RI People & Appointments, February 24: Insurance executive Anderson to head UNEP FI

Charles Anderson, the former CEO of New Zealand insurer Sovereign Assurance, has been appointed as the new director to head the UNEP Finance Initiative (UNEP FI), the platform that brings together the United Nations and the global financial sector. Anderson, who becomes a designate for UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner on the Advisory Council of the PRI, was involved in the setting up of the Principles for Sustainable Insurance (PSI) in 2012. Anderson retired from Sovereign, the first insurance company to sign the Natural Capital Declaration, in March last year. Anderson takes on the role held by Paul Clements-Hunt until 2012. Yuki Yasui has been the Officer in Charge of UNEP FI in the interim.

Private equity executive Rob Koczkar will succeed Michael Traill as Chief Executive of Social Ventures Australia (SVA), the non-profit organisation established in 2002. Founding CEO Traill will take on a new role as Executive Director. Koczkar joins from Sydney-based Pacific Equity Partners (PEP), where he is a Managing Director.

Pieter van der Gaag, Head of Marketing and Communications at Triodos Investment Management, is leaving the post. Van der Gaag is understood to be leaving the financial sector altogether to work for a start-up in the marketing of sustainable consumer products.

Dr Hans-Christoph Hirt, Executive Director – Responsible Investment and Stewardship, at Hermes Equity Ownership Services, has relocated to Hermes’ office in Singapore to head up its work in the region. Hirt said the move reflected increasing interest from Hermes’ clients in the Asian markets and growing interest in investment stewardship in Asia.

Nitin Pandit has been named as the first Managing Director of WRI India, the independent organization modelled on the World Resources Institute think tank. Pandit will supervise WRI India’s staff in Mumbai, Bangalore, and Delhi, and work closely with its partners in government, business, civil society and academia. He was previously President of the International Institute for Energy Conservation (IIEC). Link

Todd Robinson has been named to the new role of Director of Investor Relations at Renewable Energy Group Inc., the Iowa-based biodiesel firm. Robinson has more than 20 years in banking, investment, finance and treasury operations at companies including Wells Fargo, Deloitte & Touche, Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Pella Corporation, and HSBC Securities.Ritu Kumar has been appointed Director, Environmental and Social Responsibility at CDC Group, the UK’s development finance institution. Working with fellow ESG director Mark Eckstein, she will work across the environmental and social remit with a specific focus on CDC’s direct equity investments; she will also lead CDC’s approach to climate change. She joins CDC from private equity firm Actis, where she was Director and Senior Advisor for Responsible Investment. Announcement

Hemal Naran has been appointed Head of Investments and Actuarial Services at South Africa’s more than ZAR1trn (€66bn) Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF). He is a former Fund Manager – Alternative Assets at the British Steel Pension Fund. Prior to this, Naran worked in the investment advisory business of HSBC in London. Announcement

Rosa van den Beemt has joined Canadian mutual funds firm NEI Investments as an Associate ESG Analyst. Before arriving in Canada two years ago, the Dutch national was involved in international development in Indonesia.

Hugh Sealy, an environmental scientist and chemical engineer at St. George’s University in Grenada, has been elected to chair the executive board of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), the Kyoto Protocol mechanism to assist developing countries reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. He has been succeeded as vice-chair of the CDM by Germany’s Lambert Schneider, a researcher in carbon markets, climate and energy policy.

Quentin Scott has been named as marketing director at Low Carbon, the UK-based renewable energy investment company. He was formerly UK marketing director at IT firm BlackBerry.

SustainAbility, the think tank and strategic advisory firm, is seeking a Research/Trends Manager to contribute to the development and execution of its research program. The role is based in its offices in Oakland, California.

News and data giant Bloomberg is seeking is seeking a “highly motivated, detail-oriented person” to join its Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) team, which is responsible for researching and analyzing ESG data as part of the Bloomberg Equities product. The role is based in London.