social fusion

With our 2006 focus on capital innovations in social enterprise, on June 2nd we engage in a serious debate about the opportunities, real or imaginary, in renewable energy investments. Whether you’re a skeptic or believer, there is no question the green wave is rolling. With tantalizing fireworks of 1,800% returns and multi-billion dollar corporate investments – many are asking how do I jump on, and how long is this opportunity going to last? Others are kicking the tires on the hype and are earnestly debating the danger of so-called green washing versus robust efforts to bring the full force of business and capital markets to empower our planet. This forum takes a diverse range of lenses to review the opportunity landscape and debate core ethical and strategic challenges in what may be the single most important debate of the decade.

Speakers:

Mujahid M. Abdullah, Sustainable Finance Group: Mujahid is Co-Founder of Sustainable Finance Group, a boutique investment bank providing advisory services to Clean Technology enterprises. Sustainable Finance is designing, marketing and securitizing energy-efficient, resource-efficient financial instruments (Green mortgages, Green commercial loans, etc.) Mr. Abdullah has fifteen years of finance and consulting experience. Prior to Sustainable Finance Group Mujahid Founded the Wells Fargo Environmental Finance Group (EFG) and developed the strategy and organizational structure for a USD $150 million community development venture capital fund at Universal Companies in Philadelphia PA.
Greg Bohannon, Greenrock Capital: Greg is Co-Founder of Greenrock Capital, a private investment management firm focused on the clean energy sector. Greg is a member of the firm’s Management and Investment Committees and shares responsibility for overseeing the firm’s corporate strategy, fund formation and investment origination, structuring and monitoring activities. He is a former Partner and senior member of Pantheon Ventures North American investment team where he was actively involved in the firm’s marketing, secondary investment program and product development initiatives. Pantheon Ventures is a global private equity fund-of-funds management group with $13 billion in assets under management and over 200 institutional limited partners.

Randy Hayes, International Forum on Globalization: Randy Hayes, founder and board president of Rainforest Action Network, is the Executive Director of the International Forum on Globalization. Believing that the international and national levels have failed to date to orchestrate the shift to a deeper ecological sustainability, Randy calls for a green city-led, bottom-up movement to revolutionize the economy. He sees this as our best shot to protect the large natural systems that nurture all life as well as to foster dignified lives for all people.
Rodrigo Prudencio, Nth Power: Rodrigo is a Principal at Nth Power, a leading venture capital firm that manages over $250M and has been investing since 1997. Rodrigo works with the portfolio companies and Limited Partners to lead strategic relationships that advance early adoption of energy technologies and services. The strategic relations program he leads is responsible for over $100 million of contracts and investments between Nth Power’s Limited Partners and portfolio companies. Before coming to Nth Power, Rodrigo worked for Utility.com where he led the raising of over $20 million in private investment and assisted senior executives in strategic planning, partnerships, and other business decisions.
Moderated by Amber Nystrom, Social Fusion: Amber Nystrom is Founding & Executive Director of Social Fusion. Amber brings to Social Fusion 14 years experience growing business and development in the U.S. and internationally. She has worked in Silicon Valley, Latin America, Africa and Europe, as an entrepreneur and specialist in sustainable development and public-private engagement. As a part of Social Fusion’s Advisory Services on catalyzing innovative flow to social enterprise, Amber has consulted to the World Bank, Ashoka and others, and is currently leading a special capital project and case study review for Actis, a UK based PE fund with over 3.2B under management investing only in the world’s poorest countries.