Diya Courty-Stephens

Jr. Impact Analyst, Alacrity Canada and Emend Vision Fund

After graduating from Saint Michaels University School in 2019, I headed to Southern California to complete my Bachelor of Arts at Claremont Mckenna College. Although I started off college on the pre-med track, I quickly realized my passion was elsewhere. Experimenting in environmental policy and economics courses helped me refocus my goals: helping the climate crisis. Courses are a great way to learn fundamentals and internships are a great way to apply your knowledge. Over the course of my time in college I did a variety of internships focusing on sustainability and ESG. I worked at RBC focusing on green loans; my family company, Nature's Path, as a sustainability analyst; and Underwriter's Laboratory as an ESG analyst. The best takeaway from my internships was learning what I did and didn't like. My favourite experiences were through campus activities. While at the Roberts Environmental Center (our on campus research institute focused on environmental issues), I worked with private equity firms, startups, and nonprofits - from the work I'm  in the process of getting my paper published in a peer-reviewed journal. The projects were enlightening on the breadth of jobs in the environmental space. You actually don't have to be a scientist to help the climate crisis?! After graduating, I moved back to Victoria to work at Alacrity Canada, a non-profit, and Emend Vision Fund, a venture capital fund focused on environmental impact. While at these companies, I've been able to work on a variety of great projects: writing the Invictus Games Sustainability strategy and creating ESG frameworks to make responsible investments. I've also started involving myself in the local community, I was chosen to sit on the Saanich Sustainability and Climate Change Committee and the SMUS Sustainability Committee. I'm looking forward to coming to Brentwood and meeting students who want to make a positive change in the world!

Links

LinkedIn: https://ca.linkedin.com/in/diya-courty-stephens-3b3404173

Emend Vision Fund: https://emendfund.com