Institute at Brown for Environment and Society
Date
May 19, 2026
Undergrads from ENVS, Econ, Applied Math secure top finish in global impact investing competition
Supported by IBES faculty and alumni mentors, a team of Brown undergraduates advanced to the finals of the Turner MIINT Competition and placed third overall against dozens of graduate teams from around the world.
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This spring, a team of Brown undergraduates traveled to Philadelphia to compete in the Turner MIINT Competition, a nationally recognized forum that challenges students to source, evaluate, and pitch early-stage impact investments.
Hosted at UPenn’s Wharton School of Business, the competition brings together teams—typically composed of MBA and graduate students—tasked with identifying ventures capable of delivering both financial returns and measurable environmental or social impact. Brown’s participation stands out as an unprecedented instance of undergraduate entry.
About the pitch
The team pitched Kai Pono, a curb-level stormwater filtration device designed to improve water quality and climate resilience. After a year-long process that included sourcing startups, refining investment models with industry mentors, and working closely with Kai Pono’s founders on technology and commercialization strategy, the team entered the competition with a thesis shaped by one of the defining challenges of the energy transition: how to expand and modernize infrastructure as demand for clean energy accelerates.
Teammates Anum Azhar ’27, Abby Berman ’27, Takumi Fujiwara ’27, Gus Konigsmark ’26, Roman Novy-Marx ’27 soon advanced to the finals and placed third overall among more than 70 MBA-led teams from around the world. Their success highlights both the growing strength of Brown’s sustainable finance programming and the ability of undergraduate students to compete at the highest levels of impact investing.
Our successful MIINT team is another example of the Brown difference: exceptional undergraduates, capable of competing at the highest levels. The MIINT team's performance is consistent with our goals for the Program in Sustainable Finance and Investing at IBES, to be the leader in this space and further distinguish a Brown education.
Professor of the Practice of Sustainable Finance and Investing
Forming a team through IBES pathways
Team members were selected through a combination of interest surveys, interviews, and faculty recommendations, with many students already involved in IBES-affiliated coursework, internships, or independent research.
Faculty and alumni mentorship played a central role throughout the team’s preparation. Professors Mark Tracy and Ricardo Bayon provided ongoing guidance, meeting regularly with the group and connecting them to practitioners across the impact investing field.
The team also worked closely with Marieke Spence ’01, Executive Director of Impact Capital Managers, who served as their Turner MIINT advisor. Through sustained advising and access to professionals, this network supported the team in their journey.
Meeting professionals in the field and receiving feedback directly from investors made the experience especially valuable, and it reinforced my excitement to pursue a career at the intersection of finance and social impact. We couldn’t have done it without the support and guidance of our professors, IBES, and the broader Brown network, all of whom made the experience incredibly rewarding.
Applied Math-Economics & Environmental Studies
