Speakers
A cross-section of global business, sustainability, and civil society leaders will share their creative ideas and practical solutions for a sustainable world. Please check back again for further updates on our program and speakers.
Plenary Speakers
Keynote Speaker
Former U.S. Vice President, Chairman
Generation Investment Management
Al Gore
Former U.S. Vice President, Chairman, Generation Investment Management
Former Vice President Al Gore is a co-founder and chairman of Generation Investment Management. He is a senior partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and a member of Apple, Inc.’s board of directors. Gore is also chairman of The Climate Reality Project, a nonprofit organization devoted to solving the climate crisis. Gore was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1976, 1978, 1980, and 1982 and to the U.S. Senate in 1984 and 1990. He was inaugurated as the 45th vice president of the United States on January 20, 1993, and he served eight years. He is the author of the best-sellers Earth in the Balance, An Inconvenient Truth, The Assault on Reason, Our Choice: A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis, and, most recently, The Future: Six Drivers of Global Change. He is the subject of an Oscar-winning documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, and a new film premiering in July 2017, An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power. Gore is the co-recipient, with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize, for “informing the world of the dangers posed by climate change.”
Keynote Speaker
President
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Planned Parenthood Action Fund
Cecile Richards
President, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Planned Parenthood Action Fund
Cecile Richards is a nationally respected leader in the field of women’s health and reproductive rights who leads a movement that has worked for more than 100 years to build a healthier and safer world for women and teens. Every year, approximately 650 Planned Parenthood affiliate health centers nationwide provide healthcare services to 2.5 million patients, and sex education and outreach to 1.5 million people. Since joining Planned Parenthood in 2006, Richards has expanded its advocacy for access to healthcare and ensured that Planned Parenthood played a pivotal role in shaping healthcare coverage and services for women under the Affordable Care Act. In 2011, she led an unprecedented nationwide campaign to preserve access to Planned Parenthood preventive care through federal programs. Under her leadership, the number of Planned Parenthood supporters has more than doubled, reaching 10 million. Previously, Richards served as deputy chief of staff for House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi.
Brad Smith
President and Chief Legal Officer, Microsoft
Brad Smith is Microsoft’s president and chief legal officer. In this role, Smith is responsible for the company’s corporate, external, and legal affairs. He leads a team of more than 1,300 business, legal, and corporate affairs professionals working in 55 countries. These teams are responsible for the company’s legal work, its intellectual property portfolio, patent licensing business, corporate philanthropy, government affairs, public policy, corporate governance, and social responsibility work. He is also Microsoft’s chief compliance officer. Smith plays a key role in representing the company externally and in leading the company’s work on a number of critical issues including privacy, security, accessibility, environmental sustainability, and digital inclusion, among others. Smith joined Microsoft in 1993, and before becoming general counsel in 2002, he spent three years leading the Legal and Corporate Affairs (LCA) team in Europe, then five years serving as the deputy general counsel responsible for LCA’s teams outside the United States.
Kate E. Brandt
Lead for Sustainability, Google
Kate Brandt leads sustainability across Google’s worldwide operations and products. In this role, she works with Google’s data centers, real estate, supply chain, and product teams to ensure the company is capitalizing on opportunities to strategically advance sustainability and circular economy. Previously, Brandt served as the United States’ first federal chief sustainability officer. In this capacity, she was responsible for promoting sustainability across federal government operations, including 360,000 buildings, 650,000 vehicles, and US$445 billion annually in purchased goods and services. Prior to the White House, Brandt held several senior roles in U.S. federal government, including senior advisor at the Department of Energy, director for energy and environment in the White House Office of Presidential Personnel, and energy advisor to the secretary of the Navy. She is the recipient of the Distinguished Public Service Award, the highest award the U.S. Navy can give to a civilian, for her work helping the Navy go green. Outside Magazine also named her, in honor of the magazine’s 40-year anniversary, as one of 40 women who has made the biggest impact on our world.
Plenary Spotlight Speaker
Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Sustainability Officer
Morgan Stanley
Audrey Choi
Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Sustainability Officer, Morgan Stanley
Audrey Choi is chief marketing officer and chief sustainability officer of Morgan Stanley. As chief marketing officer, Choi is responsible for stewarding the brand to reflect the firm's core values of leading with integrity and exceptional ideas across its businesses and geographies. As chief sustainability officer, she oversees the firm's efforts to promote global sustainability through the capital markets. In a career spanning the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, Choi has become a thought leader on how finance can be harnessed to address community concerns and global challenges. Previously, Choi held senior policy positions in the Clinton Administration, including serving as chief of staff of the Council of Economic Advisers and domestic policy advisor to the vice president. She was also a foreign correspondent and bureau chief at The Wall Street Journal.
Aron Cramer
President and CEO, BSR
Aron is recognized globally as a preeminent authority on sustainable business. In addition to leading BSR, which has grown substantially throughout his tenure as President and CEO, Aron advises senior executives at BSR’s more than 250 member companies and other global businesses on the full spectrum of social and environmental issues.
Aron joined BSR in 1995 as the founding director of its Business and Human Rights Program, and later opened BSR's Paris office in 2002, where he worked until becoming President and CEO in 2004. Aron serves on advisory boards to CEOs at Barrick Gold, Marks & Spencer, SAP, and Unilever North America, and he facilitates the AXA CEO advisory panel. He is also a director of the Natural Capital Coalition and We Mean Business as well as a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on the Future of Consumption. He is co-author of the book Sustainable Excellence: The Future of Business in a Fast-Changing World, which spotlights innovative sustainability strategies that drive business success.
Prior to joining BSR, Aron practiced law in San Francisco, and worked as a journalist at ABC News in New York.
Bob Dunn
Former President and CEO, Synergos Institute
Bob Dunn, previous president and CEO of BSR, has served in leadership positions in the private, public, and independent sectors, most recently as president and CEO of the Synergos Institute. Dunn has also worked as a corporate vice president at Levi Strauss & Co., a senior aide to U.S. President Carter in the White House, an advisor to the U.S. ambassador to Mexico, and as chief of staff and budget director for a Wisconsin governor. He has been a lecturer in the M.B.A. program at Stanford University and a dean and lecturer in political science at Wesleyan University and is currently a guest lecturer in the Master's program at Glasgow Calidonian University. He is also an executive coach and mentor for executives, social entrepreneurs, and philanthropists.
Special Presenter Speaker
Photographer, National Geographic
Founder and Executive Director, Ripple Effect Images
Annie Griffiths
Photographer, National Geographic, Founder and Executive Director, Ripple Effect Images
One of the first women photographers to work for National Geographic, Annie Griffiths has photographed in nearly 150 countries during her illustrious career and has worked on dozens of magazine and book projects for National Geographic. Griffiths’ work has also appeared in Fortune, GEO, LIFE, Smithsonian, and Stern, among other publications. In addition to her magazine work, Griffiths is deeply committed to photographing for aid organizations around the world. She is the founder and executive director of Ripple Effect Images, a collective of photographers who document programs that empower women and girls in the developing world. Ripple has produced 26 films and built a photo library of more than 20,000 images since 2010. Using these assets, Ripple’s aid beneficiaries have raised more than 10 million U.S. dollars, expanded their programs to multiple countries, and proven that women and girls are the best investment the world can make in our shared future.
Dakota Gruener
Executive Director, ID2020
Dakota Gruener is the Executive Director of ID2020, a public-private partnership working to ensure that everyone on the planet has access to a digital identity. As executive director, she leads overall strategy, builds critical partnerships with public- and private-sector stakeholders, and continually focuses the organization on reaching “the last girl." Dakota comes to ID2020 from Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance (Gavi), where she served as an Executive Officer working directly with the CEO. Gavi is an innovative global public-private partnership that acts as the central coordinating body for childhood vaccinations in the developing world, and which reaches nearly 60 percent of the world's children with life-saving vaccines.
Chhavi Guiliani
Associate Director, BSR
Chhavi Ghuliani brings critical leadership to BSR, with a particular emphasis on sustainability in emerging markets. He leads BSR’s HERfinance program, a cross-sector initiative that aims to build the financial capability of low-income workers in global supply chains through education and access to appropriate financial services. Chhavi manages the program in India and its expansion to other countries in Asia and Latin America. Prior to joining BSR, he worked for a socially responsible investment firm, where he combined financial and environmental, social, and governance analysis to make sustainable investment recommendations. He also spent several years as an operations manager for Oracle’s Asia-Pacific and Americas regions, opening a new operation in India.
Kara Hurst
Worldwide Sustainability, Amazon
Kara Hurst leads Worldwide Sustainability at Amazon. Utilizing Amazon's scale, speed, and innovation, Sustainability at Amazon includes core teams focused on packaging innovation, renewable energy, energy efficiency, circular economy, social responsibility and human rights, sustainability science and innovation, sustainability technology, partnerships and external engagement, and sustainable transportation. Prior to Amazon, Hurst served as CEO of The Sustainability Consortium and as a Vice President of BSR for 11 years, where she built global industry practices in technology, pharmaceuticals, hospitality, and entertainment. Prior to BSR, Hurst worked in Silicon Valley as executive director of the public-private venture OpenVoice, in corporate affairs for the Children’s Health Council, as a research lead at the Urban Institute, and as a policy staffer for both Mayor Willie Brown of San Francisco and the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan of New York.
Stephen Kaufer
President and CEO, TripAdvisor
Steve Kaufer cofounded TripAdvisor in 2000 with the mission to help travelers around the world plan and book the perfect trip. Under his leadership, TripAdvisor has grown into the largest travel site in the world. As CEO, Kaufer has led the growth of TripAdvisor, Inc., which includes 24 other travel media brands that operate in 48 markets worldwide. Prior to cofounding TripAdvisor, he was president of CDS, Inc., an independent software vendor, and prior to that, was cofounder and vice president of engineering of CenterLine Software. Kaufer holds several software patents and has won a number of awards for his entrepreneurship and leadership in the travel industry, including being inducted into the 2015 British Travel and Hospitality Hall of Fame and receiving the 2015 Pioneer Award by the International Society of Hospitality Consultants and 2005 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.
Neal Keny-Guyer
Chief Executive Officer, Mercy Corps
Since 1994, Neal Keny-Guyer has served as chief executive officer of the global humanitarian organization Mercy Corps. Under his leadership, Mercy Corps has grown into one of the most respected international relief and development agencies in the world, with ongoing operations in more than 40 countries, a staff of nearly 5,000, and global revenue of roughly US$450 million. Fast Company ranked Mercy Corps one of the most innovative social-change organizations in the world and New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof calls Mercy Corps “a first-rate aid group.” A former trustee of the Yale Corporation, Keny-Guyer remains very involved with the University, serving on the Yale President’s Council on International Affairs and the Board of Advisors of the Yale School of Management. He is chairman of the board of InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.-based international NGOs; a member of the Council on Foreign Relations; and a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on the Humanitarian System.
Plenary Panel Speaker
Vice President, Sustainability
Levi Strauss & Co.
Michael Kobori
Vice President, Sustainability, Levi Strauss & Co.
Michael Kobori has led sustainability at Levi Strauss & Co. since 2001. In this role, he is responsible for the company’s sustainability vision and strategy across all business functions. Under Kobori’s tenure, Levi Strauss & Co. has been an industry leader in sustainability, pioneering initiatives such as the rollout of Water Less production techniques, reducing water use by more than 2 billion liters to date; growth of Better Cotton to 21 percent of all the company’s cotton usage; development of a hazard-based Screened Chemistry Framework; expansion of Worker Well-Being programs to more than 100,000 workers; and inclusion of Care for the Planet™ labels on all products. Previously, Kobori was a vice president at BSR and spent nearly 10 years at The Asia Foundation.
Nancy McFadden
Executive Secretary, Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown
Nancy McFadden has served as executive secretary for Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. since 2011—the title in law for the chief of staff position. Throughout her career, McFadden has served as a key legal, political, and policy official at both the federal and state levels, as well as in the private sector. McFadden was a senior vice president for Pacific Gas and Electric Corporation. A high-ranking member of the Clinton Administration for eight years, McFadden served as deputy chief of staff to Vice President Al Gore, general counsel for the U.S. Department of Transportation, and deputy associate attorney general for the U.S. Department of Justice.
Aditi Mohapatra
Director, Women’s Empowerment, BSR
Aditi works with BSR members across sectors to help them improve and advance their sustainability strategies. She leads BSR’s global portfolio of work on women’s empowerment, across consulting, collaboration, and research.<?p>
Aditi joined BSR after several years at Calvert Investment Management, a leading sustainable and responsible investment firm. There, she led strategic planning for Calvert’s executive committee and held various roles within the sustainability research team. Her portfolio included companies in the information and communications technology sector, and she led corporate engagements on the subjects of gender corporate governance and gender equality, including the advancement of the Calvert Women’s Principles.
Peter Nestor
Associate Director, BSR
Peter leads BSR’s consulting and collaborative initiative efforts on human rights, including BSR’s cross-industry Human Rights Working Group. He has supported companies through a range of human rights consulting projects, with expertise in the information and communications technology, extractives, food and agriculture, and financial services industries.
Prior to joining BSR, Peter was an attorney at an international law firm based in the United States. He spent significant time in China working as a journalist with the Economist Intelligence Unit and as a freelance strategy consultant in Shanghai.
Jacob Park
Director, Sustainable Futures Lab, BSR
Jacob leads BSR’s work on sustainable futures, a new practice using strategic foresight techniques to help businesses engage with emerging issues that are reshaping the global landscape.
Before joining BSR, Jacob was the lead futurist in the New York office of Forum for the Future, where he used scenario planning and other futures techniques to develop sustainability strategy and drive innovation for leading businesses, foundations, and multistakeholder groups. Prior to that, he worked at Adaptive Edge, a boutique strategic foresight consultancy, on collaborative scenario planning. Jacob began his career doing human rights research and advocacy at Human Rights First and the Center for Economic and Social Rights.
Plenary Panel Speaker
Executive Vice President, Sustainability and President
Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth
Shamina Singh
Executive Vice President, Sustainability and President, Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth
Shamina Singh is the executive vice president of sustainability at Mastercard and president of the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth. In this role, she is responsible for advancing equitable economic growth and financial inclusion around the world. Previously, Singh was Mastercard’s global director of government services and solutions, where she worked to digitize social subsidy programs in more than 40 countries. In 2015, she was appointed by the U.S. President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate to a six-year term to the board of the Corporation for National and Community Service. Prior to joining Mastercard, Singh led government and public affairs for Nike and spent five years with Citi’s Global Community Development Group. Over a 15-year career in the public sector, Singh has held senior positions in the White House and the U.S. House of Representatives.
David Wei
Director, Climate, BSR
David leads BSR’s climate practice to maximize the impact of BSR’s applied research, collaborative initiatives, and work with individual companies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and build climate resilience. He is also the international policy lead for the We Mean Business coalition.
Before joining BSR, David was a climate diplomat for the Marshall Islands with the advisory group Independent Diplomat and led on transparency issues in the UN climate negotiations for the Alliance of Small Island States. As an international lawyer with the Foundation for International Environmental Law and Development, David built up the environmental treaty expertise of countries across the globe. He began his career as a securities litigator with Fried Frank in New York before focusing on climate change and energy.
Plenary Panel Speaker
Executive Secretary-General, Alliance of Green Consumption and Green Supply Chain, China
Chief Representative, The Sustainability Consortium
Wei Dong Zhou
Executive Secretary-General, Alliance of Green Consumption and Green Supply Chain, China, Chief Representative, The Sustainability Consortium
Wei Dong Zhou is responsible for setting the strategic direction of all of The Sustainability Consortium's projects in China as chief representative. He has also been newly selected as executive secretary-general of the Alliance of Green Consumption and Green Supply Chain in China. Zhou has more than 20 years of experience in Chinese government, nonprofit organization management, CSR and sustainability strategy, philanthropy, the state owner sector, and multinational companies. Prior to joining The Sustainability Consortium, Zhou worked for a private foundation in China as general manager for one year, and for seven years prior to that, worked as BSR's China Country Director. At BSR, he founded offices in Beijing and Guangzhou and provided advice and counsel to BSR's member companies and their sustainable supply chain partners.
Session Speakers
Eric Anderson
Senior Consultant, Group Corporate Affairs, BT
Eric Anderson works at the forefront of responsible and sustainable business transformation in BT, one of the world’s leading communications services companies operating in over 180 countries. He identifies and champions emerging issues and innovations into the business for action and ownership. With a stakeholder-centric and data-driven focus, human rights and the role of technology in tackling modern slavery have been a key part of his recent work. Anderson has been involved with the design, development, and delivery of sustainable business for over 10 years and digital technology for over 20 years.
Juliet Barbara
Communications Director, Wikimedia Foundation
Juliet Barbara is the communications director at the Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit that supports Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia free knowledge projects. Barbara leads public relations and strategic messaging to amplify the Wikimedia mission, values, and communities worldwide. Barbara is a passionate advocate for free and open information and a believer in the power of communication to affect societal change. Before joining the Wikimedia Foundation, Barbara led communications for GoodData. Prior to GoodData, she held a number of roles at the Horn Group, a technology communications agency. Additionally, she was a contributor at Forbes.com, and worked at Forbes Media in a number of roles.
Ted Bardacke
Director of Infrastructure, Mayor's Office, City of Los Angeles
Ted Bardacke is director of infrastructure for Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and adjunct professor of urban environmental design and planning at UCLA. Bardacke is charged with moving this infrastructure toward a more distributed and sustainable system, in line with the city’s first ever sustainability plan, which Bardacke was instrumental in crafting in his previous role as deputy director of Mayor Garcetti’s Office of Sustainability. Previously, Bardacke worked in the Green Urbanism Program at Global Green USA, and during the 1990s, he was a foreign correspondent for the Financial Times of London. He is co-author with teaching colleague Walker Wells of Blueprint for Greening Affordable Housing.
Rajesh Bilimoria
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Stern School of Business, New York University
Rajesh Bilimoria thrives on the intersection of ideas and is a firm believer in interdisciplinary thinking as a key lever for innovation. He currently teaches innovation and human-centered design as an adjunct faculty member at the New York University Stern School of Business and at Parsons School of Design (The New School). Bilimoria also advises companies about innovation and is an external advisory board member for Vanguard’s Innovation Studio. Previously, Bilimoria spent 11 years as a leader at Continuum, helping clients across sectors address innovation challenges and increase their innovation capability. Prior to joining Continuum, Bilimoria worked at WPP and Ford Motor Company.
Laura Bishop
Chief Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Officer, Best Buy
Laura Bishop is responsible for developing and implementing goals, programming, and policies related to environmental, social, and community initiatives at Best Buy, all aimed at supporting Best Buy’s business and furthering its commitments to the communities where it operates. Bishop’s responsibilities include managing the corporate responsibility; community relations, philanthropy, and volunteerism; and environmental sustainability and compliance divisions. Prior to Best Buy, Bishop spent much of her career in the public sector where she served in public affairs and political assignments for the White House, the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Department of State at the U.S. Embassy in Switzerland, and the State of Minnesota.
Bastian Buck
Director Standards, GRI
Bastian Buck is the director of global reporting standards within GRI and is responsible for all standard-setting activities at the organization. Buck has spent more than a decade with GRI, and in that time he has built extensive experience with the development of the GRI reporting guidance. He played a key role in the successful development and launch of GRI’s G4 Guidelines in 2013. He is also experienced in the moderation of consensus-seeking processes and the facilitation of international multistakeholder expert working group procedures.
Rebecca Burns
Vice President, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Bank of America
Rebecca Burns is part of the debt capital markets group at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where she works to deliver green financing to clients including corporates, supranationals, and government agencies. Her role includes advising issuers on the process and market practices for issuance and connecting with investors in an effort to grow the green bond market. She began her career at the bank in the debt capital markets group and then moved to corporate rates origination. Prior to returning to debt capital markets, Burns spent several years as a member of the XVA trading desk.
Verity Chegar
Vice President, ESG Strategist, BlackRock
Verity Chegar is responsible for global research of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) trends and their implications for investment. Her work informs BlackRock’s Investment Stewardship corporate engagement program. She also works with portfolio managers to integrate ESG factors into investment decision-making within BlackRock's active investment strategies. Prior to joining BlackRock, Chegar worked at Allianz Global Investors as an ESG analyst. Her role included company and policy level engagement, and she also served as chair of the U.S. proxy voting committee. In 2006 she joined the U.S. Large Cap Portfolio Management team at RCM, which later became Allianz Global Investors. Chegar is a member of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB).
Jeff Cohen
Senior Vice President, Xpansiv Data Systems
Jeff Cohen is cofounder and senior vice president at Xpansiv Data Systems, focused on applying advanced technology to incentivize the efficient, sustainable production of energy fuels, agricultural products, and other commodities in global markets. Cohen brings more than 30 years of national and international experience developing and implementing policies designed to protect the environment, including driving initiatives at the U.S. EPA and California Air Resources Board addressing climate change. In 2009, Cohen cofounded EOS Climate, which has delivered millions of cost-effective, verified emissions-reductions to the California cap-and-trade program.
Laurie Counsel
Environmental Strategy & Compliance, Cummins
Laurie Counsel is the environmental relations director at Cummins, where she advances Cummins’ environmental actions and brand through messaging, engagement, marketing, and stakeholder reporting. She is president of the board of Earth Day Indiana, which promotes resource conservation and sustainable living primarily through a one-day festival held each April. She is also on the board of People for Urban Progress, a nonprofit that advances good design and civic sustainability by developing products and projects in connectivity, responsible reuse, and making.
Steve Crown
Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, Microsoft
Steve Crown is vice president and deputy general counsel of human rights at Microsoft Corporation, contributing to development and interpretation of company-wide policies that support advocacy for rule of law and respect for human rights in the conduct of the company’s business across the globe. To advance company and industry initiatives and public-private partnerships to make the global internet safer and more trusted, Crown works closely with colleagues across Microsoft and with external parties—companies, academics, investors, civil society, and governments—throughout the world. In his external engagements, Crown champions principled solutions that meet competing concerns in a manner salutary to evolution of international laws and norms.
Christine Daugherty
Vice President, Global Agronomy Solutions, PepsiCo
Christine Daugherty drives PepsiCo’s short-term approach and long-term strategic direction for their crop science and sustainable agriculture agenda, including delivery against relevant PepsiCo Performance with Purpose 2025 goals. She is focused on external relationships, research management, and internal alignment and execution across various departments including R&D, global procurement, and operations. Prior to PepsiCo, Daugherty worked at Tyson Foods, where she held various roles, most recently vice president of sustainable food production. Her responsibilities included natural resource conservation programs, responsible sourcing, and farm animal well-being, as well as leading the company’s sustainability programs across multiple platforms.
Tanuja Dehne
Senior Advisor for Net-Zero by 2050, The B Team
Tanuja Dehne is a public company director and former C-level executive who brings perspective and experience from her cross-discipline roles to the C-suite and the boardroom. She is on the boards of Advanced Disposal Services and Granite Point Mortgage Trust, and served on the board of Silver Bay Realty Trust Corporation. She was also the former chief administrative officer, chief of staff, and corporate secretary of NRG Energy, Inc. Dehne is an award-winning corporate attorney, human resources professional, and active member of her community, serving on four nonprofit boards, including the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation. Dehne is a senior advisor to The B Team, focusing on the critical role of corporate governance and climate action.
Newton International Fellow and St Edmund Hall Junior Research Fellow
International Migration Institute, University of Oxford
Emre Eren Korkmaz
Newton International Fellow and St Edmund Hall Junior Research Fellow, International Migration Institute, University of Oxford
Since 2016, Emre Eren Korkmaz has worked as a post-doctoral researcher at the International Migration Institute of the University of Oxford. He was also recently appointed as a research fellow at St. Edmund Hall. As a migrant-refugee specialist, Korkmaz works to examine the labor market involvement of Syrian refugees in Turkey. He has contributed to the Ethical Trading Initiative’s Turkey Programme and Business and Human Rights Resource Centre, working with stakeholders in Turkey and providing strategic input on refugees and migrants. Korkmaz has more than 10 years of experience handling industrial relations issues.
Althea Erickson
Head of Global Advocacy and Policy, Etsy
Althea Erickson leads Etsy's efforts to advance public policies that make it easier for Etsy sellers to start and grow their creative businesses. She developed and advanced Etsy’s position on portable benefits and economic security for the self-employed, tax and regulatory simplification, net neutrality, and global trade, among others. Althea leads Etsy's unique strategy of empowering Etsy sellers as advocates for themselves, modeling a mission-driven approach to government relations that uses the power of business as a force for social good. Prior to joining Etsy, Althea was the advocacy and policy director at Freelancers Union. Previously, Althea worked at The Rockefeller Foundation, where she focused on strategies to build economic security within the U.S. workforce.
Daniel Fibiger
Director, Global Sustainability, Gap Inc.
Daniel Fibiger leads Gap Inc.’s global partnerships team, where he is responsible for designing and implementing the company’s stakeholder engagement strategies focused on labor and human rights. In his role on the supplier sustainability team, he helps lead a global field team of approximately 50 specialists who seek to improve working conditions in the facilities that manufacture Gap Inc. branded apparel. Prior to joining Gap Inc., Fibiger was Program Manager at the Responsible Sourcing Network, coordinating a multistakeholder network to end forced child labor in Uzbekistan's cotton sector. He was also a Research Fellow at the International Labor Rights Forum.
Daniella Foster
Senior Director, Global Corporate Responsibility, Hilton
Daniella Foster is a policy innovator and social entrepreneur. She has worked in business, government, and the non-profit sectors leading partnerships and initiatives that grow small/medium enterprises, connect entrepreneurs from around the world, develop youth job skills, and accelerate innovation through crowdfunding. She previously led global corporate affairs and science communications for Mars Symbioscience, the in-house innovation incubator of Mars, Incorporated. Prior to joining Mars, Foster served as director of partnerships at the U.S. Department of State. During her tenure, she served as chief of staff to the Secretary of State’s senior advisor. She co-founded the Emergent Leaders Network, a non-profit that provides community college students with microscholarships and mentoring.
Molly Gavin
Vice President, Government Affairs and Sustainability, Qualcomm
Molly Gavin is Vice President of Government Affairs and Sustainability at Qualcomm Incorporated. In this capacity, Gavin oversees Qualcomm’s sustainability and reporting program, which includes the development and publication of the annual Qualcomm sustainability report. She also directs Qualcomm’s global public policy on privacy, data protection, and sustainability. Additionally, Gavin oversees Qualcomm’s public policy agenda for Japan and Korea on a range of issues including intellectual property and information and communications technology policy. Gavin engages domestic, regional, multilateral and international institutions, trade associations, peer companies, and non-governmental organizations on these policy issues.
Janina Gawler
Vice President, Americas, Communities and Social Performance, Rio Tinto
Janina Gawler is vice president, Americas and leader for communities and social performance with Rio Tinto. Over the past 15 years, Gawler has been involved in the development and implementation of social performance standards and programs across Rio Tinto operations. Gawler provide advice, assurance, and business support on resettlement, land acquisition, community engagement programs, and partnerships to ensure the company’s long-term social licence to operate. Gawler is a director of the Rio Tinto Guinea Foundation, established by Rio Tinto to promote enterprise development for youth and women and to support food security programs, all delivered in partnership with NGOs and Guinean government agencies.
Julie Gehrki
Vice President, Programs, Walmart Foundation
Julie Gehrki serves as vice president of programs for the Walmart Foundation. This team leads philanthropic investments for Walmart and the Walmart Foundation. The Walmart Foundation funds initiatives focused on sustainability, including work on agriculture, hunger, and nutrition; opportunity, including work on women’s economic opportunity, career opportunity, veteran’s support, small business support, and domestic manufacturing; and community, which engages Walmart associates and facilities to make positive change in communities where they live and work. Prior to Walmart, Julie worked in the nonprofit community on issues of anti-racism, homelessness, and community revitalization.
Aleix Gonzalez Busquets
Global Head of External Stakeholder Engagement, Global Sustainability, C&A
Aleix Busquets Gonzalez started working at C&A in October 2014 as the Global Head of External Stakeholder Engagement. Prior to C&A, he worked at Inditex for 10 years, where he gained vast experience working in Supply Chain Management while leading the Inditex Social Compliance program. Since 2013, he has been on the Steering Committee of The Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh.
Kelly Goodejohn
Director, Social Impact and Public Policy, Starbucks
Kelly Goodejohn leads the Starbucks’ strategy and governance of its ethical sourcing programs, including C.A.F.E. Practices for coffee, Cocoa Practices, and Supplier Social Responsibility program for manufactured goods. Goodejohn and her team implement Starbucks ethical sourcing programs throughout the company’s global procurement organization and apply a comprehensive set of environmental, social, and economic best practices to guide the company’s responsible buying practices. The programs focus on continuous improvement and capacity-building, including the Farmer Loans program. Goodejohn and her team engage with many organizations to support the ambition of developing our supplier partners. Goodejohn is a member of the SCAA Sustainability Council and the NCA Sustainability Task Force.
Dakota Gruener
Executive Director, ID2020
Dakota Gruener is the Executive Director of ID2020, a public-private partnership working to ensure that everyone on the planet has access to a digital identity. As executive director, she leads overall strategy, builds critical partnerships with public- and private-sector stakeholders, and continually focuses the organization on reaching “the last girl." Dakota comes to ID2020 from Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance (Gavi), where she served as an Executive Officer working directly with the CEO. Gavi is an innovative global public-private partnership that acts as the central coordinating body for childhood vaccinations in the developing world, and which reaches nearly 60 percent of the world's children with life-saving vaccines.
Catherine Gunsbury
Director, Sustainability and Transparency, General Mills
As director of sustainability and transparency, Catherine oversees strategy for sustainability brand-building and communications, global responsibility reporting, ratings and rankings, and key transparency-related initiatives at General Mills. Gunsbury’s 19-year tenure at General Mills includes experience in classic brand management, new product development, and “front end” innovation. She has worked on iconic, global brands such as Yoplait, Big G Cereals, Nature Valley, and Betty Crocker as well as on heritage brands such as Gold Medal Flour. Prior to General Mills, Gunsbury worked in management consulting and international development.
Angela E. Guy
Senior Vice President, Diversity & Inclusion, L'Oreal USA
Angela Guy is responsible for shaping the diversity efforts for L’Oréal USA as a business imperative that highlights the value of all forms of beauty while respecting and reflecting the differences of our rapidly changing marketplace. She is a member of the L’Oréal USA Strategic, Executive, and Benefits Committees and collaborates to align L’Oréal’s global diversity efforts. Guy reports directly to the president and CEO of L’Oréal USA—prior to this appointment, she was senior vice president, general manager of SoftSheen Carson, a consumer division of L’Oréal USA. Guy also spent 19 years with Johnson & Johnson; three years with Levi Strauss & Co., and three years with Hills Department Store.
Kelly Hampton
Vice President, Corporate Marketing and Global Citizenship, Flex
Kelly Hampton leads global citizenship and sustainability initiatives affecting approximately 200,000 Flex employees and their communities across 30 countries. Under Hampton’s leadership, the Flex Foundation has extended its philanthropic reach, providing high-impact programs and emergency relief services to diverse regions around the world in the aftermath of natural disasters, and Flex has participated in accountability initiatives – like CDP Climate Change and Supply Chain, and Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI). Prior to joining Flex, Hampton led brand experience at HP, Landor Associates, and Shell Oil Company.
Björn Hannappel
Head of Responsibility Strategy and Standards, Deutsche Post DHL Group
Björn Hannappel is heading the responsible strategy and standards team within the central department corporate communications and responsibility of Deutsche Post DHL Group. He is responsible for all strategic projects with regard to the company’s environmental protection program, GoGreen. In addition, he is responsible for the topic of responsible business practice for the group, which includes the areas of governance, people and environment. As a project lead, he developed the new group-wide GoGreen Strategy: Mission 2050 – Zero Emissions. Further topics in his area of responsibility include carbon accounting, environmental rankings and ratings, GoGreen sales support, green policies and guidelines, and stakeholder dialogues.
Laura Hawkesford
Ethical Trading Manager, Marks & Spencer
Laura Hawkesford manages the M&S Clothing and Home global ethical trade program, supporting all sourcing offices in the implementation of compliance, beyond-audit innovations, and community and social development programs. Hawkesford provides insight on risk management and mitigation, emerging trends, and ideas for new innovation to senior leadership committees. Her professional interests are gender empowerment, how to take programs to scale, proving the business case for sustainability, and working with multi-stakeholders on joint collaboration. Before working for M&S, Hawkesford worked for Oxfam as a buyer for commercial product for Oxfam retail shops.
Ash Hegland
Advisor, Sustainability, Swire Properties
Ash Hegland works with Swire Properties to develop its recently launched global sustainable development strategy—SD2030—and its supporting governance system. His work with Swire Properties is focused on building a strategy that both identifies innovation opportunities and mitigates risk across the company’s global assets. Over the past 18 years in the Asia-Pacific region, Hegland has advised blue chip MNC’s on sustainability strategy, ESG risk analysis, and stakeholder management. Based in Hong Kong, Hegland is an active member of the regional sustainability and green finance community. He is also a fellow of the Aspen Institute’s Business and Society program.
John Herzog
Accessibility Solutions Engineer, AT&T
John Herzog is an accessibility solutions engineer in AT&T’s corporate accessibility technology office. He collaborates with project managers and teams throughout the company to insure that AT&T products and services are usable by customers with disabilities. Herzog’s most recent work includes a partnership with DirecTV, where he provided expertise during the design of accessible set-top-boxes and apps for mobile devices.
Ben R. Jordan
Director of Supplier Sustainability, The Coca Cola Company
Ben R. Jordan has held roles at The Coca-Cola Company focused on both internal operational issues and relationship-building with key stakeholders. In his current role, he drives sustainability programs in climate, packaging, and agriculture. Jordan has participated actively in Coca-Cola’s involvement with numerous leading environmental organizations, and he sits on the members council of Bonsucro (the Better Sugarcane Initiative), the board of trustees of The Nature Conservancy in Georgia, and the advisory board of Chattahoochee Riverkeeper. He is a participant in the World Economic Forum’s Food Security and Agriculture partners group and the Consumer Goods Forum Pulp, Paper, and Packaging Working Group. Jordan serves as an educational counselor for MIT, an adjunct instructor at Emory University, and a reviewer for the Journal of Industrial Ecology.
Nicole Karlebach
Global Head, Business and Human Rights, Oath
Nicole Karlebach leads Oath’s efforts to promote privacy and free expression on the internet and to identify innovative solutions to human rights challenges. Previously, Karlebach worked as an attorney at Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP, as an international policy fellow at Human Rights First, and as a human rights consultant to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons. Karlebach has also worked at the UN in the Office of the Legal Counsel and at the State Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Special Department for War Crimes in Sarajevo.
Anne L. Kelly
Senior Director, Policy and BICEP Network, Ceres
Anne L. Kelly is senior director of the policy program at Ceres. She also directs Business for Innovative Climate and Energy Policy (BICEP), a coalition of 41 leading companies including Nike, Starbucks, and eBay seeking to advocate for meaningful climate and energy policy at the federal level. She is a registered lobbyist and is actively engaged on Capitol Hill on behalf of Ceres and BICEP member companies. Kelly is an environmental lawyer with 20 years of combined experience in the private and public sectors. She has worked as special assistant to EPA Region I Administrator John DeVillars and currently serves on the board of the Environmental League of Massachusetts.
Keith Kenny
Global Vice President, Sustainability, McDonald's
Keith Kenny is vice president of sustainability for McDonald’s Corporation. In this role, he supports the company’s sustainability efforts and alignment of business practices and policies to make a positive impact on society. This includes responsibility for setting the global strategy for sustainable sourcing and restaurant sustainability as well as helping coordinate the broader company work around brand trust. Kenny began his career at McDonald’s U.K. in 1989. In 2006, he moved to work for McDonald’s Europe, holding various commercial supply chain responsibilities as well as establishing and leading the McDonald’s Europe sustainability team. In 2015, Kenny joined the global organization in his current function.
Alexander Keros
Manager, Vehicle and Advanced Technology Policy, General Motors
Alex Keros works on advanced technology policy for General Motors (GM). In this role, he is responsible for policy considerations related to GM’s advanced technology programs—including Maven, GM’s urban mobility brand—and the infrastructure necessary to support a broad range of sustainability programs. His goal is to help cities minimize the impacts of transportation while making the vehicle miles driven cleaner and safer. Keros has a unique balance of backgrounds which include project management, energy policy, environmental engineering, and business strategy. In 2016, Keros was named to the inaugural class of Energy Security Fellow for Securing America’s Future Energy (SAFE).
Shira Kilcoyne
Director, Government Affairs, Emerging Markets and Asia-Pacific, GSK
As director of government affairs, emerging markets and Asia-Pacific at GSK, Shira Kilcoyne is responsible for designing and leading integrated public and government affairs programs to support GSK operations in 118 countries outside the U.S. and Europe. Her primary role is to develop partnerships that help achieve GSK’s commitment to improve access to medicines; work with governments to find innovative solutions to provide the best treatments possible for patients; encourage fair, transparent, and pro-innovation regimes; and improve and/or accelerate market access opportunities for GSK products.
Heidi Koester Oliveira
Senior Manager, Global Human Rights, Mars
Heidi Koester Oliveira is a human rights and sustainability professional with 12 years of experience leading initiatives that drive business growth and societal benefit. As the program lead for human rights and sustainable sourcing at Mars Incorporated, Heidi works with procurement teams around the world to design and deploy efforts that improve respect for rights of vulnerable people across key extended agricultural supply chains. Her work addresses forced labor and child labor risks, and she leads engagement with key global partners and coalitions. Previously, at The Coca-Cola Company, Heidi built program and policy efforts across human rights, youth and women’s economic empowerment, and health delivery systems in Africa.
Marlene Kosinski
Associate Director, Genentech
Marlene Kosinski oversees Genentech’s health, wellness, and ergonomics programs. Marlene sits on the Genentech Sustainability Council as the lead of the Well-Being Working Group. This cross-functional group’s charter is to promote and support an inclusive workplace culture of health and well-being. Most recently, Kosinski was a member of a Genentech project leadership team tasked with designing and building a new campus community center based on a vision comprised of four pillars: well-being, sustainability, community, and innovation, as well as incorporating universal and active design. Kosinski is a family nurse practitioner and is board certified as an Occupational Health Nurse Specialist (COHN-S), a Fitwel Ambassador, and a WELL Accredited Professional (AP).
Vivek Krishnamurthy
Clinical Attorney, Cyberlaw Clinic, Harvard Law School
A public international lawyer by background, Vivek Krishnamurthy’s clinical teaching and scholarship focuses on the regulation of the internet as a cross-border phenomenon and on the human rights impacts of internet-based technologies. He advises activists, journalists, governments, and technology companies on the intersection between the internet and human rights. Previously, he clerked for the Hon. Morris J. Fish of the Supreme Court of Canada and currently serves on the board of directors of the Global Network Initiative. Prior to joining the Cyberlaw Clinic, Vivek was an associate in the Corporate Social Responsibility and International Litigation practice groups at Foley Hoag LLP.
Victoria Kumpuris Brown
Senior Program Officer, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Victoria Kumpuris Brown engages business around health at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation by bridging multiple sectors to help children and families lead longer, healthier lives. Most recently, as vice president for Strategic Alliances at the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, Brown led the Alliance in signing a groundbreaking agreement with McDonald’s to increase access to fruits and vegetables and help families make informed choices, and she also negotiated a landmark agreement with large food and beverage companies to reduce beverage calories 20 percent by 2025 for all Americans. Brown also created the Healthier Generation Benefit, a collaborative of more than 20 health insurers and employers extending first-ever health benefits for the prevention and treatment of obesity.
Director, Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability
The Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels Limited
Janice Lao
Director, Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability, The Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels Limited
With more than a decade of experience at the nexus of sustainable and responsible business issues, Janice Lao has worked for blue chip companies, local and national governments, NGOs, and multinational conglomerates in the transport, energy, extractive, consumer, and property sectors. Her expertise lies in embedding and integrating sustainability into the business, rather than just as a traditional add-on, and she has worked on innovative sustainable financing and investment and advised board members and senior management. Her international work experience has taken her around the Asia-Pacific, North American, and European regions.
Peter Leyden
Founder, Reinvent
Peter Leyden is the founder and CEO of Reinvent, a media company that engages top innovators in deep conversations about solving complex challenges and then creates media about their big ideas. He is the host of What’s Now: San Francisco, a monthly event showcasing thought leaders throughout the Bay Area. Leyden is also leading two multiyear projects with Reinvent on the future of work and the future of the sharing economy. Leyden worked for several innovative organizations that helped reinvent the fields of media, politics, and business:, as managing editor at Wired magazine, founding director at the New Politics Institute, and at Global Business Network. Leyden is the coauthor of The Long Boom and What’s Next.
Dax Lovegrove
Global Vice President, Sustainability, Swarovski
Dax Lovegrove is the global vice president of sustainability at Swarovski. He leads on the international strategy for sustainability across the value chain—from implementing supply chain sustainability practices, to inspiring fashion designers, to engaging customers. Previously, he was director of sustainability and innovation at Kingfisher plc, where he worked on all things ‘net positive’ and innovative to progress the sustainability plan across the group. Before that, he led the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) U.K.’s international work with business for more than a decade, developing the organization's strategy for engaging with business and industry on conservation and shifts toward a green economy. He drove the net positive movement forward while also leading WWF’s international Green Game-Changers program, which promotes green business innovation.
Henriette McCool
Senior CSR Officer, QDVC
Henriette McCool manages CSR at QDVC, a construction company in Qatar owned by Qatari Diar and the French major VINCI, which is a member of BSR’s industry-led initiative, Building Responsibly. McCool is responsible for structuring the CSR strategy, tackling risks of forced labor, and carrying out human rights due diligence in the supply chain. In a region where most labor is made up of migrant workers, she worked toward the eradication of illegal recruitment fees in the sourcing countries and the implementation of consultation tools for the workers. She also helped build stakeholder engagement for QDVC and VINCI. Previously, McCool held positions with think tanks, NGOs, and the European Parliament.
Geraldine (Penny) McIntyre
Chair of CSR Committee, PVH Corp.
Penny McIntyre is a senior executive and international business leader with extensive experience living and working abroad at premier consumer packaged goods companies, including Newell Rubbermaid Inc., The Coca-Cola Company, and S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc. Most recently, she was CEO and board member of Sunrise Senior Living, an international elder care residential company. McIntyre sits on the board of directors of PVH Corp., where she chairs the Corporate Social Responsibility Committee, and on the board of Primrose Schools, a private-equity-owned school for early childhood learning. She serves as an advisor to the board at Ocean Spray Cranberry Cooperative, providing council to the owner/grower board members on strategic, marketing, and growth initiatives.
Shaun Mickus
Global Director, Social Business Practices, Global Community Impact, Johnson & Johnson
Shaun Mickus is responsible for driving innovative approaches that leverage Johnson & Johnson business functions and expertise to positively change outcomes of individuals and strengthen communities around the world. He also serves as a point person on the company’s comprehensive commitment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, having led the shaping of this commitment with colleagues across the business. Mickus brings more than 25 years of business experience across multiple disciplines, brands, and corporate initiatives. Just prior to his current role, he worked with senior leaders on shaping and executing the company’s Citizenship & Sustainability portfolio.
Robert Miller
Chief Marketing Officer, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies
Robert Miller is a neuroscientist with more than 15 years of experience in global marketing and operations. He joined Hyperloop Transportation Technologies in 2016 as the head of marketing; he moved quickly to chief marketing officer. As chief marketing officer, Miller leads a global team helping to make Hyperloop a reality worldwide. Prior to Hyperloop, Miller was chief marketing officer and head of Asia Operations for Cotton USA and led a team that spanned 17 offices in over 50 countries, rebranding and relaunching to a modern, digitally-minded consumer. Miller spent more than a decade in Asia and speaks fluent Japanese.
Vice President, Social and Environmental Responsibility
Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition
Bob Mitchell
Vice President, Social and Environmental Responsibility, Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition
As vice president of social and environmental responsibility at the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC), Bob Mitchel leads the strategy development and implementation for environmental and human rights programs for the industry. He is a 16-year veteran of Hewlett Packard and Hewlett Packard Enterprise, with more than 11 years in sustainability. He was most recently the director of global social and environmental responsibility at Hewlett Packard Enterprise, leading a team of professionals in human rights, supply chain responsibility, and conflict minerals, among other issue areas. Mitchel also served on the EICC Board of Directors for nearly four years and was vice chair in 2016.
Noel Morrin
Executive Vice President, Sustainability, Stora Enso Oyj
Noel Morrin began working in sustainability 29 years ago and currently serves as Executive Vice President for Sustainability at Stora Enso. Prior to this, he worked as Group Senior Vice President for Sustainability and Green Support at Skanska AB, and before that he was Group Environment Director at RMC plc. He has also held senior roles at the UK National Environmental Technology Centre, the British NGO Business in the Community, and the global chemical company ICI plc. His resume is full of corporate responsibility “firsts”: He was among the first to work on the business case for corporate environmental responsibility, greening supply chains, investment indices that led to the DJSI and FTSE4Good, and more.
Tam Nguyen
Global Head of Sustainability, Bechtel
Tam Nguyen serves as the corporate manager for sustainability across Bechtel’s core functions and business lines. He directs the formulation and implementation of Bechtel’s sustainability strategy, leads special initiatives, supports project delivery, and manages stakeholder and policy planning on a range of global issues. Tam also serves as vice chair of the corporate responsibility committee of the U.S. Council for International Business, executive officer of Chevron’s Niger Delta Partnership Initiative, and a board member of the Global Engagement Community Resilience Fund. Prior to joining Bechtel, Nguyen worked for Chevron Corporation, the Asian Development Bank in the Philippines, and the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington, D.C.
Robert Nuttall
Partner, Fortitude Partners
Robert Nuttall is internationally recognized for bringing sustainability into mainstream business. He has held senior roles at the BBC, Cable and Wireless, Citibank, GlaxoSmithKline and Marks & Spencer (M&S). While at M&S, he led the team responsible for the development and communication of the company’s sustainability strategy, Plan A. As a consultant, his current work focuses on helping businesses and their brands shape the future by integrating how they create value (their strategy), what they stand for (their purpose) and how they connect to the world (their societal impact). Core to this is consumer insight, which helps ensure the organization’s sustainability strategy addresses what customers already care about.
Brandon Owens
Director, Environmental Strategy and Analytics, GE
Brandon Owens is an energy economist, environmental specialist, and writer. Owens is an expert in forecasting and predictive analytics techniques. He is the author of numerous articles and reports, including "The Renewable Energy Era", "Digital Resource Productivity," “The Rise of Distributed Power," “The Power of Tomorrow,” and “The Digitization of Hydropower.” Owens is currently the director of environmental strategy and analytics at GE Corporate. Prior to this role, he was director of research at Cambridge Energy Research Associates (IHS CERA). Earlier, he served as senior analyst for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).
Libby Reder
Fellow, Aspen Institute Future of Work Initiative
For the past 15 years, Libby Reder has worked across sectors to drive progress. Currently a fellow at the Aspen Institute Future of Work Initiative, Reder explores how work is changing across the U.S. economy—with a particular focus on the gig economy—and looks at related implications for the social contract, including potential policy solutions. Previously, Reder worked for eight years in leadership roles in corporate responsibility, sustainability, and corporate reputation at eBay Inc. and Visa Inc. In her first career chapter, Reder spent four years with the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Antitrust.
Jackie Roberts
Chief Sustainability Officer, The Carlyle Group
Jackie Roberts is Chief Sustainability Officer for the Carlyle Group. Roberts leads Carlyle’s global environment, social, and governance (ESG) efforts and works closely with the group’s teams and portfolio companies to drive understanding and adoption of ESG principles and practices. Prior to joining Carlyle, Roberts spent 17 years at Environmental Defense Fund where she launched and led the first-ever NGO and business corporate partnerships and served as Director of Sustainable Technologies and Senior Director of the Climate and Energy Idea Bank. Her previous jobs include a one-year faculty appointment at Harvard Business School and work as an engineer at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Secretary, Environmental Protection
California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA)
Matthew Rodriquez
Secretary, Environmental Protection, California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA)
Matthew Rodriquez was appointed secretary for environmental protection by Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. in July 2011. As secretary, Rodriquez oversees six boards, departments, and offices within the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) and advises the governor on environmental policy. Rodriquez comes to CalEPA with more than 25 years of environmental experience with the California Department of Justice. He formerly served as a deputy attorney general, specializing in land use and environmental law; chief assistant attorney general for the public rights division in 2009; and, prior to his role as secretary, acting chief deputy attorney general for Attorney General Kamala D. Harris.
Jessica Rosen
Associate Manager, Sustainability, Taco Bell
Jessica Rosen manages purpose and sustainability for Taco Bell. She also supports Taco Bell’s parent company, Yum! Brands, where she has led sustainability initiatives related to supply chain, animal welfare, food waste, and stakeholder engagement. Prior to Taco Bell, Rosen worked with companies across the food supply chain as a senior sustainability advisor with Forum for the Future, managing projects and partnerships from sustainable protein, to circular economy, to resilient cities, as well as broader strategies based in futures thinking. Before corporate sustainability, Rosen conducted food systems research in Cuba, Indonesia, and Guatemala with Bioversity International, the Consultative Group on International Agriculture Research, and the International Research Institute for Climate and Society.
Heather Rubin
Director, Corporate Citizenship, The Walt Disney Company
Heather Rubin is the director of corporate citizenship for The Walt Disney Company. She is a seasoned marketer and brand strategist with an exceptional ability to identify key growth opportunities, design cutting-edge marketing strategies, and engage multiple audiences in ways that create impassioned brand ambassadors. Rubin has launched powerful brands, led turnaround situations, established effective public-private partnerships, and developed credible cause initiatives amidst complex stakeholder communities. She has also previously held roles at POM Wonderful, Johnson & Johnson, and Neutrogena.
Azita Saleki-Gerhardt
Senior Vice President and President, Operations, AbbVie
Dr. Azita Saleki-Gerhardt leads a team of scientific, engineering, business, quality, supply chain, security, purchasing, and manufacturing professionals responsible for supply and distribution of all AbbVie products. She joined Abbott in 1993 as a research scientist, and over her 20-year career there, she worked in key positions in science and technology, manufacturing, and quality assurance. Dr. Saleki-Gerhardt previously led technical support for commercially marketed pharmaceutical products and was responsible for the quality of Abbott’s portfolio of global biological, chemical, and pharmaceutical products prior to being named president of global pharmaceutical operations. She became president of AbbVie operations following the separation of Abbott and AbbVie.
Bruno Sarda
Vice President, Sustainability, NRG Energy
As NRG's head of sustainability, Bruno Sarda leads the development and execution of companywide sustainability initiatives. His role also involves advancing the application of sustainable solutions for new and existing NRG customers. Sarda joined NRG from Dell, Inc., where he served as director of sustainability and social responsibility since 2010. While at Dell, he partnered with the company's sales organization and key customers to drive collaboration and deepen business relationships. In addition, he worked closely with Dell's supply chain organization to bridge its sustainability efforts and global sourcing priorities and practices. Prior to transitioning to corporate sustainability, Sarda held various strategic e-business roles at Dell and Charles Schwab.
Kelli Schlegel
Manager, Corporate Responsibility and Human Rights, Intel
Kelli Schlegel is responsible for enhancing Intel’s Human Rights Program, developing Intel’s CSR strategy, and collaborating with key internal stakeholders to ensure alignment and integration of policies, strategy, and stakeholder engagement. She launched and managed Intel’s first corporatewide human rights impact assessment. Prior to Intel, Schlegel spent one year developing Altera’s corporate responsibility program. During this time, she visited supplier sites around the world to ensure their commitment and compliance to corporate responsibility and the EICC Code of Conduct. Kelli also spent seven years at Hewlett-Packard (HP) where she helped develop HP’s legal and regulatory compliance program, devised and implemented its Human Rights Program, and managed media relations.
Katie Schmitz Eulitt
Strategic Advisor, SASB
Katie Schmitz Eulitt serves as a strategic advisor to the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), where she is currently focused on engaging with investors to encourage the use of SASB standards. She curates SASB’s ongoing publication, ESG Integration Insights, and co-manages SASB’s Investor Advisory Group, comprising leading asset owners and managers with more than US$21 trillion in assets under management. Following a career in ballet, Schmitz Eulitt worked with Salomon Brothers for more than a decade in the U.S., Japan, and Hong Kong. Her experience also spans project development and management in wide-ranging sectors, including energy (fossil fuels, renewables, and fuel cells), water disinfection, and consulting.
Elizabeth Seeger
Director, Public Affairs, KKR
Elizabeth Seeger joined KKR in 2009 to help oversee the consideration of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues throughout KKR's investment process, including the management of KKR’s ESG-focused value creation programs for its portfolio companies. Seeger was previously a project manager in the corporate partnerships program of the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). Prior to EDF, she was a consultant with the Corporate Executive Board (CEB). Before CEB, Seeger was an associate at the Environmental Law Institute. She is a 2013 Aspen Institute First Movers Fellow and became a member of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board in 2017. Seeger has more than 15 years of experience working on corporate environmental and social issues.
Caroline Skipsey
Senior Client Strategist, Polecat
Caroline Skipsey has more than 20 years of experience working with clients implementing digital technologies, monitoring, and listening tools. With her help, global companies promote effective corporate campaigns and monitor, report on, assess, utilize, and challenge content and conversation online. She has specialist knowledge in horizon-scanning for supply chain risk in areas like sustainability, geopolitical risk, modern slavery, and NGO monitoring. At Polecat, Skipsey works closely with global clients in highly regulated industries, providing real-time intelligence on environmental, social, and governance topics.
Rona Starr
Executive Director, Association of Professional Social Compliance Auditors
Rona Starr oversees the development and advancement of the Association of Professional Social Compliance Auditors’ (APSCA) mission to enhance the professionalism and credibility of individuals and organizations performing independent social compliance audits. Since she joined, APSCA membership has grown by 300 percent and working groups have developed the Competency Framework for Social Compliance Auditors and Code of Professional Conduct for both audit firms and auditors, which have received public comment and are currently being used as the foundation to pilot the certification process, which will launch in early 2018. Prior to joining APSCA, Starr worked for McDonald’s Corporation for 21 years, and was part of the roll out of the company’s social compliance program within Asia, of which she became the global lead in 2009.
Celine Suarez
Executive Director, Global Sustainable Finance, Morgan Stanley
With more than 16 years of experience in corporate sustainability, Celine Suarez is an executive director on the Global Sustainable Finance Group at Morgan Stanley. Previously, Suarez was a sustainability consultant at the Context Group and at BSR, where she led engagements with companies in the travel and tourism, retail, financial, industrial, and food and beverage industries. She also led the BSR Center for Sustainable Procurement, focused on incorporating sustainability into corporate purchasing decisions. She started her career as an analyst integrating environmental, social, and governance factors into investment decisions at a number of asset management firms, including Domini Social Investments and Citigroup. Suarez is an adjunct professor at NYU where she teaches a course on corporate social responsibility.
Matthew Swibel
Director, Enterprise Risk and Sustainability, Lockheed Martin
Matthew Swibel leads Lockheed Martin’s sustainability program, reporting, and stakeholder engagement. He reports to the corporate vice president of ethics and sustainability and sits on the company’s Sustainability Working Group, which guides policy and performance. As founding director of the Corporate Sustainability Office, Matt led the corporation’s inaugural GRI-based Sustainability Report, its first formal stakeholder engagement sessions and core issues assessment, and the development of new 2015 goals. In his prior role, Swibel was director of enterprise communications. Prior to joining Lockheed Martin, he spent almost a decade as a journalist, most recently as associate editor of Forbes. He is an independent director of Cornerstone Capital Inc. and an advisory board member of the University of Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies.
Rachel Sylvan
Director, Sustainability and Corporate Responsibility, Sodexo
Rachel Sylvan is a sustainable business strategist and leader focused on integrating sustainability and corporate responsibility into the operation and culture of large-scale businesses. At Sodexo, she develops and manages a range of global and national initiatives to advance environmental sustainability, wellness, and women’s empowerment. She is a global lead on addressing gender-based violence in BSR’s “Business Action for Women” collaborative group, and she created Sodexo’s global commitment to small and diverse businesses, including a focus on sourcing from women entrepreneurs. She led the effort to promote health and well-being with the Partnership for a Healthier America. Sylvan also developed and led the first enterprise-wide sustainability function for U.S. Foods, leading to the creation of sustainable packaging, sustainable sourcing, and green transportation initiatives.
Jami Taylor
Senior Director, Global Public Health Systems Policy and Partnerships, Johnson & Johnson
Jami Taylor is senior director, global public health systems policy and partnerships at Johnson & Johnson (J&J). Taylor’s responsibilities include the establishment of novel collaborations with governments, multilaterals, and civil society around shared priorities in global public health. A recognized expert in innovative financing for global health and development, Taylor secured a signature blended finance collaboration between J&J and Canada’s Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade, and Development in 2015, which was highlighted at the Global Financing for Development conference in Addis Ababa that year. In 2016, Taylor co-founded and launched Financing & Innovation in Global Health, a platform connecting hundreds of stakeholders across sectors toward more efficient combinations and deployment of resources in the global health field.
Pierre-François Thaler
Co-CEO, Ecovadis
Pierre-François Thaler is the cofounder of EcoVadis, which operates the first collaborative platform allowing companies to assess the sustainability performance of their suppliers. Since its launch in 2007, more than 100 Fortune Global 500 companies have selected EcoVadis to manage risks and drive eco-innovations in their supply chain across 100 countries. Thaler brings 15 years of experience in procurement and in business development of innovative solutions for procurement organizations. He was previously CEO of B2Build SA, and prior to founding EcoVadis, he was a director of Ariba Procurement BPO business in EMEA. He is a member of the strategic advisory board of the Sustainable Procurement Leadership Council.
Dan Viederman
Managing Director, Humanity United
Dan Viederman is a managing director at Humanity United, focused on efforts to engage entrepreneurs and tech innovators in pursuit of new tools to scale improvements for vulnerable workers in global supply chains. Before joining Humanity United, Viederman was CEO of Verité, a leading nonprofit organization working against global forced and child labor through in-depth research and corporate engagement. He has also managed China offices for World Wildlife Fund and Catholic Relief Services.
Researcher in Data Ethics, University of Oxford
Turing Research Fellow, The Alan Turing Institute
Sandra Wachter
Researcher in Data Ethics, University of Oxford, Turing Research Fellow, The Alan Turing Institute
Dr. Sandra Wachter is a lawyer and researcher in data ethics at the Oxford Internet Institute at the University of Oxford. She specializes in European law, data protection law, and technology law. Her research focuses on the legal and ethical implications of big data, AI, and robotics, as well as governmental surveillance, predictive policing, and human rights online. Her immediate research focuses on ethical design of algorithms, including the development of standards and methods to ensure fairness, accountability, transparency, interpretability, and group privacy in complex algorithmic systems.
Maxfield Weiss
Maxfield Weiss
Global Social and Environmental Responsibility Manager, Hewlett Packard Enterprise
Alyson Wise
Associate Director, The Rockefeller Foundation
Alyson Wise is an associate Director for U.S. jobs and economic opportunities at The Rockefeller Foundation. In this role, she is responsible for designing and implementing new strategies to increase stability and mobility for the nation’s workers and residents. She currently oversees active portfolios focused on youth employment, independent work, and inclusive economic development. Across this portfolio, Wise has specialized in private-sector solutions and market systems change. Wise has more than a decade of experience working in the philanthropic and nonprofit sector to advance economic opportunities for people in the United States and abroad. She has worked at corporate and private philanthropies, including the Nike Foundation, the Andrus Family Fund, and the Poses Family Foundation.
Cynthia Wong
Senior Internet Researcher, Human Rights Watch
Cynthia M. Wong is the senior internet researcher at Human Rights Watch (HRW), where she leads HRW’s work on digital privacy, freedom of expression online, and business and human rights in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector. She currently serves as a board member of the Global Network Initiative, a multistakeholder organization that advances corporate responsibility and human rights in the ICT sector. Before joining HRW, Wong was the director of the Center for Democracy and Technology’s Project on Global Internet Freedom, with a focus on international free expression and privacy. Prior to joining the Center for Democracy and Technology, Wong was the Robert L. Bernstein International Human Rights Fellow at Human Rights in China.
Kenneth Zuckerberg
Executive Director, Senior Analyst – Farm Inputs & Digital Agriculture, Rabobank
Kenneth S. Zuckerberg is an executive director and senior analyst within Rabobank’s Food & Agribusiness Research & Advisory (FAR) group, responsible for coverage of farm inputs and agriculture technology. Zuckerberg is responsible for managing FAR's research mandate in the North American farm inputs sector (crop protection chemicals, equipment, fertilizer, seeds, agriculture technology, water). Prior to joining Rabobank in 2014, he was managing partner of Carlan Advisors, an independent research and consulting firm he founded in 2003. He also held senior research roles with two investment management firms, Train Babcock and Lazard. Previously, Zuckerberg researched financial services companies at Smith Barney; Moody’s Investors Services; and Keefe, Bruyette, and Woods and is considered a subject matter expert in reinsurance.
Moderators
Karlyn Adams
Associate Director, BSR
With a background in consulting, private equity, and international development, Karlyn brings rigorous thought leadership and a focus on financial value to BSR’s consulting work in Asia. She supports companies across sectors to design and implement strategies linking corporate sustainability policies to on-the-ground realities in the areas of shared value, sustainable supply chains, and inclusive economy.
Prior to BSR, Karlyn was vice president of strategy and transformation for TAU Investment Management, a private equity firm founded on principles of ESG integration. She was also a management consultant, first with IBM Global Services and later with the Boston Consulting Group, where she advised Fortune 500 clients in the financial services, technology, and healthcare industries. She has also worked in international development in Chile, Namibia, and the Republic of Guinea.
Dunstan Allison Hope
Managing Director, BSR
Dunstan leads the team of BSR directors that oversees our six core areas of expertise for our consulting, collaborative, grant-funded, and research projects. Previously, he led BSR’s information and communications technology and heavy manufacturing practices.
Dunstan facilitated the multistakeholder process of developing global principles on freedom of expression and privacy, which led to the launch of the Global Network Initiative in October 2008. He also helped create the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition, a collaborative initiative of more than 100 ICT companies improving conditions in their supply chains. Dunstan participated in the process of creating the Global Reporting Initiative G3 guidelines, and is a regular commentator on issues of corporate accountability, reporting, and human rights. He also co-authored the 2010 book, Big Business, Big Responsibilities.
Byron Austin
Manager, BSR
With a decade of experience in global health, Byron contributes to BSR’s consulting and collaboration efforts in healthcare. Byron has significant experience in strategy development, innovative program design, strategic partnerships, communications, marketing, and the monitoring and evaluation of public health programs. He advises companies on developing inclusive business models and strategies that enhance access to healthcare. He also manages the Healthcare Working Group.
Before joining BSR, Byron managed a portfolio of grants and partnerships related to HIV/AIDS and digital health at Johnson & Johnson, where he worked with business leaders, governments, and nonprofit organizations to improve health outcomes in resource-limited settings. He also has previous experience in management consulting for pharmaceutical companies and health-focused foundations. Byron started his career in healthcare at the HIV/AIDS international NGO mothers2mothers, which is based in South Africa.
Marshall Chase
Associate Director, BSR
Marshall leads BSR’s work with manufacturing companies headquartered in the Americas. He supports BSR’s information and communications technology and transport and logistics practices. With a strong background in corporate environmental issues and on-the-ground experience in emerging economies, Marshall works with BSR members on international sustainability strategy development and execution, as well as on product, service, supply chain strategy, and assessment.
Prior to joining BSR, Marshall led the development of business services and partnerships at the American Chamber of Commerce in Armenia, and managed environmental initiatives as a consultant to major real estate companies in the Washington, D.C., area. He also has experience in sustainable business development as a Peace Corps Volunteer and consultant in West Africa.
Sara Enright
Manager, BSR
Sara applies her management consulting and international development experience to BSR’s collaboration and inclusive economy work, and she manages the Global Impact Sourcing Coalition.
Previously, Sara worked at Business Call to Action—a multistakeholder platform of the United Nations Development Programme focused on inclusive business innovations in support of the Millennium Development Goals—recruiting and advising companies and social enterprises developing products and services to address the needs of low-income populations. She also worked at McKinsey and Company, consulting global companies and development organizations on projects related to strategy, corporate social responsibility, economic development, and philanthropy. Sara has also contributed to social and environmental justice programs in Latin America through the Inter-American Dialogue, the Sierra Club, and the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas.
Eileen Gallagher
Manager, BSR
With a background in sustainable business and exploring the impact of climate change on vulnerable populations, Eileen fosters private-sector engagement to accelerate climate resilience in Southeast Asia.
Before joining BSR, Eileen was vice president at Edelman, where she implemented strategic sustainability plans for Fortune 500 companies to drive climate action, responsible sourcing, resource optimization, and community engagement. While at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., Eileen advanced policy solutions on climate change, sustainable development, and urban resiliency.
Laura Gitman
Senior Vice President, BSR
Laura spearheads BSR’s New York office, working with global companies across a range of industry sectors and sustainability issues. She also oversees global membership strategy and services.
Laura previously worked for Deloitte Consulting, where she acquired extensive strategy experience advising multinational financial services companies. She also managed a community development project in Ecuador, developed the business strategy for a social venture in Brazil, and worked with the biotechnology sector in Chile. Additionally, she is an adjunct professor in the Bard M.B.A. in Sustainability program.
John Hodges
Managing Director, BSR
With more than 20 years of sustainable development experience, John leads BSR's global infrastructure and financial services practices, advising companies on corporate sustainability strategy; responsible investing and project development; and environmental, social, and governance risk management.
Before BSR, John was the founder and president of SunOne Solutions, a leading carbon project developer in North and South America. John worked as a staff member in the World Bank's sustainable development group, where he managed global energy and transport infrastructure projects and the vice president for sustainable development's front office, and served as the infrastructure advisor in the Thailand and Kosovo country offices. He has also held positions in the airline transport industry, with a private infrastructure project developer in Chile, and with an impact investing fund in the Balkans.
Salah Husseini
Manager, BSR
Salah contributes to BSR’s consulting and collaboration efforts on human rights, including the cross-industry Human Rights Working Group. He supports companies through various human rights projects and has expertise in consumer products, food and agriculture, manufacturing, and media and entertainment. Salah’s engagements include developing human rights policies, training programs, and strategies; conducting human rights impact assessments; and implementing field-level projects.
Prior to joining BSR, Salah worked at a major media conglomerate where he ensured compliance with labor law requirements within the company’s manufacturing supply chain. He also worked with a standard-setting organization that developed the first auditable program for labor standards enforcement in manufacturing. Additionally, he practiced as an attorney in New York City, focusing on civil rights issues.
David Korngold
Associate Director, BSR
With experience in international management consulting for global corporations, David works with companies on a wide range of sustainability and corporate responsibility issues. His efforts generally emphasize strategy and reporting.
Before joining BSR, David worked in strategy and management consulting at Bain & Company. In that role, he developed evidence-driven approaches to advise companies on issues ranging from operational organization to corporate strategy. His project experience covered a variety of industries, including financial services, technology, healthcare, and consumer products. Additionally, David has worked as an independent consultant in sustainability and nonprofit governance.
Jorgette Mariñez
Associate Director, Consumer Sectors, BSR
Jorgette leads BSR’s consumer products practice for the United States and the global food, beverage, and agriculture practice. She focuses on aligning innovative sustainability practices with business strategy and operations, working with executives from the food, beverage, and agriculture; consumer packaged goods; apparel; footwear; and retail industries, among others.
Jorgette brings more than 10 years of experience consulting with multinational companies and governments, with expertise in supply chain management, procurement, strategy, and employee engagement. She has worked at Arthur Andersen, Great Place to Work, and Unisys. She also spent four years at PepsiCo leading global supplier CSR assurance.
Dorje Mundle
Director, Healthcare, BSR
With 20 years in sustainability, Dorje leads BSR’s global healthcare practice. He has significant global experience in issues related to strategy, governance, access to healthcare, business model innovation, bottom-of-the-pyramid business strategy, innovative financing, climate change, human rights, responsible procurement, and stakeholder engagement.
Peter Nestor
Associate Director, BSR
Peter leads BSR’s consulting and collaborative initiative efforts on human rights, including BSR’s cross-industry Human Rights Working Group. He has supported companies through a range of human rights consulting projects, with expertise in the information and communications technology, extractives, food and agriculture, and financial services industries.
Prior to joining BSR, Peter was an attorney at an international law firm based in the United States. He spent significant time in China working as a journalist with the Economist Intelligence Unit and as a freelance strategy consultant in Shanghai.
Elisa Niemtzow
Managing Director, Consumer Sectors, BSR
Elisa leads BSR’s consumer sectors practice globally. She works with companies in the luxury, beauty, fashion, hospitality, retail, and food industries to better integrate sustainability into core business strategy, products, and operations.
She helps companies use business assets to solve society’s global challenges, evolve brand strategy to integrate changing consumer expectations, and better partner with stakeholders to create more resilient and inclusive business practices. Elisa also leads BSR’s Responsible Luxury Initiative.
Tara Norton
Managing Director, BSR
Tara leads BSR’s global supply chain sustainability practice and directs BSR’s operations in Europe.
She advises chief procurement officers and senior directors at leading global companies on the development of sophisticated supply chains that create business value and address urgent and long-term risks and opportunities. She drives strategy and implementation projects across industry sectors including consumer products, retail, financial services, technology, manufacturing, and transportation, covering sustainable procurement, supplier engagement, collaboration, traceability, climate change, human rights, and labor rights. She also serves on the United Nations Global Compact Advisory Group on Supply Chain Sustainability.
Before joining BSR, Tara directed supply chain work at 2degrees and was the general manager of Sedex, where she ran and significantly grew the world's largest not-for-profit sustainable supply chain membership organization and database. Previously, Tara worked in sustainable procurement at BAA, was project manager at the World Trade Center Association Los Angeles, and served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Kherson, Ukraine.
Cecile Oger
Associate Director, BSR
Cecile works with BSR members to advance sustainability strategies and better partner with stakeholders to create more resilient and inclusive business practices. She also leads BSR’s global staffing process and oversees professional development and recruitment in EMEA. Since joining BSR, Cecile has worked on and led projects on stakeholder engagement, reporting, materiality, and strategy, predominantly in the healthcare; consumer products; and food, beverage, and agriculture sectors.
Prior to joining BSR, Cecile served as deputy director for SGS Sustainability Services. Before that, she was executive director of SFSTP, one of the largest associations of industrial pharmacists in Europe. She started her career in the chemicals industry, working for Clariant in the U.K. and Canada.
Eric Olson
Senior Vice President, BSR
With more than 20 years in the consulting field, Eric leads BSR's global consulting practice to design and implement sustainability strategies that create business value by addressing some of the world’s greatest challenges.
In addition to advising the CEOs and senior teams of several global companies, Eric plays a lead role on a number of BSR’s collaborative initiatives, including the Renewable Energy Buyers Alliance, the Net Positive Project, and Future of Fuels, as well as our work with the We Mean Business coalition. Prior to joining BSR, Eric worked with the Natural Step in San Francisco, accelerating sustainability through strategic counsel on a broad range of corporate responsibility matters that included supply chain management and sustainable development. He also has served as vice president at the Boston Consulting Group and was a partner and founding member of the global consultancy Mitchell Madison Group.
Jacob Park
Director, Sustainable Futures Lab, BSR
Jacob leads BSR’s work on sustainable futures, a new practice using strategic foresight techniques to help businesses engage with emerging issues that are reshaping the global landscape.
Before joining BSR, Jacob was the lead futurist in the New York office of Forum for the Future, where he used scenario planning and other futures techniques to develop sustainability strategy and drive innovation for leading businesses, foundations, and multistakeholder groups. Prior to that, he worked at Adaptive Edge, a boutique strategic foresight consultancy, on collaborative scenario planning. Jacob began his career doing human rights research and advocacy at Human Rights First and the Center for Economic and Social Rights.
Emilie Prattico
Manager, BSR
Emilie leads BSR’s engagements on climate change for the EMEA region, including partnerships with grant funders, public-sector bodies, and members in key industries. Her expertise informs BSR’s climate strategy by including short-lived climate pollutants as a powerful lever for curbing emissions with benefits on health, development, and air quality. She leads research seeking solutions within the finance sector to deepen corporate investment in climate action.
Previously, Emilie worked as a consultant with local governments in California on climate-action strategies and private-sector stakeholder engagement on climate policy planning. She has worked with the transportation, manufacturing, and agriculture sectors on supply chain sustainability and climate impacts. Emilie teaches as a university lecturer in philosophy and sociology.
Peder Michael Pruzan-Jorgensen
Senior Vice President, BSR
Peder Michael leads BSR’s work with grant-funders and partners as well as development and management of multistakeholder collaborations. He co-leads BSR’s relationship management activities and provides executive guidance on BSR’s women’s empowerment work.
Prior to joining BSR, Peder Michael was a key player in growing PricewaterhouseCoopers' sustainable business solutions practice in Copenhagen. He also spent five years with the Danish Foreign Service, where he worked on human rights in international development and foreign policy and served on the board of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. Peder Michael served on the Danish Government’s Council on Corporate Responsibility from 2009-2012.
Michael Rohwer
Associate Director, Information and Communications Technology, BSR
Michael leads BSR’s work with companies in the information and communications technology industry. His background in corporate environmental issues and his extensive sustainable supply chain experience equips him to drive sustainability agendas from the boardroom to the factory floor.
Before joining BSR, Michael was the senior program director as the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition and acted as the director for the Conflict-Free Sourcing Initiative. He also served in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s climate change and stratospheric protection divisions, focusing on mitigation and reporting for greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, he previously worked for a sustainability consulting firm in Hong Kong.
Lauren Shields
Manager, BSR
Lauren Shields leads BSR’s HERproject programs in East Africa, working with companies and civil society to build inclusive workplaces in global supply chains. She also oversees HERproject’s strategy for monitoring and evaluation and program sustainability and contributes to BSR’s women’s empowerment practice. Previously, Shields worked at the Social Science Research Council in New York. Her consulting experience includes giving advice on best practices for monitoring and evaluation for the Center for Socio-Economic Development and developing recommendations on the post-2015 Millennium Development Goals agenda for UNDP. With a focus on sustainability in emerging markets, Shields has led research projects on value chain development and women’s empowerment in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Vietnam.
Alison Taylor
Director, Sustainability Management, BSR
Alison leads BSR’s sustainability management practice and also works closely with our energy and extractives member companies. She focuses on approaches to sustainability through risk management, strategy, stakeholder engagement, transparency, ethics and governance, and organizational change.
Previously, Alison was a senior managing director at Control Risks, where she helped companies operate with integrity, particularly in high-risk environments. She has also worked at Transparency International, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and IHS Global Insight. She has experience in strategic intelligence, market entry assistance, risk consulting, due diligence, internal investigations, enterprise risk management, and ethics and compliance. She speaks and writes regularly on risk and organizational culture. She is a board member of the ethics organization Center for Business Ethics and Corporate Governance. She is also an adjunct professor at Fordham Law School.
David Wei
Director, Climate, BSR
David leads BSR’s climate practice to maximize the impact of BSR’s applied research, collaborative initiatives, and work with individual companies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and build climate resilience. He is also the international policy lead for the We Mean Business coalition.
Before joining BSR, David was a climate diplomat for the Marshall Islands with the advisory group Independent Diplomat and led on transparency issues in the UN climate negotiations for the Alliance of Small Island States. As an international lawyer with the Foundation for International Environmental Law and Development, David built up the environmental treaty expertise of countries across the globe. He began his career as a securities litigator with Fried Frank in New York before focusing on climate change and energy.
Susan Winterberg
Associate Director, Inclusive Economy, BSR
Susan leads BSR’s inclusive economy practice, working with companies on creating good jobs, building diverse and inclusive workplaces, serving marginalized groups through products and services, and supporting local communities throughout global operations.
Susan’s global work experience has spanned more than 20 countries across the Americas, EMEA, and Asia. Prior to BSR, she was a research associate at Harvard Business School, where she focused on socially responsible approaches to corporate restructuring. Her research included automation and economic crises, the business and social benefits of creating good jobs, and how multinational companies can help workers and local communities build resilience to globalization. She has also previously worked on urban planning and development in Africa, conducted research on deindustrialization in the United States, and worked with retailers and small businesses to service low-income, inner-city neighborhoods.


















