Mark Tercek is CEO of The Nature Conservancy. But he hasn't always been an environmentalist. In 2008, he left his job as a managing director at Goldman Sachs to lead the Conservancy. He joined me to talk about that transition, and about his controversial vision for a more inclusive environmental movement that brings together businesses, environmentalists, and citizens.
I think I could have talked with Mark Tercek for an hour, easy. I would have liked to hear more about how teaching his kids to appreciate the natural world inspired his own shift toward environmentalism; I know my kids have reinvigorated my own efforts to tread more lightly on our planet. And I would have loved to hear more of his somewhat comedic stories about the culture shock of moving from Wall Street to a hardcore green group (like the one about drinking bottled water at his first organization-wide meeting only to receive a number of reusable water containers as welcome gifts from colleagues - a subtle “that’s not how we roll here” message). For that matter, I would have loved to ask about some of his earlier transitions - like going from being an English major and then English teacher to being a banker. Alas, we only had half an hour.
So take a listen and if you’re left wanting more, check out these great profile pieces:
·
Bloomberg: Tree-Hitter Tercek Channels Goldman at Nature Conservancy
·
WSJ: Natural Causes
And if you’re interested in some of Nature Conservancy’s cutting edge efforts going on here in New England, here’s a bit about the fishing permit banks they’ve set up with
Gulf of Maine Research Institute:
·
Permit banking could help save fishery
