Sustainable Nation

Joel Makower is chairman and executive editor of GreenBiz Group Inc., producer of GreenBiz.com, and lead author of the annual State of Green Business report. A veteran journalist with more than 40 years' experience, he also hosts GreenBiz's annual GreenBiz Forums, the global event series VERGE, and other events. Joel is author of more than a dozen books, including his latest, The New Grand Strategy: Restoring America's Prosperity, Security, and Sustainability in the 21st Century (St. Martin's Press). Joel Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: The evolution of GreenBiz and becoming a top resource for sustainability professionals Current state and momentum around the circular economy The ESG investing movement pushing corporate sustainability forward Excitement around carbon capture, carbon storage and working towards carbon positive Advice and recommendations for sustainability leaders Interview Highlights What are you seeing out there in regards to the circular economy? Do you envision us ever getting to a t

Bill Reed is an internationally recognized planning consultant, design process facilitator, lecturer, and author in sustainability and regeneration. He is a principal of Regenesis, Inc. – a regenerative design, living systems integrator, and education organization. His work centers on creating the framework for and managing an integrative, whole and living system design process. This work is known as Regenerative Development. It is a meta-discipline that unifies the pattern understanding practices of Ecological Design, Biophilia, and Organizational Psychology into a design process that lifts building and community planning into full integration and co-evolution with living systems. The objective: to improve the overall quality of the physical, social and spiritual life of our living places and therefore the planet. Bill Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: Using regenerative design principles in business and the built environment How permaculture informs regenerative development Healing the earth in 18 month

Timothy J. Mohin is the Chief Executive of GRI, developer of the world’s most widely used sustainability reporting standards. A veteran in the field of corporate sustainability reporting, Tim is responsible for driving GRI's mission to empower decisions that create social, environmental and economic benefits for everyone.   Prior to his appointment as Chief Executive, Tim was Senior Director of Corporate Responsibility for Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). He is also a former Chairman of the Board for the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC) and former member of the Conflict Free Sourcing Initiative’s steering committee.  Previously, Tim founded and led Apple’s Supplier Responsibility program. He also led Intel’s environmental and sustainability functions. Tim started his career with the US government. With the Environmental Protection Agency, he led the development of the toxics provisions of the Clean Air Act Amendments. Later, Tim was senior legislative staff for the Chairman of Senate Committee on

Julia Person is the Corporate Sustainability Manager with Craft Brew Alliance, headquartered in Portland, Oregon and a leader in brewing, branding and bringing to market world class American craft beers such as from Widmer Brothers Brewing and Kona Brewing Co. Julia Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: Craft Brew Alliance's recent sustainability report and incorporating SASB framework into their reporting process CBA's work to understand GHG emissions in product packaging Sustainable design of the new Kona Brewing Company brewery Managing sustainability messaging throughout multiple different brands Advice and recommendations for sustainability leaders Julia's Final Five Question Responses: What is one piece of advice you would give other sustainability professionals that might help them in their careers? What I learned early on in my career, which is more relevant today even than ever, is that sustainability is a business necessity for all different types of businesses. It's just the state of the world rig

John Marler is Vice President of Energy and Environment at AEG, the world’s leading sports and live entertainment company. In this role, John oversees AEG’s corporate environmental sustainability program, AEG 1EARTH, and AEG Energy Services, AEG’s corporate energy management program. John came to AEG from Southern California Edison where he focused on renewable and alternative energy contracts and smart grid research and development. Before joining Edison, John practiced law for four years as an attorney in New York State, focusing on commercial litigation and business transactions. John also serves on the board of directors of GRID Alternatives Greater Los Angeles. John Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: Leading sustainability in the events and entertainment industry Engaging employees across the company in sustainability Updating AEG's GHG goals in response to the latest IPCC Report AEG's 2019 Sustainability Report Advice and recommendations for sustainability leaders Interview Highlights: AEG has two d

Paul Dickinson founded CDP in 2000 with an ambition of creating a global economic system that operates within sustainable environmental boundaries and prevents dangerous climate change. CDP represents over 650 investors with assets of over $80 trillion, and it uses this authority combined with the buying power of over 110 large corporations with annual purchases of over $2.5 trillion, to persuade over 7,000 large companies to report on their greenhouse gas emissions as well as strategy on climate change, water use and the drivers of deforestation. CDP makes most of this data available to the public and service providers like Bloomberg, MSCI and many others. In addition, over 600 large cities and 100 states and regions with aggregate over 1 billion inhabitants report annually on their environmental performance through CDP, which is a charitable organisation operating in 80 counties from nine offices around the world. Paul Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: The corporate sustainability movement and the trend

The annual Green Sports Alliance Summit is the largest and most influential gathering for the sports community to unite around sustainability. The event brings together hundreds of industry stakeholders to learn and share better practices and the latest innovations in greening operations, advancing the supply chain and engaging fans. This episode brings you recordings from panel and keynote presentations from the event as well as interviews with: Norman Vosschulte - Director of Guest Experience, Philadelphia Eagles Melanie LeGrande - Vice President, Social Responsibility, Major League Baseball Mike Zimmer - President, Miami Super Bowl Host Committee Madeleine Orr - Founder, Sport Ecology Group

Tom Szaky is founder and CEO of TerraCycle Inc., a leader in eco-capitalism and upcycling. In 2001, Tom left Princeton University as a freshman to launch a worm-poop-based fertilizer company. In 2007, the company expanded to start collecting difficult-to-recycle consumer packaging. Today the company collects more than 50 different waste streams in 20 countries. Born in Budapest, Hungary, his family emigrated to Holland and then to Toronto. In TerraCycle’s quest to make sustainability accessible, they created Loop—a never-before-seen venture to combat single-use waste. For the first time ever, consumers can receive their favorite products from trusted brands in durable, reusable packaging. By creating this circular, durable model, we’ve closed the Loop on e-commerce shopping. Tom Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: The evolution of TerraCycle from a vermicompost company to a global leader in circular economy innovation The development and launch of Loop Engaging some of the world's largest consumer brands an

Elizabeth Sturcken leads the work of the Supply Chain EDF + Business team. She works to leverage the power of the marketplace to make every product safer, healthier and better for the environment. She has been at EDF for over 20 years and has led our team of people working with retail and consumer product companies to create broad environmental change in areas including climate change, agriculture, green freight, toxics in products, waste and renewable energy. She leads EDF's work with Walmart and has done so for the past 10 years. She led corporate partnerships with other major companies such as FedEx, to develop the next generation delivery vehicle and UPS, to create more sustainable overnight shipping packaging. Elizabeth’s team includes three people based in Bentonville, AR, three in Washington, DC, two in San Francisco, and one in Raleigh, NC, and one in New York. Elizabeth Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: The Supply Chain Solutions Center  EDF's involvement in the development of Walmart's Project G

Kumar is the Chief Sustainability and Resilience Officer for the City of Evanston, IL and serves in multiple leadership capacities within the Urban Sustainability Directors Network (USDN) including as a co-chair for the People of Color Support Initiative and on the USDN Planning and Advisory Committee. Kumar’s work centers around stakeholder collaboration including: community advocacy groups, strategic partners, other units of government, elected officials, and various city departments, all to make Evanston a climate-ready and carbon neutral community. In 2018, Kumar was named to the 2018 GreenBiz “30 Under 30” global list of 30 young leaders in sustainable business who demonstrate “the world-changing promise of sustainability in their everyday work.”  Kumar Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: Engaging people of all ages on local climate issues The importance of spaces for people of color and how they relate to progress on racial equity within sustainability Urban Sustainability Directors Network (USDN) Peo

Erin gives voice to Interface’s conscience, ensuring that strategy and goals are in sync with its aggressive sustainability vision established more than 20 years ago. Today, Interface has evolved its thinking to go beyond doing less harm to creating positive impacts, not just for Interface and the flooring industry, but for the world at large. Erin led the company to unveil a new mission in 2016 – Climate Take Back, tackling the single biggest threat facing humanity: global climate change. This mission is focused on creating a path for Interface and others to reverse global warming, not just reduce carbon emissions. As CSO, Erin leads a global team that provides technical assistance and support to this audacious goal and the company’s global business, addressing sustainability at all levels – from operations and management, to employees and customers, and in policy forums. Erin and her team also develop industry-leading approaches to measurement, driving transparency and innovation in the field of sustainabil

Nathan Allen is the Executive Director of WaterStart. WaterStart aims to make Nevada a channel for innovation by leveraging the state’s leadership and expertise in water. Allen’s business model involves a joint venture between academic, public, and the private sector. Each of their partners brings together strategic resources and expertise, connecting water management agencies, technology companies, and policy makers in order to spur economic growth in the water sector.

Green Sports Alliance Summit will be June 19-20 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia Dune Ives Dune Ives is the executive director of award-winning Lonely Whale, where she designs and leads initiatives that address environmental degradation and species decline. Through her leadership, Lonely Whale has received global recognition as one of Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas, Huffington Post’s Top Ten Movers and Shakers in Environmental Sustainability, the P4G 2018 Circular Economy Award sponsored by the Danish Government; and more. Prior to Lonely Whale, Dune designed and oversaw Paul G. Allen’s Vulcan Philanthropy, co-founded the Green Sports Alliance, and was among the first individuals trained by the Honorable Al Gore to deliver his presentation on global warming. One of the exciting initiatives at Lonely Whale is Next Wave Plastics. This is an initiative to get companies to use ocean bound plastics within their products. Can you tell us about this and what you're learning, or any successes that you'

Aaron Schreiber-Stainthorp is the Sustainability Manager at Jackson Family Wines (JFW). In his role at JFW, Aaron focuses on implementing systems that drive transformational change with an emphasis on carbon emissions, energy efficiency, renewable energy, water conservation, zero waste and employee engagement.  Using a data driven approach to identifying opportunities and guide decision making, Aaron has worked to make sustainability synonymous with innovation and continuous improvement.   In addition to his work at JFW, Aaron also runs a small consulting firm, Sustainability Squared, which focuses on embedding sustainability in the food and beverage industry.  Aaron is also a board member with the Center for Climate Protection, focused on speed and scale GHG policy solutions in California.  Aaron has spent 5 years working in the wine industry, and previously led sustainability efforts at Francis Ford Coppola winery resulting in their 2017 Sustainable Winemaking Leadership Award from the California Sustainabl

Mayor Jorge O. Elorza appointed Leah Bamberger as the Director of Sustainability in April 2015. Leah brings a wealth of experience in municipal sustainability efforts. She previously managed the City of Boston’s citywide sustainability initiative, Greenovate Boston. In this role, she worked on policy and community engagement and led the development of the City’s 2014 Climate Action Plan. Prior to this position, Leah served as a consultant to a variety of local and regional governments and nonprofits in the northeast, supporting their climate and sustainability planning work. The Sustainability Director’s responsibilities include identifying opportunities to reduce the City’s energy costs, working with community groups, residents, and businesses to implement the City’s first comprehensive sustainability action plan, transitioning residents to the Recycle Together program, and other projects. Leah Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: Providence's climate neutral goal and approach to renewable energy and energy

The Green Schools Conference & Expo is the only national event to bring together all the players involved in making green schools a reality: people who lead, operate, build and teach in U.S. schools. This podcast episode contains recordings from in-conference sessions and onsite interviews with: Jennifer Seydel - Executive Director of the Green Schools National Network Anisa Heming - Director of the Center for Green Schools at USGBC

Sarah has worked in the hospitality and tourism industry throughout her career and has a Masters in Tourism Management where she developed a keen interest in sustainable tourism. Following 4 years working for the South Australian Tourism in online marketing management and project management roles, she undertook training via the Climate Leadership Corps, lead by Al Gore, former Vice President of the United States.   After completing this training Sarah moved to Siem Reap, Cambodia where she worked primarily with the NGO sector and responsible tourism practices, during which time Plastic Free Cambodia was formed. Specialising in consulting to businesses and delivering educational workshops on the topic of plastic reduction and other environmental issues. Sarah now also consults to other countries around Southeast Asia thanks to the knowledge she has derived from her experiences and growing knowledge of climate change and plastic pollution issues in the region.   Sarah Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: Strat

Heather Paulsen Consulting (HPC) works with mission-driven businesses to create an economy (and a world) that works better for all of us: owners, employees, suppliers, customers, our communities and the environment. We provide practical strategies for clients to create positive impact through their daily operations, taking care of the environment and stakeholders while also improving the bottom line. HPC specializes in B Corp and Zero Waste certifications, sustainability-related strategic planning and facilitation. Heather Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: Trends in the business world including collaboration and coopetition The benefits of B Corp certification What the B Impact Assessment teaches businesses Top resaons companies decide to pursue B Corp certification Advice and recommendations for sustainability leaders Heather's Final Five Question Responses: What is one piece of advice you would give other sustainability professionals that might help them in their careers? First thing I would say is to

Jennifer Woofter is the founder and president of Strategic Sustainability Consulting (SSC). In this role she draws upon more than a decade of experience in the fields of organizational sustainability, corporate social responsibility, and socially responsible investing. She has worked with more than 50 clients on projects including Green Auditing, Sustainability Planning, Carbon Footprint Analysis, Stakeholder Engagement, Training and Facilitation, and Sustainability Reporting. She currently manages the SSC Consultant Network, an association of more than 650 professionals with expertise in virtually every area of sustainability. Jennifer Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: Key trends in corporate sustainability The ESG and responsible investment movement The evolution of the sustainability consulting industry. The importance of quality data. Advice and recommendations for sustainability leaders. Jennifer's Final Five Question Responses: What is one piece of advice you would give other sustainability profess

Kim Holmes is Vice President of Sustainability for the Plastics Industry Association (PLASTICS). The sustainability team provides support for all sustainability and recycling related work undertaken by the councils and committees at PLASTICS.  The association is committed to maximizing the recovery of all plastics, both post-industrial and post-consumer, across all product categories. PLASTICS has developed a truly collaborative, supply chain approach to identifying new end markets that will create demand pull through for recycled plastics.  During her time at PLASTICS, Kim has worked to develop the Zero Net Waste recognition program, sustainability benchmarking for the industry, and a number of innovative recovery demonstration projects.  Kim Joins Sustainable Nation to Discuss: Addressing the ocean plastic crisis Designing plastic products and packaging for the circular economy Sustainability of plastics as a material Changing recovery dynamics in the United States Advice and recommendations for sustainabi