Kate Elliot
Head of Ethical, Sustainable and Impact Research, Rathbone Greenbank Investments
Kate oversees the development and implementation of the team’s sustainability assessment framework, analysing investments against a range of environmental, social and governance criteria. She also monitors emerging sustainability themes, sets priorities for Greenbank’s stewardship and engagement activities and has developed the team’s systems for measurement and reporting of portfolio sustainability and impact performance. She joined Rathbone Greenbank in 2007 after graduating from the University of Bristol with a Masters in Philosophy and Mathematics.
Catherine Raw
Managing Director, SSE Thermal
Catherine joined SSE Thermal in April 2022 with extensive operational and commercial experience, having served as both Chief Operating Officer for North America and Chief Financial Officer for international metals and mining firm, Barrick Gold. Prior to this, she was a managing director and fund manager at BlackRock, the world’s largest fund management company. Moving into the energy sector, Catherine brought her vast expertise in operational and financial performance, as well as specialised knowledge of natural resources, commodity markets and investment management. She holds an MA in Natural Sciences from Downing College, University of Cambridge, an MSc in Mineral Project Appraisal from Imperial College London and is a CFA charterholder.
David Bryon
Chief Financial Officer, First Light Fusion
With diverse industry and spinout experience, David brings deep hands-on financial, commercial, and operational expertise to First Light Fusion. Tech start-ups are a natural fit for his skills, where his insights and leadership allow his teams to make hard things possible. Following a career in both large corporates and SMEs, David held CFO and CEO roles in an Oxford University spin-out. He has also run a consultancy, Right Brain Finance, supporting technology start-ups as they raised money and grew their businesses. First Light Fusion was one of these clients, where he joined the Board in 2015 and has since been deeply involved in all non-technical aspects of the business, from the fundraising to the challenges of scale up. David holds a BA in Geography, MSc in Psychology and is a CIMA associate.
John Flaherty
Managing Director of Grid Scale Energy Storage, SMS Plc
A qualified chartered accountant, John spent more than a decade in financial services working for major global institutions in the UK and Europe before moving into the energy sector. Within the energy industry his experience spans senior roles within conglomerates and start-ups across finance, customer service, and commercial, through which he has made notable contributions to energy innovation over the past ten years. He now heads up the Group’s Grid-scale Energy Storage division.
Kai Johns
Ethical, Sustainable and Impact Researcher, Rathbone Greenbank Investments
Kai conducts analysis of investments against a range of environmental, social and governance criteria for both new ideas and companies in Greenbank’s investment universe. He uses a range of data sources and integrates them into the Greenbank research process. Kai’s focus is on climate impact and risk assessment across the investment portfolios Greenbank manages and his areas of interest include climate solutions, net zero and smart cities. Kai joined the ethical, sustainable and impact research team in March 2019 after graduating from the University of Cambridge with a BA in Law.
