Hi! I’m Zehan! I’m from Calgary and along with Ivey I am studying Politics-Philosophy-Economics (PPE). Choosing PPE with Ivey came from my desire to understand the biggest issues in society - governance, marginalization, environmental sustainability - and I strive to know how corporations are solving or creating these issues. 2024 is a super exciting year of new regulations, startups, and technological innovations, and I love watching the world of sustainability make strides. Other things I love are soccer, bouldering, and reading, and I want to make sure the people of the future get to enjoy all the world has to offer!

What is your personal definition of sustainability? 

I believe sustainability is individuals and corporations incorporating the wellbeing of others and the world at large into their day-to-day. If we rely on world-saving startups or regulatory guardrails to further ESG, the damage done by current systems will be insurmountable. Rather, people and corporations should aim to reduce emissions and empower those who are marginalized. Parties shouldn’t act only when forced to—we must demonstrate how everyone benefits from sustainability. Basic strategy shows that half-hearted green initiatives take away from core operations, but a well-aligned environmental plan leverages assets and compliments strategy to better the world while growing.

What role do you see sustainability playing in your professional career?

My goal is to work in the intersection of finance and sustainability. My research experiences have shown me the increasing needs of companies to establish pragmatic goals, fund green transitions, and quickly react to evolving regulations. It has been a long time coming, but 2024 has been a year of rapid development in environmental transparency regulation. New disclosures for 2025 have been set in Canada, USA, and Europe; not only will corporations need to transition towards sustainable practices, but they will need to learn to communicate them consistently and transparently. I hope my work will enable companies to pursue such initiatives.  

I want to work in the cleantech investing space - cleantech VC/PE or public/private market equities investing. The cleantech space has a huge appetite for businesses that aid in reducing emissions, but so many startups struggle to commercialize their innovations and prove their concepts. I believe in huge shifts in manufacturing materials (moving away from cement/concrete, plastics) and better emissions tracking technology. These spaces tend to struggle with expansion and industry buy-in, so I want to ensure they have sufficient resources and recognition to innovate, and that society’s biggest companies and players can easily change positively.

What sustainability projects have you been engaged in?

I currently work 2 research assistant roles for sustainability professors at Ivey. With Dr. Wren Montgomery, I follow greenwashing. I track emerging stories and studies in greenwashing - from Ivey’s involvement in Lululemon’s lawsuit to regenerative agriculture in Spain, I strive to decouple genuine sustainability efforts from litter. My research has shown me the internal struggles of greenwashing - insufficient education, misaligned goals, and complacency complicate environmental sustainability. One issue is loose carbon accounting regulations causing a lack of universal standards. 2024 has been a year of leaps in regulations, and while preparing Dr. Montgomery to speak on a carbon accounting panel, I am currently authoring my own paper on the future of disclosures. The hope is that it will be published with Ivey, and that the community will be more aware of the challenges but also the progress in carbon accounting.  

With Dr. Nouri Najjar I am supporting his research in environmental economics and the economics of the green transition. I am sourcing air pollution data in the manufacturing industry and assessing the various methodologies for determining emissions. Through this research I am exploring the technical side of sustainability and being exposed to sustainable innovations in manufacturing and emissions tracking.

Please list any sustainability-related interests you want to explore during the certificate. 

Interests in impact investing - VC, PE, sustainable equity, green financing. Cleantech interest areas - energy, infrastructure, real estate, manufacturing/materials, decarbonisation.