Solar Impulse Foundation: interview with Michele Demers, CEO
Boundless Impact Research & Analytics and the Solar Impulse Foundation announced a collaboration to expedite the analysis and validation of cleantech solutions, using a science-based method to assess commercial viability and introduce cleantech entrepreneurs to an international group of investors and technology leaders.
Tristan Lebleu from Solar Impulse Foundation interviewed Michele Demers, CEO and Founder of Boundless about their collaboration.
T.L: Can you start by providing some background about Boundless?
M.D: Sure, we are a market intelligence and impact analytics firm that provides quantitative and evidence-based research and data for investors, companies, and funds. Driven by the latest research by independent industry and academic experts, Boundless Impact Research & Analytics offers analysis, market trends, and evidence of best practices in a growing number of emerging sectors that address significant environmental and health challenges. Our research into emerging technologies, impact assessment of companies, and thought leadership provide investors with the latest and most relevant information to drive their investment decisions.
T.L: How do you build the impact assessment of a company?
M.D: We developed a Climate Impact Assessment tool, which relies on a highly respected and proven method called Life Cycle Analysis, that provides meaningful insights into a company’s environmental outcomes. We work closely together with industry experts to quantify the environmental impact of companies and we compare their impact to competing technologies, providing valuable insights for both the company and the investor. Our methodology is unique in how we correlated the outcomes of our assessments to gauging a company’s commercial viability.
T.L: Why do you believe precise environmental impact assessments are key to tackle the environmental crisis?
M.D: Most impact measurement methods fail to fully examine factors like the carbon intensity of manufacturing processes and products. They either exclude these elements entirely or include overly simplistic measures of carbon footprint. A science-based approach offers answers to questions that influence investment decisions. Integrating the fields of climate science and mainstream finance into the analysis process creates a bridge between them and more clearly calculates and explains the most meaningful and relevant information.
T.L: Who are the final users/readers of your impact assessments?
M.D: Our subscribing members are private impact and clean tech investors who are committed to advancing the adoption of emerging technologies that are solving big environmental and resource challenges. They are venture, growth-stage and early stage public company investors including family offices, venture funds, private equity funds, hedge funds, wealth advisors, clean tech funds and governments.
T.L: Have you seen an increasing interest from financial institutions in companies' impact in recent years?
M.D: As carbon pricing is refined in Europe and enters the US national market (it is already being employed in the states of New York and California), investors are going to understand a lot more clearly that genuine carbon accounting and environmental reporting is urgent to their bottom-line and portfolio performance. I am certain that we are moving toward a world where stranded assets like unused oil reserves and petrochemical assets will be seen as the liabilities on a company’s balance sheet. In many cases they already are.
T.L: Do you think impact assessments will become the new norm for all companies anytime soon?
M.D: Certain kinds where the impact can be clearly and easily quantified yes. It’s harder to measure the ‘S’ in ESG and this will take several more years to figure out. But there are clear and quantifiable ways to measure the environmental and/or GHG footprint of a company, and this information and analysis will make cleantech investing more mainstream.
T.L: Why do you believe the Solar Impulse Foundation’s and Boundless’ approach are complimentary?
M.D: Boundless and the Solar Impulse Foundation are very aligned in their goals to advance the world’s most efficient and promising climate solutions. We have the methods for rapid Life Cycle Assessment that SIF can use to vet and label companies more quickly and SIF has the brand recognition and network to make sure these solutions can scale and succeed.