GCI Board Chair
Company
Location
Oxford, England, United Kingdom
Posted At
9/10/2025
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Description
About Us
Global Canopy is a data-driven not for profit delivering real transparency and accountability for market impacts on nature and people. Our special focus is on ending deforestation - an essential step in achieving urgent global goals on climate, nature and human rights.
We deliver our work via three main strategies:
Global Canopy Initiatives (GCI) is a new Social Enterprise subsidiary wholly owned by Global Canopy.
The purpose of the social enterprise is to create sustainable revenues for open data on nature - a critical challenge for nonprofits working in this space. Done right, this will help safeguard the availability of open data for all as more commercial incumbents enter this space, will drive uptake by the market and identify where gaps remain, and will help ensure the sustainability of our vital offering.
GCI ultimately aims to maximize the impact and uptake of our work to tackle market-driven impacts on nature, forests and people. Any profits from these activities are invested back into the charity.
Forest IQ Pro
Forest IQ is an open data partnership and platform that brings together aligned, best-in-class, and actionable data on how more than 2,400 major companies are addressing their links to deforestation.
Forest IQ Pro is a paid-for tier, specially designed for financial institutions to help enable their transition to deforestation-free financial portfolios. Offered through GCI, it includes access to licensed data, financial identifiers (ISINs), a bespoke API, and priority technical and customer support.
The role: overview
This is an exciting time to be joining the Board of Global Canopy Initiatives. As Chair of the Board you will be a key leader for the organisation, responsible for guiding the Board of Directors in governance, strategy, and oversight.
You will ensure that Global Canopy Initiatives fulfils its mission effectively, flourishes commercially, and fosters strong relationships with key stakeholders - from major financial institutions that are our customers, to data and ESG service providers that are our partners, to the trustees of the parent charity Global Canopy.
This is an opportunity for a passionate and experienced leader to drive environmental innovation and impact at a high level - while helping to tackle a key challenge for the future: how to ensure the sustainability of high-quality open data provided by the non-profit sector.
We ask for a minimum commitment of 2 days per month for GCI, including board meetings and strategic engagements. There are opportunities to go above and beyond this minimum for those that wish.
The Chair of the Board is a voluntary, and therefore unpaid, position, with all expenses covered. The Chair is typically appointed for an initial term of three years, with the possibility of renewal subject to board approval.
As Chair of GCI, you will contribute to our wider organisational culture of kindness, collaboration, rigour and accountability in equal measure. You will come to this work with a sense of urgent mission, but one balanced by emotional intelligence. You will share our conviction that it is not just what we do that matters in our working life, but how we do it too.
The role: responsibilities
About you
To be successful in this role, these are the things that will matter the most:
How to apply
To apply for the position, please use the link below and submit an up-to date CV and covering letter.
The covering letter should explain your motivation for the role, and how your skills and experience fit the person specification. (Please no more than 1 side of A4).
All candidates are asked to complete an anonymous diversity monitoring form when they apply.
The closing date for applications is 29 September 2025 at 9am UK time. Early application encouraged. We may close applications early if suitable candidates are identified.
Screening calls are provisionally planned for w/c 6 October, and will be conducted remotely via a video call.
At Global Canopy, we value diversity and inclusion. You can read our diversity statement on our website. We encourage applications from all backgrounds and are committed to having a team with a diverse set of skills, experiences and abilities.
Global Canopy works on issues of global deforestation. We are particularly interested in strengthening our team to include those with a background from forest regions such as Latin America and South East Asia. We would welcome applications from people from these regions.
If you have any questions about the position, then please contact: [email protected]. Applicant data will be managed in accordance with the candidate privacy policy available on our website.
Global Canopy is a data-driven not for profit delivering real transparency and accountability for market impacts on nature and people. Our special focus is on ending deforestation - an essential step in achieving urgent global goals on climate, nature and human rights.
We deliver our work via three main strategies:
- on open data (including via major global data platforms like Trase, Forest 500, Forest IQ, and ENCORE);
- on creating stronger voluntary and compliance frameworks to address nature loss (we are a founding partner of the TNFD);
Global Canopy Initiatives (GCI) is a new Social Enterprise subsidiary wholly owned by Global Canopy.
The purpose of the social enterprise is to create sustainable revenues for open data on nature - a critical challenge for nonprofits working in this space. Done right, this will help safeguard the availability of open data for all as more commercial incumbents enter this space, will drive uptake by the market and identify where gaps remain, and will help ensure the sustainability of our vital offering.
GCI ultimately aims to maximize the impact and uptake of our work to tackle market-driven impacts on nature, forests and people. Any profits from these activities are invested back into the charity.
Forest IQ Pro
Forest IQ is an open data partnership and platform that brings together aligned, best-in-class, and actionable data on how more than 2,400 major companies are addressing their links to deforestation.
Forest IQ Pro is a paid-for tier, specially designed for financial institutions to help enable their transition to deforestation-free financial portfolios. Offered through GCI, it includes access to licensed data, financial identifiers (ISINs), a bespoke API, and priority technical and customer support.
The role: overview
This is an exciting time to be joining the Board of Global Canopy Initiatives. As Chair of the Board you will be a key leader for the organisation, responsible for guiding the Board of Directors in governance, strategy, and oversight.
You will ensure that Global Canopy Initiatives fulfils its mission effectively, flourishes commercially, and fosters strong relationships with key stakeholders - from major financial institutions that are our customers, to data and ESG service providers that are our partners, to the trustees of the parent charity Global Canopy.
This is an opportunity for a passionate and experienced leader to drive environmental innovation and impact at a high level - while helping to tackle a key challenge for the future: how to ensure the sustainability of high-quality open data provided by the non-profit sector.
We ask for a minimum commitment of 2 days per month for GCI, including board meetings and strategic engagements. There are opportunities to go above and beyond this minimum for those that wish.
The Chair of the Board is a voluntary, and therefore unpaid, position, with all expenses covered. The Chair is typically appointed for an initial term of three years, with the possibility of renewal subject to board approval.
As Chair of GCI, you will contribute to our wider organisational culture of kindness, collaboration, rigour and accountability in equal measure. You will come to this work with a sense of urgent mission, but one balanced by emotional intelligence. You will share our conviction that it is not just what we do that matters in our working life, but how we do it too.
The role: responsibilities
- Provide leadership for the Board, ensuring effective governance and strategic direction
- Facilitate and preside over board meetings, setting agendas in collaboration with key stakeholders in GCI and GC
- Support our ongoing and agile strategy development in a fast-changing market
- Serve as a key ambassador for the company (and its parent charity), opening doors and representing it to key audiences including customers, technology partners, policymakers and donors
- Ensure financial oversight, risk management, and compliance with regulatory requirements
- Foster a strong, collaborative relationship between the Board and GCI Leadership Team
- Recruit, mentor, and support board members to enhance board effectiveness
- Uphold and model our organisational values, while fostering a culture of operational excellence and ambition in fulfilling our mission
About you
To be successful in this role, these are the things that will matter the most:
- Your will have DEEP KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE in finance sector environmental due diligence and reporting, and the data needed to deliver on requirements
- You will be a SEASONED LEADER, with experience at C-level or board level, able to work to effectively govern the work of GCI - a startup in the non-profit sector, but one that builds on the strong foundations, intelligence and networks of its parent charity
- You will be MISSION DRIVEN with a strong commitment to tackling the climate and nature crisis, including via market action and reform
- You will be well NETWORKED with links to relevant people in relevant sectors and disciplines, with an emphasis on finance sector sustainability and data
- You will be AGILE and ENTREPRENEURIAL in your approach
- You will bring EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE to how you approach leadership and teamwork, valuing the importance not just of what we do at work, but how we do it too
How to apply
To apply for the position, please use the link below and submit an up-to date CV and covering letter.
The covering letter should explain your motivation for the role, and how your skills and experience fit the person specification. (Please no more than 1 side of A4).
All candidates are asked to complete an anonymous diversity monitoring form when they apply.
The closing date for applications is 29 September 2025 at 9am UK time. Early application encouraged. We may close applications early if suitable candidates are identified.
Screening calls are provisionally planned for w/c 6 October, and will be conducted remotely via a video call.
At Global Canopy, we value diversity and inclusion. You can read our diversity statement on our website. We encourage applications from all backgrounds and are committed to having a team with a diverse set of skills, experiences and abilities.
Global Canopy works on issues of global deforestation. We are particularly interested in strengthening our team to include those with a background from forest regions such as Latin America and South East Asia. We would welcome applications from people from these regions.
If you have any questions about the position, then please contact: [email protected]. Applicant data will be managed in accordance with the candidate privacy policy available on our website.
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