Climate Collective welcomes new Chairperson Maria Alegre
The Climate Collective is pleased to announce the appointment of Maria Alegre as its new Chairperson as the organization enters a new phase of growth.
Alegre is the co-founder and Managing Partner at Flori Ventures, a seed-stage venture fund partnering with founders who are creating a more innovative, regenerative, decentralized, and inclusive financial system, as well as board member at ESADE Business School in Barcelona. Before Flori, Maria co-founded Chartboost and ran it as CEO for 8 years. Chartboost raised $21M led by Sequoia Capital before it was acquired by Zynga.
“Digital tech has a catalytic role to play as we advance global goals for climate and nature. Innovation doesn’t happen in a vacuum, it needs a concerted effort to thrive — an ecosystem of support if you will”, says Alegre. “For the last 15 years I have had the privilege to support the founders building innovative technologies and I’m excited to be able to use that experience to support the wider Climate Collective community.
Under the leadership of Anna Lerner, CEO, Climate Collective has become a recognized innovation network made up by entrepreneurs, investors, nonprofits and scientists — all leveraging data and tech for climate and nature impact. Its incubation work is structured around three verticals: Carbon Markets, Biodiversity and Nature, and Green Accountability.
“We’re thrilled to leverage Maria’s experience as a seed-stage investor and previous CEO and co-founder of a Silicon Valley based tech company in support of the cohorts we incubate at Climate Collective — and for the wider innovation community we support — many of whom are actively fundraising and working through their go-to-market strategies.” -Anna Lerner, CEO
Alegre succeeds outgoing Chairperson Ed Walters, who will remain a close supporter of the CEO and the broader organization in his new role supporting talented leaders at Russell Reynolds Associates, leading the creation of a Climate Tech and Innovation Practice.
“Leading Climate Collective has been a privilege. As I transition to my new role at Russell Reynolds Associates, I’m thrilled to welcome Maria as its new Chairperson. Her expertise in tech and venture capital is exactly what Climate Collective needs to amplify its impact. I’m excited to see how the organization will continue to innovate and drive climate action under her guidance.”
Going forward, Climate Collective will deepen its thought leadership by connecting tech innovation with relevant policy and finance efforts. It will expand its Incubator Program beyond the three current cohorts to build a dedicated cohort using Artificial Intelligence to accelerate global decarbonization. Lastly, it will continue to collaborate closely with its strategic partners, including the World Bank Group, UNDP, Inter-American Development Bank, Rocky Mountain Institute, BFA Global and Mercy Corp Ventures— as well as supercharging some of the most promising climate and nature tech entrepreneurs and their teams.
