A Sustainable Future

What trade-offs will we need to make to achieve net zero? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Alex Grant, Equinor UK Country Manager, about the state of the energy transition, the trade-offs that we are increasingly facing between security of supply, affordability and decarbonisation; and emerging energy technologies.

How have politics and geoeconomics turned rare earths and critical minerals into pressure points in the expanding global trade conflict? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Professor Saleem Ali, University of Delaware, about what the energy transition means in the context of environmental security; how multilateral initiatives and increasingly national efforts are working to reshape supply and demand dynamics; and why it’s critical we continue to rethink ways to diversify and secure global critical mineral supply chains.

How are asset owners reallocating towards sustainability? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Dan Mikulskis, People’s Partnership CIO, about how the People’s Partnership is doing to evolve its investment strategy; what that means functionally for in a responsible investment context; and why asset owners like People’s Partnership are taking on a bigger leadership role in sustainable finance.

Will investors reset, recalibrate, or retreat from net zero in 2025? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Professor Tom Gosling, London School of Economics, about how to think about the exits among climate initiatives; what the future of net zero commitments could look like; and why, investors—despite their limitations in driving climate outcomes—are still able to have a material effect on climate policy development.

How do neighbourhoods shape economic opportunities for children? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Professor Stefanie Deluca, Johns Hopkins University, about why neighbourhoods matter for creating social mobility; some of the outcomes and challenges in her recent paper, “Creating Moves to Opportunity”; and what it takes to create more high-opportunity zones, so families don’t have to continually uproot and move. Professor Stefanie DeLuca is the James Coleman Professor of Sociology and Social Policy at the Johns Hopkins University, director of the Poverty and Inequality Research Lab, and Research Principal at Opportunity Insights at Harvard University. She is one of the foremost qualitative mixed methods researchers on housing and higher education policy. Professor DeLuca co-authored Coming of Age in the Other America, which was named an Outstanding Academic Title from the American Library Association, and won the William F. Goode Award from the American Sociological Association. Stefanie has also been awarded a National Academy of Education/Spencer Foundation Fellowship and a William T. Grant Foundation Scholars Award. She serves on a Federal Research Advisory Commission at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and was named Scholar of the Year by the National Alliance of Resident Services in Assisted and Affordable Housing.

What grade does the finance industry deserve in terms of pricing climate risk? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Chief Scientist Dr. Sarah Kapnick, about the scope of NOAA’s mission; NOAA’s billion-dollar Weather and Climate Disasters dataset and what it means for weather attribution; and why NOAA itself represents a remarkable value to the US people as an argument against dismantling or privatising it. Dr. Sarah Kapnick is Chief Scientist at NOAA, which plays a critical role in understanding and predicting changes in climate, weather, oceans, and coasts. Bringing a unique mix of science and finance to NOAA, Dr. Kapnick's background includes serving as a senior climate scientist at JP Morgan Chase, a leadership role at NOAA's Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory, and an early career in investment banking. Note: This episode was recorded prior to Dr. Kapnick’s departure from NOAA.

Can human capital drive portfolio returns? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Professor Dan Ariely, Duke University, about what a human capital factor looks like; how incentives and the basic idea of “feeling valued “are fundamental drivers behind employee motivation; and why human capital can represent an overlooked source of alpha. Dan Ariely is the James B. Duke Professor of psychology and behavioural economics at Duke University. He is a serial entrepreneur, co-founding several companies implementing insights from behavioural science including BEwork, Genie, Irrational Labs, Timeful, and Irrational Capital. Dan has written many books, including three New York Times best-selling books: Predictably Irrational, The Upside of Irrationality, and The Honest Truth about Dishonesty. His most recent book is Misbelief: What Makes Rational People Believe Irrational Things. Irrational Capital applies workplace behavioural science, financial acumen, and deep data science to capture the powerful connection between human capital and stock performance. It is the first firm to quantitatively capture the lift that strong corporate culture has on a company’s stock price in an investable way.