On today's episode of the Climate Insiders podcast, we’re sitting down with Anna Alex, Co-founder of Nala Earth. Nala Earth is a nature management platform that measures, improves and reports your company’s impact on nature & biodiversity.

Anna is a serial entrepreneur from Berlin, dedicating her life to nature and the planet. Prior to Nala Earth she founded Planetly and Outfittery. As an angel investor, Anna focuses on the big challenges of the world in climate and nature.

Anna founded Planetly in 2019, the worldwide pioneer in Carbon Accounting SaaS. In only 3 years Anna scaled Planetly to 250 employees and over 350 customers leading the technical innovation in this space. In 2021 she sold Planetly to a US Software Company.

This episode delves into:

- Investor expectations and the pressures post-funding.

- The reality of building multiple startups in the climate industry.

- The shift towards sustainable and environmentally friendly businesses worldwide.

- How to manage burnout as an entrepreneur and delegation.

- The importance of building a strong culture and hiring top talent.

- The role of venture capital in scaling climate tech solutions.

- How to create real KPIs that make a difference like biodiversity in climate tech

- How to have a larger impact on climate by focusing on biodiversity and nature conservation.

- Integrating nature and biodiversity into business models through ventures like Nala Earth.

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Join the Climate Insiders newsletter, The only newsletter you need to invest in climate tech. Every Saturday I share one actionable tip to invest successfully in climate tech. Join 3,500+ investors and get access to investing tips and strategies to invest today: https://climateinsiders.substack.com/

(00:00) Intro

(00:47) Anna Alex's purpose

(01:03) Avoiding burnout as an entrepreneur

(04:17) Hiring A players vs B players

(06:41) Building culture by hiring senior talent first

(09:41) Bootstrapping vs raising capital

(12:26) Being a "founding angel"

(17:11) Structuring ownership as a founding angel

(20:31) Lessons from Selling Planetly

(26:14) How climate tech exits enabling more investment

(30:30) Focusing on nature with Nala Earth

(33:31) Making nature measurable for businesses

(35:14) Nala's five nature indicators

(40:57) Increasing public awareness of biodiversity

(43:32) Nature's local risks and implications

(45:03) Helping companies measure and manage nature

(49:36) Reframing our relationship with nature

On today's episode of the Climate Insiders podcast, we’re sitting down with Prof. Dr. Martin R. Stuchtey, founder of The Landbanking Group. The Landbanking Group has the ambition to change the way we use land and reward nature globally.

Dr. Martin R. Stuchtey is also the founder of SYSTEMIQ which is focused on transforming markets and business models in key economic systems: land use, materials, energy, finance and urban spaces.

This episode is a deep dive into:

- The role of nature in our economic systems.

- Why we need to preserve nature for future generations.

- How to shift from an extractive to a regenerative economic model.

- The potential for nature-based assets for the next generation and the economy.

- The importance of Nature as Wealth and including natural capital on balance sheets.

- The problem with convincing the masses of the economic benefits of investing in nature.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to our channel!

Want to go deeper?

Invest in climate moonshots with Climate Insiders. Join 300+ members and become a shareholder of the best climate tech startups alongside us, from $1,000.

Become a member now: https://www.climateinsiders.com

Join the Climate Insiders newsletter, The only newsletter you need to invest in climate tech. Every Saturday I share one actionable tip to invest successfully in climate tech. Join 3,500+ investors and get access to investing tips and strategies to invest today: https://climateinsiders.substack.com/

Show Notes:

(00:00) Preview and Intro

(00:51) People Love Nature, Yet they Do Little to Protect it?

(03:54) Why Nature Capital is as Important as Human Capital

(08:18) Decoding The Bretton Woods Approach

(10:49) Who is Responsible for Protecting Nature’s Capital and Bringing Economic Change?

(12:36) Why Nature Capital is a Risky Asset Class

(19:54) Why Modern Economic Models Might Need a Reset

(25:04) Nature on the Balance Sheet: Will Accountants Lead the Change?

(28:07) Importance of Educating the Masses on Nature Capital

(31:25) The Influence of Global Narratives in Protecting Nature Capital

(38:47) The Role of Consultants in Driving Change

(42:45) Systemic Change in Sustainability: The Role of Established Entities vs. Newcomers

(46:11) The Emerging Influence of the Middle East in Global Climate Strategy

In today's show, I'm joined by Leslie Kapin, Director of Impact at Astanor Ventures, one of Europe's largest Impact funds.

Whether you work for a climate or impact fund, are looking to start one, or are simply curious about what's happening in the impact world behind the scenes, you'll love this value-packed conversation.

We cover:

- The impact journey of Astanor: how they started from scratch five years ago and now publish one of the most useful impact reports in the industry.

- How to measure impact, when to do it, and who should be involved in an impact team. How can venture capitalists support founders in their own impact journey?

- When and how to conduct a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).

- Why would a fund choose to become a B Corp?

- And what can we do as a collective space to collaborate more, reduce overlaps, and speed up the process for everyone.

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ABOUT CLIMATE INSIDERS:

Learn all the insights from the top Climate Tech Founders and Investors. Listen to the stories behind the startup successes, understand the drivers of investment decisions, and become a true Climate Insider.

Check us out at: https://www.climateinsiders.co

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ABOUT THE GUEST:

Leslie joined Astanor in 2019 and is responsible for monitoring sustainability and impact at Astanor. She brings more than 13 years’ experience in global asset management within both the private and public sector.

After 9 years with global asset manager Russell Investments as a research analyst and portfolio manager for the Asian equity markets in London, Paris and Sydney, Leslie joined the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in Basel where she was responsible for the selection of all the investments for the BIS’s Pension Fund for three years.

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SHOW NOTES:

00:00 – Intro

01:02 – Who is Leslie Kapin?

01:27 – What is Astanor Ventures?

02:50 - From Vision to Impact: Navigating Sustainability

07:18 – Examples of enabler companies

08:23 – Should impact funds venture into software territory?

09:37 - How do the dynamics between hardware and software industries influence the pursuit of pure, direct impact?

10:23 - Was the path to milestones clear in hindsight, or did it unfold gradually, step by step?

13:15 - Collaborative Evolution in Impact Standards

16:389 - What does B Corp certification mean in financial terms? Is it primarily a marketing strategy, or does it entail binding commitments?

18:11 - Balancing Priorities for Early-Stage Founders: Impact, Growth, and Certification

20:57 - Unlocking the Treasure Trove: Notion Page and the Potential for Open Source

21:38 - Fostering Collaboration: The Call to Share and Support

23:49 - What is a necessity in the climate tech space?

25:32 – How many people are dedicated to impact measurement?

26:46 - Should there be a mental threshold or a numerical benchmark for funds considering commitment to article 9?

28:07 - Is the norm to conduct LCAs before the investment, or is there a strategy that involves assessment during divestment?

31:30 - Summing Up the LCA Process: Internal Guidance and External Expertise

34:12 - Impact Creation Report: Unpacking Astanor's Transparency and Inspiring Replication

37:11 - What is the next evolution in impact measurement at the fund level?

39:10 - Embarking on the Impact Journey: Guidance for New Entrants

40:29 – WhatsApp groups and communities – directions how to find them

41:29 - Navigating the Imposter Syndrome: A Candid Perspective

42:19 – Outro

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ABOUT THE HOST:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/yberno/

Yoann Berno is committed to the democratization of climate tech investing, with a goal to contribute significantly to the...