Ely Sandler

Ely Sandler is an expert in climate finance, international policy and development. Based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Sandler is a Fellow at Harvard University, within Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center Science, Technology, and Public Policy Programme.

Ely Sandler’s background is in economics and finance; he served as a senior consultant to the World Bank, and previously worked at Morgan Stanley for nearly a decade across investment banking, capital markets, and senior management. Sandler has extensive experience in Track II diplomacy, using cooperation on issues such as climate change to build links in the Middle East. He has worked in Jordan, Palestine, Israel, Mali and Sudan, and has led private sector infrastructure projects in solar, agriculture and water technology.

In 2022, policy proposals that Ely Sandler developed at Harvard were presented at COP27, with the intention to create a new approach to carbon markets and climate finance. These proposals are now being built upon through institutions such the World Bank and United Nations. The organisations hope to catalyse trillions of dollars of green investment, in part through Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. Sandler’s work in this space has been featured in the Financial Times, Carbon Pulse, and by the London School of Economics. He also serves on the Advisory Board for Carbon Finance for the World Economic Forum.

Ely Sandler graduated with distinction and a first-class degree in Politics, Philosophy & Economics from the University of Oxford. He holds a Master’s in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School, where he received a distinction for his thesis.

In addition to his academic work, Sandler does independent consulting for E.ON, the World Bank, HomeBiogas and EY. He is engaged on topics like climate finance and decarbonisation and is an advisor to two carbon removal startups, Blue Carbon and Bomvento.