Impact investing only works when economics and impact reinforce each other, a holy grail Mark Hays has been chasing through years of sustainable investing work.

Mark is Director of Sustainable and Impact Investing at Glenmede, where he works with families and institutions to align portfolios with measurable impact while meeting financial goals. His career spans Cambridge Associates, OMERS, Flat World Partners, and J.P. Morgan Asset Management, across both boutique and global platforms.

In this episode, Mark explains his own shift from exclusionary screens to disciplined portfolio construction, and why “economics before impact” became his guiding rule.

We talk about:

• The off-grid solar deal that defined impact investing for him
• Why ESG data failed when it wasn’t tied to a clear investment thesis
• How large firms evaluate sustainable investing through an alpha lens
• Using pilot programs to build trust and test impact strategies
• When active ownership beats divestment

This conversation is about making impact investable at scale.

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Additional Resources:
🔹 Mark Hays LinkedIn 
🔹 E-mail: mark.hays@glenmede.com
🔹 Glenmede Website 

🔹 2025 Market Outlook
🔹 As You Sow Website
🔹  See if your investments are sustainable with this free tool.

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SRI360 interviews mentioned:

🔹Andrew Behar: Ep 27

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Books mentioned:
🔹 “Speed & Scale: An Action Plan for Solving Our Climate Crisis Now,” John Doerr 
🔹 “The Key Man: The True Story of How the Global Elite Was Duped by a Capitalist Fairy Tale,” Simon Clark