A member of Invert’s Carbon Team, Mark is a sustainability-focused private equity and investment banking executive with nearly 20 years of experience in emerging markets across the energy transition, sustainable finance, and decarbonization sectors.
Carbon finance is an important tool in achieving net zero targets. By enabling investment in carbon-reduction technologies and nature-based projects, carbon finance directly supports net zero goals and opens new markets and opportunities for climate action.
Mark’s approach encompasses community engagement in addition to a demonstrated climate benefit. Prioritizing, understanding, and supporting the needs of stakeholders are at the crux of evaluating a potential project.
Mark also sees carbon finance as an instrument for change across all industries, including heavy emitters. This engagement is key to building understanding and breaking down barriers to make positive climate action accessible and desirable to all businesses.
Carbon Finance has emerged as an essential tool in achieving climate targets and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. While some argue that it is merely business and a way for large corporations to avoid taking direct action to reduce emissions, others like Mark Lawson, Head of Carbon Acquisition at Invert, understands that “carbon finance is not just about making profit. It’s about committing yourself to a purpose that can impact future generations over 30 years.” For him, carbon finance is the true intersection of purpose and profit.
He also advocates using it as an instrument for change across all industries, including heavy-emitters. Mark believes that vilifying such industries is not a sustainable solution. Instead, it is better to work with these industries to help them transition and continue their journey towards net zero. “By all means not working with such industries may mean no funding for an entire climate project. The alternative is continued degradation and deforestation at a very rapid rate.”
When effectively managed, carbon finance emerges as a powerful tool that can actively help mitigate climate change, reduce biodiversity loss, scale sustainable technologies, and generate employment opportunities that support communities.
