An Interview With Monica Sanders
Starting a company — whether you have all the support in the world or you’re doing it alone — can be an incredibly stressful and isolating thing. What really makes all the difference here are the people you meet along the way, that share your vision and your passion. I wish someone had told me, in the early days and loneliest times, that I would meet such smart, caring, hardworking folks who would, and do, bring out the best in me.
According to the University of Colorado, “Those who are most affected and have the fewest resources to adapt to climate change are also the least responsible for the greenhouse gas emissions — both globally and within the United States.” Promoting climate justice is an incredibly important environmental responsibility that is slowly becoming more and more recognized. In this interview series, we are talking to leaders who are helping to promote sustainability and climate justice. As part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Nicole Etchart.
Nicole Etchart is Co-Founder & CEO of NESsT. Nicole leads the organization’s strategy, growth, and impact worldwide including investment in a diverse portfolio of high impact enterprises through its acceleration program and impact-first funds. She led the replication of NESsT to 12 emerging market countries, investing over US$27 million to train 30,000 entrepreneurs and grow 230 social enterprises impacting 1,100,000 excluded and marginalized people. Nicole is the author of more than 20 publications on social entrepreneurship and impact investing. She currently serves on the Board of AIDA and was formerly on the Executive Committee of the Aspen Network for Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE).
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit. Can you tell us a bit about how you grew up?
I was born into a working-class family in Chile and lived there until I was 6. My parents migrated to the US because they had a dream for their daughters to access a better education. I grew up in Miami, Florida, where I got a public-school education. I was a latchkey child — I really loved school and was very involved in school activities and volunteering.
Everyone has a cataclysmic moment or marker in their life which propels them to take certain actions, a “why”. What is your why?
As a child growing up in the U.S., I was lucky that my mom worked for LatAm (Latin America) Chile and could send me to Chile every summer where I first encountered class-based inequality and was exposed to all walks of life. My dad, a strong man with a clear sense of morals, instilled in me a sense of justice and a desire to build a more equitable society; at his job in France, he defended someone in a lower position than he, and was fired immediately and blacklisted. He was forced to move from France to Chile. These experiences, of my own and my family’s, molded my perspective on the world, and reflected in the choices I made as I grew older. My junior year of college abroad in Paris, where I was studying French, I became very engaged with dissidents who had left Chile under the dictatorship. Their passion for returning to their home one day to build a better democracy inspired me in ways that would change the course of my life. When I came back to university after being abroad, I changed my major to Latin American studies, in order to pursue a change in development and social change in LatAm. I eventually went on to work for a decade supporting social change organizations. As a woman, I had encountered a lot of discrimination in my prior positions and decided that I wanted to run my own organization to impart change. In addition to the rampant discrimination among these organizations, I was concerned that they were not sustainable, and decided to create NESsT to transform them into more entrepreneurial, impactful, and gender inclusive enterprises with sustainable business models.
You are currently leading an organization that is making a difference for our planet. Can you tell us a bit about what you and your organization are trying to change?
Our greatest mission at NESsT is to provide underrepresented, marginalized populations — affected by climate change, socioeconomic circumstances, and race, gender, and sexuality-based exclusivity — with access to dignified employment. A decent job can make a difference in transforming lives, not only for the people who access these jobs but also for their families. When you’re left out of the labor force, you’re being deprived of a quality of life- that in our opinion- is a violation of a human right. These problems are further exacerbated by climate change. We know that the poor and other excluded peoples are those most affected by climate change, which further worsens their living and livelihood conditions. For example, the effect of extreme weather, deforestation, and lack of renewable energy, to name a few, can drastically impact these communities. We are working to change these systems until all people can access the quality of life that they deserve.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company or organization?
The vision that NESsT had 26 years ago is still relevant today. From the very beginning, we were pioneers in the impact investing space; defining concepts like sustainability over charity, DEI, being able to leverage a return while also having impact, etc. We foresaw that social entrepreneurs would develop or create very sustainable solutions for the planet but would need help in doing so with the addition of business services and patient capital. It’s amazing to me how our initial conversations about blended finance are present thoughts, ideas, and conversations being had 26 years later.
None of us can be successful without some help along the way. Did you have mentors or cheerleaders who helped you to succeed? Can you tell us a story about their influence?
I’ve had many mentors and cheerleaders throughout my life and my career, who have not only supported me but have supported NESsT as well. My earliest mentors — teachers and managers from schooling and various jobs whom I loved and respected — helped me to develop the capacity to work with different people from different professional backgrounds. I gained skills in how to work with all kinds of people, especially those from the private sector and how to engage them in our work. I’ve found mentors through NESsT as well; my co-CEOs have not only supported me, but also challenged me to think critically and improve. These relationships have been crucially important for my personal and professional growth. Also, within NESsT, some of the initial board members really believed in our vision and reinforced us during difficult times, when we were still trying to get traction and support for our mission. Those board members remain our closest allies and backers to this day. Finally, and most importantly, my family is who I turn to the most for mentorship and support, as cheerleaders and devil’s advocates for every decision I make. My husband, kids, and close friends were always a part of NESsT and were very supportive of my dreams.
Thank you for that. Let’s now move to the central part of our discussion. Let’s start with a basic definition of terms so that everyone is on the same page. What does climate justice mean to you? How do we operationalize it?
I define climate justice as the nexus between poverty and climate change. For me, operationalizing climate justice means providing for those negatively and disproportionately affected by unjust systems and climate issues. For example, at NESsT, we work with communities in the Amazon to support local enterprises, local value chains, and their suppliers as part of growing a global marketplace and global economy, while also ensuring everyone is being paid fair prices and given the capital, infrastructure, and affordable energy they need. Operationalizing climate justice means ensuring these voices and needs are heard and being responded to in a conscious way, not just as a reaction to an emergency or a political agenda. If we involve people from these underserved communities more in the conversation around solutions for climate change, and give them the tools and resources they need, they would be able to actively and meaningfully contribute to those solutions.
Science is telling us that we have 7–10 years to make critical decisions about climate change. What are three things you or your organization are doing to help?
- NESsT is proactively supporting our portfolio of SMEs (small and medium enterprises) to act responsibly and incorporate good, sustainable environmental practices in their business models. We are training ourselves and training our portfolio companies to identify the green indicators they need to achieve to become sustainable.
- We are investing in gender inclusion, in terms of making sure that the voices and needs of all genders are incorporated into addressing the key challenges and solutions of climate change. By making them an active part of the conversation and solution, these groups will be given power to make decisions about how they will earn and sustainably spend their livelihoods.
- We are ensuring that these important lessons and learnings we’ve found are amplified and shared with key stakeholders, such as the investment funding community, for them to understand their part in supporting enterprises to achieve greater sustainability. We want to act as the model for best practices for the rest of the sector. We will continue to publish our case studies and recommendations to help make sustainability not just a best practice, but the only practice.
Are there three things the community, society, or politicians can do to help you in your mission?
Yes, there absolutely are:
1. Across the board, all three of these parties need to be more tolerant of taking risks to invest in these companies providing innovative and sustainable solutions. Even though these companies are not “mainstream,” they are on the frontlines of solutions for positive change. We need society and politicians to support them and push them across the finish line. In the impact investing space, it’s the funding institutions that need to be more open to supporting community-based change through actors they’re not normally used to supporting.
2. The three parties should become less focused on quantity and more focused on qualitative change. These communities should not be afraid to fail but should rather be able to build their tolerance for risks and learn from their mistakes, finding innovative ways to address problems.
3. Within these communities, there are often requirements from society that are overly demanding, rigid or bureaucratic. To truly help our mission, I would ask that societal leaders trust the people on the ground, that have proven impactful results, and who have the knowledge to find meaningful solutions. We’re looking for a paradigm shift in the way that investment happens in emerging market countries. It must be more risk-tolerant, more trust-based, and more open to innovation and creativity,
How would you articulate how a business can become more profitable by being more sustainable and more environmentally conscious? Can you share a story or example?
I love this question — this is NESsT’s bread and butter. By having good sustainability practices both in terms of the environment as well as fair wages and prices, you are automatically building a more robust and successful business. On the human, emotional side, you are creating loyal employees and suppliers. You are increasing the number of people that you can engage. On the environmental side, you are reducing your cost by recycling, using solar energy, and reducing your carbon footprint. By completing these practices, in the long run, you are reducing overall costs for your business; these things will show through profit. An example of this, of us living our truth, is through our Lirio Fund. The NESsT Lirio Fund portfolio enterprises maintain strong relationships with local communities, including indigenous communities, and help farmers to adopt practices that conserve the forest and promote gender equity. The Fund portfolio supports the livelihood of over 2,400 smallholder farmers and vulnerable workers, 45% of whom are women, in rural Peru and Colombia. One of the first enterprises we invested in when launching the NESsT Lirio Fund was Greenbox, a social enterprise that transforms regions in the Andes-Amazon of Peru from cultivating coca plants for use in drug trafficking, to harvesting organic fruit for use in value-add products. Greenbox, a company that joined the NESsT Lirio portfolio in 2019, achieved a compound annual sales growth rate of 68% by the end of 2022. This success allowed NESsT to offer Greenbox an additional loan in 2022, demonstrating the potential for growth for companies within the NESsT portfolio.
This is the signature question we ask in most of our interviews. What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started promoting sustainability and climate justice” and why? Please share a story or example for each.
1 . When NESsT was first beginning, and I would be asked what NESsT is and does, I would try to explain the entirety of our mission, vision, and values straight off the bat. I found that this was not the most productive — or exciting — way to describe what we do, and people were getting lost in the complexities of our work. I wish someone had told me that sometimes, the complexities won’t be appreciated, and a short and sweet elevator pitch is the best way to go.
2 . Starting a company — whether you have all the support in the world or you’re doing it alone — can be an incredibly stressful and isolating thing. What really makes all the difference here are the people you meet along the way, that share your vision and your passion. I wish someone had told me, in the early days and loneliest times, that I would meet such smart, caring, hardworking folks who would, and do, bring out the best in me.
3 . There is a very fine line between formality and familiarity when relationship building. Learning this balance was, and is, key to continuously building important relationships that help us to progress forward — personally and professionally. I wish I had learned this precarious balance earlier — of humor, humility and hubris — to grow NESsT.
4 . When you’re building something from scratch that you put so much time, energy, and care into, it becomes hard to enjoy the little things sometimes. I wish someone had told me to enjoy those things more along the way — especially when it comes to sharing great food and wine!
5 . It is difficult, when starting out on this journey, to trust yourself and your vision. I wish someone had told me much earlier that the best thing you can do is to continue to reassure yourself that you’re doing what needs to be done. This is also advice that I remind myself of daily, even now.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
A role model of mine is Michelle Obama. She holds such grace, strength, and brilliance that I deeply respect and admire. I’d love to have breakfast with her to discuss her ability to disarm sticky situations and move us collectively towards positive, collaborative change.
How can our readers continue to follow your work online?
You can learn more about us and our work at https://www.nesst.org. We’re also active on all of our socials: @NESsT on LinkedIn @nesstorg on Twitter; @nesst_org; @nesstorg on Facebook.
This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!
Thank you so much for the opportunity to speak more about my background and the important work we’re doing at NESsT. This was great!
About the Interviewer: Monica Sanders JD, LL.M, is the founder of “The Undivide Project”, an organization dedicated to creating climate resilience in underserved communities using good tech and the power of the Internet. She holds faculty roles at the Georgetown University Law Center and the Tulane University Disaster Resilience Leadership Academy. Professor Sanders also serves on several UN agency working groups. As an attorney, Monica has held senior roles in all three branches of government, private industry, and nonprofits. In her previous life, she was a journalist for seven years and the recipient of several awards, including an Emmy. Now the New Orleans native spends her time in solidarity with and championing change for those on the frontlines of climate change and digital divestment. Learn more about how to join her at: www.theundivideproject.org
How Nicole Etchart Of NESsT Is Helping to Promote Sustainability and Climate Justice was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.