Michelle de Cordova

Michelle has played a prominent role in Canadian responsible investment for over ten years and has more than twenty years’ experience in sustainability. As a Principal at ESG Global Advisors, she works to bridge the gap between companies and investors on environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) factors: assisting companies and boards of directors to develop ESG strategies that generate long-term value and respond to emerging capital markets expectations, and assisting investors to integrate ESG to their investment processes.

Prior to joining ESG Global in 2019, for eight years she was Director of Corporate Engagement at NEI Investments, leading the firm’s well-regarded program of dialogue with portfolio companies, engaged proxy voting, and public policy work on corporate regulations and standards. Before moving to Canada, she worked for ten years as a staff member and consultant for environment and social development non-profits in Europe, Asia, and Africa, including Oxfam and WWF, and earlier she served for six years in the U.K. Diplomatic Service. She holds a Master of Science degree in the management of integrated conservation and social development.

Michelle is Vice-Chair of the Canadian Coalition for Good Governance Environmental and Social Committee and has played a leading role in numerous industry-leading ESG collaborations at the Canadian Responsible Investment Association, the U.S. Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility, and globally through the Principles for Responsible Investment and the Investor Alliance for Human Rights. She is also a member of the British Columbia Securities Commission's Corporate Finance Stakeholder Forum advisory group. In 2020, Michelle received a Clean50 award for her leadership in advancing sustainability and clean capitalism in Canada.