🌎 Welcome back to the CleanTechies PodLetter, VC edition.
🚨🚨 Listen to the new takeaways section at the end of the episode!!
Today, we are talking to Zécca Lehn from Responsibly Ventures.
In this episode, we discuss:
How he uses data in impact reporting and communicating with LPs
How Responsibly Ventures maintains an ethical and integrity-based focus in their investing
Maintaining focus and presence in what you do despite the noise
And a lot, lot more.
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The Guest: Zécca Lehn
Zécca is the GP at Responsibly Ventures where he invests at the Pre-Seed stage in sustainability and social good
Zécca was interested in sustainability from when he was a child, before cleantech 1.0 and majority of what we know as climate tech today
He started off his career as an environmental economist and data scientist, two skills that clearly benefit his ability to lead an impact-focused fund today
He was able to combine his passion for economics and environmental consulting into running a fund which today is Responsibly Ventures
🚨🚨🚨 Shoutout to our sponsor Net Zero Insights — Net Zero Insights is the leading market intelligence platform on climate information with all the latest you need on funding rounds, VCs, and the climate tech ecosystem. Use this link to schedule your demo and get a 10% discount! 🚨🚨🚨
The VC: Responsibly Ventures
Responsibly Ventures is a PreSeed VC Impact Fund, backing remarkable teams, focused on both Sustainability and Social Good.
They encourage competitive moats, rapid scale, all aspects of inclusion,
ethics, integrity, and customer love.They support our Founders in achieving Venture Scale Positive Impacts, considering a company’s impact-moat to be their financial opportunity.
📝 Show Notes:
Topics
1:45 Introduction and Background
10:23 Early Interest in Sustainability
13:43 Investing in Sustainability and Social Good
15:52 What is Customer Love?
17:13 Ethics and Honesty in Investing
25:26 Balancing Returns and Impact
27:21 Data and Reporting in Venture Investing
30:52 Subjectivity in Measurement and Reporting
31:57 Challenges of Collecting and Using Data
34:05 Privacy and AI Concerns in Impact Investing
37:09 The Power of Follow-on Investors
39:50 Maintaining Focus and Presence
42:08 Climate Anxiety and Perspective
45:16 The Role of Returns in Climate Investing
52:04 Addressing Desertification as an Impact
54:05 Takeaways
Links
Check out our sponsor, NextWave Partners, for all your Climate, Renewables, and Sustainability recruitment needs.
This podcast is NOT investment advice. Do your homework and due diligence before investing in anything discussed on this podcast.
Asks 👋
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Here’s the thing: Somil and I both have day jobs, so if you’re in the helping mood, we both have an ask for you today.
Somil: I’m currently seeking to connect with founders in the built environment space for a project I’m working on. If you’re in that space, schedule a chat here!
Silas: As many of you know, my day job is solving people’s hiring headaches in climate - do you have a hiring headache? Well, let me be your Advil. (booking here)
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🙏🏽 Thanks for tuning in, and see you all next episode!
#162 Impact Metrics Liability, Navigating Reporting, Profit-First, & More w/ Zécca Lehn (Responsibly Ventures)