Sarah Rotman Epps

At last week’s ClimateTech Coffee 🚲 Bryan White and I were joined by Kimberly Gilbert, PhD to hear about her work on Carbon Neutralization and Ocean Storage (CNOS) through her company pHathom. Here’s a recap: The ocean naturally absorbs CO2 over time, but we’ve added so much that the ocean has become increasingly acidic. Ocean pH has dropped from 8.2 to 8.1 globally over the last hundred years, and as pH drops it becomes harder for coral-based organisms to form shells. To combat this, Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement (OAE) is an intervention that both reverses ocean acidification and removes CO2 from the atmosphere. Challenges with traditional OAE: - When you add the alkalinity into the ocean, it spreads out. It’s hard to measure the change in pH. - You don’t know exactly when the extra CO2 will be absorbed. Modeling and measurement companies are trying to help with this problem. Advantages of CNOS: - Co2 is captured directly at a coastal power plant or refinery, and then the concentrated Co2 is pumped into water that has limestone (and/or other alkaline materials) in it.  - This means the Co2 is dissolved onsite and the pH can be equilibrated onsite, which makes accurate measurement more feasible. Factors that affect progress:  - We’ll start seeing more companies enter in this space as the chemistry and its impacts are better understood and seen as safe  - Local and national permitting are a huge bottleneck - On the international permitting level, the London Protocol has a blanket ban on ocean geoengineering for anything except for research. There were good reasons for doing that, but it’s unclear who decides when that can change and the circumstances under which the ban is lifted. (Note: pHathom is not doing geoengineering; it’s doing water treatment on-site and releasing it back as ocean water) Open questions for the category/technology: - Can they come up with enough low-cost alkalinity sources, and get them in a way that doesn’t cause additional environmental damage or Co2 emissions?  - This approach will require pumping a lot of water. How much will that cost and how can the cost be driven down?  - Putting 100 plants’ worth of bicarbonate into the ocean is likely fine for ocean health relative to the climate benefit, but what is the point where the tradeoffs cross over? Some groups doing good work in this space:  [C]Worthy Carbon to Sea Initiative  University Research: UC Santa Barbara, University of Tasmania, GEOMAR, Dalhousie University, Scripps Join us for the next one in May! Details coming soon, and you can get updates by subscribing to the series page here: https://lnkd.in/g7DTGm2V

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Little scheduling hot tip for my fellow indie consultants and friends who might be juggling multiple calendars! When I started consulting on my own, it was mostly NBD, I did everything from my personal gmail account. Then, things picked up and I realized I needed a separate calendar and inbox for my different projects that didn't get swallowed up by spam and newsletters and personal reminders. AND THEN, I took on my work as interim president at Rewire, and things got even more complicated calendar-wise. I used Calendly for a while, but the free version is only good for one calendar and one kind of scheduling link, and here I was managing three calendars and desperate for more options. The idea of creating duplicate appointments across all three calendars made me want to walk into the sea, so I started doing some research. That's when I found Reclaim.ai. And no, this is not a paid post, however if they are looking for influencers I AM AVAILABLE. This tool has changed my calendaring life, and that means a lot coming from a double Gemini/Cap rising. Not only has it helped me sync all three calendars, it also has three different types of meetings you can choose from when you send a scheduling link. The free version for individuals and sole-proprietors like me is so much more functional. And that's your Monday hot tip ;) https://reclaim.ai/

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🌿 Spotlight on Climate Justice & Food Sovereignty! 🌍 Meet Dr. Alexa White, Ph.D., co-founder of the Aya Research Institute, who's revolutionizing our approach to environmental justice and food systems. 🔬 AYA Research Institute conducts cutting-edge environmental justice policy research 🌱 Focus on food sovereignty - everyone's right to culturally relevant, sustainable food 🌡️ Small-scale farming could be key to reducing agriculture's 33% contribution to greenhouse gas emissions Dr. White's advice for getting involved: 1. Check out La Via Campesina website 2. Get politically active, especially around policies like the US Farm Bill 3. Consider power dynamics in agriculture and food systems With the climate crisis intensifying, how can we support initiatives like AYA's in our own communities? Are you involved in any food sovereignty or environmental justice projects? View full article here -> https://lnkd.in/gDaBpRwT Climatebase, Abigail Bassett #FoodSovereignty #EnvironmentalJustice #ClimateAction #Sustainability

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🌏 📊 Erica Kangas is an engineering leader, voracious learner, and feminist builder who seeks out the biggest levers to move the world. 📊🌏 It's W6 / Q2 / 2024 and this week in our MGMT Boston up & coming operator series we’ve got Annie Erica, part of a small but mighty team as the Head of Engineering at hyper curated investment connection & fundraising guidance platform Scroobious. Erica joined Scroobious as their Head of Engineering to help lead the technical efforts of this very early stage team shaping up capital markets culture for underrepresented founders. Erica is responsible for the entirety of their technical infrastructure. She is working every day to build out their marketplace product, making sure Scroobious Founders are having a smooth experience so they can effectively onboard their pitches onto the marketplace and connect with investors. Erica continues to spend time answering tough questions about the business and communicating effectively to equip founders with the resources they need to be successful. Scroobious’ founder community grew 75% in 2023 and is made up of 63% female founders. ✍ Cataloging Skills & Connecting the Dots 🔄 From nonprofits to startups, Erica has always cataloged her experiences. She keeps references & resources on hand from prior experiences to keep memorable frameworks from the earliest days of her career. Every time she embarks on a meaty project, the first question she asks is “what are our goals”? Then, what are we looking to accomplish? By having something to ground herself in, she can begin to move forward. That work has paid off in building a portfolio of experiences and an archive of resources. At Scroobious, she wants to understand the different attributes of founders and successful pitches to effectively connect founders with angels. For example, investors look for coachability as an attribute & trait, so she has thought back to her nonprofit days when they measured grit and growth in students and volunteers. It’s obviously a bit different but there are always overlapping threads to pull on. Problems Not Yet Solved Erica offered up three unsolved problems that drive her work as an invitation to think about and join in tackling these issues. Because learning never ends and we have a lot more to do in these areas! 🤖 How do we build AI that won’t just repeat the mistakes and mirror the worst facets of our past? 🤝 How do we continue to develop the field of software engineering such that it is sustainable, equitable, and accessible? 🤲 How do we effectively combat exclusionary systems when many of our institutions no longer have the appetite or have their hands tied from doing so? If you’d like to learn more about Erica’s career, the full post is linked in the comments. Go ahead and sign up for the newsletter to see the operator learnings we bring you in the weeks ahead too, will ya? #bostontech #operators #engineering

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Prime Coalition has long taken a different tack to climate finance compared to its for-profit brethren. It makes the usual venture-style investments in startups through Azolla Ventures and also helps philanthropists direct their money to climate-related projects that it deems high impact. Trellis Climate follows the latter model with a focus on middle stages, where capital has grown scarce. #climatetech #climateVC #climatefinance

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Wonderful article about Emily Knight and the whole The Engine Accelerator team on the amazing work their doing changing the world with #ToughTech!

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📜 The Unexpected Journey of Walter Schramm and His Lost Fortune 📜 Escheatment can often feel like a complex process, but behind every unclaimed asset, there’s a deeply human story. NPR's Planet Money highlighted Walter Schramm’s saga of how his prudent long-term investment in Amazon became a nightmare for him and his family. 💡 A Dream and a Dilemma 💡 Walter, an entrepreneur, started selling Italian specialty products online in the late '90s. Facing fierce competition from an upstart called Amazon, instead of growing bitter, he invested in their stock, expecting long-term growth. 😲 The Shock of an Empty Account 😲 Walter wanted to avoid the temptation to sell early, so he decided not to log into his account. "If you believe in a company, you need to buy the stock and let it sit for 20 years. I mean, that's the philosophy of Warren Buffett. Go out and have a walk, enjoy nature, talk to your family, don't worry about the stock market." Unfortunately, Walter didn't know about escheatment. In 2015, after nearly two decades of patience, Walter finally logged into his E-Trade account only to find his investment gone. He reached out to E-Trade, who directed him to the Delaware Unclaimed Property Office. He learned that his stock had been liquidated in 2008 and the cash proceeds sent to Delaware. He was stunned -- he'd missed out on all of Amazon's stock appreciation since. ⚖️ Escheat: A Double-Edged Sword ⚖️ Escheatment, meant to protect unclaimed property, had reduced Walter’s stock to an $8,000 offer from the state—far below the fortune he'd own from his unliquidated shares. This system, designed to safeguard assets, can sometimes have unintended and life altering results. https://lnkd.in/eS97MywQ #Escheatment #UnclaimedProperty #Eisen #FinancialSecurity #HumanStories #PlanetMoney #WalterSchramm

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Startup founders, you don't have to do it alone! Apply now to join the Techstars Boston Accelerator and gain access to our extensive network! We are looking to select 12 high-growth startups to participate in our 13-week Techstars Boston accelerator program kicking off in September -- apply now or tag a founder below who you think might be a good fit!  https://lnkd.in/gbi3hAGi #startups #founders #entrepreneurs #boston 

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Fundraising decks are important but only within the context of a well-orchestrated fundraising process. A deck itself is unlikely to directly lead to a term sheet. Rather, it is important to understand how you want to use the deck (or any collateral for that matter) as part of your fundraise process. For example: - Is it to secure the first meeting with a VC? A teaser deck is important. But so is the email snippet and warm referral! - Is it part of a deeper-dive session about your business? Excellent. Is it a deeper dive on product or GTM? And, is the next step a track to a partnership meeting? - Is it a diligence deck? Excellent. Is it more about showcasing the financial plan and key levers? ... what is the ONE thing you want this deck to help you achieve? More tips on fundraising your early-stage round here: https://lnkd.in/gvWYaCwk #startups #venture #fundraising

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How do you use #generativeAI in your day-to-day work? Not necessarily the flashiest stuff, the more mundane too. Perhaps you don't use it at all? Story link in the comments. And, if you're not registered to join your peers and friends at #GreenFin24 next month in NYC, Advanced Rate ends this Friday. A bit of what we're excited for: 1) How asset owners are moving markets on #climate, with Kyung-Ah Park of Temasek and Andrew Siwo of the NEW YORK STATE COMMON RETIREMENT FUND 2) Putting cash deposits to work for sustainability, with Seventh Generation CFO Nimerta Sirichand, CFA and CIO Ashley Orgain 3) Turning up the tap on #climatefinance, with Bezos Earth Fund 4) Our first-ever Carbon Project Finance Forum (invite only) hosted by GreenBiz's Margaret Morales ... if you're a project financier or #carbon buyer, request here -> https://shorturl.at/xyNO7 5) Delivering solutions via the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, with Coalition for Green Capital's Eli Hopson, former senior advisor to the Fund Satyam Khanna and Fund recipient The Community Preservation Corporation's Sadie McKeown And much more! See you there. #ESG #sustainablefinance #sustainability

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Today, Two Chairs announces $72M of new funding to continue building a world where everyone has access to exceptional mental health care. Since late 2017, when Maveron led the Two Chairs Series A, the need for mental health services has grown considerably as our society has become lonelier and more isolated than ever. At the same time, our culture’s willingness to openly acknowledge these challenges is greater than ever. Sadly, the rapid growth of Two Chairs affirms the fact that our society is in desperate need of better mental health support. Two Chairs has built a business that believes clinical quality is the defining characteristic of success. Alex Katz has always emphasized the paramountcy of measurement-based clinical outcomes, which the team works tirelessly to achieve. In the process, Two Chairs has illustrated that embracing the ‘move fast and break things’ mentality doesn’t always work. Instead, Two Chairs opted for a different approach: they went slow to go fast. They built a proprietary algorithm that matches patients with the perfect therapist at the onset and hired a team of W2 clinicians oriented toward providing the highest quality care available. Even as the Two Chairs team has grown, their culture has remained small. This has enabled more intimate relationships within the team and between clients and clinicians. Reflecting on this milestone brings me back to the founding of Maveron and the values we hold dear. In 1998, my friend Howard Schultz and I founded Maveron to help entrepreneurs build companies that improve the lives of everyday people—their employees and their customers. There is perhaps no better example of this than Two Chairs. *** Thank you to TechCrunch's Marina Temkin, CFA for the great write-up. https://tcrn.ch/4aMt7yG

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We 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 we know how to listen well. But our assumptions are sabotaging us. This Sunday in a 2-hour virtual role-play exercise led by the amazing Jule Kim and Chris Do, we practiced summarizing conversations—sounds easier said than done. I was shocked to realize (over and over) how my brain processes feelings and attaches them to words, altering my perception of what people are saying! This exercise finally revealed the gap I've been missing in my communication: my unconscious assumptions about words and feelings—distorting the messages I hear. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗱: - I need to be more aware of the assumptions & emotions put on words in conversations. - I need to pay closer attention to the exact words people use for more effective comms. I'm committed to practicing this new awareness at home and work. Just last night, I started applying these insights while watching a movie and caught major clues in words I would have normally discarded, lol. A huge thank you to Jule, Chris, and my teammate Gledsley Müller for this experience! Team #QuietDisrupters 🤫 **Curious to know: How do you make sure your marketing messages are clearly understood without being distorted by assumptions? P.S. If anyone wants to join the next event in this series: https://lnkd.in/dRebNdJs #Communication #ActiveListening #PersonalGrowth #ProfessionalDevelopment #RolePlay The Futur™

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This San Franciscan has landed in the Big Apple for #NYTechWeek! Here’s why it was important to me to be out here this week and I view NYC as a sister city. ((scroll down for 2 events The Council is hosting today!)) 🏭🏥 Reminder: The Council Fund invests at Pre-seed in Software’s Third Act, the transformation of the essential economy. Our investments span healthcare and industrial sectors like manufacturing, logistics, construction. 🐂 I’m eternally bullish on NY & SF and hate how many pit the two cities against each other. The reality is that a lot of capital and talent flow back and forth between the cities. They need each other to thrive! 🗽🌁 Cities like NY & SF attract young and mid-career talent because of their population density, transient nature, beauty, and reputations as cities where someone new on the scene can make a name for themselves. For the areas we invest in, I’m *specifically* excited about NY because of: 🏗️ Closer proximity to industrial hubs which are scattered across the Midwest / Rust Belt 🏛️ Closer proximity to DC where a lot of regulation around VC, startups, healthcare, onshoring initiatives, and industrial sectors takes place 💰 Many of the large financial institutions that are backing hard tech focused funds and major healthcare initiatives are also headquartered here in NYC 🎯 We’ve got several startups here who are hitting it out of the park, like Dirac and Siena. This has further validated my belief in this ecosystem to support young companies! Today we are kicking off with 2 events on Day 1 of #NYTechWeek 👉 AI Demo Day: The Council, Next Wave NYC, Lynx Collective, Flybridge will host 8 founders and 200+ investors and founders for a pitch competition this evening! Luma: https://lnkd.in/gbdYiJMw 🔜 Can still join the waitlist! Small & Big VCs in Hard Tech: The Council joined General Catalyst, Lux Capital, Iron Prairie Ventures, AlleyCorp, House Of Ventures, Steel Atlas for 2 back to back panels on industrial innovation & collaboration across the capital stack Luma: https://lnkd.in/gj6D4-Au ⏰ Event has passed

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🌱 For pre-seed/seed founders 🌱 The early stage vc markets have changed drastically -- but many founders don't truly understand how or how much things have shifted until its too late or they are deep into the fundraising process already. This recent Allocate pod lifts the veil on the pre-seed/seed 2024 markets. SO MANY GEMS are packed 💎 into the first 20 min, I had to listen twice. Key takeaways from pre-seed VCs I'm a big fan of Jenny Fielding of Everywhere Ventures, Kirby Winfield at Ascend (PNW represent!) & Nate Williams. 💎 The market in one word: 'turbulent' 💎 Fundraising bi-furcation; 2X founder building in AI (rounds take weeks) vs All Others (rounds take up to 6 months). 💎 "Leading VCs" (ie. first check in) are putting in a TON of work - building conviction & then helping founders fill the round. 💎 Up to 5 rounds pre-A; need lower early valuations to enable step ups 💎 Pre-seed entry valuations have corrected to $5-8M 💎 Round sizes have increased at pre-seed & seed for extended runway Many more insights in the full pod here: https://lnkd.in/gYf-DMr6 #venturecapital #preseed

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Let's take a look at SurveyMonkey Growth Evolution over the last 8 years 👇 I talked to Bradley Belford (Director of Product), and Erica Weiss Tjader (ex-VP of Research and Design) on Growthmates about their approach to building growth and collaboration between teams at scale 🚀 What we've covered: 🔹 How back in the day Elena Verna’s influence was pivotal in shifting the focus towards deeper integration of monetization strategies within the product experience, testing and optimizing conversion and upgrade flows, moving beyond basic growth marketing tactics. 🔹 How transitioning to Product-led growth required Trial experiences and pricing optimizations. 🔹 The crucial roles of Design and Research in strategic decision-making 🔹 How SurveyMonkey developed its internal growth experimentation platform Finally, we talked about building strong relationships between Product and Design teams to enhance product development — emphasising a culture where "every team is a growth team" 💙 👉 Full conversation: — Apple: https://lnkd.in/et4VRsqG — Spotify: https://lnkd.in/eeYvEnkT — Youtube: https://lnkd.in/eyHcqMRD — — — Thanks Appcues for supporting this episode 🙌 #plg #growth #product #strategy

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In our series about building narratives that drive your venture-backed business forward, we dive into fundraising. Chris Laughlin, co-founder of 4th & King — is a pitching pro—an especially critical skill when it comes to fundraising. He knows exactly how to successfully communicate what you do and why it's important. In this clip, Chris shares how to open a pitch by ensuring you frame the story through the audience's lens. How do you do this? Lead them to water. 👇 🌟 Open with “this thing that happened” 🌟 This presents an opportunity 💡 🌟 If you get it right, it’s huge 🤯 🌟 Show them how you got it right 🙌

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#stressawarenessmonth Are you a founder facing burnout? Get some advice from fellow entrepreneurs Tina Tang of Bristles, Inc. and Dr. Sarah Glova of Reify Media to learn how to combat, and preferably, prevent founder burnout. Listen (and subscribe!) here: https://lnkd.in/drijZTjd #founders #startups #founderburnout #burnout #mentalhealth #founderstories #trianglenc #techstartups

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There's a lot of wisdom in Tim Lynn's recent interview on The Hard Part with Evan McCann, but one bit (https://lnkd.in/g-r2nZ5H) particularly resonated with me as he explained what Startup TNT is doing: "It's sort of this cycle back into building the community, which then builds the companies, which then pay taxes, which then feeds the communities. That cycle is really where it becomes useful," he said. "It's not just a simple customer relationship. It's an entire ecosystem play. So that's tricky." This feels similar to what we're doing at Taproot Publishing Inc. When you buy a membership or an ad, or when you sponsor a roundup or the new Taproot Edmonton Calendar, you get something in return, but you're also contributing to a more informed and connected Edmonton region. It's an entire ecosystem play, as Tim puts it. The Taproot Edmonton team's work helps the whole community work better. Paying attention instead of just extracting it is not the easiest path. But we're not interested in easy. We're interested in being useful. Many thanks to those who already support that work. If you don't yet but want to, I'll put a couple of links in the comments. Also, the finale of Investment Summit IX is on June 13 if you want to see Startup TNT's ecosystem-building in action. Here's our preview:

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Very impressed with the Wevo Energy story and I share those feelings. It is never easy facing all challenges and complexities. #Podcast #StartupJourney #SolarEnergy #Entrepreneurship #WEVO #SolarEdge #Acquisition

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