Vail joined 12Tree in June of 2021 as a Sustainability Manager to support the company’s approach to sustainable social programming. As a rural development specialist focused on agricultural supply chain, Vail’s work focuses on creating and implanting the corporate strategies and on-farm policies that generate positive impact in the lives of workers, supplying farmers, and local communities. Prior to joining 12Tree, Vail gained valuable experience in the integration of smallholder farmers into commercial value chains while overseeing the Earthworm Foundation’s operations in Ghana, and as a climate and food security researcher with CIAT-CGIAR and Oxford University.  

An economist by training and with more than 20 years of experience, Oliver is an expert in sustainable land use investments. At 12Tree Oliver’s work is focused on developing sustainable agroforestry strategies with high social and environmental impact at large scale that connect to sustainable global supply chains. Before joining 12Tree, Oliver worked as Chief Investment Officer at carbon farming specialist NatureBank. Before that he worked in the private banking sector giving him extensive experience in risk analysis, product controlling and business development. 

Sam is a first-year student in the Masters of Environmental Management program at the Yale School of the Environment. With a background in Geology, he has investigated the legacy of historic mill dams in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, served in the Peace Corps in Madagascar, and developed a passion for visual storytelling along the way. He is interested in land use history, wetlands, and ecological restoration. Sam is a photographer, and believes that effective, visually engaging science communication is critical to achieve meaningful change.

Zaid serves as Nexamp’s Chairman and CEO, providing the vision and leadership to drive the company’s continued growth and innovation. Before joining the management team, Zaid oversaw Nexamp as a General Partner at venture firm Point Judith Capital. 

Previously, Zaid worked at Good Energies, where he was elected a Kauffman Fellow and focused on investments in next-generation energy efficiency technologies—including Nexamp, 3TIER, Emergence Bioenergy, Everpower, and Kalpan in India. Zaid joined Good Energies from Harbourvest Partners and was previously an investment banking analyst in Credit Suisse’s Technology Group. 

Zaid holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School and an MPA from the JFK School of Government at Harvard University. At Harvard University, Zaid was selected as a Zuckerman Fellow. He has an AB in International Relations and Economics, with honors and Phi Beta Kappa, from Brown University. Zaid has served as a judge and mentor for the New England Cleantech Open and has served as guest faculty member for the Pennsylvania Power Law Conference hosted by the Pennsylvania Bar Institute. Zaid currently serves on the boards of SEIA, NECEC and Vote Solar. 

Influencer, business leader, campaigner, Co-Author of “Net Positive: how courageous companies thrive by giving more than they take”, recently published October 2021.

Paul Polman works to accelerate action by business to tackle climate change and inequality. A leading proponent that business should be a force for good, Paul has been described by the Financial Times as “a standout CEO of the past decade”.

As CEO of Unilever (2009-2019), he demonstrated that a long-term, multi-stakeholder model goes hand-in-hand with excellent financial performance. Paul was a member of the UN Secretary General’s High-Level Panel which developed the Sustainable Development Goals and which he continues to champion, working with global organizations and across industry to advance the 2030 development agenda.

Paul’s new book, “Net Positive”, is a call to arms to courageous business leaders, setting out how to build net positive companies which profit by fixing the world’s problems rather than creating them. He Chairs IMAGINE, a social venture dedicated to systems change, and Saïd Business School, and he is Vice-Chair of the UN Global Compact as well as a B Team Leader. Paul is Honorary Chair of the International Chamber of Commerce, which he led for two years.