Amina Razvi is a thought leader who has built a reputation as an integrator and connector. With conviction and clarity, Amina left her CEO role at the Sustainable Apparel Coalition in early 2024. Since then (and based on her own experience as a woman leader in the environmental space) she has been building her own platform to advance and support women into leadership, based on her firm belief that women leaders hold the key to climate action. She is leveraging her experience and network to build a new coalition to increase the number of women leaders across the fashion value chain, from the factory floor to the board room. She is doing this with great deftness and skill, despite the challenges. Her superpowers are many but this line from her nominator really struck a chord: "Amina is an unapologetic woman leader, someone who leads with heart, empathy, authenticity, and pragmatism."

Rhian is the definition of a maverick. She’s just got that magic quality and the gumption to make shit happen. On top of her role as CEO of the Green Finance Institute (GFI) and numerous other advisory, board and trustee positions, she's relentless in her pursuit to establish new financial models, products and asset classes to green initiatives and solutions. Shaping how finance can be used to facilitate real economy transition, Rhian has built up a stellar global team from scratch to create the 'action tank' that is the GFI; creating the enabling environments and financial solutions needed to accelerate the transition to a net-zero and nature positive economy. Under Rhian's leadership, the GFI tests, demonstrates, and scales financial solutions across sectors and geographies, with a tenacious focus on practical outcomes. Often, this involves operationalising pioneering concepts and breaking down barriers to action to enable capital to move between two counterparties. True maverick behaviour!

Sarah is not someone who shouts about her achievements, she’s too low key for that. However, believe us: she is a highly respected, maverick brain operating behind the scenes; someone respected at the top table of climate. Her role as former Chief Scientist at NOOA focused on weather and climate data collection and programme design for people impacted by severe weather. She excels at this but she’s equally skilled at finance and economics which allows her to translate climate science for investors; educating lawmakers, companies, investors and the general public about climate change with a laser-focus on designing and unlocking impactful solutions. In her new position at JP Morgan, Sarah will put science-based insights and technical expertise front and centre, helping investors see around corners and advance their decarbonization strategies. Seen amongst her peers and colleagues as one of the global leaders in green financing, Sarah is a modern day climate rock star and there are few more worthy inclusions on this inaugural Fin-Erth list.

Jess Murphy is a true maverick with incredible EQ. As S2G's head of community, she is instrumental in championing the growth and engagement of their network of portfolio companies, co-investors, advisors, corporate leaders, and policymakers in service of creating spaces for relationship building that leads to action and positive outcomes. Despite being a big lift, Jess pulls it off with seeming ease while always delivering an incredible amount of value behind the scenes. One colleague describes her "instinctive flair for getting the right group of doers together" and effortlessly navigating complex situations and tight deadlines in support of the climate community. Without building deep human relationships and connections that foster trust, it's hard to imagine capital unlocking at pace and scale. This makes the Jess Murphy's of this world invaluable. Fortunately for S2G, there's only one of her.

For over a decade Lisa has worked in some of the most demanding and complex policy spaces including climate change, human rights and emerging technologies. She served as Head of Strategy for the COP28 Presidency where she was a core member of the team that delivered the COP28 Climate Conference and its outcomes. She was a senior climate negotiator on the Australian delegation from COP21 (Paris) through to COP26 and spent years as a diplomat, advancing gender across UN Agencies and examining the impact of emerging technologies on human rights. Currently a Fulbright Scholar, Lisa continues to put gender at the high table of policy, exploring the issue from all angles and has ambitious and unapologetic plans to advance gender equality via the COP process. On a practical level, she spent 5+ years training women on climate negotiations across Asia Pacific. This training has led to 100+ women taking senior positions across the region. Involved in the first Gender Action Plan under the UNFCCC, it’s fair to say that Lisa puts a spotlight on women in every scenario advocating for their interests, often behind closed doors. As her nominator says: “she has not been put off by being the ‘gender person’ and works to make it everyone’s issue.” Maverick spirit.

Lyndsay Handler has ripped up and transformed how climate challenges are addressed in Africa through her venture studio, Delta40. Some examples: most VCs don't fund at the very early pre-seed stages, this is where Delta40 operates; women only get 4% of funding globally, Delta40 is committed to funding 51% women; most VCs claim to provide post investment support, Delta40 actually provides it for a 24-month period across 5 key areas of building a business. The list goes on. On the African continent, she built one of the few companies that have successfully scaled across Africa, created 10,000+ jobs, and realized an exit to a corporate that has since expanded the business model even further. Tens of thousands of lives have been changed as a result of Lyndsay pursuing her dream. Her track record of leadership and innovation extends beyond Delta40. She has consistently built ventures that balance revenue with impact, ensuring both investors and communities benefit. The ventures under her stewardship are expected to generate significant economic returns while addressing climate challenges head-on. Lyndsay’s ability to attract over $30 million in investment commitments in the early stages of Delta40 demonstrates her effectiveness in aligning commercial and social priorities. In short, Lyndsay does things her way. That’s maverick.

A fearless new model creator big on values and doing things differently. That’s Régine Clément. Her achievements? So many. In under 10 years she has taken a small group of families in the New York / Chicago area, built a 501c3 non-profit that has now expanded to 200 families in over 30 countries across the world. Together these families have invested $50bn+ into climate and sustainability solutions and the decarbonization transition. She has proved, at scale, a sustainability acceleration model for investors and put private capital to work in a way which delivers long term value. Understanding that it was informed capital that had to be deployed, she built a team that the families could trust to provide them with access to information, introductions, research and deal flow as they sought to deploy quickly and effectively into climate solutions and create market rate risk adjusted returns. Those who know her also say she’s a collaborator and supporter of others. Star quality!

Change is tough inside conglomerates. It’s not their fault, structure can make great strategic plans near impossible to implement. This is water off a duck’s back for Shahad Nejaim. Described by colleagues as a truly remarkable business leader, Shahad joined AlDabbagh as Sustainability Director and hit the ground running. From ensuring business units were trained and aligned on GRI indicators and reporting to signing up each business unit for an MSCI rating and benchmarking, from insisting each BU board has a governance and sustainability agenda to personally creating and delivering a sustainability training programme for all executives in the business that received an exceptional approval rating; it’s clear that Shahad hasn’t talked about change, she’s just got on and made it happen. As close collaborators note, she is doing all of this with no drama, limited support and with a sense of confidence and clarity that belies her age. One word: AMAZING!

According to the dictionary, a maverick is “an unorthodox or independent-minded person.” Was this phrase invented for Trista Patterson? It could have been as she thinks with such independence and clarity. At Microsoft her achievements have been truly remarkable. Thinking about the upstream impact of “default settings”, Trista realised that in everyday items and systems (big and small) these pre-settings were established at a time when the climate question wasn’t even on the agenda. Her interrogation has led Microsoft and XBox to completely re-examine default settings, game development, source code and operating systems and the results have been phenomenal. Without negatively impacting user experience, Trista has prevented untold emissions and energy consumption before these emissions have even occurred. As her nominator says, “this is the holy grail.” Alongside this extraordinary solution-focused work, Trista has also mobilised gamers and creatives – putting play back on the agenda. She founded Playing for the Planet Alliance at the UN General Assembly in 2019 and now Co-Chairs the Board, whose membership represents over 1.5B gamers and over $1T in market cap. Politicians, industry leaders, creatives - indeed, all of us - could learn something from Trista. We are not the first to recognise her (she was on Time Magazine’s inaugural climate list). She gets a gold star from us!

As anyone in climate will recognise, much of the progress in capital mobilization and policy adoption is slow and thankless. And yet, Alice is someone who possesses the patience, persistence and unwavering dedication to stay the course; making sure vital solutions unlock and the global financial system delivers on its net zero commitments. Her list of achievements are many – from successfully mainstreaming the concept and adoption of transition planning and transition finance to supporting some of the most important initiatives in the space, including the Net Zero Data Platform Utility (NZDPU), the Industrial Transition Accelerator (ITA), and Just Energy Transition Partnerships (JETPs). Those who work closely with her note her robust expertise on the financial and real economy policies and regulations needed to deliver the Paris Agreement goals. This arises from both her technical background as a central banker (she spent 10+ years as a key figure at the Bank of England), and her deep understanding of the technicalities of climate change mitigation. Above all, here is someone who commands respect from both her team and the broader community; for her work ethic, brilliance and humanity.

Brandon leads Microsoft's $1B Climate Innovation Fund programme and strategy, accelerating technology development and deployment of new climate innovations. With a portfolio of more than 50 investments including climate-tech startups and first-of-a-kind green infrastructure projects, Brandon is blazing a trail. Notable deals include investing in the $30m series B round for private-markets sustainability platform Novata and participation in the $120m series C raise for Boston Metal, a firm which is developing technology to reduce the carbon footprint of steel production processes. Before joining the fund, Middaugh spent four years at Microsoft as a senior programme manager, leading its distributed energy strategy as part of the company’s energy and sustainability activities. Before moving to Microsoft, she had stints at fuel cell system provider Bloom Energy and as a vice president at energy utility Sun Edison.

Following a distinguished academic stint in the US including completing her doctorate at Harvard Business School, Ayesha cut her teeth as a strategist for McKinsey. Having returned to Pakistan, a country that suffers enormously from the impact of climate change, she designed and developed the Acumen Climate Action Pakistan (ACAP) Fund – a $90M blended finance facility and Pakistan’s first climate focused private equity fund. If launching this wasn’t hard enough, she did so during one of the worst economic crises in Pakistan’s history. This speaks to her tenacity, determination and sheer awesomeness – making her achievement even more remarkable. Recognizing the challenges of raising capital in a frontier market, the ACAP fund has been designed as a blended finance facility with a significant first loss layer. The fund investment equity is also supported by a significant grant funding layer that will not only help address some of the structural gaps in building viable business models at scale within the portfolio companies, but will be used to measure impact, amplify gender equity outcomes and build collaborations across the sector. It’s hard to say anything other than: YES!

Hanan’s achievements are many and include successfully shepherding through a Net Zero by 2050 commitment at Mubadala – one of the world’s largest wealth funds – as well as playing a leading role introducing a new streamlined bespoke model for assessing the environmental, social and governance implications of investments. Called the Sustainable Returns Model, this is now purported to be used by Investment teams at Mubadala so that its capital allocation is aligned with its net zero trajectory and that material risks are managed. It is also used as a framework across portfolio companies. In addition, Hanan has led the creation of the Responsible Investing Network in Abu Dhabi and was behind a move to unlock funding from Mubadala Foundation to subsidize decarbonization assessments and the development of strategic sustainability pathways for 19 of Mubadala's UAE investments. In short, she’s epic.

If there’s anyone inside a large global financial institution determined to unlock climate capital, it’s Harlin Singh. Having launched Citi’s approach to sustainable investing as its first Global Head of Sustainable Investing, her achievements speak for themselves. Firstly, she has focused on creating innovative products across the asset classes - from private equity that seeks to achieve long-term capital growth by investing in companies in the energy, energy transition, natural resources and climate sectors to the first of its kind Wildlife Conservation Bond that directs client investment capital into achieving measurable conservation outcomes. Secondly, she understands the importance of deep, nuanced relationships particularly within private wealth – always striving to help her clients align their capital to their own personal worldviews whether it be clean energy transition, decarbonization or climate resilience. That might sound simple but Harlin has elevated relationship management into a form of art. Perhaps most poignantly and what cemented her place on this list is her resolve to unlock climate solutions and support others.

Herry is responsible for driving sustainable finance initiatives across Singapore Exchange Group (SGX) and it is fair to say the solutions she has unlocked in this role are numerous and impressive. These include spearheading SGX’s collaboration with BlackRock, through the listing of iShares MSCI Asia ex-Japan Climate Action ETF as well as being one of the key architects of the MOU between SGX, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, and the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (UN CDSC), an agreement that will enhance their collaboration and strengthen free access by stakeholders to key climate transition-related data. However, what emerges from our research and conversations with those who know Herry is something rare: someone deeply generous with her time; humble about her achievements; committed to growing others and, frankly, a great human being and role model for not only women in finance but anyone in finance.

Trailblazer, collaborator, change-maker… The list of superlatives are never ending for Jenn Kenning. Having created the first impact specialized investment advisory firm, Jenn accelerates the capital flow of high net worth individuals and family offices towards sustainability solutions. Meeting the unmet needs of family offices and institutions who want to lead with impact, Jenn has disrupted traditional investment advisory and mobilized capital to address market gaps across climate and societal issues. This is an extraordinary achievement in and of itself and she commands enormous respect among colleagues, clients and the wider impact finance community. Described as a “force of nature”, Jenn has built a deeply dedicated and skilled due diligence team to bring funds to clients that they cannot access elsewhere. Our verdict? She’s a doer getting sh*t done.

As the Chief Investment Officer of Builders Initiative, Noelle spearheaded the transition of Builders Vision’s endowment to over 90% sustainable mission-related investments, a pioneering move in the world of philanthropy and finance. This transition supports an array of solutions focused on climate change, environmental preservation, and sustainable community development, amplifying the potential impact of large-scale philanthropic capital. She has overseen a multi-billion dollar deployment into sustainable and impact-driven investments, managers, and funds, a noteworthy contribution to the advancement of mission-aligned capital. And her ability to match her client’s deep commitments to addressing some of the world’s most pressing challenges alongside financial objectives show just how effective she is at getting the work done. Those who have worked with her underline her diligence, hard work and ethics – the ultimate “go-to” person.

Sabrin Rahman has a distinguished 20 year career working at the intersection of finance, climate and ESG across Australia and the UAE. From an early career in Australia that caught the attention of the Institute for Peace and Economics, Sabrin has become a central figure in HSBC's sustainable finance efforts across Europe and the Middle East with a green financing target of $11b. Sabrin led HSBC to win Euromoney’s Best Bank in the Middle East for Sustainable Finance from 2019-2022 in addition to 2023 and pioneered various sustainable finance products, such as green bonds, green and sustainability-linked loans, and green mortgage and vehicle financing products. She sits on the Banks executive committee for the UAE and global sustainability. She was also on the leadership team for COP28, with her work being hailed as highly consequential. She is also someone who has been quietly championing female capacity building and representation at the highest level for many years.

Sue’s role as a Strategic Advisor is to catalyse finance sector climate leadership and leverage it to shift the sector at the speed and scale required to deliver transformative change. While these groups are typically formed and led by public figures such as Christiana Figueres and Mark Carney, we understand that Sue is the person who holds the members of these fragile coalitions to account, working meticulously, diplomatically and with utter determination to ensure the finance sector brings its best foot forward on climate. All of this painstaking work is done against a harsh backdrop of anti-ESG campaigning - particularly in finance - and continually-evolving legal obstacles. According to colleagues and collaborators, Sue doesn't seek the limelight but is an extraordinary soul who embodies the leadership qualities so badly needed in the climate space at this critical time; passion, humility, integrity and care. She has brought her background as a lawyer into her work, and her diligence and attention to detail ensures that she understands both the technical ins and outs, but also the more subtle nuances of high level and high impact communications with these major institutions. This enables her to work fully within the system, securing seemingly small tweaks to foundational documents, letters and other materials which can mean the difference between making or breaking agreements. We could go on, suffice it to say the Fin-Erth Awards were created for people like Sue Reid – an unsung hero behind the scenes.

Ashima brings a combination of deep technical expertise and strong business acumen to her role as CEO and Co-founder of Renewed Risk, built over 15+ years of experience in financial services across insurance and banking. Her contribution to the renewable energy sector through innovative risk modelling that addresses a critical gap in the insurance and finance markets for renewable assets is significant. From developing catastrophe modelling software specifically for renewable energy projects to supporting the growth of offshore wind farms by reducing financial uncertainties for both insurers and investors, from supporting the global energy transition by expanding into onshore wind, solar, and battery storage to encouraging more participation from insurers and (re)insurers in the renewable energy space, Ashima is innovating within the insurance sector and unlocking capital to accelerate the global shift to Net Zero. As one nominator put it: “Ashima blends strategic foresight, innovative thinking, and operational excellence.”

In her role at the Insurance Development Fund, Ekhosuehi Iyahen has been instrumental in leveraging insurance as a tool for building resilience against climate-related disasters. Her work focuses on developing innovative insurance solutions to protect vulnerable communities from climate-related risks. This includes initiatives such as regional risk pools, parametric insurance, and disaster risk financing. Those who work closely with her speak to her unwavering commitment to the role insurance can play in building a more resilient future. Many developing countries face significant insurance protection gaps, particularly for climate-related risks. Ekhosuehi has been working to address this issue by fostering partnerships between governments, insurers, and international organizations. We understand that she’s a team player, a collaborator and a strong advocate for sustainable insurance practices, emphasizing the importance of integrating climate risk into underwriting and investment decisions.

Holly’s journey into insurance solutions came off the back of a secondment she secured at the Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI), a not-for-profit established by His Majesty the King when he was the Prince of Wales. As Sustainable Investment Director, her role involved identifying de-risking solutions to scale investment into the transition spanning blended finance through to insurance solutions. It was at the SMI that Holly saw the power of insurance to unlock capital and subsequently moved to Howden to drive this work forward. An impressive action-orientated person, Holly operates behind the scenes, leveraging her investment banking expertise to bring together the skills and knowledge of the finance and insurance communities to de-risk financing and accelerate more investment into decarbonisation. Beyond this, Holly understands the importance of being in the right room - and is driving dialogues with financial institutions and corporates to develop new fit-for-purpose insurance solutions that catalyse investment into low-carbon infrastructure, carbon credits and nature-based adaptation. Our view? She’s a rising star.

Karima leads LeapFrog’s African Financial Services investment team. She has driven landmark investments in ARM Pensions, one of the largest pension providers in Nigeria, and AIICO, one of the largest insurers in Nigeria. She cut her teeth as Executive Director of Global Equities at HSBC working internationally across the UK, Hong Kong and South Africa before forming the first Africa Agriculture fund at Chayton Capital LLP and running multimillion-dollar transactions into Nigeria during her time as the CIO at ADC African Development Corporation. There’s little doubt that Karima’s experience is deep and impactful but the line that really says it best comes from her nominator: “she’s a rockstar woman, leading African investment across many fronts.”

Kelly Hereid is at the forefront of U.S. insurance. Our research suggests that she is one of the most vocal insurance executives on how data and models need to change to incorporate climate risk. As Head of Catastrophe R&D at Liberty Mutual, Kelly has been incorporating climate change into their products and models, building up one of the strongest climate teams in the business. She has raised the bar across the insurance sector – working hard to understand climate change and how to adapt underwriting and risk modeling to mitigate present and future risk. Kelly is a doer. She has unlocked capital from Federal Science and Emergency Management Agencies (FEMA, NOAA, NSF, NASA) and shaped research for the White House (Council of Economic Advisors, Presidential Council on Science and Technology). She is tackling problems at the top tier of US Government, guiding its leaders to develop vital new products, programs, research and other capabilities for the insurance industry. Her nominator put it best: “She’s a true rockstar embodying everything Fin-Erth should celebrate.”

Lucy is at the forefront of bringing climate and more specifically emerging climate risks into the day to day activities of the insurance industry. A big believer in connecting science and business, Lucy understands the interconnectedness of everything and, as a result, offers intelligent new perspectives which challenges the insurance sector to think differently. She leads the Emerging Risks Survey, a key resource for the mainstream insurance industry which brings critical attention to climate and nature issues. Those who know and work with Lucy cite her intelligence and championing of others, particularly when it comes to addressing the gender imbalance within the industry. Our research suggests Lucy is brilliantly curious; and it is her ability to bring diversity of thought and intelligent perspective into the room that makes her stand out.

Natalia Dorfman is the driving force behind one of only very few companies solely dedicated to providing carbon insurance solutions. Mitigating carbon risk through a suite of innovative insurance products, Natalia's company, Kita, facilitates greater flows of upfront capital, thereby accelerating impactful climate initiatives. Prior to founding Kita, Natalia honed her expertise in climate-related business development as part of Carbon13’s Venture Builder programme, where she collaborated with other founders to create ventures capable of significantly reducing CO2 emissions. Her tenure at Clyde & Co as Head of Business Development and later, Global Head of New Business, saw her deepen the firm’s focus on Climate Change, Energy Transition, and Digital Transformation. Here, Natalia developed strategies to help clients navigate the complexities of climate risk and the evolving energy sector. The watchwords from her nominator are "hard working, innovative, kind, and driven."

Natalia works with clients to advance climate resiliency solutions, as well as supporting them on their transition journey to a lower-carbon economy. This ranges from exploring the role that insurance can play in de-risking cleantech investments to improving the integrity of carbon offset transactions. She has taken initiative and created the conversations that need to happen to push innovative insurance solutions forward, especially in emerging markets and hard to abate sectors. Natalia's most critical contributions to this area come from her passion for bringing cross-industry and cross-functional people together to align on goals and achieve meaningful outcomes. To that end, she has led many business development efforts across insurance markets to ensure that clients and markets are connected and aware of the growing need for resilient infrastructure and the solutions in place to make it happen. Much of this work takes place behind the scenes so we think it’s high time to shine a light on her achievements.

Sarah leads on decarbonisation services in KPMG International, working with financial services’ clients - from Insurance to Banking, from Private equity to Asset management - to help them understand the impacts of climate and energy transition to their business models. She leads a team of analysts who constantly find innovative ways to model climate change and identify risks and opportunities, and convey them in an accessible and practical way. Those who work with Sarah describe her as “the kindest, cleverest yet most understated person”; someone who is passionate about climate and transition, and who understands the significant role financial services have to play in not only their own journeys but in financing and “insuring” the transition of their customers. We understand Sarah to be one of the key architects of a hugely valuable market report of ten key sectors that London Market Insurers underwrite. Combining innovative analysis of sector specific levers with the key question, “what does this mean for insurance companies,” the report inches underwriters closer to understanding the impacts of the transition across their key sectors. In turn, this allows them to think more creatively and holistically about product development.

Sarah Russell leads a team of senior-level experts at X, the Moonshot Factory, which works on complex machine learning problems that use earth observation data and imagining new categories of business. A project called Bellwether is her current focus. Conceived to understand and anticipate changes across the planet, so that any organization, community, or business can ask smarter and more timely questions about the natural and built environment, Bellwether has already been helpful in supporting the US National Guard predict future disasters so communities can better plan for mitigation efforts and assess more accurate insurance assessments. Until now, it has been hard and expensive to apply AI to geospatial questions, but Sarah and her team have harnessed some of the most recent advances in machine learning to re-think the whole endeavour. Sarah is a real trailblazer – a startup founder, tech executive, and practicing physician working at the nexus of business, planetary health, and machine learning – and someone who colleagues say is consistently drawn to projects that make a meaningful difference to climate crisis adaptation and, ultimately, human lives.

Akanksha has been a long-term advocate for corporate action on nature. In her role at the World Economic Forum, she has created a global network of corporate leaders who are putting into practice the ideas that Akanksha and her team have developed. She has had a genuine impact on how corporates think about nature-related risks, dependencies and opportunities. Described by her nominator as incredibly smart and sharp with "inspirational levels of tenacity". Akanksha was the driving force behind the Forum's nature-positive economy reports in 2020, responsible for one of the most cited statistics in the natural capital sector - over half the world's total GDP is moderately or highly dependent on nature and its services. She has created a global champions for nature network, and has developed thought leadership products on emerging areas such as biodiversity credits.

Dorothy Maseke wears a number of impressive climate hats - all of which are focused on unlocking capital for nature and biodiversity. She leads the Africa Natural Capital Alliance (ANCA) - an initiative set up by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and FSD Africa. ANCA is a collaborative forum for mobilizing the financial community’s response to the risk of nature loss in Africa. Alongside this she spearheads FSD Africa’s Natural Capital, Biodiversity Finance & TNFD agenda through the UK Government’s Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) programme. If this wasn't a full enough set of day jobs, she is also one of 11 trusted experts appointed to advise the World Economic Forum on its scope of work in the natural capital field. Her nominator notes her dedication and fearless leadership; someone of deeds and action.

Dr Vian Sharif founded NatureAlpha, one of the early movers in the nature space. NatureAlpha provides a platform for financial institutions and the investment community with science-based datasets to assess and manage nature and biodiversity-related opportunities, impacts, dependencies, and controversies at the asset, company, and portfolio levels. Leveraging its core offering, NatureAlpha has forged strategic alliances with the potential to move capital at scale towards nature-positive outcomes, conceivably trillions of dollars. At the heart of it all is Vian – one of the leading voices in the nature and biodiversity space and a unique bridge between science and finance. Kind, generous, Vian epitomises the qualities and values of someone making a difference; a doer not a talker, getting the work done in the background without fanfare, without credit.

Emily McKenzie is the brains behind the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) and the driving force behind the Dasgupta review. She's someone who has integrated nature into policy, economics, finance and business for over 20 years working across 25 countries. Her CV is impressive. From roles within the Capitals Coalition to WWF, Guggenheim Partners to DEFRA, Emily has developed and applied the Natural Capital Protocol across countless projects and organisations worldwide. Her nominator is effusive describing Emily as someone "able to move mountains" and "an absolute powerhouse". It is clear Emily is driving so much value in the natural capital space while flying under the radar.

Ingrid manages Federated Hermes' Biodiversity Equity Fund and led the development of their Biodiversity Equity Strategy that was released in 2023. The Fund meets critical demand for solutions delivering global goals on biodiversity and aims to achieve long-term capital appreciation by investing in a concentrated portfolio of companies that are helping to preserve and restore biodiversity. Ingrid is setting the standard and pushing the envelope in the private sector among financial institutions and our research surfaces a consistent result: one of Ingrid challenging the financial sector to engage in the nature and biodiversity space with clear arguments, facts, and data driven insights. Colleagues and collaborators also note her passion, kindness and leadership.

Izzy Jensen is the Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Kakariki Capital, a female-led fund manager in carbon and environmental markets. Established to unlock large-scale capital that protects and restores ecosystems while delivering solid returns for investors, Izzy's work at Kakariki champions the development of accessible, credible carbon credit solutions for corporate clients, family offices, and high-net-worth individuals. The Kakariki Carbon Fund 1.0 has already invested $40m across 13 nature based projects including mangrove and afforestation resulting in the protection and restoration of over 50,000 hectares of land. And there is big ambition for future funds. One line by her nominator really caught our eye is" "Beyond measurable outcomes, Izzy has been a pivotal force in educating the market about carbon, ensuring that both corporate leaders and investors understand the potential and importance of carbon markets." Not everything is immediately measurable but Izzy is clearly putting in the hard yards.

Julie Moorad is part of Salesforce's global sustainability team responsible for developing and implementing an integrated nature program. She led the creation of and is now implementing Salesforce's Nature Positive Strategy. She conducted the company’s first TNFD-aligned assessment, supported the launch of Salesforce’s Nature Policy Priorities, and has convened Salesforce’s top customers at the intersection of climate and nature. She formerly developed the international sustainability strategy and EMEA sustainability programme and continues to be responsible for Salesforce's UK and Ireland sustainability implementation and EU climate and nature policy. Those who work closely with her talk fondly of her brilliance. One nominator described her as displaying both depth of knowledge and a really unassuming manner. How epic is that!

Karen Sack is a co-founder and the Executive Director of Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA). She has spent her career working on ocean conservation, advocacy and policy and has spoken and written extensively on ocean conservation, climate and sustainable finance. She was previously CEO of Ocean Unite, co-founded with Sir Richard Branson and José María Figueres which focused on achieving the 30x30 biodiversity target. Before that, she had roles as Senior Director for International Oceans at The Pew Charitable Trusts and Head of Greenpeace International’s Political & Business Unit as well as its Ocean campaign. She has spearheaded global campaigns to secure a new high seas biodiversity treaty, establish large marine reserves and sanctuaries, reform the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy, end illegal fishing and high seas bottom trawling, and drive political and policy action to protect marine species. She initiated the Global Ocean Commission and is widely seen as one of the pioneers of the blue economy.

Those who know Razan Al Mubarak agree that she is someone who has worked tirelessly to raise the profile of nature as a climate solution. From the highest levels of geopolitics and policy during her tenure as a UN Climate Change High-Level Champion for COP28 to the private sector, Razan has focused on nature based solutions, navigating complex environments with a leadership style that combines strategic insight, clear articulation, and genuine humanity. Creating breakthrough moments at the level Razan operates is tough but she is fearless, determined and relentless. From attracting finance for biodiversity and ecosystem restoration as well as bringing Indigenous people into the nature and climate decision-making process, Razan’s achievements are many. For more than 20 years, she has played a vital role in guiding the United Arab Emirates toward a more sustainable future while spearheading progressive environmental protection, species conservation, and climate action across West Asia and globally. Although she is a big name in this space, it would be hard to argue that Razan is anything other than a doer.

Viviana joined Climate Asset Management as an investment manager within the team, with a focus on building the pipeline of nature based carbon projects in Latin America. However, her hands-on approach immediately made an impact and within a year, she and two other female colleagues fully pivoted to lead the capital raising efforts. In August 2023, her efforts were rewarded and she was promoted to be Head of the Fund and successfully led the capital raising to the Second, Third and Final Closing with a final fund size of $445 million. This is a significant amount of capital she has helped unlock, making NBCF one of the largest nature-only focused carbon funds in the world. It has brought together 12 high-profile corporate investors from Europe, US, Australia and Asia, from a range of different sectors and all with very high-quality standards for the carbon credits they use.

Carrie Harris, Director of Sustainability at British Airways, led the largest carbon removal portfolio offtake in history, $11M purchased in 2024. This landmark deal has sent a strong demand signal to the wider industry, especially showing the role of carbon removals in hard to abate sectors. Previously as Group Sustainability Manager at International Airlines Group (IAG), Carrie coordinated sustainability strategy across the Group’s airlines; Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, Vueling and LEVEL. In 2019 she delivered a world first with the "Flightpath net zero" programme, making IAG the first airline group worldwide to commit to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Flightpath net zero won the IEMA Sustainability Impacts Awards 2020 for 'Best sustainability strategy to achieve net zero'. Carrie is definitely blazing a trail in an industry reliant on largely traditional energy sources; she’s putting sustainability on the executive agenda and creating budgets for carbon removal that simply didn’t exist before.

Donna Kitsos has made a profound impact by orchestrating partnerships and programs that drive systemic change in the mining and metals sector. Under her leadership, Prospect Innovation collaborated with the World Economic Forum to fund and lead the Sustainable Mining Challenge on the UpLink platform. This initiative attracted over 150 global innovators, resulting in the selection of 13 Top Innovators poised to revolutionize the industry with their decarbonization solutions. Her strategic vision has elevated the focus on early-stage innovation, attracting essential capital and support to scale these groundbreaking technologies. Donna's relentless efforts ensure that climate action remains at the forefront of industry agendas, effectively reshaping the narrative around mining and metals to one of sustainability and innovation.

Dr Zara Summers serves as LanzaTech's Chief Science Officer. Nominated multiple times for the Fin-Erth Awards, it's clear to us that Zara is someone with many skills influencing and contributing to solutions across multiple categories, although particularly within areas that are hard to abate. She spearheaded the expansion of LanzaTech’s gas fermentation platform to produce commercial-scale nutritional protein. This innovation aims to meet demand for increased protein requirements as the global population rises without straining land and water resources or impacting biodiversity. Another partnership Zara has led is with the U.S. Navy Research Lab on a joint research and contract development project to create protein from CO2 extracted from seawater. This project is designed to evaluate the viability of creating nutritional proteins on military platforms. And the list goes on. What feels clear is that Dr Summers' work is fascinating and potentially pivotal in providing a sustainable, resilient food supply solution amid global challenges. She is a solutions bringing depth and breadth of knowledge and expertise to the table and making great things happen.

Irina runs the XCarb Accelerator at Arcelor Mittal, a significant innovation fund which invests in companies that are developing breakthrough technologies designed to accelerate the steel industry’s transition to carbon neutral steelmaking. She is also responsible for executing Mittal's strategic M&A deals. With a proven track-record in impact investing, decarbonisation and future-led innovations, Irina is noted for her brilliance, hard work and resolve. She is driving innovation from within and putting the need for transformation on the board room agenda in companies including Boston Metal, H2Pro, Hydeal and Form Energy among others. Her nominator highlights Irina's "steely" (no pun intended!) determination as well as her kindness and empathy.

Jessica cut her teeth as a growth investor at General Atlantic, having begun her career at Goldman Sachs working across M&A. Her nominator describes her as "a high powered, high energy, dynamic female leader driving change and inspiring everyone around her to work harder". She clearly has an impressive track record of co-leading Climate investments at Kinnevik. Notable investments spearheaded by her include Kinnevik’s investment in Stegra (formerly H2 Green Steel), a Swedish company that aims to decarbonize hard-to-abate industries using green hydrogen, green iron and green steel. A self-confessed tech nerd, Jessica is evidently someone who is putting capital to work to disrupt legacy industries and doing so with impressive intention.

Marlies van Wijhe is a visionary leader in sustainable innovation, driving impactful change in the chemical industry through her commitment to eco-friendly practices. As CEO of Van Wijhe Verf, she has championed the transition to environmentally responsible products, significantly reducing the carbon footprint of her company; in fact, Van Wijhe Verf is the first company in the Netherlands to produce climate-neutral paint. Her focus on creating sustainable, high-quality paints has positioned her as a pioneer in integrating green technologies into traditional industries. Marlies’s leadership exemplifies the transformative power of sustainability in business, making her a deserving candidate for recognition in the hard to abate category. Her nominator says: "Marlies has relentlessly worked to reduce footprint in an industry that is notoriously difficult to change and she has chaired some the leading environmental organisations in the country."

Megan O'Connor is the CEO and co-founder of Nth Cycle, a company revolutionising the way critical minerals are recovered for the clean energy transition. She has developed an innovative electro-extraction technology that efficiently recovers essential minerals like nickel, cobalt, and rare earth elements from electronic waste and mining tailings. This technology provides a sustainable and low-emission alternative to traditional mining and refining processes, addressing a critical bottleneck in the supply chain for batteries and renewable energy systems. By enabling a circular economy for critical minerals, Megan's work significantly contributes to decarbonising sectors that are traditionally hard to abate. As one nominator sums up: "Her vision and accomplishments position her as a trailblazer who is not only driving technological innovation but also inspiring systemic change on a global scale."

Orianna Bretschger is on a mission to provide technologies for safe, reliable and cost-effective wastewater treatment. Someone who is described by her nominator as "having thought—and talked—about wastewater most of her life" Orianna is addressing a serious global challenge and one that is critical to longterm global stability. Her innovative solution deploys technology to rapidly treat high-strength wastewater, eliminate primary sludge and recover energy as direct electricity (no methane). All of these benefits can provide end-users up to 95% savings in operational costs for treatment of industrial, agricultural, military or commercial wastewater. An Earthshot finalist, here's someone addressing a global challenge with innovation, passion and a road-tested solution.

Rita has made a significant contribution to the steelmaking sector by spearheading advanced modelling solutions that directly address the industry's complex challenge of decarbonization. Her models are not only data-driven but also practical, offering actionable insights that optimize processes and reduce emissions. Her work goes beyond theoretical approaches, providing real-world strategies that enhance operational efficiency while promoting sustainability. Rita’s commitment to developing these innovative solutions makes her a crucial force behind the scenes, driving the steel industry towards a greener, more sustainable future. She also applied similar data-driven modelling and insights during her tenure at Amazon - leading to enhanced operational efficiency while minimizing its environmental footprint.

Abhilasha Purwar is the Founder and CEO of Blue Sky Analytics, a Climate-Tech start-up using satellite data and AI to build environmental monitoring and climate-risk assessment products. She is a Fulbright scholar, Yale and IIT alum with over eight years of work experience in private equity, big data analytics, product development, and environmental policy. BlueSky is already being used by Banks, Insurers, Asset Managers and Infrastructure companies grappling with the challenges of climate change and is hailed as a "pioneering climate analytics solutions in the region, with a high degree of accuracy and fidelity." High-quality, accessible environmental data empowering public and private industry to make better climate decisions; that's trailblazing in action.

Aisiri Mohan has been instrumental in streamlining and standardising five distinct carbon accounting methodologies within Liberty Steel that have meant a more integrated approach to carbon data. However, those close to her support the view that her contribution has extended beyond technical implementation. Her proactive approach and innovative solutions have not only enhanced the precision and accessibility of carbon data but have also underscored the strategic importance of climate impact in Liberty's daily operations. Described by those around her as "a tireless advocate for sustainability", Aisiri has championed initiatives that encourage team members across departments to engage with and understand carbon goals, creating a ripple effect of awareness and action.

Celebrating the unsung heroes is what the Fin-Erth Awards are all about. Dr Jennifer Willets is one of them. Whilst widely respected across the industry for her voice on sustainability and climate, it’s the combination of her innate grasp of the data and her ability to unpack complex modelling with simple storytelling that makes her contribution to unlocking solutions so impactful. Colleagues point to her vision and influence in getting Franklin Templeton to progress tools, data sourcing and research to meet the needs of its investment teams and clients. “She just gets it and gets on with it” is a phrase that applies to Jennifer. She’s someone who has a rare skillset - proving that that investment and client needs can be better met with tailored methodologies and tools instead of half-baked off the shelf solutions. In an era of talking, Jennifer listens, understands and makes positive things happen. She connects the dots early enough and makes sure the importance of data is kept on the board room table.

Kate Kallot is a world-class technologist who has received sustained global acclaim in tech for social impact, most notably for her work advancing technology access across Africa. With over a decade of experience in leading AI innovation at global tech companies such as NVIDIA, Intel, and Arm, Kate has a proven track record of delivering cutting-edge technology solutions that drive social impact and transform communities. She launched Amini to address the data scarcity on the African continent with the ultimate aim of regenerating natural capital at scale. Close collaborators point to Kate’s “Africa-first approach” to creating data sets; information which is then validated through a combination of satellite data and localised empirical analysis – all to ensure integrity and to give confidence to the end user who is so often small holder farmers and communities at the forefront of the climate crisis. Kate has been recognised on other lists including the Time100 Most Influential People in AI and is putting her expertise to work and unlocking solutions that have the potential to create systemic impact.

From building the go-to information set with CTVC (the climate tech newsletter for founders, investors and market leaders!) to the must-have market analytics platform for the new climate economy with Sightline, there’s little doubt that Kim Zou is unique in the climate data and analytics space. Seeing the opportunity to build on the foundations of the CTVC newsletter, Sightline Climate’s intelligence product provides data, tools, and frameworks to help investors, corporates, and governments build and finance the new climate economy. In the opinion of one industry insider, “there has not been a data analytics play of any real value since ML’s NEF was acquired by Bloomberg, not that is until Sightline came along”. More accessible, less public market focused, more diverse in scope, Sightline has blazed a pioneering trail and it is widely recognised that Kim Zou is the woman behind the curtain.

With over 20 years of experience at the intersection of climate change law, policy, and financial risk, Laura has led the charge in helping organisations transition toward a low-carbon and climate-resilient future. Her contributions include founding Canada’s first law firm focused on climate change in 2009 and co-founding Manifest Climate, the leading AI-powered platform which helps companies navigate complex ESG regulatory requirements and seize climate-related opportunities. This has been particularly transformative for so many organisation. Laura has been a trusted advisor to major North American financial institutions, governments, and international organizations. She is a respected voice on the legal imperatives of climate adaptation and has been actively involved in shaping climate policy globally, participating as a delegate to the UNFCCC and attending annual COP meetings since 2007. Her nominator notes Laura's “unique combination of legal expertise, climate strategy leadership, and entrepreneurial vision” and our research underlines, beyond her professional accomplishments, great human qualities; a highly effective leader and communicator; like all of those included, she’s a doer getting the work done.

It’s hard to know where to start with Naomi English. Firstly, she’s an innovator; someone who has made an extraordinary contribution to developing award-winning climate and biodiversity products. These products showcase the depth and breadth of MSCI’s capabilities, solidifying its position as a market leader in climate data. And that’s down to Naomi. In addition to her exceptional contributions to product development, Naomi is a truly inspiring leader. She is a prominent woman in a male-dominated industry, someone who leads with authenticity, motivating her team to push boundaries and continually innovate. According to close colleagues, Naomi fosters an inclusive environment where diverse perspectives are valued, enabling her team to thrive. In short, she’s an inspiring, strategic solutionist who gets the job done with humility, generosity and kindness. And these qualities mark her out as a Fin-Erth woman.

Net Purpose is backed by clients with over $5 trillion in assets under management, and leading investors like ETF Partners, Illuminate Financial, and former Chair of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Jim O’Neill. Net Purpose exists to help investors launch, grow and report on sustainable and impact funds, providing facts on the impact of companies and portfolios, across climate and 10+ other sustainable themes. These facts (not scores) measure sustainable performance (not financial risk like ESG), filling a critical market gap to help investors unlock capital and measure their progress toward climate, nature and other sustainable goals. Put simply, Net Purpose is a game changing data and analytics platform which powers a new generation of investors; those who will measure social and environmental performance as rigorously as they measure financial performance. This platform was founded by none other than the hugely impressive, kick-ass woman, Samantha Duncan, which makes her a shoe-in for this category.

Susan Graham founded Dendra Systems (raised its Series B in 2024) over 10 years ago and, trust us, it is a really cool and vital organisation driving considerable impact. Providing intelligence and automation services to restore natural ecosystems, Dendra enables global scale management of degraded land and scalable restoration. Bringing together scientists, technologists, engineers and ecologists, Susan has assembled a powerful team of some of the world’s brightest and most passionate brains to unlock transformative natural solutions that are vital to restoring balance. Data is at the heart of this project and those who nominated Susan point not only to her brilliance but also her warmth and determination.

Ana Hajduka is a trailblazer in the true sense of the word. Her leadership has unlocked Africa GreenCo’s pioneering role as the first “off-taker” model in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region – addressing the Continent’s energy deficits while supporting the transition to renewable energy. Drawing on 20+ years of experience in infrastructure, energy and law, her deep understanding of project finance, public-private partnerships, and power purchase agreements (PPAs) has been central to unlocking sustainable solutions that empower both local communities and international investors to pursue long-term climate goals. And she is not only a trailblazer in the business of climate solutions but also a mentor and advocate for women in energy, ensuring that the next generation of female leaders have a platform to thrive. Put simply, Ana is the epitome of a Fin-Erth Woman.

At Frontier Energy, a Danish Company that co-invests in renewable energy generation in Africa, Annicent Busingye did a number of remarkable things. Firstly, she oversaw the construction of several of the first privately built hydros in Uganda. This is pretty cool in and of itself. But what is really extraordinary is how Annicent then devised and implemented innovative strategies to foster the inclusion of women in management and technician positions across the company. At her behest, Frontier Energy now has 16 women plant operators and women plant assistants and this is down to her leadership and vision. Her nominator describes her numerous qualities but the words consistently attributed to Annicent Busingye are "unassuming" and "strong". Here's someone making great strides and inspiring a new generation of female energy professionals.

Ayesha Iqbal is a trailblazer tasked with helping the Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) meet its ambitious decarbonisation and renewable goals. It is fair to say that Ayesha is not someone who backs down from a challenge and is pushing to unlock solutions and create longterm value. No stranger to the complexities of big vision projects, Ayesha brings a wealth of energy transition experience to the table and a proven track record of establishing strategic networks and partnerships in new markets and sectors. Having acted as a Principal in Buyouts and Turnarounds in her pre SEC days, Ayesha is someone who understands the long game and is hyper focused on ensuring energy future proofing as well as creating a robust and secure supply chain. As an investor, Ayesha gets that capital deployment is mission critical to ensuring future success and has a keen eye on driving efficiencies. Her nominator also praises her leadership skills and capacity to "make the tough stuff happen."

Katy Huff served as US Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy and developed the Department of Energy's uranium strategy. This resulted in Congress providing $3.6 billion to help bolster the U.S. nuclear fuel supply chain to reverse an over 20 year old failed policy to cede the nuclear fuel supply chain. She was also integral in creating a coalition to restart closed nuclear power plants plants (like Diablo Canyon and Palisades) which is bringing nuclear power back on line for the first time in the nations history. According to her highly decorated nominator: "Katy is direct, decisive, and absolutely brilliant. She wasted no time, and has the mind and vision to see and plan light years into the future and the collaborative leadership style that includes and enables the right partners to achieve results."

Gelem Del Mar has 20+ years of experience in the energy sector. One of her most impactful contributions is the championing of grid technologies that enable the integration of renewable energy and decentralized generation, addressing the growing complexity of modern energy systems. Her leadership has helped develop cutting-edge digital products and services that enhance system flexibility and responsiveness, optimizing the performance of energy grids worldwide. Through her relentless focus on sustainable energy solutions, she has played a pivotal role in helping customers reduce operational downtime, improve energy efficiency, and move toward greener operations; achieving all this from inside a large multinational corporation. Beyond her technical contributions, Gelem is deeply committed to social impact. Through her initiative La Fábrica, she supports local communities and promotes diversity, creating spaces for innovative solutions and thought leadership. She actively mentors and coaches the next generation of leaders, ensuring a lasting legacy in the energy and sustainability sectors.

Jasandra Nyker boasts a remarkable and consistent track record of creating value within the renewable energy sector and unlocking game changing solutions in a career spanning 20+ years. From launching the first clean energy fund in the Middle East to building a 3GW project pipeline across Europe, Latin America, the US, and Asia during her tenure as CEO of Nala Renewables; from heading up a $680-million international green energy fund as MD of Denham Capital Management to transforming Biotherm into a profitable pan-African platform and delivering record returns for its African investors; Jasandra’s achievements speak for themselves. Her latest venture, Saja Climate Partners, which invests in sustainable solutions across critical areas in the global south shows that this juggernaut force of high integrity shows little sign of slowing down. ​

Jin led investments for bp ventures in China before she left to join Evonik and then SABIC. She now sits on the OGCI investment committee for China and is the chair of various cleantech companies across Asia. She has a wealth of technical knowledge but is also commercially astute. Having founded JL innoventure studio back in 2023, she is putting her knowledge and capital to work through decarbonisation venture investment. She is also a founder in her own right and scaled 'Real Smart' from 4 to 40 people. People who know her single out her contribution to this space. She might have founded Real Smart but to our mind, she's the real deal.

Li Tan has a really interesting background. Having began her career in the US working for Citigroup on both the East and West coasts, she returned to Hong Kong to manage her own family office ($450m) while launching the world’s first private equity fund investing in vintage and rare single malt whiskies. More recently, as co-founder of Audacy Ventures, Li has spearheaded investments in early-stage companies focused on renewable energy, supporting innovation that accelerates the transition to a greener economy, while helping startups scale solutions that address global environmental challenges. As her nominator points out: "she is widely recognised in Hong Kong as a true leader in climate tech investment."

Page Crahan is the General Manager of Tapestry, a moonshot for the electric grid incubating at Alphabet's Moonshot Factory. Grid power contributes to 25% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and its out-of-date design is a major barrier to emissions reduction. Page has worked tirelessly to develop innovative products to scale up the decarbonization of electric grids and progress climate action globally. With Tapestry now active in six countries (US, UK, Chile, South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia) and with seven partners, it has a track record of success with real-world implementation. For example, Coordinador Eléctrico Nacional (CEN), Chile’s national grid operator, uses Tapestry's AI-powered Grid Planning Tool to deliver on its ambitious decarbonization goal, including phasing out coal by 2040 and achieving a net zero economy by 2050. They are the first national system operator to use Tapestry’s grid planning tools, enabling them to run 30x more scenarios than their previous method. This is innovation in action and Page is one of the key drivers behind the scenes.

Purnima cut her teeth in Investment Banking at Citigroup before joining Temasek International where she oversees global investments focused on energy transition and climate-tech. With a feted international career working across investment banking, private equity, public equity and angel investing in India, APAC and the UK, Purnima understands the power of cultural nuance and relationships when it comes to unlocking truly scalable solutions. Her track record for channelling capital into areas such as solar, biofuels, electric vehicles and alternate fuels for one of the largest sovereigns in the world makes her the perfect fit for our Energy Transition category.

Zero-carbon construction is not just important for emissions reduction but can also be a smart investment for asset owners. Angela Aducci spearheaded first of a kind research, focused on identifying the costs and benefits associated with constructing operationally zero-carbon high-rise multi-unit residential buildings. The research found that building to a zero-carbon performance standard on average can be as profitable as conventional building standards, that these buildings can be a more “future-proof” investment amidst a rapidly changing climate, economic and regulatory environment, have the potential for a lower risk profile, benefit from operational and regulatory cost savings, which can result in lower capitalisation rates and higher asset values. This research is critical to asset owners looking to adopt net zero building practices and a potential game changer for built-environment development.

Ariel is working to unlock one of the biggest roadblocks to accelerating innovation and adoption of innovative and sustainable solutions in the built environment industry. In short, the capital. As co-founder of Undivided Ventures she has created a platform that invests in early stage innovations and technologies which have a substantial and quantifiable impact on various aspects of sustainability in the built environment – accelerating solutions and supporting scalable growth. However, her efforts extend beyond funding and investing. Ariel is using her experience in real estate with nuanced understanding of the unique challenges the industry faces as one of the world’s largest, if not the largest emitter of CO2. She is doing this as a woman in a male-dominated industry and one of very few female VCs operating in Asia within proptech.

Ellora-Julie Parek is leading the strategy for the Al-Futtaim Group – one of the most diversified and progressive, privately held regional businesses headquartered in Dubai. In her role, Ellora-Julie is known for her collaborative spirit and works tirelessly with the Real Estate Division to advance decarbonization efforts across the built environment. By prioritizing energy-efficient technologies in buildings, she is not only successfully reducing carbon footprints but also achieving significant operational savings on utilities. This is upstream thinking at its best. Equally, as a leader, colleagues praise her forward-thinking approach and curiosity about innovative solutions – backed up with deep knowledge of energy-efficient technologies. Perhaps most importantly, Ellora-Julie is clearly someone who follows through. Like all the great women listed, she is a doer getting the job done.

Esther An is no stranger to being included on a global list of climate champions and for good reason; she is seriously impressive. An active advocate for green building and sustainability for over two decades, Esther has been instrumental in establishing CDL’s leadership in sustainability. Ranked as the top real estate company on the 2020 Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World as well as being recognised as the only CDP A-List company for climate strategy and water security in South East Asia. Her influence cannot be overstated. Back in 2008 she published the first sustainability report using GRI standards in Singapore; issued the first green bond by a Singaporean company in 2017 and pioneered an SDG Innovation Loan in Singapore in 2019. She continued to innovate and CDL became the first company in Singapore to publish the TNFD report in 2024. As a forerunner in embracing the UN SDGs, Esther was conferred 2018 SDG Pioneer for Green Infrastructure and A Low Carbon Economy by the UN Global Compact. Those who work closely with Esther note her relentless energy and tireless work ethic; always supporting and uplifting those around her, especially women and the next generation.

Juanita Garcia is a hidden gem doing incredible work behind the scenes at Pepper Construction, a contractor based in Chicago. Drawing on more than 15 years of experience in mechanical design, Juanita joined Pepper's High Performance team based on a shared commitment to improving people's quality of life through the built world. Her work is influenced by other interests and practices - including wellness, psychology and human rights - and it’s clear that Juanita is someone who brings a refreshing openness and perspective to her day job. Among her notable accomplishments is how she has advanced carbon-drawdown goals for projects across multiple markets reducing the environmental impact of the company’s work by more than 463,000 tons of carbon dioxide and more than 69 million gallons of water. Juanita is someone getting shit done.

Kirsten Dunlop leads Climate-KIC, Europe's largest public-private partnership focused on climate innovation. Described by her nominator as "a creative, energetic and inspirational leader", she has over 30 years of experience catalysing systemic transformations in a career spanning academia, consulting, banking, and the insurance industry, across three continents. As well as raising the profile of the built environment's necessary transition through her work in communications, she has grown Climate-KIC into a major network leading innovator programmes in decarbonisation, bio-based materials and circularity across Europe; these bring together city administrations, NGOs, academia and the private sector to work on real-life projects that demonstrate and scale transition solutions.

Sarah El Battouty is a person of many parts. Working in a sector responsible for 40% of global emissions, Sarah founded ECOnsult with the belief that the designer has a critical role to play in creating better buildings. In short, it’s the job of the creative to originate workable designs that mitigate factors such as waste reduction and waste re-use, heat loss and extremities in weather. Falsely ambitious? Not so. Sarah’s designs are achieving cooling by 10 degrees without mechanical assistance as well as reducing waste and water loss. She is disrupting the conventional construction industry by designing green buildings that are affordable and accessible and her work now spans from community schools to net zero public buildings, banks and retail to simple housing and hotels. Sarah has also signed the largest rural development project in Egypt transforming existing poor villages into climate resilient ones. For this work, she has achieved World Green Building Council certification for four villages in Egypt with a combined population of 400,000 people. What makes her impact even more extraordinary is that she does this while moonlighting as High Level Global Climate Champion for the United Nations.

Shriti Pandey is an engineer by trade and she has put her skills to great use by creating catalytic value within India's sustainable building materials space. She is also someone known to support other early-stage climate tech start ups. Those around her underline her "very thoughtful approach to climate" as well as a validated in-market solution called Strawcture Eco, which manufactures carbon sequestering construction panels from agri-bio waste that is otherwise burnt - mitigating CO2 pollution upstream before it happens. Shriti is a "massively gritty" single founder who has grown her company from idea stage to commercial traction, balancing business and environmental impact. She was featured on Forbes' 30 under 30 list and we are delighted to recognise her on our list.

Susan has a proven track record in venture philanthropy, corporate social responsibility, advocacy, policy, and impact investments. This experience makes her a formidable force in transforming real estate. Throughout her career, Susan has emphasised the importance of measuring and managing impact. At Green Canopy NODE, for example, she led the creation of the firm’s theory of change and developed and managed seven comprehensive impact reports. Her strategic insight and hands-on approach have been critical in using capital as a lever for market transformation. She is channeling her experience and can-do expertise into her role at Cambia Capital and notching up some impressive results. One collaborator underlines how “she pushes those around her to think beyond what is comfortable and toward what is required for climate health.” Our view? She’s making strides to impact the world’s largest sector when it comes to GHGs.

Tiya Gordon designed and co-founded itselectric – the world's first curbside public EV charging system powered by buildings and the only solution in the US that shares revenue with building owners. Using the power of design as her secret source in tackling the climate crisis, Tiya has created a turnkey solution and unique business model for much needed curbside EV charging, which is mission critical to reach a target of 1 million public chargers in the US to service the expected 42 million EVs on the road by 2030. To put this in perspective, the US currently has less than 130,000 chargers nationwide. Tiya's work has received the industry’s top accolades, including The National Design Award from the Cooper Hewitt/ Smithsonian Design Museum; the SXSW Innovation Award for Urban Infrastructure; the Inaugural Cannes Gold Lion for Creative Data; among many others. Now with a $1.5M federal grant and a partnership with Uber, itselectric is set to deploy more than 360 chargers across 7 major U.S. cities (LA, Boston, Detroit, Jersey City, Alexandria, DC, and NYC). The seeming simplicity of her solution masks how game changing it is for energisation.

Diana has a remarkable track record of over 20 years of experience in guiding companies towards sustainable economic growth and innovation. She established one of the world's pioneering sustainability communication consultancies in 2002, which she exited in 2010. In 2011, she co-founded Positive Luxury and spearheaded the enterprise until 2022, continuing to sit on the board. She works hard to transform the luxury industry, working with her clients to help redefine business models and rebuild consumer trust. She does this through the proprietary Butterfly Methodology, comprised of an ESG+ assessment, risk and opportunity mapping tools, transition strategy and verification through certification, supported with communication tools and coaching. Gold star!

While not strictly pure CPG, Jeannie Renee Malone is definitely doing her bit to unlock solutions that drive sustainable practices within the outdoor apparel sector and from inside one of the biggest players. From integrating sustainable practices into the company’s core operations to spearheading efforts to incorporate eco-friendly materials into product lines. On the data side, she has been instrumental in establishing ambitious carbon targets for VF Corporation, pushing for significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions across the supply chain. And she is known for her collaboration not just within but also across the sector more generally. As one close collaborator put it: "Jeannie's work, though sometimes behind the scenes, is instrumental in helping VF to achieve its goals and ambitions in sustainable business practices." YES!

Patagonia has long been a poster child for the outdoor apparel industry – publicly recognised for its environmental stewardship and responsible sourcing and under Jennifer’s leadership, there is a keen focus on encouraging next generation packaging solutions as well as using technology to minimise what’s required on its products. In particular, Jennifer is changing the industry by using QR codes and Near Fields Communication to reduce paper usage while still giving consumers access to great stories and important information. By utilizing QR codes, she managed to reduce overall paper usage by 174 thousand pounds without impacting the consumer experience. Jennifer consistently puts climate on the agenda by demonstrating great leadership not only across packaging at Patagonia but across the packaging sector at large, spearheading initiatives and striving for better solutions. She brought Patagonia into Canopy’s Pack4Good Initiative alongside working on solutions to develop and scale Next Gen solutions that reduce reliance on primary forests. Our view is that Jennifer is doing great things in an industry where reducing secondary packaging is of primary importance.

Joanne Rodriguez is undoubtedly pushing the innovation envelope within the CPG and construction industries, shifting the paradigm on how we view waste: as a reusable resource, not a burden. Perhaps best known for her company Mycocycle, Inc., which employs applied mycology to remove toxins from waste and create new biobased material inputs, Joanne's formative professional life was as a sustainability leader in the construction products manufacturing industry specialising in biomimicry and green chemistry. With accomplishments that cut an impressive dash, Joanne is scaling nature-based solutions to real challenges in sectors that need serious systemic reinvention.

Julia Marsh co-founded material innovation company, Sway, which is displacing petroleum-based plastic packaging with cost-competitive biodegradable alternatives made from seaweed. With early partners like J.Crew and Burton, as well as large packaging distributors like EcoEnclose and Atlantic Packaging, Sway is positioned to lead the materials transition from dirty to clean— an $8.6B market opportunity for biodegradable flexible packaging — addressing the global issue of plastic waste across industries and sectors, while creating additive environmental and social value along the way. One of the really smart things about Sway that Julia has spearheaded is making sure their material solutions is not just scalable but also manufacturable on existing factory infrastructure.

Margaret Henry sounds phenomenal and for good reason. Someone who is described as an “impact whisperer” by her nominator, Margaret is making waves across the CPG industry for her work inside Pepsico where she takes a pragmatic, grounded, and results driven approach to systems level change. From spearheading a major initiative to address gender and climate issues in PepsiCo’s global supply chain to overseeing its goal to expand regenerative farming practices across 7 million acres of farmland by 2030, Margaret is a deeply respected and catalytic changemaker – someone for whom farming runs in the blood. As one person put it: “she pioneered the approach to purchasing against a rotation to restore the soil, biodiversity and waterways for row crops” and is held in high regard across the industry for her generosity of spirit, humbleness and her collaborative attitude. She balances all this alongside being a mum of twins.

Sahar Mansoor is a next generation pioneer in the CPG sector and beyond. Having founded Bare Necessities, a zero waste personal care and home care brand (also India's first B Corp certified consumer brand), Sahar has demonstrated pluck, resolve and brute determination. Widely celebrated for her work on changing the narrative on waste in India, Sahar entered this space having seen first-hand the damage waste is contributing to soil and water degradation in West Bengal while working on a solar energy social enterprise called SELCO Foundation. This realisation inspired her to find solutions and Bare Necessities was born. What we love about Sahar is how she has not only used business as a tool of change, she's actually founded a new type of business - a home for product but also a place for behaviour economics, ecologists, researchers and consumers alike to build the ecosystem towards a true circular economy. An economy with no waste.

Sian Sutherland is perhaps best known for her public work as a global spokesperson for the plastic crisis and an advocate for the alternative materials movement; a great communicator who is able to distill big concepts and doom-and-gloom narratives into hopeful stories of possibility and a better tomorrow. However, one of the hidden parts of Sian’s work is how she collaborates with and works alongside CPG and FMCG companies to drive solutions and action. She believes business is the tool of change and is fantastic at bringing together global stakeholders to crack pernicious challenges. From working with Kraft Heinz to accelerate its innovation around plastic sachets to currently working in tandem with a global molded fiber innovator and the packaging teams within the big FMCG conglomerates, she is laser focused on figuring out a scalable solution to the 60 billion single use plastic bottles we consume globally every year. Those around Sian note her tireless energy and tenacity, someone brave enough to put plastics on the global agenda and work with governments to mandate for stricter governance while coming up with bottom up solutions. She was also a central figure in the team who launched PlasticFree – the world’s first intelligence platform for the designers, creatives and R&D teams.

Smruti is the dynamic force behind Supreme Creations - an award-winning vertically-integrated manufacturer of reusable merchandise and sustainable packaging and has been at the forefront of reducing single-use plastic bags, and packaging for supermarkets, beauty brands, fashion and retail. A much celebrated figure within her industry, the accolades feel richly deserved as her company has done a considerable amount to reduce single-use plastic bags in supermarkets and shops and to change consumer behaviour from disposable to reusable. And Smruti and her family have not just jumped on a bandwagon, they have been doing this for 25 years and have more than 16 billion plastic bags.

Tze Ni Yeoh is an economist who founded the first Circular Economy Symposium at Harvard. As a Circular Economy Specialist who understands the financial opportunity of transitioning to a different type of economic model based on circular principles, Tze focuses on developing solutions to combat plastic waste, particularly in developing countries, and has driven considerable impact within her day job at Colgate-Palmolive. Those who work closely with her point to a sharp focus on driving solutions albeit with an eye on pragmatism and metric-driven results. Tze understands that transitioning to a circular economy requires fair and transparent trade for re-circulated resources. Her work provides deep insights on projects, exploring sector competitiveness and plastic value chain analysis. Innovators like Tze Ni Yeoh are vital to making change happen from within.

Adele Durfey has played a pivotal role in advancing sustainable farming practices and efficient agricultural systems, both at the farm gate and within broader institutional frameworks. One of the most significant solutions Adele is part of sits at the intersection of sustainability and agricultural economics. From her work with Clear Frontier where she is focusing institutional capital on organic farmland development, prioritizing soil regeneration, water conservation, and environmental sustainability to her work with organizations like Agrokultura Ukraine, where she oversaw $25M in annual input purchases and managed crop sales across 135,000 acres, Adele is adept at connecting the farm gate back to institutional investors. By streamlining input procurement and product distribution, Adele has improved the economic viability of farms while enhancing their environmental stewardship and she has done this consistently. Those who know her professionally emphasise her commitment to sustainable agriculture and resource management; improving the economic viability of farms while enhancing their environmental stewardship. Surely, that has to be the future of farming!

Anouk Schoors leads the Nest Family office which focuses on investments in and around food systems. She thinks purposefully, system-wide, and, as one nominator put it, "normally about twice as fast as others". At Nest, she prioritises nature first investing in both companies and funds and has a proven track record in bringing the corporate and philanthropic worlds closer together to drive meaningful shifts in our food system. Alongside her role at Nest, Anouk serves as a Board Member at Ardo, Agricarbon, and Propagate, among others.

Caitlin spent more than a decade leading Sustainability for Chipotle, where she executed their sustainability vision for over 2,500 restaurants around the world. At WholeFoods, she is tackling the challenging topic of mitigating Scope 3 emissions across the company’s diverse supplier base. She has been driving WholeFood's supplier engagement by finding innovative ways to encourage regenerative agriculture and pollen health while ensuring positive social impact across the supplier communities. She is also actively targeting food waste reduction and has recently developed a partnership with "Too good to go", while providing nutrition to the communities where their stores are located. Described by colleagues as “a woman of action”, she is someone who alongside her important sustainability role in food and agriculture is also completing a PhD – researching the correlation between carbon abatement and ecosystem services in biogenic agricultural insetting projects.

Deniz Harut knows a thing or two about impact finance and mobilising transformational capital. Having spent almost 15 years at Standard Chartered latterly running sustainable finance across Europe and the Americas, she organised $5b of blended finance for capital needs in emerging markets, positioning Standard Chartered as the largest commercial provider of blended finance globally. She also structured numerous billion-dollar sustainability linked financings in the capital and commodities market. Now as CEO of AGRI3, she's unlocking innovative financial solutions that promote sustainable agriculture and land use, connecting financial institutions, governments, and businesses to encourage sustainable practices in agriculture without compromising profitability. Described by her nominator as someone with "low ego", Deniz's contribution to transitioning agriculture from a cause of environmental degradation to a solution that aligns with global climate goals and supports farmers' livelihoods deserves a spotlight.

Fabiane Kuhn has developed an innovative solution for optimising irrigation management for farmers. Her solution uses advanced sensor technology to accurately measure soil moisture levels in real time, allowing farmers to precisely determine when and how much to irrigate their crops. This innovation stands out because it significantly reduces water waste and increases crop yields, making it both economically beneficial and environmentally sustainable. The system allows for remote access to real-time data, empowering farmers to make informed decisions without the need to manually inspect soil conditions. Fin-Erth is not the first to recognise Fabiane's efforts (she received the MIT Innovators Under 35 in the ESG category and the Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative) but we feel her commitment to merging technology with sustainability is moving the dial and she deserves a further spotlight.

Jasmin Hume, PhD, is the CEO and founder of Shiru, a biotech company that has grown from an innovative idea to a commercial business, working with large corporates including Ajinomoto Health and Nutrition. Shiru’s ProteinDiscovery.ai was recognized as a Time Magazine Best Invention of 2024 and investors are piling in, with Shiru announcing its Series B earlier this year. Beyond her work at Shiru, Jasmin is a partner at XFactor Ventures and a mother of two. She is a vocal advocate for raising awareness of the challenges and opportunities for women and motherhood in entrepreneurship and someone who actively uplifts other women. That's out type of leader.

Petra Tanos was the driving force behind the Agriculture Sector Roadmap, which brought together 14 of the world's largest commodity trading companies and processors. The roadmap, facilitated through her work at the Tropical Forest Alliance, was extremely significant as a sector-wide initiative for scaled companies to remove deforestation from their value chains and reduce their emissions in line with the 1.5 degree Paris Agreement. As her nominator suggests and our subsequent research confirms: "Petra showed dogged determination in a conservative, under-the-radar sector." She never game up on the end goal of changing the practices of these significant global agricultural trading companies and the result is three hard years of relentless graft to make the roadmap a reality. That's inspiring grit.

Rocky Sanchez Tirona leads Fish Forever, Rare’s flagship program focused on revitalizing coastal fisheries and improving livelihoods in coastal communities. Based in Manila, Rocky previously served as the Vice President of Rare in the Philippines, Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia. She is a highly respected leader within ocean conservation but also someone that stresses a clear message: reviving the oceans isn’t just an environmental issue, but vital for sustaining livelihoods and ensuring longterm food security. From everything we have heard or read about Rocky, she is someone dedicated and passionate - someone who is big on collaboration and making sure everyone is brought into the room. Her approach is making waves and showing progress is possible.

Shayna Harris's career sits at the intersection of food, sustainability, technology and innovation and there's little doubt that she has made a significant contribution to funding diverse entrepreneurs through her leadership at Supply Change Capital. She has prioritized investing in underrepresented founders, particularly women and people of colour, in the food and supply chain sectors. By aligning financial capital with social impact, Shayna supports companies that not only drive innovation but also foster inclusivity and equity within the industry. Her efforts help level the playing field for diverse entrepreneurs, empowering them to succeed and scale their businesses – supporting lasting change. Those who work with her point to her energy and mentorship but the killer phrase from her nominator has to be "she is an exceptional human being." YES SHAYNA!

Tanja Havemann looks to have achieved an awful lot. From founding Clarmondial, an investment advisory firm dedicated to mobilising capital for sustainable natural resource management to launching the Food Securities Fund which provides working capital loans to companies operating in emerging markets that serve as intermediaries between smallholder producers and international traders, Tanja’s track record is impressive. And yet, despite these accomplishments and many others, she remains a somewhat unsung hero operating behind the curtain. Growing up in Tanzania and Kenya, her nominator speaks highly of Tanja's commitment to giving back to the communities she grew up in, closing financing gaps in Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and more globally. Tanja is driving significant solutions in the food and agriculture space and is a much needed voice whose has 20+ years of experience in environmental finance deserves recognition.