How we built a 400-member climate investor community across 25 cities in 18 months - and what it taught me about leadership, trust and momentum
When we started Investors for Climate (I4C), it wasn’t just about convening investors around the theme of climate. It was about building a movement — one anchored in purpose, courage, and collective action.
We weren’t sure what would happen. But we knew we had to try. Because the climate crisis can’t be solved in silos. It demands communities that are agile, committed, and bold.
Eighteen months later, we’ve grown to over 400 members in 25 cities, built entirely through relationships, trust, and shared vision. From Singapore to Zurich, Dubai to New York, our gatherings have sparked deals, co-investments, and lifelong partnerships.
Here are three leadership lessons I’ve learned on this journey — lessons that continue to guide how we grow, connect, and evolve as a global community.
1. Purpose is Power
Be clear about who you serve — and just as importantly, who you don’t.
At Investors for Climate, we’re not a founder platform. We don’t serve as a first-stop learning hub for families just beginning their sustainability journey. Our platform is designed for one group: active investors deploying capital into climate solutions.
This clarity has been critical. It helps us curate more intentionally. It builds immediate trust. And it means we spend less time explaining why we exist and more time creating value.
When we hosted our startup pitch event at the Singapore Stock Exchange, co-hosted with SGX and Temasek’s plant-based innovation arm Nurasa, we knew exactly who to invite: fund managers, family offices, and angels ready to invest. And they did. That night sparked several follow-on meetings — and at least one deal in the works.
Focus brings momentum. And momentum builds trust.
2. Leadership is Shared
The best communities aren’t built top-down — they are co-created. Leadership is not about holding the mic; it’s about passing it.
Our I4C Ambassadors have been instrumental in powering our global growth. In Melbourne, Peter Castellas rallied hundreds of climate investors at the iconic MGC during the Climate Investor Forum. In London, Tingting Peng and Marika Svardstrom transformed a cozy space into a vibrant hub with their "Climate & Croissants" event, drawing a room of 40 passionate individuals. In Hong Kong, Francesco Stadler, Maurice Lee, and Elisa Riou led the charge by partnering with a local climate VC to organize an impactful gathering of investors. More recently in Paris, our event during ChangeNOW at Cimate House saw inspiring discussions and the community gathering thanks to our Paris Ambassadors: Audrey Maignan, Alexandre Covello, and Daniel Jeanroy, further solidifying our presence in the international climate finance arena.
Every time we empower others to host, lead, and speak — we scale more than our footprint. We scale belief.
We also listen. We ask our members what they need. From more sector-specific deal flow (agritech, nature-based solutions) to regional insights (Africa, Southeast Asia), every pivot we’ve made came from the community itself.
3. Progress over Perfection
We’ve made mistakes. We’ve experimented. We’ve evolved. But what’s mattered most is that we kept showing up.
Community-building is never finished. It’s a living ecosystem — one that thrives on feedback, adapts fast, and celebrates action over ego.
One of our proudest milestones? Launching our very first SPV investment into Coast 4C, an Earthshot Prize finalist working to regenerate marine ecosystems and coastal economies. Coast 4C empowers coastal communities through sustainable seaweed farming, helping to restore biodiversity while unlocking new sources of income and climate resilience across Southeast Asia.
It wasn’t about perfection — it was about momentum, alignment, and shared conviction. And it happened because we listened, acted, and trusted our collective instinct.
Impact doesn’t always come with big fanfare. Sometimes it looks like a quiet diligence call, a conviction-led pitch, and a WhatsApp message that turns into a term sheet.
When deals close, when founders get funded, when capital flows into solutions that regenerate the planet — we know this model works.
To my incredible Co-Founder Helena Wasserman and the growing I4C family — thank you. We are building something extraordinary. And we’re just getting started.
If you’re a values-aligned investor ready to deploy capital into climate, we’d love to welcome you.
