RI People & Appointments, March 4: Portfolio manager sought for pension-backed renewables fund

Triodos, the sustainable banking group, is seeking a Portfolio Manager Renewable Energy – Project Equity within the Ampere Equity Fund. The role will be based in Zeist, the Netherlands, and report to the Fund Manager/CIO of the fund. The €320m Ampere fund is a closed end fund investing in utility scale renewable energy projects in Western Europe; its investors include Dutch pension funds ABP and PFZW. The deadline for applications is March 6. Job advertisement

Jeff Ciachurski, founder and chief executive of Vancouver-based renewables firm Western Wind, is stepping down now that Brookfield Renewable Energy Partners has taken control of the company. He will now focus on his Greenbriar Capital venture. Jeff Rosenthal, chief operating office at Brookfield, becomes CEO at Western Wind. Lee Butler becomes chief financial officer and Walter Di Cesare is the new corporate secretary. A new board has also been named, including Edward Kress (Chairman), Allan Kupcis (ex-Ontario Hydro), Harry Goldgut (Senior Managing Partner of Brookfield Asset Management), Rosenthal and Saul Shulman (CEO of MLG Management).

Peter Montagnon, Senior Investment Adviser at the UK’s Financial Reporting Council, has joined the board of Hawkamah, the Dubai International Financial Centre’s corporate governance body. Montagnon, a former Financial Times journalist, was formerly Director of Investment Affairs at the Association of British Insurers (ABI). Hawkamah will be chaired by Hamad Buamim, director-general of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry while Maryam al-Suwaidi of the UAE’s market regulator will be vice-chairman.

The $255bn (€196bn) California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) has elected Henry Jones and George Diehr as Chair and Vice Chair respectively of its Investment Committee. Jones retired as chief financial officer of the Los Angeles Unified School District in 1998 and is an adjunct professor at California State University, Los Angeles.Tom Garcia has been named as CEO of the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST), the super fund industry group. He was formerly the AIST’s executive manager, policy and research, for the past two years. Prior to joining AIST, he was a senior manager at Industry Fund Financial Planning for four years and an engineering manager at Michelin Australia. Garcia replaces Fiona Reynolds who left AIST in January to become Managing Director of the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment. Link

The International Finance Corp., the private finance arm of the World Bank, has made two senior appointments. Ethiopis Tafara becomes Vice President and General Counsel, having been Director of International Affairs at the US Securities and Exchange Commission for the past decade. And Jean Philippe Prosper becomes Vice President of Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean. He will be based in Johannesburg after a short transition.

Julian Morgan has been appointed as the first ever chief economist at the Green Alliance, the UK economic think tank. A former economic adviser to the European Central Bank, Morgan will establish a centre for the sustainable economy at Green Alliance, lead its work to assess the UK’s performance in making its economy greener and “generate new insights into the economics of resource stewardship and climate security”.

Tomorrow’s Company, the UK-based sustainability and governance think tank, is seeking a Head of Corporate Relations to help present the organisation. “The core purpose of the role is to create long-term value for our corporate partners by creating offers that appropriately leverage our programmes, communities, networks, events, membership and other bespoke support, and by engaging partners in being part of shaping the future of business success,” Tomorrow’s Company says. Apply via email by March 18.

Fairtrade International USA, the newly registered US arm of the sustainable development NGO, is seeking an Executive Director. The role will be to “ensure an effective start-up of the organization”. Applications for the Washington, DC-based role are open until March 8. Link