Sarah Kelley

Sarah Kelley is the Managing Director of the Fibers Fund, a catalytic debt fund designed to facilitate the investment of financial capital into a regenerative U.S. natural fiber and textile industry, with a specific focus on economic justice. Sarah spearheaded the background research for the Fund's development and has collaboratively led its development and operations since then, working alongside a 100% women-led governance team dedicated to increasing access to capital for farmers, ranchers, and processors in this overlooked sector. With its values-based governance structure and focus on underserved entrepreneurs, the Fibers Fund has been named to the Transformative 25, a list of funds “transforming finance for people and planet.”

Sarah is also the founder of Common Threads Consulting, where she works with philanthropic funders and impact investors to provide cross-sector strategy development, research, and facilitation. She specializes in mobilizing integrated grants and impact investments to combat extractive industries and create more just, equitable, and sustainable alternatives, and she brings particular expertise at the intersection of regenerative agriculture, petrochemicals, textiles, and toxics. Her consulting work also includes leadership of a private foundation focused on reducing harmful chemicals and increasing the supply of safer alternatives, where she applies crossover financing strategies to highlight risks and opportunities for funders and investors. 

Sarah holds an M.S. in Plant and Soil Science from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and a B.A. in History from Yale. She was selected as a 2018 Just Economy Institute Fellow and is an active speaker and collaborator in national efforts to advance regenerative finance.