Meet our 2020 Summer Interns
By Bijon Keswani, Kat Horan, Kyle Denny, and Matt Lindsay of Quantified Ventures
Bijon, Kat, and Kyle share their summer experience at Quantified Ventures
The coronavirus pandemic disrupted the close of the school year for many students and altered summer internship plans as well. While it has been a summer internship experience unlike any other – “can you hear me now?” – Quantified Ventures is pleased to be able to host summer interns as previously planned.
Five undergraduate students and two graduate students participated in part-time internships with Quantified Ventures this summer: Mia Berardino (Skidmore College), Giovanni Galvez (MPH candidate at Oregon State University), Jamie Landsman (MBA/MPH dual degree candidate at Columbia University), Caroline Lanteri (University of North Carolina), Rebecca Letsinger (Tulane University), Angus McAlister (Bates College), and Eli Selz (Elon University).
And the company has greatly benefited from three knowledgeable and dedicated full-time graduate student interns: Bijon Keswani, Kyle Denny, and Kat Horan.
Full-time graduate student summer internships at Quantified Ventures are very competitive; more than 320 master’s candidates applied for our three summer internship positions. And QV employees read every application!
As Bijon, Kyle, and Kat enter the final weeks of their time at QV, we asked them to share with us why they chose to pursue an internship at Quantified Ventures and to reflect on the highlights to date. Their responses were lightly edited for clarity and length.
Bijon Keswani, Health & Human Services and Impact Investing Intern (
Columbia University MPA, Class of 2021)
What interested you in Quantified Ventures?
I had researched outcome-based models before and was aware of how impact bonds were being used within the development sector. While leading an education startup, I dealt with impact investors and traditional venture capitalists and realised how different their individual approaches were. I’ve always wanted to be able to scale impact and combinations of private capital through an outcomes-based model seemed like a sustainable approach to evaluate. When I discovered QV brought together a multitude of stakeholders with a similar model, I decided to deep dive into understanding their areas of interest. QV seemed to tick all the boxes in terms of its development goals and I realised quickly that the intersection of finance and health and human services is an area that interested me. Given my prior experience in consulting and finance, I wanted to explore how my skills could fit into creating value for QV.
What are one or two highlights from your experience thus far?
I think one of the standouts for working at QV is how permeable and infectious the culture is. I’ve never worked from home and it’s always difficult to incorporate new people into the team this way, you still soak in QV’s culture through Google Meets and the multiple Slack channels we have! The culture of the firm was evident when on the 1st of June, with the backdrop of racial tensions in the country, Alison spoke to me about attending protests in New York during work hours if I wanted because “these things matter.” I come from a background where a suggestion like that would be frowned upon and I was genuinely surprised by it – yet, it showed what the firm valued and how QV employees were at the centre! I love our check-ins and coffee chats, it’s the best possible way to poke and prod and learn new things about people on the team – none of it seems forced, even across senior management. Work wise, for someone with very little sector background, working on structuring cost benefit models with the Health and Human Services (HHS) team and presenting our HHS work to the Environment brain trust made me understand how overarching the firm's impact really is. Add to that, those Friday shout-outs are so motivating and inspiring! You really feel the value of your contribution. I’m excited to see how these structures will get advanced going forward and to what scale we can translate these interventions into impactful transactions.
Kat Horan, Environment and Impact Investing Intern (Duke University MBA and MEM, Class of 2021)
What interested you in Quantified Ventures?
I’ve been a fan of Quantified Ventures ever since I first heard about the pioneer environmental impact bond to fund DC Water’s Rock Creek green infrastructure project. As a DC resident at the time, I followed along as DC Water began construction on the tunnels to reduce their CSO overflow. Having had previous work experience in the Office of Water at EPA, however, I recognized the high price tag and funding challenges that came with large, gray infrastructure projects. Reading about the solution to replace the third planned tunnel with less capital-intensive green infrastructure and monitor its impact through the pay-for-success model made so much sense to me! Sharing the risk with investors for this alternative approach to stormwater management felt like a win-win for everyone – especially for DC residents and ratepayers who benefited from the reduced project cost and from the environmental and public health co-benefits of green infrastructure as well. I felt inspired that private capital was being connected to an environmental improvement project in such an innovative way and made me hopeful for the future possible applications of EIBs. In the fall of 2018, I spoke with Jason and Seth during the Duke Water Network’s career trek visit to DC and it solidified my enthusiasm for QV. I loved hearing about the range of projects they were working on and how QV was expanding to address issues relating to agriculture, outdoor recreation, and even urban wood reclamation with Humanim in Baltimore. I left impressed and thinking Jason and Seth were lucky to be doing this kind of work. As I began to look for summer internships this year, I kept my eye out for QV’s posting.
What are one or two highlights from your experience thus far?
Both the people and project work have been highlights of my QV experience so far! Despite being in the middle of a pandemic with the need to be virtual, everyone has gone above and beyond to ensure that I feel fully integrated into the QV team. One of my favorite traditions is our “Good morning, Environment Team!” meetings – this is a daily (but completely optional) meeting at 8:45am meant to facilitate the type of chit chat that would normally happen as folks arrive into the office. It is a chance to sip our coffee, catch up on life, and talk about each other’s project work as we get ready to start the day. It has been a great way to get to know my teammates on a more personal level and maintain holistic engagement with QV while being remote. The project work has also been very fulfilling, and only made better by working alongside such enthusiastic and driven people! Throughout the last two months, I’ve had the opportunity to deep dive into a diverse range of environmental challenges – from learning about the reforestation of abandoned and legacy coal mine sites throughout Appalachia, to the benefits of oyster reef restoration in the Gulf Coast – all the while thinking through these issues with an impact outcomes-based financing lens. Some of the work has been tricky, and at times it can feel like there is no clear cut path forward, but I’ve also found that a good brainstorming session with my teammates or a constructive conversation with a knowledgeable stakeholder can turn things around and make ideas click into place.
Kyle Denny, Environment and Impact Investing Intern (Duke University MBA, Class of 2021)
What interested you in Quantified Ventures?
I was initially interested in Quantified Ventures because of the company’s ability to bring together public and private partners to creatively finance green infrastructure projects. Coming from an engineering background, I am acutely aware of the financing gap for these types of projects. As I learned more about QV’s approach from talking with Seth, Amie, and Laura, I realized that outcomes financing can play a role far beyond the first EIB put together for DC Water. At that point I saw the potential for expanding QV’s offerings to more traditional infrastructure to solve many of the problems I saw in Houston.
What are one or two highlights from your experience thus far?
One of my favorite aspects of working at QV is how everyone is excited about literally everything. I started this post thinking about how Amie ends every project call with, “I’m feeling good about this project!” or how Dan was randomly interested in carbon credits while on vacation. The QV excitement is so much deeper than just work. QVers are excited about each other. Bani told me the highlight of her week last week was getting to go on a socially distanced walk with Seth. Eric offered his house to anyone that wanted a change of scenery while he was on vacation. Michelle spent part of her PTO putting together a video of everyone doing goofy things during the QV retreat. All of these are examples of QVers doing things because they genuinely enjoy each other. QVers are also excited about our place in the world. Every discussion at some point goes back to the impact of the project. Solving complex problems is fun, but what really gets people out of bed is the impact we are making as a company. This stood out to me the most, when participating in the company-wide diversity and inclusion discussions throughout the summer. QV has taken concrete steps like pursuing a social justice bond and hiring a diversity and inclusion consultant. All these steps have made me excited to see how QV’s impact will grow in the future.