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CapMan Natural Capital

Today, I’m joined by Jyri Hietala and Tapani Pahkasalo, Managing Partner and Co-Managing Partner of CapMan Natural Capital. In this conversation, we discuss CapMan’s approach to active forest investment management across Europe and unpack the recent sale of a Baltic forest portfolio to Inter IKEA. Jyri and Tapani explain how they build institutional-scale portfolios, create value through forest management, renewable energy, and other ecosystem services, and position assets for different buyer profiles at exit. We also talk about what this transaction may signal for the future of European forest investment. From industrial demand for long-term wood supply to the growing importance of biodiversity, carbon, and natural capital value creation, this episode explores why high-quality forestry assets are attracting attention from both financial and strategic buyers.

0:11 Introduction to the episode

0:20 Meet Jyri Hietala and Tapani Pahkasalo from CapMan Natural Capital

0:37 Favorite trees: pine and cork oak

1:46 Guest backgrounds and introductions

3:52 Why Dassos joined CapMan

7:07 CapMan Natural Capital’s investment approach

9:37 Value creation beyond timber

12:46 Current investment markets in Europe

13:40 The Inter IKEA transaction

14:35 How the Baltic portfolio was built

17:34 Previous owners and local forest management

20:12 Why Inter IKEA was the right buyer

21:22 What made the transaction successful

23:19 What the deal signals for European forestry

25:09 Forest health, bark beetles and wood supply

27:00 Industrial buyers and vertical integration

29:05 Biodiversity and ecosystem services

31:15 How buyer types shape portfolio strategy

37:02 Offtake agreements and exit flexibility

38:03 Why Europe remains attractive for investors

39:32 Advice for new forest investors

40:29 Where to learn more about CapMan Natural Capital

Founding Director and Host: Shauna Matkovich - The ForestLink

Producer and Editor: Magdalena Laas - Unscripted Creatives

Nature by MaxKoMusic/Soundcloud

Sopwell Woodlands and Scohaboy Bog SAC, Cloughjordan, Co Tipperary, IRELAND by wild_rumpus/Soundcloud

Ambient Documentary by Sound Guru (Pixabay)

Sign up now for the ForestLink’s newsletter, where you’ll receive technical advice, reflections, and best-practice guidance to support you with your forest-linked investment strategy or business straight to your inbox.

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NatureVest (The Nature Conservancy)

The Cumberland Forest Project

Blended Finance

Today, I’m joined by Greg Meade, Cumberland Forest Project Director at NatureVest. In this conversation, Greg explains how the Cumberland Forest Project was structured as a closed-end private investment fund designed to put conservation and community outcomes on equal footing with financial return. We talk about blended finance, sustainable timber harvesting, carbon offsets, conservation easements, renewable energy, and the project’s community fund in rural Appalachia. Greg also shares what NatureVest has learned from building this model, how the fund is performing relative to US timberland benchmarks, and what investors and forest managers can take away from this whole-forest-value approach.

00:12 – Introduction to Forest Invest

00:34 – Greg Meade’s favorite tree: sourwood

01:32 – Greg Meade’s background in forestry

03:07 – What NatureVest does

03:30 – Overview of the Cumberland Forest Project

04:38 – Fund assets and geography

05:51 – Blended finance and concessional debt

09:49 – Who invested in the fund

11:54 – How the project differs from traditional TIMOs

13:27 – Exit strategy and protecting long-term impact

15:48 – Forest management and revenue streams

18:05 – Community fund and local economies

20:41 – Mineral royalties and reclaimed coal revenue

23:35 – Revenue diversification across the portfolio

26:21 – Investor concerns about geographic concentration

27:40 – Local staff and operational setup

29:54 – Impact outcomes achieved so far

33:37 – Financial performance

34:06 – Lessons learned

38:32 – Advice for replicating the model

40:40 – What’s next for NatureVest

43:37 – Advice for new forest investors

44:52 – Closing remarks

Founding Director and Host: Shauna Matkovich - The ForestLink

Producer and Editor: Magdalena Laas - Unscripted Creatives

Nature by MaxKoMusic/Soundcloud

Sopwell Woodlands and Scohaboy Bog SAC, Cloughjordan, Co Tipperary, IRELAND by wild_rumpus/Soundcloud

Ambient Documentary by Sound Guru (Pixabay)

Sign up now for the ForestLink’s newsletter, where you’ll receive technical advice, reflections, and best-practice guidance to support you with your forest-linked investment strategy or business straight to your inbox.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The ForestLink newsletter sign-up

Spar Tree Group

Today, I’m joined by David Elstone, managing director of Spar Tree Group and author of View from the Stump. In this conversation, David unpacks the current state of the British Columbia forest sector and explains why this globally important wood basket is facing such intense pressure. We discuss the long decline in timber harvest and lumber production, the legacy of the mountain pine beetle, mill closures, log exports, and the structural differences between BC’s coast and interior. David also shares his perspective on old growth deferrals, First Nations reconciliation, wildfire risk, forest policy, and why a clearer regional economic strategy is needed to make BC forestry more competitive and investable.

0:10 Welcome to Forest Invest with Shauna Matkovich

0:53 David Elstone on his background and Spar Tree Group

3:08 The current state of the forest sector in British Columbia

4:42 Why BC matters in global wood markets

10:23 Log exports, mill closures, and domestic demand

19:45 Internal versus external pressures on BC forestry

25:28 Key actors and the biggest challenges facing the sector

28:48 Policy changes and old-growth deferrals

34:15 Conservation, wildfire, and active forest management

38:17 Private timberland, AAC, and structural change in BC

42:13 Where private investors may still find opportunity

47:07 What would make BC forestry more investable and competitive

50:32 Why there is no single fix for the sector

51:39 David Elstone’s advice for new forest investors

52:53 Where to learn more about Spar Tree Group

53:37 Closing remarks with Shauna Matkovich

Founding Director and Host: Shauna Matkovich - The ForestLink

Producer and Editor: Magdalena Laas - Unscripted Creatives

Nature by MaxKoMusic/Soundcloud

Sopwell Woodlands and Scohaboy Bog SAC, Cloughjordan, Co Tipperary, IRELAND by wild_rumpus/Soundcloud

Ambient Documentary by Sound Guru (Pixabay)

Sign up now for the ForestLink’s newsletter, where you’ll receive technical advice, reflections, and best-practice guidance to support you with your forest-linked investment strategy or business straight to your inbox.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.