Simon Clarke

Managing Director, South Africa and Head of Energy and Climate Change

Simon is one of the Founding Directors of IBIS and has about 20 years of experience in the areas of sustainability and climate change. He has worked in over 20 countries in Africa, Europe and Asia. Simon primarily advises listed corporations as well as private equity firms and DFI's on sustainability and climate change. He has particular experience working in the Mining & Metals, Chemicals, Construction, Telecommunications, Finance, Oil & Gas and Manufacturing sectors. Simon's experience has included helping clients develop integrated corporate sustainability and climate change strategies focused on practical business outcomes. His climate change experience covers greenhouse gas reporting, resource efficiency, climate policy and physical climate change risk. His sustainability experience has focused on strategy, delivery of capacity building and training to all levels of management, sustainability management systems, sustainability reporting and assurance. Simon also supports Private Equity clients in developing and implementing ESG monitoring, reporting and assurance systems.

Simon completed a BSc. Hons Degree and a Masters in Environment and Development through the University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg. He is a trained ISO 14001 environmental auditor, a registered Professional Natural Scientist and holds an Advanced Certificate in Project Management. Prior to forming IBIS, Simon was a Partner and practice lead of the Sustainability and Climate Change practice at Environmental Resources Management (ERM) in South Africa, and prior to that was at PwC. Simon regularly publishes thought leadership articles on sustainability and climate change trends and was recently the climate change specialist and contributing author to a large study on the environmental and social impacts of shale gas in South Africa.

Teddy DeRoy

Director and Head of East Africa, Morocco and Europe

Teddy is one of the founding directors of IBIS and is Head of their East Africa, Morocco and European businesses and is based in Paris. Teddy has worked widely in Western Europe and in North and Sub-Saharan Africa. Teddy has carried out more than 1,000 ESG and EHS projects for large industrial facilities to SMEs. His project experience predominantly includes ES Due Diligence but also compliance auditing, management system (development, implementation and auditing) and capacity building / training. His sectoral experience includes oil & gas, mining, power, infrastructure, chemicals, manufacturing, agro-industry, real estate and financial institutions. He is highly familiar with Sustainability standards (IFC-PS, EPIII, UNPRI, VGGT, ISO 14k and OHSAS 18 k).

Teddy has worked in >20 African countries and was based in South Africa in 2007-2008, in the DRC from 2015-2016 and in Kenya from 2016 – 2020, before moving back to France in early 2021. Prior to joining IBIS, Teddy spent two years as the EHS & CSR Director of Perenco in DRC and prior to that as Partner at ERM France where he led the M&A, Compliance, Management System and Training Practices comprising a team of 25 staff. Teddy is a qualified Chemical Engineer (ESPCI – Paris) and holds a MSc in Environmental Sciences (Imperial College – London). Teddy was an accredited ISO 14k and OHSAS 18k (UKAS – 2011-2014) auditor.

Belinda Ridley

Director, Head of Social Performance

Belinda is a Director and Head of Social Performance at IBIS. She has about 20 years of experience in the environmental, social and sustainability management fields. She has particular focus in social performance management and social and land acquisition risk for clients operating, acquiring land and investing in Africa. Belinda is a specialist in the application of IFC Performance Standards and the Equator Principles; in particular IFC PS5: Land Acquisition and Involuntary Resettlement. Belinda is also leading the team of specialists developing IBIS service offering in Human Rights (including Gender and SGBV), Human Resources and Development Impact to Finance clients (PE, Impact Investors, DFIs, Private Banks, Asset Managers), directing teams developing bespoke ESG and Impact Management systems, and designing and delivering Impact Strategy and Measurement and Monitoring frameworks to help clients assess and report on the Development Impact of their investment portfolios to their stakeholders.

Belinda's specific expertise includes ESG and IMM Strategy and Management Systems; Environmental and Social Due Diligence and Social Risk Assessment; Social Performance Auditing and Monitoring; Social and Human Rights Risk Assessment; Community Relations and Stakeholder Engagement; Resettlement Action Planning and Review. Belinda primarily works with Private Equity and Impact Funds, DFI's, commercial banks and trade clients investing and operating in Africa across sectors including financial services, infrastructure, agriculture, forestry, property, power (renewables and conventional), chemicals, mining and oil & gas power (renewables and conventional), chemicals, mining and oil & gas. She has worked in over 25 countries in Southern, West and East Africa, Northern and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific.

Belinda holds a BA in Social Anthropology from Cambridge University and an MSc in Development Management from the London School of Economics and Political Science. She also holds a post-graduate certificate in Impact Measurement and Management from the UCT Graduate School of Business and recently completed the Foundation Programme in Private Equity hosted by SAVCA/GIBS Institute of Business Science.

Riz Mohammed

Group Finance Director

Riz Mohammed is the Group Finance Director of IBIS and is based in Johannesburg. She has 20 years of relevant experience of which she has spent the last 15 years working as a financial manager in the professional services sector. Prior to joining IBIS in 2017, Riz was responsible for the finance function for the South African, Mozambique, Kenya and Tanzanian offices of a large multi-national consulting firm. Before that, Riz spent 10 years at an insurance brokerage where she was responsible for day to day business operations. Riz is currently responsible for all aspects of the finance function at IBIS including accounting, business support, financial analysis and reporting, audit and tax. Riz holds a Bachelors of Commerce Degree in Accounting and is currently completing her Professional Level of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants qualification. Riz has undertaken various short courses in financial management, tax, BBBEE and IT.

Petrus Gildenhuys

Director, Head of Reporting and Assurance

Petrus is one of the founding directors of IBIS and is Head of their Reporting and Assurance businesses - a licensed assurance provider with AccountAbility (UK). He has over 25 years of experience in the environmental, health & safety and sustainability management fields, working in sectors such as mining, agriculture, utilities, oil and gas, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, financial services and government. He has worked in South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Botswana, UK, Germany, Brazil, Chile and the Antarctic. He primarily advises listed and other multinational clients on sustainability and integrated reporting as well as independent 3rd party assurance of those reports. Petrus also supports Private Equity and Impact Fund clients in developing and implementing ESG monitoring, reporting and assurance systems.

Petrus has BSc (Botany & Geography), BLarch (Ecological Design) and MBA (Strategy) degrees. He is a registered Professional Natural Scientist in the field of Environmental Science with the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP) and is also a registered Lead CSAP (Certified Sustainability Assurance Practitioner). He has completed over 300 advisory, assurance and compliance related consulting projects placing him amongst the most experienced sustainability assurance practitioners in Africa. He has also lectured on several sustainability related topics at the CEM (Centre for Environmental Management) at the North West University as well as Wits University. Prior to the founding of IBIS, Petrus established a boutique sustainability reporting and assurance consultancy that was later amalgamated into IBIS. Before that Petrus led the sustainability practice at PWC in South Africa for nearly 10 years.

Oliver Warner

Managing Director, Asia

Oliver is the Managing Director of IBIS Asia, based in Singapore. Oliver has been advising Financial Institutions on sustainable finance and ESG for about the last 20 years in Asia, Africa, Europe and South America, with the last 12 years based in Singapore. Oliver was previously Sustainable Finance Manager at Standard Chartered Bank focussed on emerging markets where he reviewed and advised on transactions to meet the requirements of international sustainability standards, such as the Equator Principles and the IFC standards, as well as internal Environmental & Social policy, guidance and risk screening tools. From 2014 to 2018 Oliver led the Sustainable Finance practice across Asia Pacific for a global management consultancy.

Oliver brings a strong understanding of the practical and pragmatic application of international E&S standards, including capacity building and training, development and implementing E&S management systems, E&s;S due diligence and assisting project/investees in navigating, understanding and meeting financiers' E&S expectations. Uniquely, he has substantial first-hand experience in over 20 countries in Asia and in a range of sectors. including agribusiness, chemicals, food & beverage, infrastructure, manufacturing, mining (and metals processing), oil & gas (upstream, midstream & downstream), pharmaceuticals, power (thermal, renewables & transmission) and ICT.

Oliver has authored / co-authored a number of publications on sustainable finance commissioned by financial institutions, including Reporting Requirements for Environmental & Social Due Diligence for the Equator Principles Association. Oliver is a Chartered Environmental Professional, a full Member of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA), a Registered Principal Environmental Auditor in the UK and a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society in London. Oliver holds a degree in Environmental Science from the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom.

Alan Fowler

Director, South East Asia

Alan is a Director with over 30 years' experience in the sustainability consultancy industry, specialising in environmental and social due diligence (ESDD), development and implementation of environmental and social management systems (ESMS), and monitoring of projects against international standards adopted by financial institutions, such as the Equator Principles, the IFC Performance Standards and the Asian Development Bank's Environmental and Social Safeguards. In recent years he has focused more on supporting private equity clients with ESG due diligence and the implementation of post-investment value-creation programmes, and has worked with banks and their clients on sustainability-linked loans and derivatives.

He has worked in a diverse range of industry sectors, including power (renewables and thermal), oil and gas (onshore & offshore, upstream, midstream, and downstream), manufacturing, agribusiness, food and beverage, technology and telecommunications, and real estate. He has worked on projects throughout the world including 14 countries in Asia, seven in Africa, four in the Middle East, and 23 in Europe. Alan has spent extended periods on secondment to major infrastructure projects and clients in the oil & gas and power sectors in the UK, Russia, Azerbaijan, Nigeria, and Brunei, during which he developed expertise in pragmatic and cost-effective approaches to meeting complex requirements.

Alan has been based in Singapore since 2015, and spent the last 15 years as a Partner in two global environmental consultancies, where he managed offices in the UK and Russia and led teams focusing on due diligence and sustainable finance in Asia. He holds an MA in Geography from the University of Oxford and an MSc in Environmental Technology from Imperial College, London. He is a Chartered Environmental Professional, a full Member of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA), a Registered Principal Environmental Auditor in the UK and a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

Gretchen Blake

Associate Director and Head of Gender and Job Quality

Gretchen is an Associate Director at IBIS. She has more than 30 years' experience in Human Capital with expertise in human resources management, job quality, gender inclusion and diversity, and complex labour relations and dispute resolution.

Her career has spanned HR consulting to large and medium sized public and private enterprises as well as more recently serving over a decade as the Chief People Officer and executive team member of a large Private Equity invested forestry and manufacturing concern (MTO Forestry Group). Gretchen has established herself as a go-to expert in the Africa context, recognized by DFI's and Private Equity funds for her pragmatic, solutions orientated approach.

Prior to Gretchen's role as HR executive, she was actively involved in providing specialist consulting to a variety of Clients in her position as Director and Principal Consultant for ODA (Organisation Development Africa). Key career highlights included strategic consulting for the Mvelepanda Group, as well as participating in the working groups providing advice to the South African Labour Ministry in the early 1990's in the areas of Transformation and Employment Equity.

Gretchen has focused extensively on gender transformation in different sectors; championing the implementation of mechanisms to attract, retain and develop women in the workplace. She is a qualified mediator with experience across multiple sectors including agriculture, transport, construction, manufacturing and printing.

Mike Everett

Director, South Africa

Mike Everett is a Director of IBIS with over 30 years of experience in the sustainability consultancy industry, specialising in environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA), environmental and social due diligence (ESDD), development and implementation of environmental and social management systems (ESMS), and monitoring of projects against international standards adopted by financial institutions, such as the Equator Principles, the IFC Performance Standards and the African Development Bank's Environmental and Social Safeguards. Over the last several years Mike has been based both in Kenya and South Africa, where he focused primarily on supporting clients with ESG due diligence, long term environmental and social monitoring of large infrastructure development projects in Africa, and the implementation of post-investment value-creation programmes.

Mike has worked in a diverse range of industry sectors, including the financial sector, power (all renewables and thermal), mining, manufacturing, agribusiness, and food and beverage. He has worked on projects primarily throughout western, eastern, and southern Africa, and has been based and has worked out of Namibia, South Africa and Kenya.

Mike ran his own consultancy business in Namibia before joining and later becoming Partner in a global environmental consultancy, where he managed offices in South Africa and East Africa (Kenya and Tanzania) and led teams focusing on ESIA, due diligence and sustainable finance in Africa. Mike holds an MSc in Hydrology and Soil Science from the University of Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa. He is a Lead Auditor and Lead Expert registered with the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) in Kenya and is registered in sustainable finance with the Kenyan Banking Association (KBA).

Dr Ahmed Zedan

Managing Director, Egypt

Ahmed Zedan is the Managing Director of IBIS' Egypt office, and is based in Cairo. He has over 15 years of experience and over the past 5 years he has been the Managing Director of ENVI-SAGE Consulting, a company founded by him in 2017. Prior to that he worked at AMEC Foster Wheeler, ENI and WorleyParsons and was the ESMS Country Officer for Bank Audi in Egypt.

He has primarily focused on supporting clients with E&S due diligence, E&S management systems (FI's and operational assets), E&S monitoring/ lender advisory support and ESIAs. He is also experienced in completing soil, surface water and groundwater investigations and fully conversant with both local and international lenders' environmental and social standards. Ahmed has worked across a diverse range of industry sectors, including renewable energy, infrastructure, transport, manufacturing, financial sector, amongst others and has successfully led over 50 E&S projects in Egypt and abroad.

Ahmed holds a PhD in Biodiversity Management from Universidad Internacional de Andalucia in Spain, an MSc in Species Conservation from Cordoba University and Universidad Internacional de Andalucia in Spain and a BSc Ecology degree from Concodia University in Canada.

Takalani Gangazhe

Associate Director, Energy and Climate Change

Takalani Gangazhe is an Associate Director at IBIS Consulting Johannesburg, specialising in Resource Efficiency and Carbon Management. He has over 19 years of work experience and is a registered professional engineer (Chemical) with an MBA. Additionally, he holds certifications as a Certified Energy Manager (CEM) and Certified Water Efficiency Professional (CWEP).

Takalani primarily advises corporate and private equity clients on developing and implementing energy and carbon management strategies. He conducts on-site energy assessments to help clients identify and quantify energy and carbon reduction opportunities, followed by the development of an implementation program. Takalani is skilled at collaborating with senior leaders of IBIS's clients to present the business case for decarbonisation.

Throughout his career, Takalani has worked in various sectors, including Mining & Metals, Chemicals, Construction, Telecommunications, Finance, Oil & Gas, and Manufacturing. He also has extensive experience in GHG emissions reporting, including reviewing South Africa's National GHG Inventory and CDP reporting for multiple industry types.

Takalani holds both a BSc and MSc in Chemical Engineering from the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) and the University of Cape Town (UCT), respectively. He obtained an MBA from the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) in 2016. Prior to joining IBIS, he led the rollout and implementation of De Beers' energy and carbon management strategy at all their operations. Before that, Takalani worked at Anglo American, where he provided energy management and climate change consultancy services to all their business units. He has completed the Certified Measurement and Verification Professional (CMVP) and Renewable Energy Professional (REP) courses.

Meryem Lakhssassi

Associate Director, Morocco

Meryem is an Associate Director and is the Manager for IBIS' Moroccan office. Meryem has 14 years' experience in Environment, Social and Governance (ESG), having worked widely in Northern Africa, Sub Saharan Africa, Europe and the Americas. She is an engineer by background with a Masters degree in Urban Systems Engineering from UTC France. Her sectoral experience is largely focused on Renewable Energies (solar and hydro power plants), Infrastructure and Health as well as Agriculture, Education, Manufacturing, Cement and FMCG.

Prior to joining IBIS, Meryem was the E&S Manager within large renewable energy developers and financing platforms and was involved in undertaking and coordinating ESDD, ESIAs, RAPs, BAPs, SEP and ESMSs to address lenders and investors requirements (AfDB, EIB, WB, KfW, etc.). Meryem brings a strong understanding of Moroccan E&S legislation and is thoroughly familiar with International standards including the IFC Performance Standards and the World Bank Group EHS and Industry Sector Guidelines. She also has a thorough understanding of E&S challenges of renewable energy projects and has been involved in Green Climate Fund (GCF) accreditation, Green Bond Certification and Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) processes for several renewable energy projects.

Meryem has dual citizenship having both French and Moroccan nationalities and speaks fluent Arabic, French, English and Spanish.

Sarah Whitaker

Associate Director and Head of Impact

Sarah leads the Impact Practice at IBIS Consulting and is a Development Impact expert in Africa, Europe, Asia and the USA with over 12 years' experience.

Sarah has delivered and led multiple projects across the Impact spectrum, including Impact Strategy, Management and Measurement Frameworks, Monitoring and Evaluation, Management & Measurement System Verification, and Impact Due Diligence.

Sarah has carried out a number of high-profile Social Impact assessments, including leading a team to measure and report on the impact of a large South African SoE over the last five years. Sarah has supported a number of clients in articulating their impact objectives and embedding these into investment processes. This has entailed close engagement with client teams, and also with their investors (including a range of DFIs) to match organizational capacity and strategy with investor priorities.

Sarah is a member of the Steering Committee which developed the IRIS + metrics with GIIN and she regularly participates in a range of teaching fora and Thought Leadership events.

Sarah holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, French and Politics from the University of Cape Town, and an MSc in Comparative and International Education from Oxford University. She also completed an intensive finance course (FM250) at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and an Impact Investing course at the Said Business School at Oxford University.

Dr Angela Mwenda

Associate Director, East Africa

Angela is an Associate Director and Manager of IBIS East Africa. She has about 21 years of professional working experience and has worked widely in Sub-Saharan Africa (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Malawi, Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Liberia and Chad). Her key areas of expertise include ESIA, E&S due diligence, Resettlement Action Plans (RAPs), E&S management systems (ESMS), E&S audits/ monitoring and capacity building and training. Her sectoral experience is wide and includes infrastructure projects (roads, railways, airports, water supply and sanitation), manufacturing, power (renewables and thermal), electricity transmission and last mile connectivity, oil & gas (downstream, pipelines, terminals), retail, agroforestry and agriculture (plantation). Angela has also participated in sustainability-related and climate finance assignments, which included green growth and climate change adaptation/ mitigation projects.

Angela is currently the Office Manager of the IBIS East Africa office, which includes managing a team of ~10 Consultants and numerous assignments carried out within Sub-Saharan Africa. She is an Environmental Scientist by background with a PhD in Environmental Management from Wageningen University (WUR) in the Netherlands. Angela is registered with Kenya's National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), Environment Institute of Kenya (EIK) and the Association of Sustainability Practitioners, Kenya (ASPK).

Angela is very proud of having developed numerous investment-ready proposals and implemented projects for Private Equity (PE) firms and DFIs such as the African Development Bank (AfDB), World Bank (WB), International Finance Corporation (IFC), Global Environment Facility (GEF), Green Climate Fund (GCF), French Development Agency (AFD), Adaptation Fund (AF), European Union (EU), Danish Development Agency (DANIDA), Swedfund, CDC, FMO and PROPARCO.

Stuart Mackenzie

Associate Director, North Asia

Stuart is an Associate Director and the North Asia Manager, based in Hong Kong. He is also the lead on Climate Change services in Asia. Stuart has been working in sustainability for over 15 years in Asia and the UK and has practical experience delivering Sustainable Finance, ESG and ESIA services across various sectors. Stuart has an excellent practical working understanding of international environmental and social (E&S) risk frameworks and standards used by banks, private equity and other institutional investors to assess or benchmark projects and investments from an E&S perspective

His work includes supporting investors/ lenders and sponsors alike to evaluate the alignment of projects and operations against E&S risk frameworks, undertaking E&S due diligence, and assisting projects/investees in navigating, understanding and meeting financiers' E&S expectations. He is fully conversant with the use and application of international environmental and social standards such as the IFC Performance Standards, World Bank Group EHS Guidelines, ADB Safeguard Policy Statement, Equator Principles, OECD Common Approaches etc. He also has working knowledge of emerging E&S trends including climate change risk (and the use of the TCFD framework), human rights impact assessments.

Notably, Stuart has advised on some of the largest transactions in Asia under the new Equator Principles 4 framework including the financing of the Hong Kong International Airport third runway (HK$ 35 billion) and the financing of the Hong Kong Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FRSU) Project. Stuart has also acted as the lenders' environmental and social advisor for some of the earliest offshore wind projects to reach financial close in the region, with a particular focus on Taiwan. Stuart is also a Chartered Waste Manager (MCIWM).

Kim Haycock

Associate Director, South Africa

Kim is an Associate Director at IBIS with over 20 years of experience in environmental, health & safety, and sustainability management. Having worked in various regions including Africa, the United States, and Europe, Kim possesses a unique understanding of regulatory compliance, management systems development, E&S due diligence, E&S impact assessment, and E&S monitoring and reporting.

With a portfolio of over 250 E&S projects across diverse sectors such as renewable energy, infrastructure, agriculture, conservation, food & beverage, mining, manufacturing, healthcare, education, pharmaceuticals and more, Kim specializes in delivering services to financial clients in line with international best practices standards such as the IFC PS and the Equator Principles. She is also known for leading large, complex, multidisciplinary projects across sub-Saharan Africa with a proven track record of success.

Kim holds a BSc in Marine Ecology and Geographical Science from the University of Cape Town and a BSc Honours in Environmental Law and Environmental Management from the University of the Witwatersrand.

Mike Valentine

Associate Director and Head of Occupational, Health and Safety

Mike is an Associate Director, with 30 years of experience in environmental and health & safety management. His extensive expertise includes regulatory compliance consultancy, environmental and social due diligence, occupational hygiene, chemical safety management and forensic chemistry. Mike has conducted and led several projects to international standards across a wide range of sectors, including agriculture, food and beverage, forestry, manufacturing, transportation, power generation, waste management, chemical and pharma, security, oil and gas, and mining sectors, including at base metal refineries and smelters. He has managed and/or performed over 500 EHS due diligence and compliance audits.

In addition to his environmental and health & safety management expertise, Mike is an occupational health and safety specialist. He has conducted a variety of different OHS assessments, including behavioural safety assessments, safety diagnostic and co-design assignments, occupational health and hygiene reviews, OHS benchmarking, and incident investigations.

Mike has extensive consulting experience across the African continent, having completed project work in around 20 African countries. He holds a Master of Science degree and is a Graduate Member of the South African Institute of Occupational Safety & Health (Saiosh), as well as a Registered Occupational Hygienist with the Southern African Institute of Occupational Hygienists (SAIOH).