JMH Advisory · UAE

Real impact,
measured like science.

JMH Advisory helps institutions close the gap between reported sustainability and real outcomes, so the work holds up in front of stakeholders, investors, and time.

Our services

Much of what passes for sustainability today
is output-counting.

Frameworks applied, KPIs reported, SDGs mapped. The harder questions — what changed, for whom, and would it have happened anyway — are where credible work begins. That conviction shapes every practice below. The work begins with measurement: evidence for where sustainability genuinely matters, what it costs to ignore, and how it can be built to work in harmony with operations rather than against them, sharpening efficiency instead of adding overhead.

01

ESG Strategy & Transformation

For organisations whose ESG position now affects cost of capital, procurement eligibility, and investor access. From gap assessment to governance design and active rating management, these are positions built to withstand rating-agency and investor scrutiny, because they rest on evidence rather than assertion.

  • Materiality assessments & stakeholder engagement
  • Multi-year ESG strategy & roadmapping
  • Governance design: KPIs, ownership & escalation
  • Rating strategy and end-to-end process management: MSCI, Sustainalytics, CDP
  • Framework readiness: GRI, SASB, TCFD, IFRS S1/S2
02

Climate Risk & Sustainable Finance

Climate risk integration that asks what the label actually depends on. Screening frameworks, due diligence, and portfolio monitoring built on explicit assumptions and aligned with emerging disclosure standards, so a "green" classification means what it claims to.

  • Climate risk screening for funds & portfolios
  • Green bond & ESG-eligible investment due diligence
  • Portfolio monitoring for material climate risk
  • IFRS S1/S2 readiness & implementation
  • PCAF-aligned climate risk integration across lending & investment portfolios
03

Impact Measurement & Market Intelligence

Impact measurement that asks whether capital reached where it wouldn't otherwise have gone, not only whether the KPIs were reported. For impact funds, DFIs, and organisations building investment strategies: market sizing, fund positioning, and measurement frameworks designed around additionality rather than optics.

  • Impact fund landscape analysis & benchmarking
  • Impact measurement: IRIS+, SDGs, theory of change
  • Market sizing & sector opportunity analysis
  • Technology readiness & policy landscape assessment
  • Market entry analysis: opportunity sizing, regulatory landscape & competitive positioning
04

AI Deployment & Operational Intelligence

Measurement is only credible if it's continuous, yet most organisations still run sustainability, reporting, and core operations on spreadsheets and inboxes. This practice deploys AI where it creates real leverage: automating data collection and monitoring, surfacing risk in real time, and removing the manual overhead that slows decisions. It starts with climate and sustainability workflows and extends to the wider operations they sit inside.

  • Process audit: identifying high-cost manual workflows and automation opportunities
  • Agentic workflow design across sustainability, reporting, and operational functions
  • Climate risk monitoring automation: real-time screening and portfolio-level alerts
  • Impact and ESG data automation: collection, aggregation, and analysis at scale
  • Team enablement: building internal capability rather than dependency
How we work

Three ways to work
with JMH Advisory.

Each engagement is scoped to where you are — a first audit, a strategy partnership, or a fully integrated advisory relationship. Every engagement starts with a no-commitment scoping call.

ESG Compliance Audit Project engagement

Know where you stand.

For organisations starting their ESG journey or preparing for regulatory or investor scrutiny. Delivers a clear picture of current position, what's required, and where to move first.

  • Materiality assessment against GRI / SASB / TCFD / IFRS S1&S2
  • Gap analysis vs. applicable regulatory frameworks (CBUAE, SCA, MAS, SFDR)
  • Prioritised ESG roadmap — 12–24 months
  • Board-ready summary report
Enquire →
ESG Strategy & Implementation Retainer partnership

Embed, not just report.

For organisations ready to move from compliance to strategy — embedding ESG into operations, governance, and investor reporting with ongoing programme management.

  • ESG programme management and accountability
  • KPI design, governance framework, and ownership structure
  • Rating agency management — MSCI, Sustainalytics, CDP
  • Reporting support — GRI, SASB, TCFD, IFRS S1/S2
  • Monthly progress review with leadership
Enquire →
Full Strategic Advisory Senior retainer partnership

Institution-grade,
without the hire.

For family offices, asset managers, and listed companies that need a senior ESG partner integrated into leadership — strategy, investor relations, and business development.

  • Everything in ESG Strategy & Implementation
  • Portfolio-level climate risk screening and IFRS S2 readiness
  • Green bond / sustainable finance structuring support
  • Impact measurement — IRIS+, SDGs, theory of change
  • AI workflow design for ESG and compliance operations
  • Two senior advisory sessions per month
  • Investor and LP-facing ESG materials
Enquire →

All engagements start with a no-commitment 30-minute scoping call. Bespoke mandates available — get in touch.

Selected engagements

Outcomes, in practice.

Every engagement is built to withstand the questions that follow it — from stakeholders, investors, boards, and time. The work spans financial services, energy and marine, aviation, construction and engineering, manufacturing, and impact investing, across the GCC, Southeast Asia, and beyond.

Research & Publications

The standard behind the work.

Over five years of research at the frontier of materials innovation: developing smart and functional materials capable of harvesting energy, responding to environmental stimuli, and converting physical inputs into measurable outputs. The work spans characterization, computational modelling, rapid prototyping, and real-world application, and is published in the field's foremost scientific journals, including the Journal of the American Chemical Society, PNAS, and Chemical Society Reviews.

That depth of technical rigour is the foundation of how JMH Advisory works.

1,565
Total citations
13
h-index
13
i10-index
The Rise of the Dynamic Crystals
Journal of the American Chemical Society · 142(31) · 2020
P. Naumov, D.P. Karothu, E. Ahmed, L. Catalano, P. Commins, J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
424 citations
Mechanical Properties and Peculiarities of Molecular Crystals
Chemical Society Reviews · 52(9) · 2023
W.M. Awad, D.W. Davies, D. Kitagawa, J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
357 citations
Spatial Photocontrol of the Optical Output from an Organic Crystal Waveguide
Journal of the American Chemical Society · 141(38) · 2019
J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
133 citations
Global Analysis of the Mechanical Properties of Organic Crystals
Angewandte Chemie International Edition · 61(10) · 2022
D.P. Karothu, J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
124 citations
Performance of Molecular Crystals in Conversion of Light to Mechanical Work
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · 118(5) · 2021
J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
117 citations
Global Performance Indices for Dynamic Crystals as Organic Thermal Actuators
Advanced Materials · 32(20) · 2020
D.P. Karothu, J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
98 citations
Martensitic Organic Crystals as Soft Actuators
Chemical Science · 10(31) · 2019
L. Li, P. Commins, M.B. Al-Handawi, D.P. Karothu, J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
83 citations
Exceptionally High Work Density of a Ferroelectric Dynamic Organic Crystal around Room Temperature
Nature Communications · 13 · 2022
D.P. Karothu, R. Ferreira, G. Dushaq, E. Ahmed, L. Catalano, J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
58 citations
Photomechanical Crystals as Light-Activated Organic Soft Microrobots
Journal of the American Chemical Society · 146(44) · 2024
I. Tahir, E. Ahmed, D.P. Karothu, F. Fsehaye, J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
53 citations
Elastic Organic Crystals as Bioinspired Hair‐Like Sensors
Angewandte Chemie International Edition · 62(9) · 2023
S. Yousuf, J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
47 citations
Intersectional Effects of Crystal Features on the Actuation Performance of Dynamic Molecular Crystals
Journal of the American Chemical Society · 145(22) · 2023
J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
26 citations
Ultrafast, Light, Soft Martensitic Materials
Advanced Functional Materials · 32(23) · 2022
E. Ahmed, D.P. Karothu, A. Slimani, J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
26 citations
Microelectromechanical Devices Driven by Thermosalient Effects
Cell Reports Physical Science · 3(10) · 2022
J. Mahmoud Halabi, et al.
17 citations
Jad Mahmoud Halabi, Founder — JMH Advisory

Jad Mahmoud Halabi · Founder, JMH Advisory

About JMH Advisory

Why this firm exists.

I came to this work from an unusual direction. I spent five years as a doctoral researcher in materials science, building and stress-testing models, and that training left me with one instinct above all others: the ability to tell a real result from an artefact of methodology. When I look at a thesis, a strategy, or an impact claim, I want to know what assumptions it depends on, what the counterfactual looks like, and where the framework might be flattering the outcome.

I carry that instinct into sustainability and climate work because the field needs it. Much of what passes for ESG and impact today is output-counting: frameworks applied, KPIs reported, SDGs mapped. The harder questions — whether anything actually changed, for whom, and whether it would have happened anyway — are too often left underexamined. That gap, between what gets measured and what truly matters, is where I believe the most important work sits.

So this firm begins with measurement and evidence: showing where sustainability genuinely matters to a business, what it costs to ignore, and how it can be built to work in harmony with operations rather than against them. Done well, this is no compliance burden. It sharpens efficiency, clarifies risk, and earns the credibility that mobilises capital. Increasingly, it also means bringing better instruments to the work — including AI — to keep performance honest year-round instead of reconstructed once for a report.

I've been fortunate to work across financial institutions, energy, aviation, manufacturing, and impact investing, with deep experience in the GCC and Southeast Asia and an outlook that isn't bound to either. Across all of it, my conviction holds: rigour and imagination are not opposites. The discipline to measure precisely is what makes it possible to deploy boldly. That is the work I want to do, and the standard I want JMH Advisory to be known for.

— Jad Mahmoud Halabi, Founder

Five years of doctoral research at NYU, published in JACS, PNAS, and Chemical Society Reviews. Prior experience at Investcorp and YCP Renoir's Sustainability & Climate Change Practice. JMH Advisory is based in the UAE.

Get in touch

Let's talk.

JMH Advisory takes on a focused number of engagements each year. If you're facing a sustainability challenge, evaluating climate-related risk, building an impact strategy, or looking at where AI can carry real operational weight, we'd welcome the conversation.

Or reach us directly: jad.mahmoudhalabi@jmh-advisory.com