“I’d always liked the idea of pursuing a career that would have a positive impact on the environment,” he says.
As a law graduate with degrees from Mexico and the US, Patricio spent years practicing law, developing skills, and laying the groundwork for his future career journey.
However, it wasn’t until he decided to pursue an MBA at UBC Sauder School of Business in Canada that he discovered a pathway to combine his skills in law and his passion for sustainability with business.
Embracing change by pursuing an MBA
For Patricio, the decision to enroll in an MBA was never about leaving law behind but rather broadening his career possibilities.
“Law is naturally constrained to the place you’re licensed,” he explains. “I wanted to pursue an MBA to shift my career focus and gain the opportunity to work on sustainable issues and environmental issues on a global scale.”
UBC Sauder (pictured below), with its location in Vancouver—one of the greenest cities in the world—and its focus on ethical leadership and sustainability, provided the ideal foundation for Patricio’s next steps.
"As I was navigating a career shift and looking for an MBA program, UBC Sauder’s focus on sustainability, and its location in Western Canada, drew me to apply,” he explains.
UBC Sauder characterizes their program as one which drives innovation and leads change by educating responsible business leaders.
This is evidenced by the new UBC Sauder MBA Climate Career Track, which offers courses including Climate and Economic Strategy and Impact Investing.
The track is designed to ensure future managers and business leaders understand how climate change impacts organizations, strategies to reduce footprints, and the tools to report on these efforts.
The school’s commitment to sustainability is evident in its ranking: UBC Sauder ranks fourth globally and second in Canada for social and environmental performance, according to the QS World University Rankings.
Developing skills to become a responsible business leader
Throughout his MBA, Patricio developed a host of transferable skills that would contribute to his future success as a responsible business leader.
The program’s case-based, teamwork-oriented approach marked a new learning experience for Patricio.
“Most of my education prior to this program involved being in class and doing lots of reading and writing. But practical learning and working in groups was extremely valuable, because it challenges you on an interpersonal level,” Patricio explains. “You develop a whole range of skills, which later in your career and in life, are essential. That made UBC Sauder unique to me.”
He adds that a pivotal moment for him was the Global Immersion Program, which took him to Israel to study how innovation thrives in resource-limited environments—a concept that would later resonate within his work in Mexico.
“Seeing Israel’s innovative approach to agriculture and water systems was fascinating. Being immersed in the University of Tel Aviv and experiencing such a diverse culture was really valuable.”
He says that the MBA gave him invaluable lessons in problem solving and thinking outside of conventional business solutions.
“It was a very welcoming platform to think outside the box and provide solutions to cases or projects that were bold and creative. Those kinds of ideas were considered and cherished,” he says.
Launching a career in sustainability
After completing his MBA, Patricio’s career trajectory shifted, starting with a role at UBC Sauder’s Centre for Social Innovation and Impact Investing. His focus soon evolved to sustainable agriculture and, ultimately, environmental policy, specifically within carbon markets.
Today, as the director general of Proyecto Chaac, Patricio leads an initiative to conserve the ecosystems in the Yucatán Peninsula.
“I was hired by the government of Yucatán to help leverage climate finance as a means to achieve conservation and restoration outcomes in the state,” says Patricio. “In Yucatán, the ecosystems are extremely valuable, because we have everything from jungles to mangroves to valuable coastlines with incredible degrees of biodiversity.”
In collaboration with Yucatán’s state government, he navigates partnerships across public and private sectors, utilizing the skills he developed at UBC Sauder.
“The UBC MBA made me more flexible in my approach to challenges. It taught me to think beyond strict parameters, which is essential in this work.”
Another valuable element of the UBC MBA which has been crucial to his success is networking.
“The connections I made during my UBC MBA continue to create opportunities,” Patricio shares. “If you approach networking strategically, it expands in ways you wouldn’t expect, leading to second and third-degree contacts that are just as valuable as the ones you make directly.”
For Patricio, UBC Sauder’s MBA offered a path to merge his legal and business skills, allowing him to make a significant impact in a field he’s passionate about.
“It’s safe to say that without the UBC MBA and the doors that UBC Sauder opened, I wouldn't be driving change within carbon markets and the environment.”
