Harriet Dwyer

I never really imagined myself working in VC, but I should have. I work at the intersection of social change and business and am a strong believer in the role of business in shaping a thriving and equitable world.

Thankfully, it's becoming clearer  how to do this. Although there's still a lot to be figured out, there is a heartening number of people and products emerging on how to ensure that the work we do today builds for a better tomorrow. My role at AirTree is about bringing this thinking to our team.

Investors are powerful agents of change. Their work requires them to have a vision for the future and work in ways that move them towards it. There can be guesswork in this, especially when it comes to longitudinal cultural and environmental outcomes, but I believe if we are curious, intelligent and kind in our efforts, the arc of history will show that we have done more good than harm. And as proclaimed by English philosopher and logician Carveth Read (not John Maynard Keynes, as people often think), "it is better to be vaguely right than exactly wrong."

When I grow up I want to write children's books. The books we read as kids shape us in a way that adult books don't and I love the challenge of dressing up a meaningful message in wild characters and rambling illustrations.

Other than obsessing over the state of the world,I get energy from visiting new places (especially wide open ones), love baking for birthdays, get sucked into books easily and am a fiend for quality time with friends and family.