Outcomes-based Financing for Nature-based Infrastructure

Eric Letsinger is the Founder and CEO of Quantified Ventures, a certified B Corporation that improves the wellbeing of people and the planet by designing, capitalizing, and scaling investible solutions to the most pressing challenges facing communities. He is a “tri-sector” executive, bringing 25+ years of leadership experience in government, nonprofit, and private sector organizations operating in healthcare, environment, education, and housing. He has led transformative, public-private initiatives to drive social impact in complex, cross-sector business environments including: IBM, Baltimore Public Schools, Baltimore Housing Department, Cyveillance Software, PWC, and Samaritan Inns Homeless Services.

Tessa Maurer is a Senior Project Scientist at Blue Forest Conservation, a U.S.-based non-profit conservation finance organization. Her work focuses on supporting large-scale nature-based solution projects through stakeholder-focused, science-based analysis of ecosystem service benefits, particularly in fire-prone areas of the Western U.S. She also conducts peer-reviewed research in the interest of furthering our understanding of the multiple co-benefits of healthy, resilient landscapes. Tessa holds a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley where her research focused on leveraging novel data sources for streamflow and hydrologic modeling for hydropower and water resources.

David Uzsoki works as a Sustainable Finance Lead and Senior Advisor in IISD’s Economic Law and Policy Program. He has several years of experience in informing and advising public and private investors, government officials and financial market participants on how the allocation of capital can be better aligned with sustainability objectives. 

His areas of expertise include: 

•    Sustainable investing trends, strategies, and innovation

•    Gender-lens investing and the mainstreaming of gender considerations in investment decisions

•    Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) impact assessment

•    Second-party opinions on green and sustainability bond frameworks

•    Sustainable and nature-based infrastructure financing solutions

•    Sustainable finance policy and regulation

•    Natural capital and biodiversity investing

•    Climate risk assessment and stress-testing

•    The use of blockchain technology and other fintech solutions in sustainable investing. 

He also co-developed the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) methodology, which uses system dynamics and project finance modelling to assess the environmental, social, and economic impact of infrastructure projects. 

Before joining IISD, he spent several years working with Morgan Stanley in wealth management. As a client advisor, he was responsible for running the daily operations of a busy wealth management desk, providing advisory, trading, and custody services to family offices, asset managers, and high net worth individuals.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in international finance. He is based in Geneva, Switzerland.

Qasim is a co-founder of THE ARK, an impact engagement and measurement platform focusing on biodiversity, and has over 10 years experience in investing and scaling digital business models. In his work in company building he has successfully launched products to improve supply chains and operations in the construction and environment sector. Qasim is a guest lecturer at multiple leading universities in the field of new technologies and impact investing. He holds engineering degrees and an Executive Master in Finance from the London School of Economics.

Pavan Sukhdev is a scientist by education, an international banker by training, and an environmental economist by passion. Years of work in sustainability and the invisible economics of nature led to his appointment to head the United Nations’ “Green Economy Initiative” and to lead the G8+5 study TEEB (The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity). In his book ‘Corporation 2020’, Mr. Sukhdev describes four changes in micro-policy and regulation which can rapidly transform today’s corporation to deliver tomorrow’s green and equitable “economy of permanence”. As founder and CEO of GIST, his sustainability consulting firm, he works with asset managers, C-suite executives and senior government officials on transition techniques, with an emphasis on metrics for sustainability. GIST Impact launched two platforms for Corporate Sustainability at Davos 2020, for large corporations and a simpler version for SME’s in partnership with the International Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Sukhdev is a Goodwill Ambassador for UN Environment Programme, promoting TEEB implementation and Inclusive Green Economy transitions. He has served on the boards of Conservation International (CI), the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), the Stockholm Resilience Centre (SRC), and on the TEEB Advisory Board. He has won several awards for his work including the Blue Planet Prize (2016) and the Tyler Prize (2020).