Portfolios and Experience
Louise Gardiner. Co-Founder | CEO
Louise has over 23 years of experience working on global initiatives that have changed how the private sector, investors, and financial institutions think about value creation through improved environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance.
From 2000 to 2004, Louise edited the CSR Magazine, published by the European business network CSR Europe. Since 2005 she has worked for IFC, part of the World Bank Group, on projects across Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe, and Latin America to promote sustainable business practices, ESG disclosure, and sustainable finance, in emerging markets. She currently supports financial sector regulators and banking associations in over 60 emerging markets and developing economies through the secretariat of the IFC-facilitated Sustainable Banking and Finance Network (SBFN).
In 2010, Louise founded First Principles Sustainability Services to provide research and advice to South African and global clients on new developments in private sector sustainability, sustainable finance, and impact investing. First Principles went on to incubate the ESG Tracker rating tool to accelerate the adoption of ESG and impact management in private equity; and in 2020, Louise joined forces with co-founders to establish Vukani Impact Collective.
Louise holds an MA in International Relations from the University of Kent in Canterbury. She is an accredited mediator and stakeholder engagement practitioner, and was a founding board member and chair of the Southern African Affiliate of the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2 SA).
Dr Zoë Lees. Co-Founder
Zoë has over 24 years of experience working in government, business, finance, investment, entrepreneurship, NGOs, and academia across a wide range of sustainability topics and industry sub-sectors in South Africa and throughout Africa. The common thread has always been to demonstrate the long-term value of applying sustainability to decision-making, particularly within developing country contexts.
Zoë has spent the past 7.5 years consulting to IFC, part of the World Bank Group, providing risk and impact support on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance for IFC’s investments in Africa. Zoe previously headed up the Environmental Directorate for Gauteng Province in the new democratic government (1995-1999); and was Executive Director of the Business Council for Sustainable Development in South Africa (1999-2003), the local partner to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). She also co-founded the first Socially Responsible Index (JSE-SRI) in emerging markets in collaboration with the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).
Zoë has been a trusted Senior Advisor to several internationally recognised Development Finance Institutions (DFIs), providing sustainability and ESG support and advice to Private Equity (PE), Financial Intermediary (FI) and direct investment teams, both pre- and post-transactions. She has also been involved in the development (or refinement) of ESG policies and systems.
Having served on a wide range of corporate and advisory boards, she achieved her Certified Directorship accreditation in 2011 and is currently working towards her Chartered Directorship. Zoe holds a Doctorate (Science) from the University of KwaZulu Natal, where she focused on the bioremediation of oil-contaminated soil. She is a Fellow of the inaugural class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa (Aspen Global Leadership Network), and an alumnus of the Prince of Wales Business & the Environment Executive Program (Cambridge), as well as the African Director’s Program through the University of Stellenbosch & INSEAD.
In 2008, she was named by Mail & Guardian as one of the 200 Young South Africans You Must Take to Lunch. She has a strong creative and entrepreneurial side and over the years has initiated many personal and professional projects which have injected her life with inspiration and innovation.
Robin Gilbert-Jones. Co-Founder |Head of Research and Analytics
Robin brings 13 years of experience as a research and stakeholder engagement consultant, with particular focus on the developing world. Robin is skilled in data analysis and interpretation, research design, and quantitative and qualitative research methodologies.
As an independent consultant, he has mentored companies on integrating research techniques into their work to develop robust and evidence-based strategies. Robin has also worked as a consultant for the international tourism sector focusing on impact-based development methodologies and regenerative systems.
Drawing on his experience in software product development, Robin co-designed Vukani’s flagship tool, the ESG Tracker, which empowers clients and partners to manage ESG risk and maximise positive impact across their operations. He was formerly a Senior Research Analyst with Canadian research consultancy, GlobeScan, working across the sustainability, reputation, brand and stakeholder engagement teams. He holds an MA in Global and Comparative Politics, Queen Mary University of London.
Tariro Mudzamiri | ESG Analyst and Impact Lead
Tariro has over 11 years experience in various sectors of the broader sustainability industry. He is currently specialising in impact assurance and verification working primarily with impact investors.
His professional background is in investment management where he worked as an analyst ensuring the integration of ESG standards in the investment process and everyday business practices.
He has worked as a social impact consultant and gained particular experience in financial inclusion and the development of sustainability strategies for a number of Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE)listed financial services providers.
Tariro has also carried out extensive research on human rights for private equity fund clients.
He sits on the Technical Committee of the ESG Exchange, a global network of ethical, influential, and active collaborators who work to promote global sustainable development through effective sustainability reporting.
Tariro is also a freelance writer on ESG issues and his work has appeared in various publications, including The Huffington Post, Moneyweb, and Business Day. Tariro holds an MA in Journalism and Media Studies and a BCom (Hons) in Economics, both obtained from Rhodes University, South Africa.
Rachel A. Aron. | Associate, Social Development Advisor
Rachel is a seasoned Social Development Advisor with over 17 years of experience in identifying, analysing, managing, monitoring & evaluating, and reporting on social and gender considerations in programmatic, project, and policy interventions. She has conducted social due diligence for private sector and public sector projects in all regions of Africa, including in fragile and post-conflict countries. She has worked on national and multinational projects covering the financial, transport, energy, water & sanitation, agricultural, oil and gas, mining, manufacturing, health, tourism, housing, and information & communication technology sectors.
Rachel has worked primarily at international organisations, such as the African Development Bank Group, and at civil society organisations. She holds significant advisory positions in the following organisations: Ambassador, Commonwealth Entrepreneurs Club; Technical Review Committee Member, UNITLIFE (a United Nations multi-partner initiative); and Expert, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)’s Inclusive Policy Lab.
Rachel has a Master of Arts in International Development, specialising in community development and gender, from American University, Washington, DC, United States. She has a Sustainability Leadership Program certificate from the University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom. She has a Diversity and Inclusion in the Workplace certificate from École Supérieure des Sciences Économiques et Commerciales (ESSEC) Business School, Cergy, France. She is fluent in English and French.
Mischa Minné. Associate | Impact Specialist
Mischa is a monitoring and evaluation, and social performance consultant with an MPhil in Climate Change and Development from the University of Cape Town. Mischa brings over seven years combined sustainability and social consulting experience within a tier-one global sustainability consultancy and as an independent consultant.
Mischa has specialist knowledge in developing outcomes-based monitoring and evaluation frameworks, including theory of change models and impact pathways. Most recently Mischa led the development of a monitoring and evaluation and social outcomes measurement framework for private equity, to evaluate the effectiveness of socio economic and enterprise development programmes in the renewable energy sector in South Africa, appraising R10 million in social investments, reaching over 5000 community beneficiaries.
Mischa has also been involved in numerous due diligence exercises in the role of social specialist, with a particular focus on targets in the renewable energy sector, as well as spanning oil and gas, power, and consumer goods across Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa.
Sean O’Beirne | Associate – Senior Environmental Specialist
Sean is a certified environmental assessment practitioner with more than 30 years of experience in the environmental assessment and management field, including work with international lenders on projects in the Russian Federation, the Middle East and various countries in Africa.
Sean has conducted a number of independent peer reviews on large scale EIAs including the PBMR, de Beers Pass Route, Nuclear 1, Sohar Aluminium and others.
He is also active in developing industry good practice guidance and delivering training on environmental assessment with a focus on systemic approaches to assessing and managing risk.
Kevin James | Associate | Strategy
Kevin is a corporate sustainability adviser and climate change thought leader with over two decades of experience guiding some of the largest and most complex companies on their sustainability journeys.
He has deep experience in developing sustainability solutions and green, low carbon projects to address the most pressing climate-related issues of our day. In 2006, he founded the Global Carbon Exchange (GCX), sustainable business experts who guide and support organisations to drive sustainability throughout their value chains. He is also the Director of Zero Waste Technologies providing zero waste to landfill strategy and solutions.
Kevin is a well-known and highly regarded expert on climate change, sustainability, and ESG. He is frequently invited to speak at conferences and events, and quoted in the media. From 2000-2007, Kevin was host of the Radio 2000 show, ‘Climate and sustainability with Kevin James’. He serves on the board of The Green Building Council South Africa, and is an Advisory Board member for Proptech Africa.
Caroline Kirov | Associate | Carbon
Caroline has 13 years of experience specialising in greenhouse gas accounting and verification, which forms part of her career as an analytical carbon advisor at the Global Carbon Exchange (GCX), guiding companies through these aspects of their broader sustainability journeys.
Through her role as Carbon Footprint Manager at a London-based consultancy, she processed hundreds of greenhouse gas assessments every year, with a focus on multi-standard compliance and quality control, for companies of all sizes including many globally recognised brands.
Her career in Cape Town has encompassed many more local projects, including greenhouse gas verifications for companies such as large retail chains, and JSE-listed financial services groups, in accordance with ISO14064-3.
Ohad Shachar | Associate | Climate Change
Ohad joined the Global Carbon Exchange (GCX) in 2008 and has over 15 years of sustainability management consultancy experience, specialising in the development and delivery of climate change response programmes. This has included carbon footprint analysis, life cycle assessments, GHG verification services, CDP reporting and GHG mitigation and adaptation strategies – all of which he has implemented with a portfolio of JSE-listed companies across various sectors such as Property, Insurance, Finance, Mining and Fisheries.
Ohad has co-authored various climate adaptation studies in agricultural and insurance sectors, and has assisted companies and cities in developing innovative climate risk and vulnerability assessment tools. He has a BSC Hons in Biochemistry, and an MPhil in Environmental Management.
Brent Shone | Associate | Climate Risk
Brent graduated from UCT in 2018, with an honours degree in mechanical engineering. Brent works as an analyst at the Global Carbon Exchange (GCX), focusing on climate risk and business development. Climate risk is a focal point for GCX and their clients as they look to transition to a low carbon economy.
Brent has worked on the identification of physical and transition climate risks, as well as opportunities, with a focus on how they may impact in the short, medium, and long term.
Brent has an in-depth understanding of climate risk disclosure in line with the recommendations of the Task Force for Climate Related Financial Disclosures (TCFDs).