Get to Know Clean Yield Directors Kofi Kodua and Liz Levy

With their extensive backgrounds in sustainable investing, Kofi Kodua and Liz Levy join the leadership team at Clean Yield poised to use their expertise and passion to drive positive environmental and social change.

As directors of investment research and portfolio managers, Kofi and Liz help craft portfolios that adhere to our rigorous investment discipline while meeting our clients’ deeply held values. At a time when more people are looking to Clean Yield for expert guidance, we are thrilled to welcome Kofi and Liz to our expanding team of dedicated asset managers. 

Their work with Clean Yield includes setting strategic investment directions, managing equity strategy models, conducting fundamental analysis on individual stocks, and guiding the firm’s social and environmental screening processes, proxy voting, and shareholder advocacy. Joining Clean Yield partners and portfolio managers Dorigen, Elizabeth, and Eric on the leadership team, Kofi and Liz will also contribute to shaping the organization’s overall direction. 

We asked Kofi and Liz to share what brought them our way, what excites them about joining our team, and their biggest hopes for the future of impact investing.

A Passion for Responsible Investing

Before joining Clean Yield, Kofi spent more than 15 years in investment research, portfolio management, and ESG investing. He previously managed equity funds focused on sustainable themes at Allianz Global Investors and helped shape the firm’s Global Thematic Equity platform. He says he is particularly excited about joining Clean Yield because of its longstanding commitment to sustainable investing and its innovative approach to integrating environmental and social factors into investment strategies. 

“Clean Yield’s reputation for ethical stewardship and its dedication to generating both financial returns and positive societal impact align perfectly with my personal values and leadership vision,” says Kofi. “I look forward to contributing to a team that shares my passion for making meaningful contributions to the world through responsible investing practices.”

Liz has spent her entire career in sustainable investing. Over the past 12 years, she has held several roles at Trillium Asset Management, most recently as head of ESG strategy and lead portfolio manager for the firm’s flagship equity strategy. 

“I’ve spent lots of time thinking about how companies interact with their environment and communities, and how investors can influence those interactions,” says Liz. “As a portfolio manager, I bring that consideration to stock selection, and my time spent as a social and environmental researcher informs my decisions.”

Liz’s excitement about joining the team is spurred by both Clean Yield’s commitment to its clients and its employees. She says the company’s focus on clients and unwavering commitment to aligning their portfolios with their values is unique. She also found Clean Yield’s commitment to fostering a consensus-based work environment refreshing, and notes that team members speak to and about one another respectfully and warmly — an indication of how the company lives its values.  

A More Sustainable Future

The onboarding of Kofi and Liz comes amid other additions to the Clean Yield team — we recently brought on Jenny Ly, Operations and Reconciliation Manager, to support our impact investing program. This exciting growth reflects Clean Yield’s steadfast commitment to remain at the forefront of sustainable investing, build a more diverse team, and strengthen our capacity to serve both new and existing clients. 

As Kofi and Liz step into their new positions, they are also looking to the future of Clean Yield and sustainable asset management more broadly. Kofi says his biggest hope for impact investing is that it will become the norm in investment practices globally rather than the exception.

“I envision a future where every investment decision considers not only financial returns but also the broader impact on society and the environment,” says Kofi. “By mainstreaming impact investing, we can drive significant positive change and create a more sustainable future for generations to come.”

For her part, Liz says she hopes investors generally will gain clarity so that they understand what type of impact their investment will have. That hope informs her role as a member of the board of directors of US SIF, the Social Investment Forum, as well. 

“The term impact investing means many different things to different people,” she says. “What I really appreciate about Clean Yield’s approach is the direct effect of our impact investments on the communities we invest in, and the way we leverage our voice in the public equity markets through our clear proxy voting policies and shareholder advocacy.”