Sustainable investment leader Taeun Kwon on women, money and saving the planet
If we are to truly combat climate change, there must be more women leaders in finance. Taeun Kwon, 32, is so passionate about replacing finance’s power structure of “pale, male and stale” with women’s leadership that she founded a global organization to help women transform the status quo. Kwon and Yesh have a lively conversation about the connection between climate change, power, gender and money; you’ll come away changed by this discussion, and by Kwon’s courage and conviction.
Degrees: Real talk about planet-saving careers · Yesh Pavlik Slenk, Taeun Kwon
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Show Notes
Women have been the main drivers of sustainable finance, or investing with environmental, social and governance (ESG) values in mind. After years of slow growth, sustainable investing is showing dramatic financial returns. According to Moody's, “In 2020, ESG products saw strong returns and investment outperformance that marked it as a watershed year.”
And yet the mostly male leaders in the world of finance continue to discount sustainable investing, or give it lip service. So says Taeun Kwon. And she’s sick of it.
To combat the problem, Kwon and two cofounders created Women in Sustainable Finance (WISF). The organization educates women on sustainable finance and empowers them to have a positive impact. WISF offers mentoring, coaching, and courses on ESG strategy and communication.
Kwon’s path has been anything but straight, as she tells Degrees host Yesh Pavlik Slenk in a lively conversation that follows her journey as a failed collegiate entrepreneur to the heights of global sustainable finance.
Resources mentioned in this episode:
- Website: Women in Sustainable Finance
- Greenbuzz: Greenbuzz
Additional Resources:
- Moodys: ESG Investing a Boon for Asset Managers
- Fortune: Women lead in responsible financing. Now men want in.
- Moody’s: Moody’s ESG Solutions
Follow Taeun Kwon and Women In Sustainable Finance (WISF):
- LinkedIn: Taeun Kwon
- Twitter: Women in Sustainable Finance (@wisf_int)
- Website: Women in Sustainable Finance
Follow EDF:
- Sign up for the Degrees newsletter!
- Twitter: EDF (@EnvDefenseFund)
- Facebook: Environmental Defense Fund
- Instagram: environmental_defense_fund
- LinkedIn: Environmental Defense Fund
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