Fresh takes on climate change: The power of Gen Z perspectives in tech and venture capital

When I started my first job in venture capital (VC) at 22 years old, I was the youngest investor on my team by a decade and their first Gen Z hire. I quickly grew used to being the youngest person in the room, but when you’re new to the corporate world (especially in finance as an analyst or associate), you’re often taught to hide your age and act older and wiser to appear more professional and be taken seriously. But what I realised quickly in my VC roles at General Atlantic and later Lerer Hippeau, was that my age and Gen Z insights were a huge advantage to the founders I was working with, especially those building for my generation.

This realisation empowered me to found Gen Z VCs, the largest community of Gen Z investors in the world with 25,000-plus members from 80 countries. Climate was the number one trend our community followed in 2022, and many aspiring investors I meet are looking to break into the space as dedicated climate or environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) investors.

Gen Z is among the generations most concerned with climate change. In fact, a Pew Research report found that 76% of US Gen Zers consider climate change to be one of their biggest concerns, and 37% say it is their top concern. [1] This is why it’s important to give young investors a platform and learn about their thoughts and ideas as 2030 draws closer. We have an eye on the up-and-coming trends because we are living them.

I recently asked ten Gen Z climate investors in the Gen Z VCs community about the biggest opportunities to watch. Their insights included, among others, harnessing modern technology for grid decarbonisation, nature-based carbon removal solutions, synthetic biology, and reducing carbon outputs through everyday activities.

To see real change, there needs to be movement, with multiple stakeholders committing to invest time, money and energy into a carbon-neutral economy. This includes businesses, the government, the investment community and ordinary people. There are climate tech companies helping businesses to deliver on sustainability goals and reduce their climate impact (think carbon accounting, certification, carbon capture technology, etc.), and others that help people reduce their carbon footprint (such as by shopping sustainably or offsetting emissions at checkout, and using electric vehicles and solar). Both are key parts of the conversation.

Fellow young investors who are passionate about accelerating the transition should focus on funding technical founders with in-depth climate industry experience that can solve the planet’s biggest problems. Find them, empower them with funding and mentorship, and help them to connect the dots and build with urgency.

As a native New Yorker, every time I walk past the climate clock in Union Square, I’m reminded of the critical time window we have to reach zero emissions before our global temperature rise exceeds 1.5 degrees Celsius –  and just how short that window is. [2] To expedite change, we need technological advances – and fast!