Nicole Etchart is Co-Founder and CEO of NESsT. NESsT invests in and provides strategic business support to social enterprises that create quality jobs for disadvantaged communities, while protecting the planet. Nicole leads the organization's strategy, growth and impact worldwide, including investing in a diverse portfolio of high-impact companies through its acceleration program and its first impact funds. Led the replication of NESsT in 12 emerging market countries, investing over $27 million to train 30,000 entrepreneurs and grow 230 social enterprises impacting 1,100,000 excluded and marginalized people. During the early years of NESsT, Nicole was awarded the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship and recognized as a Fundación Avina Fellow and a finalist for the Schwab Award for Social Entrepreneur of the Year. She has also received the Presidential Fellowship Award for "Fast Track" Public Leaders. She is the author of more than 20 publications on social entrepreneurship and impact investing. She is currently part of the AIDA Council and was previously part of the Executive Committee of the Aspen Network of Entrepreneurs for Development (ANDE).
Despite the growing interest of governments and private funders in addressing climate change, there is a significant knowledge gap on effective investment strategies; Specifically, little is known about the impact of conservation companies in the Amazon. These businesses - most of them agricultural - support local communities and adopt regenerative farming practices that keep the forest standing; however, due to limited access to finance and business support, they face growth challenges related to investment readiness, client diversification and financial management. NESsT addresses these issues by accelerating and funding small businesses, cooperatives, and associations that contribute to sustainable value chains in the Amazon, helping them scale up their business and amplify their impact. In addition, NESsT is engaged in research and relationship building with funders and policy makers to further promote the social, environmental and economic influence of these companies in climate change mitigation. To date, NESsT has mapped 750 companies and assessed and monitored more than 20 value chains in the Amazon. Through the NESsT Initiative for the Amazon, NESsT has invested in 48 companies, creating more than 6,000 jobs -of which more than 30% are for women- and benefiting more than 200 indigenous communities.
