I Squared Capital names first Head of Sustainability

Infrastructure investment firm I Squared Capital has appointed Ben Harper as its first Head of Sustainability.

The Miami-based firm, with over US$40 billion of assets under management, says this appointment will further support its sustainability agenda, as a signatory to the UN Principle for Responsible Investment (PRI).

Harper was previously Managing Director and Head of ESG at Stonepeak for the last three and a half years. Before that, he spent 22 years at Zurich Insurance, where he led the development of the environmental, climate and corporate social responsibility strategy.

Climate and policy expert

Sadek Wahba, Chairman and Managing Partner at I Squared Capital, commented: “As we continue to strengthen our capabilities in climate risk mitigation across our portfolio assets, we are confident that Ben’s expertise and leadership will further enhance our overall efforts to create long-term value for our stakeholders.”

Over the course of his 25-year career in sustainability, Harper has also contributed to public policy and industry best practices. He was involved with the White House Interagency CCS Task Force, the EU’s Zero Emission Platform (ZEP), and several advisory boards, including the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Infrastructure Resilience Division and the PRI Infrastructure Advisory Committee.

He will be based in I Squared Capital’s Miami office.

I Squared Capital sustainability strategy

The infrastructure investor operates a portfolio of 89 companies in more than 70 countries with over 66,000 employees in sectors including utilities, energy, digital infrastructure, transport, environmental infrastructure such as wastewater processing, and social infrastructure.

On top of its PRI membership, I Squared is also a member of the Global Infrastructure Investor Association and the private equity-focused Initiative Climat International, and adheres to a Responsible Investing Policy.