Management Team

Samuel Bernstein, PhD

Partner

Sam is a Partner at the Global Carbon Fund based in the Seattle, WA area.

Sam is a serial entrepreneur and innovator, with a thirty-year international career in the energy industry, bridging business strategies with technical innovation. Sam is focused on investments in the energy and alternative energy solutions. Over the course of his career, Sam has worked with major energy companies and start-ups, as well as in partnerships in the US, Canada, EU and Japan. He has been both investor and director in private equity companies. His experience includes working in a major gas and electric corporation as a strategic technology director. His main professional focus has been the strategic use of emerging technologies for energy utilities; advanced distributed generation and renewables. He has held senior positions in several companies and served on numerous Board of Directors and international advisory committees. Sam founded and sold four companies in the US and the UK in the energy utility field. He has provided independent consulting to the international energy industry and to venture capital firms including EDF, ENGIE (GDF-Suez), ENI, Gazprom, Osaka Gas, SEMPRA, Tokyo Gas, Union Gas. He was the Director, Planning and Appraisal at the Gas Research Institute in Chicago, USA. Sam has participated in a variety of committees of the International Gas Union (IGU) and chaired its committee on Distributed Power Generation (2000-2006). He also served on the IGU R&D Task Force (2006-2009).

Sam holds a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science degrees in Aerospace Engineering from Iowa State University and a doctorate degree in Aeronautics from the University of Washington. He authored more than 70 technical papers in a variety of journals and received three US Patents in energy technology innovations. He is a frequent speaker in international forums of the energy industry.

Theresa Carbonneau

Managing Partner

Theresa is an ICT executive, entrepreneur and investor based in Vancouver, Canada. After working in various roles for BT Plc in the UK and BC Tel (Telus) in Canada, she founded and was President and CEO of two technology companies: fSONA Communications Corporation, a wireless equipment manufacturing company, which developed optical technology into multiple commercial products for short-haul, gigabit-speed laser links; and Syntagma Network Services a software-as-services (SaaS) company offering IP services to small and medium enterprises in Canada.

In 2006, Theresa led an international consortium to achieve a national license for a wireless network in Iraq. Since then, Theresa has worked in private equity with US and EU based venture funds,  and has been mentor/advisor to numerous technology start-ups in North America and Europe. As an early investor in cryptocurrencies and blockchain initiatives, her main interest now is combining blockchain technology with sustainable alternative energy ventures.

Joseph Pallant

Partner

Joseph Pallant develops emissions reduction projects and helps smart climate policy succeed. He uses economic tools to keep greenhouse gasses out of the atmosphere and develop real, on-the-ground projects that benefit society and the environment. He is also working to foster collaboration and manifest the dream of the Paris Agreement by connecting the national carbon accounts of the world with Blockchain.

He has been active in the carbon market since 2004, providing project development expertise and strategic direction across private, public and NGO endeavours. He has developed first-of projects in forestry, fuel switching and transportation, co-founded the Carbon Cocktails society, and founded Blockchain for Climate Foundation, “Putting the Paris Agreement on the Blockchain.” A 2019 “Canada’s Clean50” award winner, Joseph’s work, insight and advocacy continue to shape the growth of Canada’s low-carbon economy.

Joseph holds an MBA degree from INSEEC, Paris, France, a post graduate diploma in Latin American Management from the McRae Institute of International Management (Capilano College) and a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and Environmental Studies from the University of Victoria. He is an avid networker and has been a featured speaker in academic and business environments. His contributions as a member of International Emissions Trading Association, and attendee at the Montreal, Copenhagen and Paris UN Climate conferences add both context and vision to his work for climate solutions.

Joseph loves to explore BC’s old-growth forests, cycle the Interior’s dry hills and paddle beautiful coastal inlets with his wife. A new father, the experience of living amidst the people and cultures of British Columbia, on Canada’s West Coast, inspires him with insight and enthusiasm for his work.

Mike Penner

Partner

Michael Penner is an accomplished international C-level executive and entrepreneur. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst with a 20-year history of working with growth companies in the digital infrastructure industry.

Mike has on-the-ground experience in expanding new markets in digicom, data analytics and the internet of things (IoT) industries in North America, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia. He has led the development of start-up telecom companies from business plan to product development though to commercialization and profitability. Combined with his global technology experience, Mike has a strong corporate finance and business development background. In the course of his career, he has worked with top tier investment banks, venture capital companies, development banks and other governmental agencies.

Maja Veljkovic

Partner

Building on a solid chemical engineering background, Maja has occupied senior management and leadership positions in both traditional and alternative energy sectors. During her career at Syncrude, and then as Director General of Canada’s National Research Council, Maja successfully guided a number of technology development and commercialization projects. Under her direction, the NRC’s Fuel Cell Institute developed key technologies and expanded its operations to include an internationally recognized fuel cell cluster in Vancouver.

Maja’s chief expertise lies in her ability to design effective collaboration arrangements among industry, universities and government; partnerships whose mutual interests can facilitate technology development and transfer. Maja is excited to be part of a team who believe these partnerships are essential if we want to invest in a clean energy future. By working together we can find sustainable solutions, based on reducing our carbon emissions, and help build the infrastructure for a new energy ecosystem.