Emily Channon

I am British but have lived in Georgia since 1996 and only went back to London for a few years to get my bachelor’s degree. I am bilingual in Georgian and English and, in addition, I have a good working knowledge of Russian. Furthermore, I have gained all of my working experience in the Caucasus region.

As the Operations Officer of Gazelle Finance, I am in charge of several areas and cover a broad scope of responsibilities in Georgia and Armenia. I serve as the Fund’s Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) and AML/KYC Compliance Officer. I am also Head of the Fund’s Capacity Development Facility and Development Impact. On a daily basis, I participate in positively impacting my society by focusing on investments in the region, achieving greater import substitution, investing in companies that generate new jobs, empowering women by hosting events to demonstrate that women are a better credit risk and have a higher level of emotional intelligence, which is why Gazelle Finance would benefit from having more female-owned investments in our portfolio, identifying environmental risks and implementing wastewater treatment plans and implementing energy-efficient equipment to make companies more sustainable. These activities align with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and help my adopted country to address the global challenges prevalent in countries of the Former Soviet Union, such as poverty, inequality and environmental degradation. Giving something back is a core value of mine. My favorite part of my job is being able to create and achieve impact. On a daily basis, I look at Gazelle Finance’s portfolio companies through the sustainable development goals lens and evaluate where the company is in terms of sustainability. I have the ability to identify areas for improvement in terms of the environment, health and safety and corporate governance and am able to address these issues through the Capacity Development Program.

In my free time, I love spending time with family and friends. I love hiking with my dogs, skiing, swimming, yoga and horse riding.