Damming Rivers

About this episode

This year, the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference being held in Egypt will focus on Just Transitions. Looking at this through the vital importance of water and rivers, we ask: what are we transitioning towards and is there such a thing as a just transition?

We bring a special on-location interview recorded at the ‘Back to Earth’ exhibition in the Serpentine Gallery London, where Colombian multidisciplinary artist Carolina Caycedo presented the project ‘Be Dammed’ together in a conversation with Mary Therese Barton, Equity Partner and Head of Emerging Market Fixed Income at Pictet Asset Management. The discussion covered the wider relationship to water as a society, the role of foreign investment in developing countries, and the value of conferences like COP-27 to tackle these issues.

Featured in this episode

Carolina Caycedo

Carolina Caycedo is an artist researching community-led alternative energy production across the Americas. Caycedo's art practice is based on environmental research focusing on the future of shared resources, environmental justice, energy transition and cultural biodiversity. Her work has been shown in museums around the world, including in several international biennales, such as the 2019 Chicago Architecture Biennial, 2018 Hammer Museum “Made in L.A.” biennial, 2016 São Paulo Art Biennial, 2010 Pontevedra Biennial, 2009 Havana Biennial, 2009 San Juan Polygraphic Triennial, 2006 Whitney Biennial, and 2003 Venice Biennale.

Mary-Therese Barton

Mary-Therese Barton is Head of Emerging Market Debt at Pictet Asset Management. She joined Pictet Asset Management in 2004 and is the Head of Emerging Debt. Before taking up her current position in 2018, she was a Senior Investment Manager in the team. She joined as an Emerging Debt Analyst. Prior to joining Pictet she worked at Dun & Bradstreet, where she was an economist responsible for analysing European countries. Mary-Therese graduated with a BA (Hons) in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from Balliol College, Oxford. She also holds an MSc with distinction in Development Finance from the Centre for Financial Management Studies, SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies), part of the University of London. She is also a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder. Mary-Therese is a Trustee and co-Chair of the Finance Committee of the 500-year old Cloudesley Charity, which supports vulnerable people in the London Borough of Islington.