Future of ESG: What’s Trending?

Speakers

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  Clinton Adas

  HSBC Asset Management

  Senior ESG Engagement Analyst

  Clinton joined HSBC Asset Management in 2021 from Legal & General Investment Management where he worked in the Investment Stewardship team. Prior to this, Clinton worked at Capital Group where he led the Investment Information function for Europe and Asia. He holds a BA from Stellenbosch University, a LLB from University College London, and an LLM in Environmental Law from Queen Mary University of London. He is currently pursuing a PhD focused on environmental law and conservation at Queen Mary University of London, and a master's degree focused on sustainability through Harvard University. He is a fellow of the Zoological Society of London. Clinton is based in London.

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  Julia Asri Meigh

  Neudata

  Head of ESG Research

  Julia is a senior analyst at Neudata. She has over four years of experience as an analyst and account manager in consulting and financial services. Prior to Neudata, Julia worked at Macrobond Financial, the Foresight Factory and Gatehouse Advisory Partners. As an analyst, she covered a broad range of topics and sectors, including consumer trends, retail investing and the global macroeconomy.

  Julia holds an MSc in Economy, Risk and Society from the London School of Economics and a BA in Economics, Politics and Sociology from the University of Westminster.
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  Sofian Bayed

  Tensoriel

  Chief Executive Officer

  Sofian is the CEO of Tensoriel, a London-based company that uses AI to identify climate risks & opportunities. The company was founded in 2020 by former buy-side data scientists and quant analysts and now counts multiple clients globally. Before founding Tensoriel, Sofian worked as a quant analyst at AXA IM and Bank of America Merrill Lynch. He holds a dual masters degree in environmental science and financial mathematics.

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  Trysha Daskam

  Silver Regulatory Associates

  Managing Director & Head of ESG Strategy

  A seasoned sustainability practitioner and expert in policy writing and implementation of regulatory controls, Trysha Daskam advises investment firms on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and regulatory compliance. She specializes in interpreting the impact of global regulation on a firm’s ESG efforts and regulatory compliance program.

  Trysha’s interest in ESG began during her graduate work building financial models that showed the social and financial returns of investment in international health initiatives. Bringing this experience to the financial services industry, Trysha develops and advises on investment firm ESG programs (including ESG policies and procedures), helps firms respond to investors’ ESG questions and designs their ESG reporting processes.

  Prior to joining Silver, Trysha was a Vice President for U.S. Compliance Consulting at Duff & Phelps, where she served as a global point person addressing ESG issues and completing ESG projects for a wide base of clients across various industry sectors. Trysha also worked with CounselWorks clients on all aspects of their regulatory compliance programs. Trysha developed her in-house perspective at Universa Investments, as part of the team managing the firm’s business operations and was involved in both mock and actual SEC exams.

  A frequent speaker and commentator on a wide range of ESG topics related to the investment management industry, Trysha is an officer of the Sustainability Investment Leadership Council and a member of the GWU Board of ESG Ambassadors. She received a Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences from the University of Denver and a Master’s of Public Health from The George Washington University where she dually concentrated on International Economics and Global Health Policy.

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  Stephan Kessler

  Morgan Stanley

  Global Head of Quantitative Investment Strategies (QIS) Research

  Stephan Kessler is a Managing Director and Global Head of Quantitative Investment Strategies (QIS) Research at Morgan Stanley, focusing on research around signals, portfolio construction and risk management in systematic strategies. Prior to joining Morgan Stanley, he was lead portfolio manager and head of research in the alternative investment strategies team within Goldman Sachs Asset Management’s QIS platform. Other previous roles include tenures as an equity derivatives strategist, portfolio manager for a quantitative multi-strategy fund, and founding partner of a financial consulting firm in Switzerland. He holds a master’s in Economics and Business Administration from the University of Mannheim and a PhD in Economics from the University of St. Gallen, where he still lectures on financial modelling. He is the author of numerous academic-journal articles on financial markets.

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  Dean Murphy

  Neudata

  Commercial Director - Data Provider Products

  Dean is responsible for leading, developing and expanding Neudata’s events programme.

  Having spent the last decade creating, building and scaling conference and content businesses within the FinTech and Energy sectors, Dean has worked with some of the most recognisable global brands on B2B events of all sizes. Dean co-founded two conference companies in 2013 and exited through acquisition in early 2020.

  Dean holds a BA Hons degree in Theatre and Performance Studies from Warwick University.

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  Farah Ruthnam-Sandys

  Neudata

  Business Development Manager

  Farah started in the alternative data space by providing patent intelligence to public and private equity investors. In conjunction, Farah worked with corporate research & development departments from a broad range of industries.

  Farah has an LLB in Law from Durham University.

• 

  Sash Sarangi

  EMAlpha

  Chief Executive Officer

  Throughout his career as a portfolio manager and investment researcher, Sash has focused on solving complex inter-disciplinary problems and has led various cross-functional teams. Before founding EMAlpha, Sash was a Fixed Income Portfolio Manager at Invesco, one of the largest global asset management firms. At Invesco, he co-managed many systematic fixed-income funds and helped build the fixed income factor investments research and infrastructure group. Sash was instrumental in the design, launch, and management of multiple systematic mutual funds in EM, Euro, and US credit. He also designed and researched the entire life cycle of G10 and EM FX strategies, and helped manage the collaboration and partnership between portfolio management, research, and technology teams.

  Before Invesco, Sash was a macro trader and a partner at FDO Partners LLC, Cambridge, Massachusetts, a currency specialist investment firm founded as a partnership between State Street Advisors and Professors Rudi Dornbusch of MIT and Ken Froot of Harvard. While at FDO, Sash also led the FX trading team. Prior to FDO Partners, Sash worked as a Quantitative Analyst at Citigroup and Bloomberg.

  At heart, Sash is a scientific researcher. Be it ESG, climate science, or investment management, he takes a careful systematic approach to solving problems. Sash has published multiple scientific papers during his academic career with a Ph.D. from Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, and a Postdoc from Columbia University, New York City. He spent a number of years in academia, collaborating with globally renowned physicists such as Prof. Brian Greene, and contributed well-cited original research. He was a winner of one of the John Templeton Foundation Grant Awards during his academic career.

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  Emily Steinbarth

  Russell Investments

  Head of ESG Research & Development

  Emily Steinbarth is a lead quantitative research analyst and Head of ESG R&D at Russell Investments.

  In this role, she focuses on the development of quantitative sustainable investment strategies, and the continual advancement of the firm’s ESG data, systems, and quantitative research.

  Her work includes leading research on decarbonization of passive and active portfolios, building proprietary sustainability metrics, developing strategies for separately managed accounts, and establishing firm-wide and portfolio-specific net zero interim targets.

  Emily is a member of the firm’s ESG governance committees. She joined Russell Investments in January 2016. Prior to her current role, Emily was located in Los Angeles where she completed her Masters in Financial Engineering and Masters in Economics at UCLA.

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  Olivia Tidd

  Lazard Asset Management

  Sustainable & ESG Investment Research Analyst

  Olivia Tidd is a Research Analyst on the Sustainable Investment and ESG team at Lazard Asset Management. In this role, her research spans from company-specific net zero emissions modelling, to broader thematic research on biodiversity and natural capital. Prior to joining in 2021, she was an investment analyst within the multi-asset team at Ninety One. Olivia has a BSc in Economics from the University of Bath, during which she also worked for a year at State Street as a macro strategist.