Accelerate the Positive

At a time of rising concern about the climate crisis, we can find hope in the work of clean technologies business advocate Leah Perry (MBA ’22).

At the MaRS Discovery District, the Toronto-based innovation hub for Canadian science and tech firms, the 30-year-old York grad helps cleantech entrepreneurs access capital to develop and market their technologies. Companies offering environmentally friendly products, services, technologies and processes – known as “cleantech” ventures – are vital to our ability to live, work and play in ways that are less harmful to the planet, she says. 

“I’ve always really liked working with early-stage entrepreneurs,” explains the senior manager of Cleantech Venture Services, who was named to Corporate Knights’ list of Canada’s top 30 under 30 sustainability leaders of 2022. “They are passionate not only about the companies they’re building, but the change they’re making.”

That change-making spirit was instilled in Perry by her environmentally and socially conscious parents: her father is a sustainability-focused engineer who previously co-led the sustainability team at DuPont Canada and has volunteered on clean water projects in Africa; her mother is a nurse who supported the development of a maternity centre in Uganda.

“Sustainability has been in my brain for a long time and something I’ve always been around,” she says.

After completing a bachelor’s degree in international business, Perry joined Export Development Canada as a business development intern. Within two years, she became a member of EDC’s cleantech team, where she helped small- and medium-sized Canadian exporters access financing from EDC and secure clients in international markets.

Wanting to further advance in the venture services sector and help more entrepreneurs achieve their dreams, in 2020 she chose to pursue an MBA at York’s Schulich School of Business. Perry’s passion for environmentalism was further ignited through courses and projects where she was able to explore sustainable finance, impact investing and social bonds. Her academic performance earned her the Graduate Business Council Gold Medal for achieving the highest GPA in her class.

Joining MaRS in July 2021, Perry now supports cleantech entrepreneurs specializing in areas such as agri-tech, advanced manufacturing or materials, energy, transportation, water and waste management. Working alongside her colleagues, she helps entrepreneurs prepare to secure initial funding from institutional venture capital entities, and also works on creating matches with potential investors. 

A key part of Perry’s job, and one that she says brings her tremendous satisfaction, is leading the RBC Women in Cleantech Accelerator. Launched in September 2021, the intensive 24-month program aims to address the gender gap in cleantech by offering female-led early-stage startups with business workshops, networking, mentorship and connections to investors. The accelerator currently serves 10 businesses focusing on areas such as reusable packaging, solar cell technology and compostable menstrual pads. 

According to MaRS, only one in 10 cleantech founders is a woman. 

Perry wants to change that.

“The purpose is to increase the representation of women-led cleantech companies in Canada,” she says. “They’re so inspiring and I’m definitely their biggest cheerleader. I’ll do anything to help them grow.” ■