After two years of waiting, the SEC finally came out with its new climate disclosure rules. As expected, it was met with a mix of celebration, disappointment, criticism, and lawsuits. The suits came from those who felt the rules went too far and from those who felt they don’t go far enough.

Disclosure rules are critical to ensuring companies are taking climate change seriously. They ensure investors can consider a company’s climate risks as well as their progress in cutting emissions.

Beyond the SEC, Europe and California’s rules are also influencing corporate action in profound ways.

To understand what’s been happening and what’s likely to happen next, I caught up with Steven Rothstein. Steven is the Managing Director of the Ceres Accelerator for Sustainable Capital Markets. He’s been working for years to align financial markets to climate goals and is a well respected expert on this topic. We talked about the history of disclosures, why they matter, the recent SEC rule change, the reaction it sparked, what’s coming next, and much more. I always learn a lot from talking to Steven and I’m sure you will too. Enjoy.

• [03:07] Stephen's role at Ceres accelerator
• [03:25] The Accelerator’s work & capital market change
• [05:02] History of early climate reporting
• [06:58] Disclosure requirements in Europe and CSRD
• [10:29] California law coverage of private companies
• [11:06] Ceres' role in California climate laws
• [13:23] Why SEC rule took two years
• [15:07] The importance of Scope 3 SEC inclusion
• [16:29] SEC rule may evolve over time
• [18:00] Legal challenges to rules and regulations
• [20:47] Continuing climate preparations
• [23:15] Balancing reporting and climate action
• [27:19] The importance of interim targets
• [29:56] Election impact on climate progress
• [31:45] Developing transition plans and data analysis
• [35:13] Actions listeners can take

• Ceres Accelerator for Sustainable Capital Markets

• Connect with Steven on LinkedIn

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If you think of Mastercard as simply a piece of plastic that enables you to buy stuff, you’re not seeing their vast network of businesses, their billions of customers, or the potential influence they have on consumer behavior.

There have been countless efforts over the years to encourage consumers to shop more sustainably, but when it comes to the reach and data savvy that Mastercard brings, it’s a whole different ballgame.

I’ve known Mastercard’s Chief Sustainability Officer Ellen Jackowski for many years, and I was delighted to sit down with her to understand Mastercard’s sustainability strategy.

We talk about Ellen’s background and approach to leadership, the current moment in sustainability, Mastercard’s effort to encourage sustainable consumption at scale, how they’ve spread sustainability goals across their entire company, and much more.

Ellen is a widely respected thought leader in corporate sustainability and this conversation offers a peek inside an ambitious and very challenging effort to create real impact. Mastercard is a NationSwell member and we’ll soon share a summary of this conversation as part of NationSwell’s Sustainability Next series. Enjoy!

• [02:13] Ellen’s background & passion for sustainability
• [04:14] Ellen’s role at Mastercard
• [06:13] Present moment in sustainability - trends & concerns
• [08:13] The reach of Mastercard’s network
• [10:58] Sustainable consumption as a systems problem
• [12:29] Areas of opportunity & challenge
• [14:00] The Priceless Planet Coalition video drop
• [15:32] Mastercard’s carbon calculator
• [16:50] Influencing large emitting purchases
• [17:32] Promoting sustainable consumption around the world & US
• [18:52] The biggest challenge in reaching net-zero goals
• [21:00] Best ways to organize sustainability leaders
• [23:24] Tackling Scope 3 emissions
• [26:08] Mastercard’s Priceless Planet Coalition
• [27:53] Mastercard’s Community Pass Platform
• [29:21] Mastercard’s Start Path in Solidarity
• [30:52] How Ellen’s thinking in leadership has evolved
• [33:18] Resources to stay informed on sustainability
• [34:22] What else needs to change

• Mastercard: Priceless Planet Coalition
• NationSwell: Next Series
• Mastercard: Carbon Calculator
• Mastercard: Community Pass
• Mastercard: In Solidarity
• Outrage and Optimism
• Project Drawdown

• Connect with Ellen on LinkedIn

• On

Earthshot Ventures isn't just any climate tech venture firm. Having grown out of the Elemental Excelerator, one of the biggest and best-reputed accelerators in the industry, Earthshot is deeply rooted in the early-stage ecosystem. And it turns out there's something else that sets them apart.

Managing Partner Mike Jackson has a knack for coaching founders on what he thinks of as the art and science of fundraising. We're joined today by Mike and Earthshot Partner Ramsay Siegal to hear about their firm, approach, portfolio, and outlook on the market. We dive deep into Mike's insights to helping founders raise money. We talked about non-dilutive project financing and hard-to-abate sectors, the opportunities AI is bringing to climate tech, several of their portfolio companies, and much more. If you're interested in early-stage climate investing, or startups, there's lots to learn in this one. Hope you enjoy. Here we go.

• [02:47] Mike’s background & experience
• [04:52] Ramsey’s background & expertise
• [07:51] The relationship between Earthshot VC & Elemental Excelerator
• [09:39] Earthshot’s investment thesis, what they’re interested in & what sets them apart
• [12:22] Earthshot’s network
• [14:13] Mike’s approach to fundraising & coaching the portfolio
• [17:54] Fundraising tips and tricks for founders
• [22:17] Earthshot’s success stories
• [24:38] How is AI showing up
• [30:41] Investing in hard-to-abate sectors and Kanin Energy
• [33:06] Kanin Energy's business model and non-dilutive funding
• [38:15] Earthshot’s commitment, DEI & tips for achieving a diverse portfolio
• [42:38] Outlook & opportunities for climate tech investing

• Earthshot Ventures
• Elemental Excelerator
• Mitra Chem
• Kanin Energy
• Generate Capital
• Westly Group

• Connect with Mike on LinkedIn
• Connect with Ramsay on LinkedIn

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