Simon Schillebeeckx has three jobs. He’s an assistant professor of strategy and entrepreneurship at the Singapore Management University. He’s also the founder of Global Mangrove Trust, a mangrove protection non-profit, and the founder of Handprint, a B2B funding platform for impact projects. 

But because he’s triple hatting as an academic, conservationist, and an entrepreneur, he’s got some pretty interesting ideas on how regenerative finance could be our way out of the climate crisis. 

Here’s my favourite part: he’s got a moonshot idea of how a currency pegged to the value of nature could be much better than currencies created by central banks. It’s the last question - scroll to the end to hear it.

Read the highlights of the interview here: https://medium.com/@shihan.fang/think-positive-think-regeneration-chief-vision-officer-handprint-a5d815691573 

Note: There’s a part when he talks about quantifying impact based on trees planted is better than carbon credits. I asked him about how he ensures permanence - ensuring that the trees planted stay planted - after the interview. His reply is in writing on the Medium article.

Part 1 (01:02 - 41:10 )

• How Simon manages to juggle 3 jobs
• How Handprint helps companies integrate regenerative activity into their business model
• Every department must play ball: how siloed departments at Adidas missed the mark on the Common Goal campaign
• How digital MRV (measurement, reporting, verification) can cut down costs while improving integrity

Part 2 (41:10 - 1:03:00 )

• Does regenerative finance (ReFi) need to involve blockchain?
• How is sustainability different from regeneration?
• How regeneration responsibilities can be distributed among companies based on valuation
• Moonshot idea: a currency pegged to the value of nature

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