Natural Capital Investment: What Happens Beyond Timber and Carbon Objectives with Cakey Worthington

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Aurora Sustainable Lands

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Today, I'm joined by Cakey Worthington, Senior Vice President of Sustainability and Natural Capital at Aurora Sustainable Lands. In this conversation, Cakey explains how Aurora has evolved from a carbon-focused investment strategy into a broader natural capital approach—one that values biodiversity, water, recreation, and other ecosystem services alongside financial returns. We discuss why carbon stewardship is replacing carbon maximization, how active forest management can strengthen both ecological resilience and long-term investment performance, and what investors should look for when evaluating natural capital asset managers. Cakey also shares how Aurora integrates field data, AI, remote sensing, and biodiversity monitoring across 1.65 million acres of forestland and why partnerships, transparency, and measurable outcomes will shape the future of institutional forest investment.

"Our investors didn't invest in a fund—they invested in Aurora. That gives us the freedom to think beyond short-term returns and make management decisions that improve forest health, carbon outcomes, and ecosystem value for decades."

0:00 – Intro & favorite tree (the American white oak)

2:48 – Cakey's background and Aurora's origin story

8:01 – Investor profile and company structure

10:49 – From carbon strategy to natural capital

13:27 – What "natural capital" signals for the industry

16:56 – Harvesting operations and the evolving carbon strategy

19:42 – What to look for in a natural capital asset manager