VALUES-BASED CAPITAL IN THE 21ST CENTURY

David Batstone, Ph.D

Co-Founder of Business 2.0, Professor of Entrepreneurship & Innovation

University of San Francisco School of Management

USA Today describes Batstone as “one of the country’s leading authorities on ethics in the business world." A former private equity banker in the technology industry and sought-after speaker and consultant to businesses and nonprofits, Batstone is published widely in both academia and the popular press. His five books feature entrepreneurship at the crossroads of business and society. He will share his unique model for developing successful enterprises that create an opportunity for everyone. 

Leadership Themes:  Incentives and business models for driving change; values-based "capital"; experimentation and learning; proactive humility

Making it Real: What forms of capital are you building? Are you willing and able to be bold? Are you empowering people around you? What is your model for experimentation and learning? Are you smarter this week?

IMPLEMENTING A COMPLETE ENERGY SOLUTION

Fahmida Ahmed Bangert

Director, Sustainability and Business Services

Stanford University

Fahmida Ahmed directs Stanford University’s Sustainability and SEM Business Services initiatives and the campus program Sustainable Stanford (sustainable.stanford.edu). She supports the department’s long-term energy infrastructure planning; designs, implements, and directs assessment and outreach for sustainability programs; oversees business systems and analytics initiatives; chairs the university Sustainability Working Group and co-chairs Provost’s Committee on Sustainability; and steers academic integration to aid program implementation.

Key concepts:  Replicable model for execution; interdisciplinary focus; energy-water nexus; applying research; integrating sustainability as a core value; collaborative governance; planning support; evaluation and measurement; continuous improvement; robust business systems; outreach and education; behavior change.

Questions for Application: What is your process for planning and change management? Do you have an integrated energy model and how can it be improved? What are your key performance metrics for sustainability?

MOONSHOT: MANAGING RISK WHILE GOING BIG

Mike Lutomski

Senior Consultant

SpaceX

Mike has spent his career finding safe and reliable ways to sustain human life on and off the planet. Working on human spaceflight programs for NASA and SpaceX, he is passionate about sustainability and finding common approaches and technologies to ensure society and humankind can continue to flourish in the future. Mike spent nearly 30 years at NASA working on the Space Shuttle and International Space Station programs before retiring and joining SpaceX where he was Director of Risk, System Safety, and Reliability for six years focusing on their Crewed Dragon program.

Key concepts: Earth and Space Station as closed systems; managing and taking risk; power of the moonshot

Questions for Application: What are your risks? How do you manage risk? Do you have a sustainability moonshot — a compelling and challenging vision?

GROWING COMFORTABLE WITH TENSION

Ara Erickson

Director, Corporate Sustainability

Weyerhaeuser

Ara is responsible for building sustainability strategy, creating a clear plan to achieve the related goals and reporting on progress for one of the largest timber, land and forest products companies in the world. Weyerhaeuser is proud to manage one of the most sustainable, versatile resources on earth – forests – while making products that people need. The company is listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index, was recently named one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies® for the tenth time, and is in the Top 50 of the 100 Best Corporate Citizens according to the Corporate Responsibility Magazine.

Key concepts: Natural resource resilience; being comfortable in the space between choices and beliefs; understanding the tension between loving the natural systems and relying on them for basic needs; the relationship between forests, carbon and climate change; moving big ideas through big companies.

Questions for Application: What issues do you face that require understanding many different perspectives? How do you move through this space, with grace and strength? Can you see many different perspectives and still make progress?

UNITED FOR SUSTAINABILITY

Maria Race

Director, Environmental Policy, Programs, and Sustainability

United Airlines

With a motto, "Success is all about the relationships and good teamwork," Maria directs a team that is focused on United's goal of reducing its emissions by more than 50% by 2050. She has been in industry for 20 years, including directing policy, programs, and sustainability for United Airlines, directing an environmental services department, managing assets for a large energy company's renewable and conventional portfolio, and supervising professionals.

Leadership Themes: leading from behind; being yourself; creating alignment; personal accountability; systemic awareness

Making it real: What obstacles or distractions do your team members face? How can you clear the way for better focus or faster progress?  How do you create alignment in the face of obstacles? Would your organization pass the grandmother test?

SUSTAINABILITY LEADER AS INTRAPRENEUR

Gifford and Libba Pinchot

Founders

Bainbridge Graduate Institute (Acquired by Presidio Graduate School)

Gifford and LIbba have taught leadership development and 'intrapreneurship' to senior executives in Fortune 100 companies for the last twenty years. The Pinchots coined the term “intrapraneurship”, defined by Wikipedia as “the act of behaving like an entrepreneur while working within a large organization.” Together the Pinchots have written three books - Intrapreneuring: Why You Don't Have to Leave the Corporation to Become an Entrepreneur (1985), The Intelligent Organization (1994), and Intrapreneuring in Action (1999).

Key concepts:  Intrapreneurship; bottom-up innovation; bringing your values to work

Questions for Application: How do intrapreneurs succeed in your organization? What do they do that is different and effective? In what ways are you an intrapreneur?

MAKING IT REAL FOR SENIOR LEADERS

Tony Schifano

Founder and CEO

Antos Environmental

With over 30 years of experience on 3,000 sustainability projects, Tony is responsible for many ‘firsts’ in the green movement, including first to recycle in a corporate organization and first to put an on-site composting system on a corporate/educational property. Tony has reported to Congress and written State regulations on waste management. Most recently he was invited by Chinese leaders to provide a portfolio of sustainability options to the Environmental Protection Bureau in Shanghai.

Key concepts:  Providing viable options for top leaders; Raising the bar while expanding horizons; Communicating pros and cons

Questions for Application: What is your portfolio of sustainability options? How can you expand the thinking of your senior leaders? What are their tough choices?

ENGAGING THE SCIENTIST

Claudia Richardson

Materials Innovation Lead

Patagonia

Claudia leads the Materials Innovation team at Patagonia with a focus on long term advancements in outdoor apparel materials and manufacturing. Through research and collaboration in materials science, fiber technology, textile engineering, and finishing chemistry, her team seeks to improve technical performance and reduce environmental impact of Patagonia products and the greater apparel industry. Richardson has a background in Materials Science and Engineering from M.I.T. and has worked on solving materials problems in various fields from clean energy and battery science to consumer housewares and apparel. She joined Patagonia in 2014 to align her technical pursuits with her passion for sustainability and outdoor exploration.

Key Concepts:  Scientist as partner; scientific investments and process

WINNING HEARTS AND MINDS

Wendy Wendlandt

Senior Vice President & Political Director

Public Interest Network

Wendy heads The Public Interest Network’s election programs, from nonpartisan efforts to register people to vote to partisan election campaigns. In 2016, Wendy oversaw the Community Voters Project and the Student PIRGs’ New Voters Project, which, combined, helped more than 250,000 African American, Latino and youth voters register. She also coordinated the 2016 efforts of Environment America Action Fund and Fair Share Action to knock on more than 5 million doors and talk to nearly 2 million voters. Wendy’s previous roles in the network include executive director of WashPIRG, political director of U.S. PIRG and director of Fair Share. Wendy lives in Los Angeles with her husband and their dog, and spends her free time hiking anywhere she can.

Key concepts: Picking issues and finding ways to talk about them that resonate; building coalitions; avoiding trip wires; exploring legacy and stewardship

Questions for Application: Can you effectively pitch your vision or plan to a resistant audience (e.g.,climate skeptics)? Are you able to speak their language and address their unique needs?

COLLABORATING WITH STAKEHOLDERS

JoAnna Abrams

Founder

MindClick

JoAnna is Founder and CEO of MindClick, an environmental health product intelligence company that rates the environmental health performance of manufacturers and their products. Ratings deliver product intelligence that drives transparency and innovation across organizations and their supply chains to meet global demand for healthier products and healthier environments.

Prior to the founding of MindClick, Abrams led strategy, research, and new product development efforts for consumer products brands including MGM, Nestle, Pepsi-Co, Toyota, and Wolfgang Puck. Abrams holds an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and a B.S. in finance from University of Illinois.

Key concepts: Communicating in a language that resonates with stakeholders, from internal leadership teams to supply chain teams; integrating sustainability initiatives into existing work flows.

Questions for Application: How will you translate your message into business language that aligns with leadership's vision for the organization? How will you collaborate with your supply chain team?

PARTNERSHIPS AND CROWDSOURCING FOR SUSTAINABILITY

Gina Tesla

Vice President, Corporate Citizenship (Currently on Leave of Absence)

IBM

Under Gina’s leadership, the IBM Corporate Service Corps was established to provide a triple benefit for IBM: leadership development for employees, high quality problem solving for communities, and greater visibility for IBM. Over 4,000 IBMers from 61 countries have served in 40 countries, applying their problem solving expertise to build capacity and help transform organizations serving people around the world faced with challenging societal issues. She developed partnerships with The Nature Conservancy, the World Wildlife Fund and EarthWatch to contribute to a wide range of environmental issues.

Key concepts: Leveraging talent, technology and tri-sector partnerships to build community-based environmental programs across the world; inclusion; continuous improvement, fostering a positive culture and reputable brand; systemic awareness; finding and leveraging human energy

Questions for Application: What is your strategy for engaging stakeholders? What are your opportunities and challenges in developing partners? What capacities do you need to foster in your organization? Who at this conference can you help or receive help from?

CULMINATION: SUSTAINABILITY SIMULATION

Brad Peirce

(Former) Vice President, TD Environment, TD Bank; Principal & Sustainability Consultant

Seed Strategies

Brad has 20 years of experience creating long-term value for corporations, nonprofits, and communities by successfully advancing sustainability strategies, programs, processes, and platforms. He specializes in a broad spectrum of sustainability disciplines that range from strategic planning to tactical design and implementation, program management, employee and stakeholder engagement, communications, training, and leadership development. He is passionate about creating a culture of social and environmental leadership at high performance companies.