tools that make that work rigorous and replicable.   Topics covered in this episode: - Private credit as a non-extractive capital structure, and why it suits certain impact applications better than equity - Variant's seven-step impact underwriting framework: from exclusion screens to IRIS+ reporting - Using loan covenants to embed decarbonization milestones and EV adoption targets directly into deal structure - Deal-level case studies: SME lending in Kenya and lease-to-own vehicle financing in emerging markets - Building an impact carve-out portfolio at a major private foundation — governance, pilots, and board alignment - Measuring impact across heterogeneous themes and geographies: SDGs, IRIS+, and 60 Decibels - The maturation of impact private credit as an institutional asset class - What investment committees get wrong — and what it actually takes to start Essential listening for CIOs, endowment and foundation investment staff, private credit investors, and capital allocators working at the intersection of private markets and intentional capital. Resources Mentioned: ImpactAlpha - https://impactalpha.com/ General Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction — Drake Hicks and Variant Investments 04:15 What Is Impact Private Credit? Asset Class Fundamentals 09:30 Variant's Seven-Step Impact Underwriting Framework 18:45 Deal Examples: Kenya SME Lending and Lease-to-Own EV Financing 27:00 Lessons from Building an Impact Portfolio at a Private Foundation 36:20 Measuring Impact Across Themes and Markets: SDGs, IRIS+, and 60 Decibels 43:10 The Maturation of Impact Private Credit as an Asset Class 48:30 What Institutional Investors Should Do Now 52:15 Vision for the Future of Finance -- The Future of Finance podcast is produced by the Intentional Endowments Network, serving institutional investors working to align capital with long-term financial and systemic goals. -- The Future of Finance podcast is produced by the Intentional Endowments Network, serving institutional investors working to align capital with long-term financial and systemic goals.   *Disclaimer* Before investing, it’s important to understand the risks of the Variant Impact Fund. The Variant Impact Fund is a continuously offered, nondiversified, registered closed-end fund with limited liquidity. The Fund seeks to provide a high level of current income, with capital appreciation as a secondary objective, while also pursuing positive social and environmental impact. There is no guarantee these objectives will be achieved. An investment in the Fund is speculative and involves substantial risk, including the possible loss of your entire investment. Fund shares are illiquid, and investors should not expect to sell shares at will. Although the Fund offers a share repurchase program, repurchases are limited and may not fully meet investor requests. The Fund invests in private and other illiquid securities and may use leverage or derivatives, which can increase volatility and magnify losses. Before investing, carefully review the prospectus, available at www.variantinvestments.com. The Fund is distributed by Distribution Services, LLC, an unaffiliated distributor.

What does 25 years of dedicated clean energy investing reveal about today's institutional opportunity? In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, host Georges Dyer speaks with Daniel G. Weiss, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Angeleno Group — a Los Angeles-based venture and growth equity firm that has led or co-led over $3 billion into clean energy and climate solutions since 2001, with a limited partner base drawn largely from endowments, foundations, and pension funds. Weiss offers a rigorous, evidence-based perspective on why the investment case for clean energy has fundamentally shifted — and why institutional capital has been slow to reflect that shift. The conversation addresses the structural drivers of return, the scale of the remaining deployment gap, and how both public and private market allocators can reframe their approach to climate-related investment. Key themes covered in this episode: - The 80–95% cost reduction across core clean energy technologies and its implications for risk-adjusted returns - The 25x growth in climate tech venture capital (2013–2023) and the emerging pipeline of institutional-scale growth companies - Why the "concessionary returns" assumption is a market misconception, and how to correct it - The role of AI and data center load growth in accelerating, and potentially moderating, energy demand - Grid resilience, renewable procurement software, and smart energy infrastructure as current investment opportunities - The case for a whole-portfolio approach: public and private markets, across asset classes - Mission-aligned endowment stewardship at organizations including the World Resources Institute and California Community Foundation Angeleno's most recent investment was in NESTEC in February. Find out more information here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260226410979/en/Angeleno-Group-Announces-Investment-in-NESTEC-A-Leading-Industrial-Air-Pollution-Control-Platform --- Resources Mentioned: Bloomberg New Energy Finance (NEF): https://about.bnef.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=paid_search&utm_campaign=amer_bnef_bssscorp_2025_ao&utm_content=text_bnef-amer-brand-hp&tactic=955953&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22172410789&gbraid=0AAAAADdH1c-jEC8vXBFpCCkXX8yAFNb9a&gclid=CjwKCAjwvqjOBhAGEiwAngeQnY7nXVgd1mWxgsoHUwNHY2Hrx83tJLdczCgFltazhsV7UacizAen4xoCx88QAvD_BwE Ember: https://ember-energy.org/ Carbon Tracker: https://carbontracker.org/ World Resources Institute: https://www.wri.org/insights/rebranding-climate-action?utm_source=google&utm_medium=paid-search-google-grants&utm_campaign=climate-messaging-problem&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23209833113&gbraid=0AAAAAD3bc5vY8RS5Ywzkg8wQLlR6TtnFY&gclid=CjwKCAjwvqjOBhAGEiwAngeQnWHKVc8ebdFNb3ZysxhXU1jV1ajUHtXYzFEcgOHUv47sshZI2ZOFqRoCdq0QAvD_BwE Solvable - Book by Susan Solovan https://share.google/ybfINxWip4pqNJHNd The New Global Possible: Rebuilding Optimism in the Age of Climate Crisis - Book by Ani Dasgupta https://share.google/DWYOwPbI0nSllOjGu --- General Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction & Angeleno Group Overview 03:15 Founding Angeleno in 2001: Identifying the White Space in Energy VC 08:10 The Primary Driver of Change: Clean Energy Economics 1 1:20 Investment Landscape Then vs. Now: Investable Universe & Capital Flows 14:45 Firm Structure, AUM, and LP Base 17:00 Investment Thesis: Technology, Policy, and Industrial Expertise 21:00 Focus Areas and Portfolio Construction Across Climate Subsectors 24:00 Portfolio Company Examples: Grid Resilience and Renewable Procurement Software 28:30 AI, Data Centers, and the Long-Run Energy Demand Equation 36:00 The $250 Trillion Gap: Misperceptions and the Institutional Capital Challenge 44:00 Public Market Returns and the Case for Whole-Portfolio Alignment 47:00 Mission-Aligned Endowment Stewardship: WRI and California Community Foundation 51:00 Rapid Fire: Advice for Institutional Investors, Recommended Resources, and Career Guidance -- The Future of Finance podcast is produced by the Intentional Endowments Network, serving institutional investors working to align capital with long-term financial and systemic goals.

What does fiduciary duty actually require when you own the whole economy? Madison Condon, Associate Professor at Boston University School of Law and recipient of the American Law Institute's Early Career Scholars Medal, brings one of the most rigorous legal and economic frameworks in climate finance to the Future of Finance podcast. For institutional investors, pension funds, endowments, and sovereign wealth funds, climate change is not a values question. It is a portfolio-level structural exposure. When damages from fossil fuel companies cascade through every other holding in a diversified portfolio, the conventional logic of ESG as a screened strategy breaks down. What replaces it is a systems-level argument grounded in fiduciary law, macroeconomic modeling, and the economics of universal ownership. Topics covered in this episode: The legal basis for climate action under fiduciary duty, including the Uniform Prudent Investor Act and the duty of impartiality toward future beneficiaries Why leading macroeconomic climate models have systematically underestimated damages and what better modeling looks like The diverging interests of asset owners and asset managers, and why that distinction is increasingly consequential The McRitchie v. Zuckerberg decision and what Delaware corporate law says about externalities and diversified shareholders The Texas v. BlackRock antitrust case and the emerging legal risk landscape for climate-aligned investor coalitions The role of IEA scenarios and institutions like NCAR in shaping capital allocation and why their integrity matters to investors Future of Finance is produced by the Intentional Endowments Network. New episodes explore how institutional capital can be aligned with long-term economic resilience. Resources Mentioned: https://share.google/QGtJ3a2aIQpfIR7SM General Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction — Universal Ownership and Systemic Climate Risk 03:15 The 2020 Paper: Externalities and the Common Owner 07:10 Asset Owners vs. Asset Managers — Why the Distinction Matters 10:20 Fiduciary Duty and the Legal Landscape for Climate Action 13:30 The Duty of Impartiality and Future Beneficiaries 16:40 Corporate vs. Portfolio Fiduciary Duties — The Delaware Question 23:10 Why Climate Economic Models Have Underpriced Risk 28:30 Supply Chain Bottlenecks and Place-Based Climate Impacts 32:50 Antitrust Risk and the Texas v. BlackRock Case 38:20 Investor Policy Engagement and the Role of Climate Data Institutions 43:00 IEA Scenarios as a Self-Fulfilling Mechanism in Capital Markets 47:30 Vision for the Future — Asset Owner Governance and Long-Term Capital

Fran Seegull, President of the U.S. Impact Investing Alliance, joins host Georges Dyer for a wide-ranging conversation on the structural forces reshaping institutional investing. Before leading the Alliance, which she co-founded with Darren Walker of the Ford Foundation, Fran served as Chief Investment Officer of ImpactAssets, overseeing its $3 billion impact investing donor-advised fund, and taught graduate-level impact investing at USC's Marshall School of Business. For institutional investors, this conversation arrives at a critical juncture. The policy and governance environment is actively constraining the tools investors need to manage systemic risk: from anti-ESG legislation restricting fiduciary discretion, to executive actions targeting community finance infrastructure, to the erosion of shareholder engagement rights. At the same time, frameworks like system-level investing and dynamic materiality are gaining traction as rigorous, financially-grounded responses to risks that traditional portfolio theory was not built to handle.   Topics covered in this episode: The U.S. Impact Investing Alliance: mission, structure, and four-pillar strategy System-level investing as a bridge between traditional finance and impact frameworks Capital markets assumptions and how systemic factors should be priced Double materiality and dynamic materiality (definitions, distinctions, and investment implications) The Community Reinvestment Act and CDFI ecosystem: importance, recent threats, and bipartisan defense Anti-ESG legislation: the financial case against it and the first major constitutional challenge The rise of corporate management primacy and the erosion of shareholder accountability tools Impact measurement frameworks, verification tools, and the IEN Endowment Impact Benchmark Final takes: what every institutional investor should do today, and Fran's vision for the future of finance Essential listening for CIOs, pension trustees, endowment leaders, and policy professionals navigating the evolving intersection of fiduciary duty, systemic risk, and long-term capital markets stability.   Resources Mentioned: Beyond Modern Portfolio Theory - https://share.google/0HU0Sfshhzw9ANysL Principles Responsible Investing Podcast - https://www.unpri.org/newsroom/podcasts   General Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction & Guest Background 02:00 What the U.S. Impact Investing Alliance Does — and How It Came to Be 07:30 Global Context: Where the U.S. Stands in the Impact Investing World 09:00 Is Impact Investing Fit for Purpose? The Case for System Transformation 17:00 System-Level Investing: Non-Diversifiable Risk and the Full Toolkit 22:00 Capital Markets Assumptions, Double Materiality, and Dynamic Materiality 29:30 Community Investing: The CRA, CDFIs, and the Defense of Financial Infrastructure 41:30 The Freedom to Invest: Anti-ESG Legislation and the First Constitutional Win 47:30 Climate Policy Rollback: Market Forces vs. Federal Headwinds 50:00 Impact Measurement: From Transparency to Accountability 54:00 The Rise of Corporate Management Primacy — A New Governance Risk 1:00:00 Final Takes: One Action for Every Institutional Investor

Systemic climate risk is increasingly recognized across capital markets but how should institutional investors engage with the policy drivers shaping that risk? In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, host Georges Dyer speaks with Richard Roberts, Inquiry Lead at Volans, about the intersection of systemic risk, fiduciary duty, and investor engagement on real-economy climate policy. For long-horizon asset owners, disclosure frameworks alone may not address the structural economic forces influencing portfolio outcomes. Energy systems, infrastructure policy, industrial strategy, and trade dynamics ultimately determine emissions pathways and market stability. Key themes include: The imbalance between disclosure-focused engagement and real-economy policy Systemic risk across diversified portfolios Catastrophic risk and the limits of economic modeling Coalition-based approaches to policy engagement Governance structures and long-term stewardship incentives For CIOs, trustees, and policy leaders, the conversation explores whether policy engagement is becoming a necessary dimension of systemic stewardship. Resources Mentioned: Recalibrating Carbon Risk: https://carbontracker.org/reports/recalibrating-climate-risk/ Triple Bottom Line Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/2018/06/25-years-ago-i-coined-the-phrase-triple-bottom-line-heres-why-im-giving-up-on-it Existential Politics - Jessica F. Green: https://share.google/RLMhxwaxpSnWvhqAj Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 03:10 Disclosure vs. Real-Economy Policy 08:00 Investor Resource Allocation Findings 14:20 Political Legitimacy and Engagement Constraints 19:40 Coalition Strategies and Collective Action 26:35 Fiduciary Duty and Systemic Risk 32:10 Catastrophic Risk and Tipping Points 47:45 A Long-Term Vision for Finance

Climate change is not only an environmental issue but a capital markets risk management challenge. In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, Georges Dyer speaks with Bob Litterman, former Partner and Head of Risk Management at Goldman Sachs and Chair of the CFTC Climate-Related Market Risk Subcommittee. Bob shares why climate change should be understood through the lens of systemic risk, incentives, and pricing distortions. This conversation examines what climate risk means for institutional investors, sovereign competitiveness, and long-duration capital allocation. Key themes include: Physical vs. transition risk from a portfolio perspective Why carbon pricing corrects a structural market failure The role of carbon border adjustment mechanisms Global fossil fuel subsidies and capital misallocation Financial regulatory frameworks for climate risk The evolution of carbon accounting and compliance markets For CIOs, trustees, asset managers, and policy leaders, this discussion explores how incentive structures shape capital flows and how markets may reprice climate risk faster than expected. 00:00 Introduction and Background 02:47 Climate Risk as a Risk Management Problem 05:41 Physical vs. Transition Risk 09:52 Why Carbon Pricing Is Foundational 14:22 Political Economy of Carbon Taxes 18:17 Investment Gaps in the Low-Carbon Transition 21:30 Carbon Accounting and Embedded Emissions 27:58 CFTC Climate Risk Report and Financial System Implications 35:04 Extreme Weather and Financial Stability 50:51 Vision for the Future of Finance   Resources Bob mentions: MANAGING CLIMATE RISK IN THE U.S. FINANCIAL SYSTEM | Report of the Climate-Related Market Risk Subcommittee, Market Risk Advisory Committee of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission REPORT TO THE PRESIDENT Extreme Weather Risk in a Changing Climate: Enhancing prediction and protecting communities

What role should investors play in addressing systemic risks like climate change, inequality, and biodiversity loss? In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, we speak with Caroline Flammer, Director of the Sustainable Investing Research Initiative (SIRI) at Columbia University, about system-level investing, fiduciary duty, and the limits of modern portfolio theory. What we cover: Why systemic risks should be treated as endogenous, not exogenous The evolving interpretation of fiduciary duty How government inaction shifts responsibility to investors The role of blended finance in emerging markets Why risk perception may be limiting capital flows 🎧 Available on YouTube and all major podcast platforms: https://pod.link/1793610181 Links to resources Caroline mentioned: Scaling Sustainable Investing in Emerging and Developing Economies: Frictions and Opportunities: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=6088507 The Moskowitz Prize paper: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4770779 SIRI’s Blended Finance program: https://siri.sipa.columbia.edu/content/blended-finance SIRI’s Pathways to Consensus program: https://siri.sipa.columbia.edu/content/pathways-consensus #systemlevelinvesting #sustainableinvestingresearch #blendedfinance #emergingmarkets #columbiauniversity #impactinvesting #finance #climaterisk #endogenous #futureoffinance #futureoffinancepodcast

Modern finance typically optimizes profit, but not human well-being. Investor and author Jenna Nicholas explains why that’s a problem, and how we can fix it. In this episode of The Future of Finance Podcast, George Dyer sits down with Jenna Nicholas, President of LightPost Capital and author of Enlightened Bottom Line. They explore: Why GDP and profit fail to measure human flourishing How spirituality, purpose, and finance intersect The HEAL framework: Hope, Empathy, Abundance, and Legacy Why money is “stored energy” that must circulate How responsible AI could reshape investing What today’s students and young professionals need to know about the future of finance This conversation challenges the idea that maximizing returns alone leads to better outcomes, and offers a more human, long-term vision for capitalism, investing, and leadership. 🎧 Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/07v2WO5fTdE 📘 Enlightened Bottom Line by Jenna Nicholas: https://www.jenna-nicholas.com/book Keywords: spirituality, impact investing, HEAL framework, Baha'i faith, sustainability, abundance, empathy, legacy, conscious capitalism, financial equity

In this episode of Future of Finance, Georges Dyer speaks with Mike Kubzansky, CEO of Omidyar Network, about how investors can actively engage with AI risks and opportunities to ensure technology serves broad societal benefit rather than concentrating power and prosperity among a few. Kubzansky explains how Omidyar Network—founded over 20 years ago by eBay's Pierre Omidyar—uses investments, grants, and advocacy to "bend the arc of the digital revolution" toward broadly shared prosperity. With nearly three-quarters of a billion dollars deployed across early-stage startups, funds, and policy work, the organization focuses on building intentional governance structures around emerging technologies, much like society learned to regulate automobiles and biomedicine. The conversation centers on practical strategies for investors looking to address AI-related risks in their portfolios. Kubzansky shares concrete guidance on how to work with external managers and portfolio companies to build trust, reduce harm, and create accountability around AI deployment. He emphasizes that technology doesn't govern itself—deliberate societal choices are required to capture benefits while minimizing risks. Kubzansky also offers career advice for impact-oriented professionals, encouraging them not to bypass traditional finance roles at institutions like Goldman Sachs or CalPERS. Building core technical skills first, he argues, creates more effective impact practitioners later—as long as they maintain their moral compass and view these roles as developmental stops rather than final destinations. Ultimately, the episode underscores how investors at every level can play a critical role in shaping responsible AI development through thoughtful engagement, governance, and strategic capital allocation.   Podcast: Odd Lots https://www.bloomberg.com/oddlots  Podcast: Tech Policy Press https://www.techpolicy.press/podcast/  Substack: Garrison Lovely https://substack.com/@garrisonlovely  Substack: Jasmine Sun https://substack.com/@jasmine  Book: Power and Progress, by Acemoglu and Johnson https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/62315566-power-and-progress?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_27  Book: Carlota Perez: Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60509.Technological_Revolutions_and_Financial_Capital  RailPen’s principles: https://www.railpen.com/news/2025/railpen-launches-new-framework-to-help-investors-and-companies-effectively-oversee-ai-related-risks/ Edelman Trust Barometer: https://www.edelman.com/trust/2025/trust-barometer/flash-poll-trust-artifical-intelligence  AIAT Report on the market and market size for AI Assurance Tech:  https://www.aiat.report/  Keywords: Responsible AI, AI governance, Tech policy, Digital revolution, Impact investing, Philanthropy, ESG investing, Technology regulation, Societal governance, Shared prosperity

In this episode of Future of Finance, Georges Dyer is joined by Gaurab Bansal, Executive Director of Responsible Innovation Labs (RIL), to explore how startups and investors can embed responsible AI practices early—before harmful externalities become costly and difficult to unwind. Bansal shares how RIL works with early-stage founders to integrate governance, risk awareness, and values into company culture while still prioritizing survival, growth, and commercial success. Rather than treating responsibility as a compliance exercise, he argues that responsible innovation is fundamentally a business strategy—one that leads to better products, stronger trust with customers, and improved long-term performance. The conversation spans key AI-driven risks and opportunities, including workforce disruption, energy and climate impacts, misinformation, and social cohesion. Bansal also discusses the critical role investors—especially LPs and GPs—can play by incorporating downside risk and responsibility considerations into diligence, governance, and engagement with portfolio companies. Ultimately, the episode highlights why the greatest leverage point for shaping the future of AI may lie with startups and early-stage capital—and how building good habits, governance, and decision-making frameworks from day one can help ensure technology advances human flourishing rather than undermining it. This episode was brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: Responsible AI, Responsible Innovation Labs, Startup governance, Venture capital engagement, AI risk management, Workforce disruption, Technology externalities, Sustainable investing, LP–GP stewardship, Human-centered technology

In this episode of The Future of Finance, Georges Dyer is joined by Lucas Schoeppner, Director of Sustainable Investment Strategies at Westpath Benefits and Investments, to explore how a large faith-based asset owner is operationalizing fiduciary duty through system-level investing. Westpath, the primary benefits and investment agency for the United Methodist Church, manages more than $26 billion on behalf of over 100,000 clergy and employees. Lucas walks through Westpath’s integrated approach to sustainable investing—grounded in social cohesion, long-term prosperity, and environmental health—and explains why these priorities are not only values-driven, but fundamental to long-term investment performance. The conversation spans climate risk, human rights, biodiversity, and affordable housing, highlighting how Westpath uses a full toolkit that includes divestment, shareholder engagement, positive impact lending, and manager oversight. Lucas also discusses Westpath’s role as a universal owner, its participation in initiatives like Climate Action 100+ and the Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance, and how system-level risks are being embedded into investment policy and manager evaluation. Throughout the discussion, Lucas emphasizes the importance of asking better questions—of companies, asset managers, and the financial system itself—to move beyond disclosure toward real-world impact. In a shifting political landscape, this episode offers a grounded case study in how fiduciary duty, long-term thinking, and sustainable investing can—and must—work together.  This episode was brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: System-level investing, Fiduciary duty, Universal ownership, Sustainable investing, Shareholder engagement, Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance, Climate Action 100+, Faith-based asset owners, Human rights risk, Long-term value creation

In this episode of The Future of Finance, Georges Dyer is joined by Brian Potts, co-founder of Goods Unite Us, to explore the increasingly consequential role of corporate political spending in markets, democracy, and fiduciary decision-making. Brian explains how Goods Unite Us tracks political contributions from corporate executives and PACs, translating public campaign finance data into tools that help consumers and investors understand how corporate money aligns—or conflicts—with stated values and policy outcomes. The conversation traces the evolution of Goods Unite Us from a consumer-facing app into an investor-focused platform, including the launch of the DEMZ ETF and the Index Align tool, which maps corporate political spending to voting records across 18 key policy issues such as climate regulation, workers’ rights, healthcare, and gun control. Brian argues that political spending is a critical but missing data point in ESG analysis, noting that companies cannot credibly claim leadership on sustainability or social issues while simultaneously funding politicians who undermine them. Together, Georges and Brian examine the implications for long-term investors, the performance dynamics of politically aligned portfolios, and the growing power of capital markets to influence corporate behavior. The episode closes with reflections on transparency, governance, and why addressing systemic political risk may be one of the most important frontiers for sustainable finance. This episode was brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Corporate political spending, ESG investing, Fiduciary duty, Campaign finance transparency, Systemic risk, Sustainable finance, Shareholder influence, Corporate governance, Political risk, Values-aligned investing

In this episode of Future of Finance, host Georges Dyer is joined by Meredith Benton, Founder of Whistlestop Capital and the TechForward Investors Initiative, for a deep dive into what responsible AI and tech accountability really mean for long-term investors. Meredith unpacks TechForward’s multi-year research effort evaluating governance and privacy practices across 50 major U.S.-domiciled public companies with significant technology exposure. Rather than relying on surface-level ESG scores, the initiative draws on extensive stakeholder input from civil society organizations to identify governance criteria that signal whether companies are prepared to manage the societal impacts of rapidly evolving technologies like artificial intelligence. The conversation explores why traditional ESG frameworks often fall short in capturing tech-related risks, how privacy can serve as a critical test case for effective governance, and why executive-level expertise in human rights and societal impacts is emerging as one of the strongest indicators of both accountability and financial performance. Meredith also discusses how investors can think about aggregated risk, AI-driven uncertainty, disclosure gaps, and the growing responsibility of universal owners stewarding capital for the long term. Together, Georges and Meredith examine what this research means for asset managers, asset owners, and analysts navigating an increasingly complex tech landscape — and why governance, not speed or hype, will ultimately determine whether today’s innovation supports long-term prosperity. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: Responsible AI, Tech accountability, AI governance, Investor stewardship, Privacy as a human right, ESG and technology, Corporate governance, Long-term investment risk, Universal ownership, Financial performance and governance

In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, George Dyer sits down with Chat Reynders, Chairman and CEO of Reynders, McVeigh Capital Management, for a conversation on what truly long-term, sustainability-driven investing looks like in practice. Chat traces his unconventional path into finance—from producing early IMAX documentaries to building a disciplined investment firm grounded in fundamental research—and explains how that experience shaped his belief that capital, when thoughtfully structured, can drive both impact and strong financial performance. The conversation explores how incorporating sustainability factors into a rigorous investment process helps investors avoid asymmetric risks, navigate market dislocations, and identify companies positioned for the future economy. Chat and George unpack why many ESG products have fallen short, emphasizing the difference between surface-level data screens and deep, company-specific research grounded in fiduciary responsibility. They also discuss portfolio resilience, long-term compounding, active ownership, and why sustainable investing is not about sacrificing returns—but about avoiding hidden liabilities and managing risk more intelligently. Throughout the episode, Chat reflects on hiring and mentorship, the importance of curiosity over short-termism, and why Reynders, McVeigh is becoming more vocal about its long-standing commitment to sustainability at a time when many investors are pulling back. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: Sustainable investing, long-term investing, fiduciary duty, ESG myths, asymmetric risk, portfolio resilience, fundamental research, market dislocations, active ownership, compounding returns

In this crossover episode of The Future of Finance and Beyond Carbon, hosts Georges Dyer and Chris Ito sit down with Lane Jost, Head of Sustainability & Governance Advisory at Edelman Smithfield, for a candid conversation about the evolving ESG and sustainable investing landscape. Lane traces the arc of ESG from its “1.0” early days to today’s politically charged environment, unpacking the dynamics of greenwashing, greenhushing, regulatory risk, and the often-confusing language that shapes public perception. Together, the group explores whether the rise of greenhushing may actually signal a maturing field—one that demands more rigor, transparency, and alignment between claims and investment processes. They explore what this moment means for endowments, asset managers, and campus stakeholders, and discuss the new offering from Edelman Smithfield and FFI Solutions working directly with endowments on strategic communications strategies. The conversation also highlights the opportunity for higher education institutions to turn sustainable investing into a powerful learning laboratory for students, future leaders, and informed citizens. Ultimately, the episode balances realism about political headwinds with optimism about market innovation, improved governance, and the long-term trajectory toward resilience and value creation. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: ESG evolution, greenhushing, greenwashing, sustainable investing, fiduciary duty, strategic communications, endowments, resilience, stakeholder engagement

In this wide-ranging conversation, Georges Dyer sits down with Dorien Nunez — longtime investment professional, community advocate, senior fellow with the Intentional Endowments Network, and founder of Omni Research. Dorien reflects on his unlikely path into finance, beginning with a life-changing scholarship to St. Paul’s School and early Wall Street internships that opened doors most young people never get access to. He shares how experiences with redlining, the anti-apartheid divestment movement at Harvard, and later discrimination in the finance industry shaped his lifelong commitment to expanding diversity, equity, and inclusion in investing. Dorien traces the evolution of DEI and ESG efforts across decades, from early activism to today’s backlash, offering historical context, practical insights, and optimism grounded in real industry progress — from changing licensing barriers to CFA Institute guidelines to the growing ecosystem of mentorship programs. He discusses his work at Omni Research, including research on closing the racial wealth gap, the backlash aiming to politicize “woke capitalism,” mentorship initiatives, and tools empowering consumers and investors to align investing with their values. This episode offers inspiration, candor, and a clear-eyed look at how structural barriers shape opportunities (or lack thereof) in finance — and how to create a more inclusive industry for the next generation. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: Diversity in finance, racial wealth gap, ESG & DEI, mentorship, emerging managers, inclusive capitalism, financial education, Wall Street careers, systemic change, responsible investing

In this episode of The Future of Finance, host Georges Dyer sits down with Jon Lukomnik — investor, author, corporate governance pioneer, and one of the main architects of system-level investing. Drawing on his experience managing New York City’s pension funds in the 1990s, Jon recounts the moment he realized that traditional Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT) was no longer sufficient for investors responsible for real-world liabilities. The conversation traces his decades-long journey toward developing “beyond MPT” thinking, culminating in his influential book Moving Beyond Modern Portfolio Theory and the forthcoming System-Level Investing Handbook. Jon explains why the majority of investors’ returns are shaped not by stock picking, but by overall market performance — and why investors must understand, steward, and take action to support the health of social and environmental systems to manage systemic risk. He highlights real examples from global pension funds, insurers, and asset managers who are leading this shift, and discusses tools such as collaborative engagement, policy advocacy, and rethinking investment beliefs. Jon also tackles critiques of systemic stewardship, the politicization of ESG, the role of academia, and how system-level thinking can shape the future of finance. The episode closes with rapid-fire questions covering food, music, teaching at Columbia, AI governance, and Jon’s vision for a financial system that supports — rather than undermines — a thriving real economy. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: System-level investing, Modern Portfolio Theory, beta activism, universal ownership, systemic risk, institutional investors, collaborative engagement, policy advocacy, sustainability and finance, investment beliefs

In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, Georges Dyer sits down with Rick Alexander, CEO of The Shareholder Commons and a leading voice in system-level investing and system stewardship. Rick shares his journey from decades as a Delaware corporate lawyer to becoming one of the foremost advocates for rethinking the purpose of corporations and the role of investors in shaping sustainable markets. They explore the core idea of universal ownership—the recognition that diversified institutional investors ultimately own the economy as a whole, not just individual companies. When a company boosts profits by externalizing costs onto society, the environment, or the broader market, it may harm the long-term returns of its shareholders’ entire portfolios. Rick explains why investors must move beyond traditional ESG arguments about company-level financial performance and instead use their “superpowers” as owners to steward economic systems, protect common goods, and reshape business culture. The conversation spans externalities, climate risk, inequality, antimicrobial resistance, mining tailings, fiduciary duty, antitrust concerns, and the cultural shift needed to escape the “prisoner’s dilemma” of profit maximization at all costs. Rick also discusses emerging academic research, investor collaboration efforts, and the growing global movement toward system stewardship. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners Keywords: System stewardship, universal ownership, externalities, fiduciary duty, sustainable investing, portfolio-level returns, corporate governance, climate risk, antitrust and investor collaboration, system-level investing

In this episode of Future of Finance, Georges Dyer introduces a presentation from Mike Kubzansky, CEO of the Omidyar Network, delivered at the Intentional Endowments Network’s 2025 Virtual Forum. Kubzansky explores the transformative power and systemic risks of artificial intelligence—ranging from job displacement and economic inequality to the rise of monopolies and threats to democracy. Drawing parallels between AI and past technological revolutions like the automobile, he underscores that effective governance and regulation are not barriers to innovation but essential enablers of sustainable progress. Kubzansky lays out five key actions for investors to advance responsible AI: Cut through the hype and understand the real implications. Adapt the climate engagement playbook to AI governance. Integrate responsible AI policies into investment decision-making. Invest in AI safety technologies such as watermarking and deepfake detection. Build shared standards and collective investor action on responsible tech. He calls on investors to lead in shaping AI’s future, arguing that “safe tech is better tech” and that now is the critical moment to put guardrails in place for a sustainable, equitable digital economy. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: Responsible AI, Omidyar Network, impact investing, regulation and innovation, AI governance, investor stewardship, technological disruption, job displacement, ethical technology, sustainable finance

In this episode of The Future of Finance, host Georges Dyer shares a dynamic conversation from the Intentional Endowments Network’s Virtual Forum on Climate, Capital, and Fiduciary Duty. Guests Kirsten Spalding (Ceres), John Adler (NYC Retirement Systems), and Machel Allen (Metis Global Partners) explore how institutional investors consider climate risk as part of their fiduciary responsibilities. Kirsten discusses how investors are reframing net-zero portfolio strategies amid political backlash, focusing on material financial risks and adaptation. John details how New York City’s pension funds are embedding climate risk management into their investment process as part of their fiduciary duty—requiring all asset managers to have decarbonization plans by 2025 and prioritizing real-world impact over cosmetic portfolio shifts. Machel adds the asset manager perspective, explaining how investors can align climate goals with strong financial performance through customized passive strategies and stewardship. Together, they paint a picture of an evolving investment landscape—where integrating considering climate change is essential to fiduciary duty and financial performance. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: Climate finance, fiduciary duty, net zero, institutional investors, ESG investing, decarbonization, stewardship, pension funds, climate risk, sustainable investing

In this episode, host Georges Dyer sits down with Rebecca Adamson, founder of First Peoples Worldwide, to explore Indigenous finance and its vital role in navigating the global energy transition. A pioneer in social investing, Adamson reflects on her trailblazing work in creating the first U.S. microloan fund and developing the first investment screen for Indigenous peoples’ rights.   Together, they unpack the new report Sustainable Indigenous Finance: Navigating the Energy Transition, a collaboration between First Peoples Worldwide, the US SIF, and ImpactARC. Adamson explains why over half of the world’s critical minerals for the energy transition are on Indigenous lands—and how investors can avoid repeating extractive patterns of the past. Through stories, data, and deep wisdom, she makes a compelling case that Indigenous peoples are not a “risk to be managed,” but essential partners in managing risk and building a sustainable, values-driven economy. The conversation weaves together system-level investing, fiduciary duty, and ancient principles of balance and “enoughness” to explore a vision for the future of finance. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Resources: "Enoughness" film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxPVrr44KHI Keywords: Indigenous finance, energy transition, sustainable investing, fiduciary duty, systems-level investing, first peoples worldwide, social impact investing, responsible mining, values-based finance, enoughness

In this episode of The Future of Finance, Sara Murphy — former Chief Strategy Officer at The Shareholder Commons and now Director of System-Level Investing at the Sierra Club Foundation — shares how investors can play a transformative role in addressing global sustainability challenges through system-level investing and system stewardship. Sara challenges the traditional “alpha-first” mindset that rewards individual company performance at the expense of long-term market health. Drawing from the Freshfields Legal Framework for Impact and PRI’s Active Ownership 2.0, she explains why investors must manage not only company-specific risks but also the broader social and environmental systems that underpin portfolio value. She unpacks the conflicts of interest embedded in the financial system, the dangers of externalized costs like carbon emissions and inequality, and how “guardrails” — clear, expert-defined parameters for company behavior — can help institutional investors align stewardship with portfolio-wide sustainability. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: System-level investing, system stewardship, fiduciary duty, externalities, universal ownership, ESG integration, portfolio-first voting, shareholder commons, guardrails, sustainable finance

In this episode of The Future of Finance, host Georges Dyer kicks off a new series on responsible technology and AI with Michael Connor, Executive Director of Open MIC—a nonprofit pioneering investor engagement on digital technology accountability. Michael shares how Open MIC has worked for nearly two decades to hold major tech companies accountable on issues from privacy and misinformation to AI governance, workers’ rights, and democracy. He discusses the power of shareholder engagement as both a financial and social tool, and how early-stage investors and venture capital firms can help startups embed responsible tech principles from the start. The conversation dives into the systemic risks AI poses—from bias, disinformation, and labor disruption to climate impacts—and explores the role investors can play in shaping the future through corporate governance, proxy voting, and public policy advocacy. Michael also shares insights from his journalism background, his optimism about building better systems, and advice for young professionals eager to enter sustainable finance and tech. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: Responsible AI, shareholder engagement, corporate governance, misinformation and disinformation, tech accountability, sustainable investing, Open MIC, digital ethics, systemic risk, fiduciary responsibility

In this episode, host Georges Dyer speaks with Bill Burckart, Co-Founder and CEO of The Investment Integration Project (TIIP) and co-author of 21st Century Investing: Redirecting Financial Strategies to Drive Systems Change. Bill explains the concept of system-level investing—a strategic approach that helps investors protect and shape the critical systems (like climate stability, fair labor markets, and democracy) that underpin long-term portfolio performance. The conversation explores why modern portfolio theory is no longer sufficient in the face of systemic risks like climate change and inequality, and how fiduciaries can—and must—integrate systems thinking into investment strategies. Bill outlines practical tools and frameworks for implementation, including the CRIM test for identifying systemic issues and the SAIL platform for assessing institutional readiness. He highlights real-world examples from University Pension Plan Ontario, CalSTRS, and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, showing strong financial performance alongside positive systemic impact. Listeners will gain insight into how investors can move from managing exposure to reshaping it, why fiduciary duty supports system-level action, and how education, collaboration, and policy engagement can drive a more resilient financial system. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Resources: TIIP’s report on the Rockefeller Brothers fund: https://tiiproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/RBF-10-Year-Review-8.1.25_FINAL.pdf 21st Century Investing: Redirecting Financial Strategies to Drive Systems Change: https://a.co/d/jf5l5vb Keywords: System-level investing, fiduciary duty, modern portfolio theory, sustainable finance, climate risk, institutional investors, The Investment Integration Project (TIIP), long-term investing, systems thinking, responsible investing

In this episode of Future of Finance, Georges talks with Ted Flanigan, president of EcoMotion and longtime leader in the energy and sustainability movement. Ted shares his journey from anti-nuclear activism to strategic planning at the New York Power Authority, his pioneering role at the Rocky Mountain Institute, and the founding of EcoMotion. The conversation explores how cities, schools, and companies are adopting cost-effective clean energy solutions—from solar installations and microgrids to EV charging and resilience planning. Ted highlights the importance of trust, honest financial analysis, and behavioral engagement in driving adoption. He also discusses the promise of innovations like vehicle-to-grid integration and space-based solar. Along the way, Ted reflects on his parallel journey as a podcaster with Flanigan’s Eco Logic, where he and his daughter Sierra share stories to inspire a more sustainable future. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: Ted Flanigan, EcoMotion, Rocky Mountain Institute, energy efficiency, solar power, microgrids, electric vehicles, vehicle-to-grid, energy resilience, sustainable finance

In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, George Dyer sits down with Brian Minns, who leads Responsible Investing at the University Pension Plan of Ontario (UPP). With more than $12 billion in assets under management and a strong commitment to sustainability from its inception, UPP is charting a bold course for system-level investing. Brian shares how UPP approaches responsible investing through a fiduciary lens, balancing the dual role of protecting pension assets while contributing to the global transition toward a sustainable economy. The conversation explores UPP’s climate action plan—including a net-zero by 2040 target—its work with external managers, investment in climate solutions, and the critical role of policy engagement. Brian also reflects on his two decades in the field, the challenges of fiduciary duty and ESG language, the opportunities in renewables and climate solutions, and his vision for finance as a force to allocate capital to society’s highest and best uses. This episode offers a candid look at how one of Canada’s largest university pension plans is leading with purpose, pragmatism, and long-term vision. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: Responsible investing, University Pension Plan of Ontario (UPP), net zero 2040, climate action plan, system-level investing, fiduciary duty, sustainable finance, pension funds, climate solutions, ESG integration

In this episode of Future of Finance, Georges Dyer sits down with John Lanier, Executive Director of the Ray C. Anderson Foundation and grandson of sustainability pioneer Ray Anderson. They trace the story of Ray’s transformative leadership at Interface, where he proved that sustainability and profitability could go hand in hand, and explore how those lessons continue through the foundation’s work today. John reflects on the evolution of Interface’s sustainable business model, the power of biomimicry, and the critical role of culture and leadership in driving innovation. The conversation turns to the foundation’s focus areas—including education, biomimicry, climate solutions, and the groundbreaking Drawdown Georgia initiative—and its decision to sunset in the next five years to maximize climate impact during this decisive decade. John offers a hopeful yet urgent call to action for philanthropy, business, and individuals to lean into solutions, embrace resilience, and create a better world for “tomorrow’s child.” This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Resources: Mid-Course Correction Revisited by Ray Anderson & John Lanier (2019 update with six new chapters by John): https://www.raycandersonfoundation.org/midcourse-correction-revisited/ Biomimicry – by Janine Benyus: https://a.co/d/iejiHSy Keywords: Ray Anderson, Interface, John Lanier, sustainability, biomimicry, circular economy, climate solutions, Drawdown Georgia, philanthropy, future of finance  

In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, host Georges Dyer speaks with Hallie Label, founder of Expect Equity, an innovative incubator model designed to address the persistent underrepresentation of women and people of color in asset management. Hallie shares insights from her career at leading investment firms and explains how Expect Equity provides underrepresented managers with the infrastructure, capital, and relationship-building support they need to succeed at scale. The conversation explores systemic barriers to entry, the importance of trust and back-office infrastructure, the role of trustees and incentives in shaping capital allocation, and how changing governance culture can unlock overlooked talent. Hallie also shares her vision for a financial system where excellence is recognized broadly, incentives are aligned with mission and impact, and durable investment firms are built for long-term success. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Books mentioned: "The Doors You Can Open" - https://www.rosalindchow.com/book "Grit" - https://angeladuckworth.com/grit-book/ Keywords: Expect Equity, Hallie Label, asset management, underrepresented managers, institutional investors, capital allocation, investment trust, back-office infrastructure, trustee incentives, inclusive finance

In this episode of The Future of Finance, Georges Dyer sits down with Paul Herman, founder of HIP Investor (Human Impact + Profit). Paul shares how HIP uses a tech-enabled platform to turn vast amounts of real-world data—from companies, governments, nonprofits, and even satellites—into impact ratings on hundreds of thousands of securities. These ratings help investors understand both risks and opportunities in areas like climate resilience, toxic site exposure, health outcomes, and corporate sustainability. Paul also dives into innovative ways HIP is helping cities and municipalities finance their climate action plans, highlighting underutilized tools such as private credit, public-private partnerships, and community foundations. He explains how resilience analysis goes beyond traditional risk ratings, accounting for factors like extreme weather, waste management, and community strength. With decades of leadership in sustainable investing, authorship of The HIP Investor and The Global Handbook of Impact Investing, and a passion for education, Paul demonstrates how impact investing not only drives positive societal change but also delivers competitive financial returns. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Paul’s books and resources: The HIP Investor: https://hipinvestor.com/the-hip-investor-book/ The Global Handbook of Impact Investing: https://hipinvestor.com/global-handbook/ Keywords: Impact investing, climate resilience, sustainable finance, municipal climate action, ESG data, toxic site multipliers, private credit, resilient communities, HIP Investor, Human Impact and Profit

In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, Georges Dyer speaks with Machel Allen, President & CIO of Metis Global Partners, and Brad Gretsch, Research Analyst at Metis. They dive into the critical role of real assets—including natural resources, real estate, infrastructure, commodities, and precious metals—in driving the energy transition and supporting sustainable investing. The conversation explores how Metis has developed a sustainable real assets index strategy that provides institutional investors access to diversified, liquid, and cost-effective exposure to real assets—without the heavy fossil fuel tilt of traditional funds. Machel and Brad explain how this strategy balances impact, financial performance, and risk management, making it attractive for foundations, endowments, healthcare systems, and family offices alike. Listeners gain insight into: Why real assets are central to decarbonization The financial performance of sustainable indexes compared to traditional ones The benefits of liquidity, diversification, and inflation protection How investors can align mission-driven goals with portfolio strategies This episode highlights how innovative approaches to real assets can deliver both market returns and climate solutions, helping to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: Sustainable investing, real assets, energy transition, climate solutions, institutional investors, inflation hedge, diversification, index strategies, endowments & foundations, decarbonization

In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, Georges Dyer hosts a powerful conversation with Philippe Bolopion (Managing Director at TOBAM) and Lauren Kaplan (Director of Governance and Risk Integration at Third Side Strategies) on why investors must pay attention to political risk and threats to democracy. They explore the global trend of democratic backsliding, the clear links between democracy and economic growth, and how exposure to autocratic regimes creates long-term risks for investors. Philippe shares TOBAM’s “Liberty” strategy, designed to reduce exposure to autocratic countries, while Lauren highlights how investors and companies can strengthen governance practices and mitigate systemic risks through better oversight, due diligence, and corporate political responsibility. From the U.S. to global markets, the discussion makes one thing clear: protecting democracy isn’t just a political concern—it’s an essential part of managing risk and creating sustainable long-term value. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keywords: Political risk, democracy and investment, autocracy risk, systemic risk, long-term value, corporate governance, sustainable investing, fiduciary duty, democratic backsliding, investor responsibility

In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, Georges Dyer speaks with Mitch Thomashow—author, educator, and former Unity College president—about the evolving landscape of environmental learning and sustainability in higher education. Drawing from his books Ecological Identity, Bringing the Biosphere Home, To Know the World, and The Nine Elements of a Sustainable Campus, Mitch explores how institutions can leverage their social, intellectual, natural, and financial capital to become hubs of sustainability innovation. The conversation spans from the personal—how ecological identity shapes values and career paths—to the systemic—how endowments, campus operations, and curricula can align with sustainability goals. Mitch shares insights on systems thinking, the intersection of ecology with equity and democracy, the role of activism in shaping institutional change, and the power of “invisible resistance” through community-based initiatives. He emphasizes the importance of place-based learning, fostering skills for change-making, and reimagining investment strategies to prioritize community well-being and long-term resilience. This episode is brought to you by Metis Global Partners. Keep up with Mitch: https://www.mitchellthomashow.com/ Books mentioned: Ecological Identity, Bringing the Biosphere Home https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262700993/bringing-the-biosphere-home/ To Know the World https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262539821/to-know-the-world/ The Nine Elements of a Sustainable Campus https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262529006/the-nine-elements-of-a-sustainable-campus/ The Light Eaters https://www.elliottbaybook.com/item/MEgaIBq6_d8x81JVs4OwXw An Immense World https://edyong.me/an-immense-world Braiding Sweetgrass https://milkweed.org/book/braiding-sweetgrass The Earth Transformed https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/635264/the-earth-transformed-by-peter-frankopan/ Hope Dies Last https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/624630/hope-dies-last-by-alan-weisman/ The Book of Records https://bookendsandbeginnings.com/book/9781324078654 Habitats of the World https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691197562/habitats-of-the-world?srsltid=AfmBOooxhY9gQKcabwhv1kDDAGOCJuXtvHx7bCfnezS60g4-aPMJClHK Keywords: Environmental learning, ecological identity, sustainable investing, systems thinking, higher education sustainability, campus operations, four capitals framework, place-based learning, activism in education, community resilience

In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, Georges Dyer speaks with Cory Donovan, Co-Founder and Senior VP for Community Engagement, and Kafi Lindsay, CEO of ImpactPHL. Together, they explore how place-based impact investing is transforming Philadelphia into a national model for inclusive, regenerative economic development. Cory and Kafi share how ImpactPHL builds awareness, educates investors, and fosters a powerful local ecosystem that aligns capital with community values. From shifting the financial sector toward "one-pocket thinking" to challenging outdated notions of fiduciary duty, this conversation highlights both systemic failures and bold innovations. They unpack how aligning capital with community priorities can address deep-rooted racial and economic inequities—while creating a more sustainable financial system for the future. Keywords: Place-based investing, ImpactPHL, inclusive economic development, fiduciary duty, local investing, system-level change, community wealth, sustainable finance, Philadelphia impact ecosystem, one-pocket thinking

In this special episode of the Future of Finance podcast, we feature a compelling presentation from David Livingston, Chief Strategy Officer at Galvanize Climate Solutions and former senior advisor to U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry. Livingston outlines how the global energy transition is unfolding within three sweeping macro shifts: from a G-7 to a G-Zero geopolitical landscape, from climate cooperation to climate competition, and from fossil fuels to a future dominated by electricity and data. He dives into the role of clean energy as both an economic and strategic asset, explores the geopolitical ramifications of decentralized energy systems, and outlines the massive growth potential in electricity, data centers, geothermal, and storage. Livingston also discusses how institutional investors are adapting to these changes and where they might be missing opportunities. This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in the intersection of climate, policy, geopolitics, and long-term investment strategy. Keywords: Energy transition, clean energy, climate competition, geopolitics, electrification, Galvanize Climate Solutions, industrial policy, institutional investment, data centers, carbon border adjustments

In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, Georges Dyer sits down with Grant Harrison, Vice President of Sustainable Finance and ESG at Trellis Group. Formerly known as GreenBiz, Trellis is a hub for corporate sustainability professionals, convening communities through editorial content, events, and a growing professional network. Grant shares insights on the evolution of Trellis, the shift from reporting to implementation in sustainability, and how companies are navigating political headwinds, particularly in the U.S. They explore critical trends such as greenhushing, the emergence of the ESG controller role, the integration of sustainability across departments, and the tension between short-term financial incentives and long-term value creation. The episode also touches on AI's role in ESG reporting, the rise of net-zero accountability, and the increasing importance of system-level investing. Grant’s reflections offer both realism and optimism about building a financially and environmentally sustainable future. Keywords: Sustainable finance, ESG reporting, greenhushing, corporate sustainability, trellis group, ESG controller, climate disclosure, system-level investing, net-zero transition, political headwinds

In this episode, Scott Hobart takes us inside the transition to a decarbonized energy system, with a sharp focus on the evolution of the electricity grid. Drawing on his global experience in commodities and energy markets—from China’s industrial boom to U.S. grid reform—Scott discusses the increasing demand from AI and data centers, the transformative role of tech giants in power generation, and the investment opportunities within nuclear, geothermal, and storage technologies. He explains why policy certainty is essential, why energy equity is an emerging concern, and how partnerships with academia (like Princeton and Columbia) are accelerating innovation. This conversation is a must-listen for anyone curious about how finance, technology, and infrastructure are converging to reshape the power sector—and the planet’s future. Keywords: Electricity grid, decarbonization, energy transition, AI, data centers, climate investing, public markets, energy storage, policy certainty, renewable energy, institutional partnerships

In this episode of the Future of Finance podcast, host Georges Dyer sits down with Sean Penrith, founder and CEO of Gordian Knot Strategies, to explore how capital can be more effectively deployed to combat climate change. With two decades of experience in climate finance, Sean shares insights into the firm’s mission to mobilize $1 billion annually by 2030 through innovative climate investment strategies. They dive into the power and pitfalls of voluntary and compliance carbon markets, the potential of nature-based solutions like reforestation, grassland restoration, and peatlands, and the challenge of aligning returns with impact. Sean also reflects on systemic barriers, the importance of systems thinking, and the role of policy in scaling climate solutions. It’s a deep and candid conversation about connecting capital to climate action—and doing it with integrity. Keywords: Climate finance, carbon markets, nature-based solutions, impact investing, gordian knot strategies, systems thinking, philanthropic capital, reforestation, voluntary versus compliance markets, credit enhancement mechanisms

In this episode of the Future of Finance, host Georges Dyer speaks with Temple Fennell, Co-founder and Managing Director of Clean Energy Ventures, to explore the frontier of climate tech venture capital. Temple shares how his fund backs early-stage companies targeting the most difficult sectors to decarbonize—concrete, ammonia, cooling systems, battery recycling, and more—with the bold goal of mitigating 2.5 gigatons of CO₂ by 2050. The conversation covers Clean Energy Ventures’ investment strategy, impact measurement through a proprietary emissions calculator, the intersection of technical rigor and scalable innovation, and the role of strategic partnerships in growing climate solutions. Temple also delves into the importance of policy-agnostic business models, underappreciated sectors like cooling and water, and his work supporting family offices and next-generation investors. This is a candid and in-depth look at how venture capital is fueling the clean energy transition. Keywords: Climate tech, venture capital, emissions reduction, clean energy ventures, decarbonization, cooling systems, battery recycling, hydrogen and ammonia, impact investing, early-stage innovation

In this episode of The Future of Finance, host Georges Dyer speaks with Brandon McNamara, Ph.D., a researcher at Northern Arizona University, about how endowments and institutional investors can better measure and manage the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions embedded in their investment portfolios. Brandon shares the details of his groundbreaking research analyzing the carbon footprint of NAU’s endowment, using the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF) framework. They dive into how carbon accounting for investments works, the challenges of Scope 3 emissions, and how universities can integrate climate data into decision-making around divestment and engagement. Brandon also reflects on how academia can help drive real-world impact and offers advice to students entering the sustainable finance field. Keywords: Carbon accounting, scope 3 emissions, university endowments, sustainable investing, PCAF, divestment vs. engagement, climate risk, investment portfolios, ESG strategy, greenhouse gas emissions

In this compelling episode of The Future of Finance, Georges Dyer speaks with Dr. Ellen Quigley, Principal Research Associate at the University of Cambridge and Special Adviser to the university's CFO on Responsible Investment. Ellen breaks down the concept of universal ownership, the risks of climate change through the lens of systemic investing, and how endowments and other long-term asset owners can be powerful agents of change. She also introduces a groundbreaking corporate bond index designed to avoid funding fossil fuel expansion while encouraging investor impact through tools like debt denial and director vote strategies. Ellen critically examines ESG investing, warns about the under-recognized dangers of methane-heavy infrastructure, and calls for investors to shift the social discourse in ways that legitimize climate-aligned policy. Through practical examples and philosophical insights, this episode offers a rich, urgent, and ultimately hopeful look at how finance can be reimagined to serve people and the planet. Keywords: Universal ownership, anthropocene, systemic risk, fossil fuel divestment, responsible investment, corporate bond index, director votes, climate change, asset owners vs asset managers, endowment model

In this episode of the Future of Finance, host Georges Dyer sits down with Bob Smith, Co-Founder, President, and Co-Chief Investment Officer at Sage Advisory. Bob shares his firm’s evolution since its founding in 1996—from two people and a Bloomberg terminal to managing $30 billion in assets—driven by a mission to align investments with purpose. The conversation dives deep into Sage’s approach to purpose-driven and liability-aware investing, their proprietary ESG scoring system (the Leaf Score), and how they’ve built ESG integration into fixed income and ETF strategies. Bob also provides a candid view of how today’s political climate has impacted sustainable investing, the retreat in corporate stewardship, and the dangers of “greenhushing” alongside greenwashing. The episode explores policy ideas like carbon pricing, the sustainability tradeoffs of tariffs, and the role of AI and blockchain in the future of finance. Listeners will walk away with actionable insights on building resilience, transparency, and values alignment in investment strategies. Keywords: ESG investing, purpose-driven finance, fixed income strategies, Leaf Score, greenwashing and greenhushing, political backlash on ESG, tariffs and sustainability, carbon pricing, AI in finance, sustainable investment frameworks

In this insightful episode of The Future of Finance, host Georges Dyer sits down with Scott Ryan and Kathryn Hopkins of Investature, a mission-driven firm aiming to align retirement plan investing with climate impact. The conversation explores how retirement plans—representing trillions of dollars in assets—can be powerful tools for addressing climate change. Scott shares his journey from fintech to founding Investature, emphasizing the often-overlooked role of financed emissions and how individual and institutional decisions in retirement plans can directly reduce carbon footprints. Kathryn brings an educational lens to the conversation, underscoring the importance of financial literacy and helping people understand that they can have a double bottom line—achieving both financial returns and environmental impact. Together, they outline barriers such as litigation fears and lack of awareness, while offering actionable solutions for employees, employers, and institutions. They call for a cultural shift in fiduciary thinking, where choosing sustainable investment options is no longer seen as a risk—but as a fiduciary duty. With compelling examples, like how $1,000 in a climate fund can offset the emissions of a cross-country flight annually, they demonstrate the tangible power of intentional investing. This episode is a roadmap for individuals and organizations ready to take bold, climate-conscious steps in finance. Keywords: Climate finance, retirement plans, double bottom line, fiduciary duty, sustainable investing, financed emissions, financial literacy, 401(k) engagement, climate solutions, impact investing

In this compelling episode of The Future of Finance, host Georges Dyer speaks with Dr. David Orr, a pioneering voice in ecological economics and democracy reform. Orr, a professor and author of Democracy in a Hotter Time and Dangerous Years, discusses the urgent need to rethink our economic and political systems in light of climate change, democratic erosion, and AI risks. He shares the origins of ecological literacy, the failures of traditional economic models to account for planetary boundaries, and the opportunity to create “Democracy 4.0”—a rights-based, systems-aware democracy fit for the 21st century. With thoughtful insights on the role of education, endowment investing, and human morality, Orr calls for bold, collective action in what he sees as a pivotal moment in human history. This conversation is both a warning and a hopeful guide for rebuilding our systems to better serve future generations and the planet. Keywords: Ecological economics, democracy 4.0, climate change, systems thinking, higher education reform, AI risks, endowment investing, infinite growth fallacy, civic and moral revival, sustainability and justice