illuminem x HEC Paris Greentech University course: developing the next generation of sustainability leaders

HEC Paris, Europe’s top-ranked Business School, has partnered with illuminem to launch Europe's first university course in Greentech. Led by our founder, Andrea Gori, this course is specifically designed to develop the next generation of sustainability leaders. It uniquely combines real-world lessons, case studies, career opportunities, and academic education.

illuminem founder Andrea Gori and Greenly founder Alexis Normand with the HEC Paris Greentech class

The program consists of six intensive 3-hour sessions, each co-facilitated by one or more esteemed industry leader. It concludes with a greentech investment pitch, where students are evaluated by top venture capitalists and entrepreneurs.

Structure of the course

• Green technology fundamentals & history: Understanding key innovations and their role in sustainability
• Impact assessment: Evaluating the real-world effectiveness of Greentech solutions
• Greentech investing: Exploring the venture capital ecosystem and successful case studies
• Greentech policies & ecosystems: Examining global regulations and market trends
• Greentech business development: Preparing scalable greentech businesses, from idea validation to growth at scale
• Pitching & fundraising: Presenting startup ideas to top-tier investors

Greentech investment strategies presented by VC Partner Olivier Mougenot, during the class visit at Techstars HQ

Energy transition strategies presented by Pierre Abadie, Group Climate Director of Tikehau Capital

Meet the distinguished Guest Lecturers

One of the course's major highlights is the participation of some of the most influential figures in Greentech as guest lecturers. The classes blend academic lectures (curated by prof. Andrea Gori), with practical insights and real-world lessons. The following distinguished personalities are Guest Lecturers in the program.

EcoVadis founder & CEO, Pierre-François Thaler, on scaling greentech

Jochen Wermuth, after his lecture on the enormous profit potential of green investing

Pieter Kemps (left), fmr. Partner at Sequoia Capital and James Robey (right), Global head of Sustainability at Capgemini

Greentech business development and scaling

• Alexis Normand (Founder & CEO, Greenly)
• Carlonia Nizza (Head of Sustainability, Statkraft)
• Elena Morettini (Global Head of Sustainable Business, Globant)
• Hala Fadel (Managing Partner, Eurazeo)
• Magnus Drewelies (Founder & CEO, CEEZER)
• Pierre-François Thaler (Founder & CEO, EcoVadis)
• Pierre-Louis Christiane (COO, Sirona Technologies)
• Cara Williams (Senior Partner & Global Sustainability Leader, Mercer)
• Frank Wouters (Chairman, MENA Hydrogen Alliance)
• Christoph Grobbel (Co-Founder, South Pole)

Greentech investing

• Bastian Larsen & Thomas Derambure (Co-Founders, Blackwood)
• Gianluca Dettori (Chairman & GP, Primo Ventures) & Simone Molteni (Partner, Primo Climate)
• Jochen Wermuth (Founder & CIO, Wermuth Asset Management)
• Kadir S. Gugnor (CEO, Sustainable Impact Capital)
• Luca Barbi (General Partner & COO, STV)
• Olivier Mougenot (Partner, Wind Capital)
• Pierre Abadie (Chief Climate Officer & co-Head of PE, Tikehau Capital)
• Sofia Dahoune (Partner, daphni)
• Vincent Ruinet (Founder, Vinculum)
• Pieter Kemps (fmr. Partner, Peak XV Partners)
• Marcel Zuidam (CEO & Chair of the Executive Board, Triodos Bank)
• Oliver Preisler (COO, Blackwood)
• Laetitia de Panafieu (VC Investor, 360 Capital)

Impact assessment

• Damin Didier (Head of Sustainability, daphni)
• Dexter Galvin (Fmr. CCO, CDP)
• Elena Harumi Stark (Investment Principal, AENU)
• Helmy Abouleish (CEO, SEKEM)
• Nick Hough-Robbins & Vian Sharif (Co-founders, NatureAlpha)
• Anne Imbach (Group Head of Sustainability, Rothschild & Co)
• James Robey (Global Head of Sustainability, Capgemini)

Greentech policy

• Angelo Bonelli (Spokesperson, Green Europe)
• Francesco Corvaro (Italy’s Special Envoy on Climate Change)
• Taavi Rõivas (Fmr. Prime Minister of Estonia)

Pitching & fundraising

• Arnaud Houlés (Co-Founder, Nine Realms)
• Arthur Chabot (Co-Founder, ClimeRock)
• Belinda Saunders (Head of Sustainability, BlaBlaCar)
• Benjamin Schulz (Co-Founder, Altitude)
• Benoit Paget (CEO, B:bot by GreenBig)
• Briseida Gjoza (Founder, ConsciESG)
• Clara Cornu (Investment Manager, 360 Capital)
• Julien Tchernia (Founder, EkWateur)
• Martina Schwarz (Founder, Blackmarket)
• Rebecca Ravenni (Investor, Techstars)

Course videos

• How to make money from the green transition, with Jochen Wermuth (Top climate investor)
• The Future of Energy: geopolitics, big investments, physical limits, security, and the next winners, with Pierre Abadie (Chief Climate Officer & Co-Head of France’s leading PE, Tikehau Capital)
• Greentech capital: Investing in the next wave of climate founders, with Bastian Larsen (fmr. Co-lead of BlackRock’s global product strategy and CEO of BlackWood) and Oliver Preisler (COO at BlackWood)
• Conversation on global climate policy and EU strategy, with Francesco Corvaro (Italy’s Special Envoy on Climate Change)
• Sustainability Lessons from SEKEM, with Helmy Abouleish (CEO)

Class recommended readings

The Great Classics of Sustainability

• 'Laudato Si' by Pope Francis
The most-read sustainability text in history, introducing the concept of Integral Ecology: true care for the environment isn’t just about technocratic solutions, it must include care for people, especially the most vulnerable in society.

• Former nuclear leaders: Say ‘No’ to new reactors by Paul Dorfman and the fmr. Nuclear Regulators of the US, Germany, France, and the UK 
One of the most debated sustainability letters: a rare, coordinated warning from top insiders against the risks, delays, and costs of new nuclear.

• The Paris Agreement (UNFCCC)
The global climate pact signed by nearly every country in 2015 to keep global warming below 2°C above the pre-industrial era.

• Net Zero by 2050: A roadmap for the global energy sector (IEA)
The IEA’s boldest call to date: no new oil, gas, or coal fields—just a clear path to net zero built on renewables, electrification, and efficiency.

• Planetary boundaries (Stockholm Resilience Center)
The most quoted science-based framework defining Earth’s safe operating space—crossing these nine limits risks destabilizing the entire planet.

• Revealed: more than 90% of rainforest carbon offsets by biggest certifier are worthless, analysis shows (The Guardian)
2023's bombshell investigation, which shocked carbon markets with tha accusation that most forest offsets fail to deliver real climate impact, raising major questions of integrity.

• The Economics of Biodiversity: The Dasgupta Review (UK Government)
A landmark report reframing nature as economic infrastructure—our economies depend on ecosystems, yet treat them as invisible and disposable.

• Letter to CEO: The power of capitalism, by  Larry Fink
The most influential annual letter in finance by BlackRock's CEO, urging companies to lead on ESG or risk losing investor trust. 

• Offsetting is a dangerous climate lie, by Jennifer Morgan
The historic first major critique of carbon offsetting by Greenpeace (published exclusively by illuminem ahead of COP28), which sparked one of the biggest rifts among greentech and climate leaders.

• The secret diary of a ‘sustainable investor’, by Tariq Fancy
The insider exposé from BlackRock’s ex-sustainability chief, arguing that ESG often distracts from the systemic change the planet truly needs.

• Why sustainability is now the key driver of innovation (Harvard Business Review)
A defining piece in corporate sustainability—proving that going green isn’t a cost, but a catalyst for breakthrough innovation and competitive advantage.

• Alex Langer’s Advice for a Future Friend: "lentius, profundius, suavius", by Alexander Langer, re-read and reflected on by Omar Alshogre, Susan Ellicott and Angelo Bonelli
The poetic manifesto of Green Politics, calling for a "slower, deeper, gentler" world, by one of the founding fathers of European environmentalism.

Corporate sustainability

• Carbon neutral vs. net zero: Understanding the differences and implications, by illuminem
• Corporate sustainability at a crossroad, by Georg Kell
• The ROI for sustainability has never been clearer, by Charlotte Degot
• What’s next for corporate sustainability, by Roger Abravanel and Luca Dagnese

Energy transition

• ‘Dutch Disease to Energy Transition’, by Noé van Hulst
• How strategic financing can help navigate the climate transition, by Pierre Abadie
• Hydrogen is important - but heating with it is still a fairy tale, by Jan Rosenow
• Just substitute oil, by Jeremy Bentham
• Redesigning energy for people and planet - the next steps, by Angela Wilkinson
• The colors of hydrogen, by Nicola de Blasio
• The untold energy truth: Who are the future energy leaders (video)​, by Andrea Gori
• The silent revolution, by Alessandro Blasi

Environmental markets

• Carbon Academy: everything you need to know about carbon markets, by illuminem
• Biodiversity credits: right from the start, by Patricio Lombardi
• Biochar is booming: What are the risks?, by Ted Christie-Miller
• Carbon removal is not a finite resource, by Robert Höglund
• The convergence of the voluntary and compliance carbon markets, by Eve Tamme
• The paradox of carbon credits, by Renat Heuberger, Steve Zwick
• Why biochar as a permanent carbon sink is essential for achieving climate targets, by Venna Lepel

Environmental issues and Nature-tech

• Antarctica is melting faster than ever. Here’s what we can do about it, by Nigel Topping, Helen Millman, Martin Siegert
• Biofuels: easier said than done, by Nicola Armaroli
• The ‘great green step back’?, by Marco Lambertini

Greentech innovation

• Building smarter, cleaner energy storage with AI, by Riad Meddeb
• Climate tech is dead. Long live green tech!, by Jessica Burley
• How to unleash the UK’s cleantech industrial potential, by Sarah Mackintosh
• If countries are serious about climate change, they should get serious about quantum computing, by Sam Howell
• If you care about the climate, should you be anti-AI?, by Alessio Terzi
• New solar cells break efficiency record, by Sebastian Bonilla
• The 3 gaps that challenge climate technology entrepreneurship, by Wim Naudé
• Why AI is the future of government, by Taavi Rõivas
• Why electric cars are (truly) better than gasoline or diesel ones, by Nicola Armaroli
• Why transparency in manufacturing is the game changer for the green transition, by Hilde Merete Aasheim
• Why plug-in hybrids (PEVs) are better for the climate than full Electric Vehicles (BEVs) today, by Kumar Venkat 

Greentech politics & geopolitics

• A new catalyst for the Chinese economy: the green dragon, by Gabriela Herculano
• Taking the politics out of climate change, by Alex Edmans
• Tending to the broken bones, by Christiana Figueres
• The EU can lead in tackling green and social challenges in tandem, by Sandrine Dixson-Decleve
• The UN Sustainable Development Goals haven’t had much impact so far, by Frank Biermann

Social and other issues

• Empowering change and resilience: social protection in the age of mega trends, by Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana
• The silk road of ideas and Edgar Morin's vision of complex humanity, by Claudio Pedretti
• State, market and education: the recipe for bringing all humans out of poverty, by Erik Solheim
• What should be done to address one of the worst performing SDGs, by Galit Palzur

Sustainable finance and ESG

• After the ESG party, by Antoine Mach
• Asset managers: blended finance is like music, by Harald Walkate, Robert W. van Zwieten, Simon Gupta
• Don’t be misled by the climate change claims of ESG funds, by Theo Vermaelen
• In conversation with impact investors, by Stephanie Dorsey, Renat Heuberger, Gianluca Dettori, Nathan Kinch
• The $1.6 trillion revelation: natural capital’s silent takeover of global finance, by Matt Ross

Further recommended links

• The Top sustainability newsletters everyone should subscribe to, by illuminem
• The Definitive Reading List: Recommended Sustainability Classics, by illuminem

Greentech investment cases presented by Blackwood (Danish top VC) founders Bastian Larsen & Thomas Derambure

If you're interested in accessing the illuminem x HEC Paris Greentech course materials or exploring collaboration opportunities, contact us.