A Mission-Driven, Values-Aligned Team

  • Alycia serves as General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Grounded Capital. As General Counsel, Alycia oversees all legal aspects of Grounded Capital’s investment, management and operations activities. As Chief Compliance Officer, she establishes standards and implements compliance procedures throughout the organization. Alycia previously served as Associate General Counsel at New Island Capital Management. She also held the role of Chief Legal Officer & Head of Debt Funds at SunFunder, where she structured impact investment funds focused on scaling solar energy in emerging markets. Alycia received a JD from Georgetown University, a master’s degree in human rights and democratization from the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa, and a BA in political science from Yale University. Alycia enjoys running around Oakland’s Lake Merritt most mornings and exploring the California coast with her family.

Alycia Kellman

Caroline Rosch

  • Caroline leads the organization’s internal operations including co-developing the firm strategies, annual operational plans, investment processes, and ongoing organization-building efforts. Caroline most recently led asset and portfolio management operations for Reinvestment Fund, a CDFI lender focused on social and environmental investments, where she developed portfolio analytics for securitization and RIA launch. Caroline spent the early years of her career analyzing institutional CRE investments at Blackrock, Deutsche Bank, and in a boutique consulting practice. Caroline obtained her Bachelor’s Degree at Colby College and her Masters in Public Administration at Rutgers University. In her free time, Caroline enjoys attending the symphony, tackling jigsaw puzzles, and waging a campaign to bring NY bagels to the West Coast.

Debra DeFrancesco

Emma Broderick

  • Debra oversees talent recruitment, team engagement and education at Grounded Capital. She leads professional and personal development programs and coordinates human resources initiatives for the Grounded team. Debra brings 20+ years of prior global human resources experience at industry-leading financial services firms. She previously served as Chief Administrative Officer at Hellman & Friedman before launching a bespoke consulting business focused on financial services firms and growing startups. Debra received her BA at Emmanuel College in Boston. She enjoys hiking and road trips with her family, dancing around the kitchen, and adventures of all kinds with her friends.

  • Emma focuses on direct investments in food and agriculture that span farmland, processing, and food companies to support the production of food in ways that regenerate living systems and value all stakeholders in the supply chain. Prior to Grounded, Emma worked on the Finance and Investment team at Blue Forest and the Investment and Capital Markets team at CleanCapital. She began her career developing custom software solutions as a consultant at ThoughtWorks. Emma received a BS in Chemical Engineering and Biology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, an MBA from the Yale School of Management and a MF from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. Emma enjoys being outside in good company, collecting library cards, and keeping the shelves stocked at the Park Slope Food Coop.

  • Erica serves as the Office Experience Manager for Grounded Capital. She focuses on leading day-to-day office routines to create a welcoming and efficient environment. She serves as a trusted resource for office projects, events, food and company culture. Prior to Grounded, Erica held sales and education management roles with various clean cosmetic and skincare brands. Erica has a BA in Fashion + Retail Management from the Art Institute and did a Foundation Year of Art at Otis College of Art + Design in Los Angeles. When not working, you can find Erica listening to a True Crime podcast while whipping up a homecooked, plant-based meal, caring for her dozens of plants and wirehaired Dachshund, Houdini, or toasting the weekend at her family’s vineyard.

Erica Hays

Kaela Colwell

  • Kaela serves as Associate General Counsel of Grounded Capital. She focuses on legal aspects of the firm’s investment, management, and operations activities. Prior to Grounded, Kaela was an attorney in the ESG & Impact Group of the law firm Kirkland & Ellis LLP. Kaela earned her B.S. in Environmental Economics and Policy and a minor in Public Policy from the University of California, Berkeley in 2012. While at UC Berkeley, Kaela helped found the Berkeley Student Food Collective, a student-run food cooperative focused on providing healthy, sustainable, and affordable food to students and the local community. Kaela earned her J.D. from Georgetown University in 2016. She enjoys swimming, hiking, music, farmers’ markets, and spending time with friends and family.

  • Kwame is responsible for providing legal and transactional support across all of Grounded Capital’s asset classes and transaction types. Kwame has served as a paralegal since 2000, working with companies such as Home Depot, Ross Dress for Less, and Nestlé. Before transitioning to Grounded Capital Kwame ran the contracts department for Brightsource Energy. Kwame attended California State University, Long Beach and the Paralegal Studies program at California State University, East Bay. Outside of work, Kwame enjoys spending time with his wife, playing golf, and being an avid aquarist.

Lauren Morales

Kwame Thompson

  • Lauren serves as the Executive Assistant to the CEO/CIO as well as Grounded Capital’s unofficial cheerleader-in-chief. She coordinates any-and-all details of the day-to-day, and is always happy to volunteer a hand, an ear, or an idea! Lauren comes to Grounded following successful executive support roles in New York at financial institutions including Perry Capital, BlackRock and Fred Alger Management. Lauren received her BA in Cognitive Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, as well as her MA in Behavioral Neuroscience at NYU. She enjoys international travel, baking (i.e., taste-testing desserts!), and hiking off the beaten path with her pup, Winnie- an incredibly brave 11-lb dachshund-mix who is always up for a new adventure.

Marek Zielinski

Michelle Lapidus

  • Marek provides financial reporting and investment tracking services for Grounded Capital’s Investment activities. Prior to his work at Grounded Capital, he worked as a fundraising manager for non-profit NGOs such as the American Civil Liberties Union, the Southern Poverty Law Center, and Planned Parenthood. Marek recently graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a BA in Economics. In his spare time, he likes to play basketball, go camping, and discover new music.

  • Michelle provides support to the Investment, Legal and Finance Teams at Grounded Capital. Prior to joining Grounded, she worked on board relations and governance at the California Academy of Sciences, board management at the Trust for Public Land, fundraising at UCSF, and program management at Community Youth Center. Michelle holds a BA in History and Asian American Studies from San Francisco State University and is passionate about making a positive change for the future. When not in the office, she enjoys dog-friendly outdoor activities with her family and exploring the Bay Area.

Mike Spanton

Nathan Green

  • Nathan is responsible for developing and executing on investment theses across Grounded Capital’s five Areas of Focus as well as supporting the investment team. Nathan has diverse direct investment experience in multiple asset classes including real assets and operating businesses gained from previous roles with a NYSE publicly traded company and a large family office. In addition, he gained operational leadership experience serving as the president of a multi-location agriculture business for 10 years. Nathan graduated with a BCom from the UBC Sauder School of Business, is a Canadian CPA, and a CFA charter holder. He also serves on the board of Bowles Farming Company, a sixth-generation sustainability focused California farming operation. Nathan enjoys music concerts, traveling, getting outdoors, and time with his family.

  • Mike focuses on financial reporting, investment tracking, and accounting services for Grounded Capital’s investment activities and office operations. Prior to Grounded Capital, Mike was the controller of a family office and a fund accountant for Hellman and Friedman LLC. Mike serves as Treasurer and on the Board of Directors of Supplybank.org, a non-profit that uses the food bank model to distribute materials such as school supplies, diapers, and personal protective equipment (PPE) to underserved communities. He is a Certified Public Accountant, and holds a BA from the University of California, Berkeley. In his free time, Mike enjoys backpacking, barbecuing, scary movies, and British baking shows.

Parren James

  • Parren pursues a triple bottom line investment strategy for the real estate platform and engages market participants across product type, geographies, and debt and equity strategies to achieve attractive financial returns and favorable social and environmental outcomes. In past roles, Parren was involved in large commercial office, industrial and multifamily real estate developments, and has worked in asset management, acquisitions and portfolio management roles for MetLife Investment Management and a Chicago-based family office. Parren holds an MBA from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan and a BS in Mathematics from Hampton University. Parren is an active community participant and has served on the Board of Directors of Erasing the Distance, a non-profit focused on mental health awareness, and Aurum Preparatory Academy, a charter school focused on improving educational outcomes in East Oakland.

Paul Cutillo

  • Paul Cutillo focuses on investments in both public and private markets that increase financial inclusion, access to healthcare, and access to education with appropriate risk-adjusted returns. Prior to joining Grounded Capital, he worked in derivative sales primarily marketing equity volatility products and cross-asset quantitative investment strategies. Paul received a BA in Anthropology from the University of California, Los Angeles, an MA in International Economics and Strategic Studies from Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, and is a CFA charterholder. In his free time, Paul enjoys running, hiking, and attempting to win the New Yorker cartoon caption contest.

Solina Kennedy

Stephen Hohenrieder

  • Solina works across Grounded Capital’s investment teams to develop, analyze and communicate our portfolio’s environmental and social investment strategy. Prior to Grounded, Solina served as a sustainability consultant for the United Nations Division for Oceans Affairs and Law of the Sea, and private family foundations. She began her career as a researcher and writer at the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment where she designed impact frameworks and advised policy at the intersection of climate change, decarbonization, food & agriculture, and the renewable energy transition. Solina graduated with Honors from Cornell University. She enjoys spending her free time in the sun - hiking, biking, climbing and surfing.

  • Stephen serves as the CEO and Chief Investment Officer of Grounded Capital, a firm he founded after exploring the role of capital in building the health of diverse systems over fourteen years. He works with our investment teams to build strategies and manage investments across our Five Areas of Focus, is focused on building our organization, and collaborates with aligned partners to pursue ideas and solve problems. Stephen is particularly interested in the opportunity to support the health of people and our planet through food and agriculture, in relationship with capital, the built environment, energy and natural ecosystems. He has invested private capital across different categories of food, from soil to the consumer, over the past decade. For the first part of his career, Stephen invested across a broad range of assets on behalf of family offices and related entities. He graduated from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo with a degree in Agribusiness. Stephen enjoys being outdoors, in the mountains, skiing, hiking, playing tennis, and traveling with his family.

  • Stina joins Grounded with over 25 years of experience in various accounting, finance, and consulting roles. Most recently, Stina served as Controller for Symphony Asset Management in San Francisco, where she oversaw the firm's corporate accounting and finance functions. Prior to joining Symphony, she was a Principal Consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers in its then Investment Management and Securities Operations practice. Stina has also held positions at Wells Fargo Bank and Wells Fargo Nikko Investment Advisors. Stina received a BA in business economics from the University of California, Santa Barbara. As a native Californian, Stina has spent many years exploring the state's natural beauty while hiking, camping, and backpacking. She is also an art enthusiast who enjoys visiting galleries and museums, as well as meandering through city streets admiring architecture.

Vivian Wong

Stina Mans

  • Vivian focuses on asset management of our real estate holdings, integrating our systems-based approach to achieve target social, ecological and financial outcomes. In past roles, Vivian was involved with retail and mixed use developments across the US and Asia Pacific, and has worked in asset management and acquisitions roles for Nuveen Real Estate, OUE and Warburg Pincus. Vivian graduated with Honors from University of Melbourne in urban planning and development. Outside of the office, Vivian can be found working on multiple recipes at home.

William Culler-Chase

  • William focuses on direct investments in food and agriculture that span farmland, processing, and food companies to support the production of food in ways that regenerate living systems and value all stakeholders in the supply chain. Prior to Grounded, William was with PGIM Private Capital where he was responsible for structuring, underwriting, and monitoring private debt and structured equity investments, working with a broad range of food and agriculture-related businesses. Initially based in San Francisco, he relocated to Paris to help expand the firm’s private capital platform in Europe. He began his career in the Real Assets group at Hall Capital Partners in San Francisco. William graduated with Honors from Brown University. Outside of the office, William tries to spend as much time as he can outdoors, preferably on a bike or with Baci, and Luca his Australian Labradoodles.