How Hamilton Lane's Dave Helgerson Deploys Impact Across Private Markets

Dave Helgerson, Managing Director and Head of Impact Investing at Hamilton Lane — one of the world's leading private markets firms with over $1 trillion in assets under management — joins Georges Dyer to make the case that impact investing is not a values compromise but a structural opportunity. With over 22 years at Hamilton Lane building impact strategies from the ground up, Dave offers a rare inside view of how institutional-grade private capital can generate market-rate returns while directing investment toward the energy transition, sustainable supply chains, health access, and community development. Key themes covered in this episode: How Hamilton Lane structures impact investing across verticals — clean energy transition, sustainable solutions, health & wellness, and community development — and why that framework sharpens, not softens, investment discipline The distinction between ESG as risk management ("playing defense") and impact investing as opportunity identification ("playing offense"), and why both are necessary within a diversified institutional portfolio How accelerants like AI-driven data center energy demand and geopolitical energy security risks are reshaping the investment case for renewables — independent of policy cycles Why endowments and foundations are a natural fit for long-duration private markets impact strategies, and how smaller institutions can access this asset class through fund-of-funds structures For institutional investors evaluating the long-term role of private markets in a sustainable portfolio, this conversation offers both the strategic framework and the on-the-ground evidence to move that conversation forward. Resources: Book: The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race - Walter Isaacson Book: The New Map: Energy, Climate, and the Clash of Nations - Daniel Yergin Book: The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, and Power - Daniel Yergin Capital Allocators Podcast - https://www.capitalallocators.com/ Dwarkesh Podcast -    • Dwarkesh Podcast   – General Timestamps: 00:00:00 Introduction & IEN Forum Announcement 00:01:12 Welcome & Guest Introduction — Dave Helgerson, Hamilton Lane 00:02:45 Hamilton Lane Overview: From Advisory Roots to $1T Platform 00:07:22 The New York State Common Origin Story & Building the First Impact Strategy 00:12:36 ESG vs. Impact — Playing Defense vs. Playing Offense 00:14:52 Energy Security, the Iran War & Why Diversification Matters 00:16:04 Hamilton Lane's Impact Framework: Environmental & Social Verticals 00:22:34 Portfolio Deep Dive: EeroSafe & the Cold Chain Innovation Case 00:25:32 Addressing LP Skepticism — Do Impact Strategies Sacrifice Returns? 00:28:54 Global Momentum: How Europe, Asia & the U.S. Are Moving Differently 00:32:21 AI, Data Centers & the Accelerating Demand for Energy Infrastructure 00:33:55 Google, Intersect Power & What Big Tech's Energy Moves Signal 00:40:52 Endowments & Foundations — Fit, Access & Minimums 00:43:34 Rapid Fire: Books, Resources & Advice for Emerging Investors 00:46:19 Vision for the Future of Finance 00:47:39 Advice for the Next Generation - Disclaimer The information presented in this episode reflects the views and opinions of the guest and does not constitute investment, legal, or regulatory advice. The Intentional Endowments Network does not endorse any specific products, services, or organizations referenced herein.