Jim Heyes

Bio

Mr Heyes joined GEF in 2007. For three years, he served as GEF’s Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Officer, supporting each of GEF’s funds on ESG matters and he led GEF’s activities in carbon markets. In his current role as a dedicated member of the Forestry team, he remains responsible for ESG matters in the forestry portfolio, in addition to monitoring investments in Africa and Southeast Asia. Prior to joining GEF, Mr Heyes worked for the New England Forestry Foundation, where he founded and directed a community-based forestry and economic development initiative known as North Quabbin Woods. He also worked for two years at Heyes Forest Products, his family’s sawmill in western Massachusetts. Mr Heyes studied community-based forestry in the Philippines as a Fulbright Scholar in 1997 and speaks Cebuano. He holds a BA in Geology and Environmental Studies from Williams College. Mr Heyes completed a Master of Public Affairs at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School with a focus on environment and international development.