Interview Room

THE INTERVIEW: Renat Heuberger, co-founder & former CEO of South Pole.

Discovering the Entrepreneur behind the Tycoon.

A Tycoon: what’s on that word that awakes our imagination, and suddenly paint images of ambition, money and power in our mind? Oxford Dictionary describes it as a “wealthy, powerful person in business or industry”.

However, when Renat enters to the beautiful yet low key café where we met in his natal Zürich, and despite wearing a costume (no tie), I get the impression of being in front of a university professor. Calm, gentle, he has the aura of a maths teacher rather than someone who would yield its power and money against others. 

People’s imagination paint business people as selfish and ambitious crooks, rather than as creators. I think this is even more true in the environmental and conservation circles. Therefore, I embarked in this interview without judging, or trying not to, trying to discover the man behind the press releases and newspaper stories. Trying to discover the entrepreneur behind the tycoon.  

Renat is mostly known as the co-founder and long-time CEO of South Pole, developing the company from being a minuscule climate venture kick-started by climate geeks at a university lab in Switzerland to becoming the world’s first global climate corporation whose core business is reducing CO2 emissions.

South Pole has been one of the companies caught in a controversy after several media outlets such as the Guardian heavily attacked carbon credits. We shed light in other aspects so you can make your own opinion. 

THE INTERVIEW: Marco Vinicio Cerezo Blandón, Conservation Hero. 

Proud Latin American & cofounder of FUNDAECO.

Marco, a Guatemalan economist, began his environmental advocacy journey at just twenty-three. Passionate about nature conservation and restoration, he co-founded FUNDAECO in 1990, aiming to foster both community development and biodiversity conservation in Guatemala and beyond. Throughout the last thirty-four years, Marco has faced challenges and political upheavals, even running for the Presidency for the Green Party in Guatemala in 2010.

Marco is a pioneer in implementing a gender approach within FUNDAECO through the Healthy and Empowered Women and Girls Programme, saving countless lives. His focus on justice and sustainable development benefits rural indigenous communities around national protected areas. Marco's multifaceted contributions highlight his leadership in environmental conservation, social justice, and sustainable development. Let's draw inspiration from his holistic approach as we strive for a more equitable and sustainable future.

FUNDAECO has expanded its operations to six regions across Guatemala, spanning from the Caribbean coast to the highest plateau in Central America. With fourteen field offices, the organization now works in diverse ecosystems, collaborating with indigenous, Garifuna afro-descendant, and peasant communities. 

From coastal reefs to high-altitude forests, FUNDAECO's expertise encompasses a wide range of natural habitats, making it a valuable resource for conservation efforts not only in Latin America but globally. 

Get Inspired!

THE INTERVIEW: From being one of the most competitive and best-known executives in compliance carbon markets in the Kyoto era with BNP PARIBAS Corporate & Investment Banking in London (BNP Paribas CIB), Goupille decided in the early days of the carbon markets (2010) to put his banker and trader skills to the service of rainforest conservation and rural development in developing countries in Latin America, South-Est Asia and Africa through Althelia Ecosphere, an impact investment fund management company based in London and Luxembourg, initially seeded by BNP PARIBAS and now part of Natixis Investment Managers’ impact subsidiary, MIROVA. 

Today, through Le Printemps des Terres and October Impact Now!, Goupille engages in European forestry, sustainable agriculture, and impact financial services sector to unlock the billions of dollars (or euros, or yens, or whatever currency that counts, but NOT bitcoin) necessary for the climate transition but not only that. In fact, Le Printemps de Terres is a founding member (alongside the prime biodiversity and carbon project developer aDryada, the renowned French climate think tank Carbone 4 and the French National Museum of Natural History) of the Organization for Biodiversity Certificates (OBC), a Paris-based organization looking to establish a biodiversity crediting system through the establishment of i) a technical and operational framework; ii) a recognized science-based measure; and iii) market rules to generate and value positive impacts on biodiversity in local ecosystems. 

The long-term engagement of Mr. Goupille, matched with a concrete track-record as a climate entrepreneur & investor (successful exits, well known investments, several new companies launched with renowned    investors), make him a reference in the climate finance space and a perfect candidate for our New Year’s dispatch. Be inspired!