Introduction

​My name is Lovey, and I’m a UW Environmental & Business alum. Ever since watching ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ in my high school geography class, I knew I wanted a career in sustainability. When I discovered EB program in my first year at Waterloo, it felt like the perfect way to combine my passion for sustainability with my natural aptitude in business. I switched into the program in my second year, and it’s one of the best decisions I’ve made—it’s played a huge role in getting me to where I am today.

What is your role?

Today, I work at Mercer within its Investments business, part of a large global professional services firm. I’m part of a specialist team focused on researching structural trends in sustainable investing, including climate and energy transition and nature‑based investments. My research contributes to shaping the firm’s investment views and, where relevant, gets built into investment products and advisory services for institutional investors around the world. Essentially, through my work I get to build the investment thesis for allocating capital towards climate and nature solutions!

How I got into this field (and why)

I started my career in risk consulting straight out of undergrad by applying to my company’s graduate trainee program. In that role, I worked with corporate clients to understand their enterprise risks and how to manage them, often through risk transfer solutions like insurance.
Over time, I realized that when it came to environmental risks, many of the insurance solutions were reactive rather than proactive. I wanted to do work that created more impact and actively supported solutions to climate change and sustainability. Through networking and building relationships across the firm, I was able to move into a team focused on sustainable finance consulting. Finding the right fit took a few years, but I tried to follow my curiosity and intuition along the way. That mindset eventually led me to my current role, which feels like a great match for my interests and skills.

Advice for students interested in sustainable finance

​Here are three pieces of advice I’d offer to students looking to break into this field:
1. Be curious and connect ideas across disciplines.
Sustainable finance is inherently multidisciplinary. You’ll need to understand how sustainability intersects with economics, finance, society, and politics. Being able to connect the dots is a huge asset.
2. Balance passion with pragmatism.
Passion for sustainability is what brings many of us into this field, but finance ultimately values practical decision‑making. There’s often a fiduciary duty to deliver strong risk‑adjusted returns on behalf of clients, while still aligning with their unique objectives. Understanding that balance is key.
3. Build strong finance fundamentals.
Sustainability knowledge is important, but so is understanding how the financial system works. The more comfortable you are with core finance concepts, the better equipped you’ll be to design creative and effective solutions within (or outside) the system. I would recommend taking more finance courses as electives and perhaps pursuing the CFA.

Making the most of co‑op

​I had a wide range of co‑op experiences, including roles at a non‑profit, a government agency, and a public institution. My main goal during co‑op wasn’t to find the “perfect” job; it was to build transferable skills. I focused on learning how to conduct myself professionally, work with people from different backgrounds and perspectives, and approach problems in a structured way.
Those skills turned out to be useful in every role I’ve had since. Co‑op also gave me the chance to figure out what kinds of work I enjoyed and just as importantly, what I didn’t. That clarity was incredibly helpful when it came time to job‑hunt after graduating.