“The measure of success isn’t about wealth but about the impact you’ve made – on the environment, yes, but also on your colleagues, their lives, and their families. That’s what truly matters. ”
— Ben Dear
Last week, my guest, Ben Dear, the founder and CEO of Osmosis Investment Management, started sharing his extraordinary journey – a 17-year journey of career pivots that ultimately led him to create one of the most innovative sustainable investment funds. We paused at the pivotal moment when he founded Osmosis, which now manages over $17 billion in assets.
Today, we’re continuing the Osmosis story and diving into the groundbreaking strategies behind its success.
Ben explains how his team developed a systematic, data-driven approach to investing, using their resource efficiency factor to measure carbon, water, and waste management as predictors of company returns. This method allows Osmosis to build portfolios that consistently outperform benchmarks while significantly reducing environmental footprints.
We also talk about ESG data – what’s broken, why it matters, and how Osmosis collects, cleans, and standardizes its own data to ensure accountability. Ben unpacks the nuances of portfolio construction, balancing risk and reward, and shares how they’ve managed to cater to global institutional clients while staying laser-focused on their mission: delivering returns that are both financial and environmental.
If you still doubt that sustainability can drive profitability – or that a boutique firm can achieve explosive growth while redefining public equity investing – this episode is a must-listen.
Let’s pick up where we left off!
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can watch the interview on YouTube here.
What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
- Connect with Ben: LinkedIn
- Osmosis website
SHOW NOTES:
[00:00] Introduction
[03:26] The meaning behind “Osmosis” & core investment philosophy
[14:55] Emerging markets fund launch
[22:20] Osmosis’ theory of change
[33:13] Data collection and fundraising journey
[49:28] Osmosis’ investment process
[56:18] Key Metrics: carbon, water, and waste
[01:11:27] Engaging companies to disclose environmental data
[01:26:14] Rapid fire questions
MORE BEN DEAR QUOTES FROM THE INTERVIEW:
“For decades, we’ve exported environmental risks to emerging markets, claiming we’ve reduced our own carbon, improved water management, and handled landfill better, all while offloading waste to regions like Africa and Asia. As an investor, you can’t have a true environmental solution without considering what’s happening in EM. ”
— Ben Dear
“Sustainability should be straightforward, simple, and objective if viewed through the right lens. It can be executed pragmatically without needing huge complexity in portfolio management or execution. ”
— Ben Dear
