According to the UNHCR, global resettlement will increase to 1,473,156 people in 2022. In the current global context, with ongoing conflict preventing refugees from safely returning home, overburdened asylum systems that limit possibilities of local integration, and the effects of a global pandemic further impacting the precarious situation of many refugees- the need for increased resettlement opportunities is more urgent than ever.

Join international law firm DLA Piper in partnership with The Conduit for a special webinar exploring how investment strategies can better support displaced peoples and communities in newly settled regions.

Drawing on leading innovations in the field, the discussion will unite speakers from across the institutional investment community including corporates, asset owners, UN agencies and academics, to give practical insights on how financing innovative social projects can improve the life of refugees and host communities.

Panellists include:

• Cedrik d’Aviau de Ternay, Chief Investment Officer at Generali France
• Maha Keramane – Head of Social Impact Accelerator at BNP Paribas
• Shirin Pakfar – Head of Partnership Development, Private Partnerships and Philanthropy at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
• Liz John – Social Impact & Sustainability Manager for Sundial Brands at Unilever
• Mika Pyykko – Managing Director of the Finnish Brain Association and former Director of the Center for Impact Investing at the Ministry of Employment of Finland and developer of the KotoSIB
• Helen Dempster, Associate Director of the Center for Global Development
• Joywin Mathew, Partner, DLA Piper
• Bryony Widdup, Partner, DLA Piper (Moderator)

About DLA Piper
DLA Piper is a global law firm with lawyers located in more than 40 countries throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific, positioning us to help clients with their legal needs around the world. As a leading global law firm, DLA Piper has committed to working to protect the rights of displaced people, with a particular focus on supporting the most vulnerable groups, including women, children and LGBT+ people.

Speakers:

Helen Dempster – Associate Director, Centre for Global Development. Helen Dempster is the assistant director and senior associate for policy outreach for the Migration, Displacement, and Humanitarian Policy Program at the Center for Global Development. Prior to joining CGD, she worked for five years in research communications at the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) and the International Growth Centre (IGC). Dempster holds a MicroMasters in Data, Economics and Development Policy from MIT, a master’s in Africa and International Development from the University of Edinburgh, and undergraduate degrees in Law, Public Policy and International Relations from Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.

Mika Pyykkö – Managing Director of the Finnish Brain Association. Mika is a Master of Social Sciences from The University of Tampere. He is the Executive Director at the Finnish Brain association. Previously he has worked as Director of The Centre of Expertise for Impact Investing, which is a part of The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment of The Finnish Government. Prior to this, Mika led Sitra’s development operations in terms of impact investing for around five years. Thanks to the work of Mika and his team, there are are now several SIB and EIB projects underway or set for launch in Finland. Mika’s team also worked extensively on the economy of well-being and social outcomes contracting as a part of Finland’s EU Presidency during the second part of 2019.

Cédrik de Ternay – Chief Investment Officer at Generali France. Cédrik de Ternay is the Chief Investment Officer of Generali France. Since 2018, he worked within Generali France as the Head of investment policy, working previously at Generali Group in various international senior positions on investments. Before joining Generali Group, he worked within investment division in other insurances Group or advisory firm such as Allianz, Aviva and Deloitte. Cédrik is an actuary certified CERA by the French Institute of Actuaries (IAF). He is also certified FRM by GARP.

Shirin Pakfar – Head, Partnership Development, Private Partnerships and Philanthropy at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Shirin has served with the United Nations in various capacities for nearly 20 years. Over the last 4 years, she has been working with the UN Refugee Agency, focused on bringing private sector (corporates and foundations) and philanthropists experiences and resources to support displaced persons around the globe. Prior to this role, her key area of expertise has been in the area of conflict prevention and mediation between warring parties, based in locations such as Afghanistan, the Sudan, Libya and the West Bank and Gaza Strip. In addition, she has worked intensively on Africa in the realm of peacekeeping and political affairs, serving in various roles at the UN Secretariat in New York, including in the Executive Office of the Secretary-General. During brief pauses from her work with the United Nations, Shirin also worked with think tanks and in the private sector. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Economics from the University of California at Berkeley and a Master’s Degree in Development Economics from the London School of Economics. She is married, has two sons and currently resides in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Maha Keramane – Head of Positive Impact Business Accelerator at BNP Paribas. Maha joined BNP Paribas in 2006 as a Risk officer, after two brief international experiences – that enhanced her interest in development issues – Microfinance at the WorldBank in Washington and Export finance in Brazil, and a four-year auditing experience at Deloitte. As Head of Social Business & Microfinance for Europe from 2012, she created and developed a dedicated framework and support strategies for Social Enterprises (SE) within BNP Paribas, building and implementing specific methodologies to analyse SE (credit policy, Social impact measurement…) and developing new financial products and services such as Social Impact Bonds (SIB). After designing and structuring the very first French Social Impact Bond for Adie (job reintegration in rural areas), she structured various other SIBs in France, Belgium and the US. In 2020, Maha launched with the European Investment Fund a dedicated fund to invest in Impact Bonds in Europe and contribute to scale the product. Recently appointed Head of BNP Paribas Positive Impact Business Accelerator, Maha and her team continues to design and structure impact bonds on various social, environmental or development issues, as well as to coordinate the impact investing strategy and implementation within the Group.

Liz John – Social Impact & Sustainability Manager for Sundial Brands at Unilever. Liz John is a Social Impact & Sustainability Manager for Sundial Brands at Unilever. Before joining Unilever in June, she spent a year as a Sustainability Fellow with Williams-Sonoma, Inc., helping to lay the groundwork for their supplier diversity program. She recently completed her MBA at NYU Stern School of Business, specializing in Marketing and Sustainable Business & Innovation. Previously, Liz served as the New York City Executive Director at PowerMyLearning, a national education nonprofit that advances educational equity and accelerates students’ social-emotional learning and academic achievement. Liz also served as the Director of Education Programs for New York Cares, the city’s largest volunteer management organization. A former New York City Teaching Fellow, Liz taught sixth and eighth grade Math at a high-need public school in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. In addition to her MBA, Liz holds an MST in Secondary Education from Pace University and a BA from New York University. She also completed Columbia Business School’s Senior Leaders Program for Nonprofit Professionals, which was an integral piece of her career journey.

Joywin Mathew – Partner, DLA Piper. Joywin Mathew has broad capital markets, structured finance and debt finance experience, which spans over 14 years. Joywin routinely handles a wide range of public and private international debt transactions, and other complex debt transactions including project bonds, loan-on-loan transactions, hybrid finance and other innovative debt finance products. He has also advised on a number of sustainable finance transactions which were “new to market”. Joywin is a keen contributor to thought leadership on matters relating to sustainable finance, and represents DLA Piper on various forums related to ESG and sustainable finance.

Bryony Widdup – Partner, DLA Piper. Bryony Widdup has 15 years’ experience in the financial markets sector and has spent time working in-house at a major European bank as well as in private practice. Bryony has lived and worked in London and the Cayman Islands and advises on alternative credit, including structured finance, fund finance, tech-enabled finance and funding platforms.

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