9.29.21
Are we there yet?

Leveraging Sustainability Rating and Reporting for Impact

In today’s sustainable business architecture, how can sustainable procurement, sustainable supply chain, and sustainability professionals leverage sustainability ratings and reporting systems to not only select more sustainable products and suppliers, but also monitor, deliver, and report real progress on their organizational-level sustainability goals and ESG reporting requirements?

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KEYNOTE CONVERSATION

ESG Reporting and Rating: Are we there yet?

As the latest IPCC report galvanizes rapid action on the climate crisis, and as ESG reporting and analysis becomes ever more central to financial markets, debates about how to best drive positive change have begun to focus on, and at times question, the contributions that reporting makes to driving impact at scale. This conversation will bring together two leading thinkers on the topic of sustainability reporting, rating, and ESG investing, for a lively conversation about the value, necessity, and alternatives to sustainability data collection, reporting, and use as it is practiced today.

Kenneth Pucker

Ken is a senior lecturer at Tufts University’s Fletcher School and Boston University, Advisory Director at Berkshire Partners, and formerly the Chief Operating Officer of Timberland.
Ken recently authored a Harvard Business Review article "Overselling Sustainability Reporting", which has generated widespread debate and scrutiny in the sustainable business community.
Erika Karp

Erika is Executive Managing Director, Chief Impact Officer at Pathstone, and former Founder and CEO of Cornerstone Capital Group. Erika’s leadership in developing meaningful ESG investment strategies is driven by her vision of a world where capitalism fully values all forms of capital, including human and natural capital, and where investments serve to foster a regenerative and inclusive global economy.

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Panel

Leveraging Sustainability Rating & Reporting for Impact

Moderator:

Nicole Darnall - Foundation Professor of Management and Public Policy, Director and Co-founder, Sustainable Purchasing Research Initiative, Arizona State University

Panelists:

Fred Gersdorff - Socially Responsible and Sustainable Supply Chains Manager, General Motors
Julia Litvak - Director of Responsible Supply Chain Management, Medtronic
Kate Williams - Senior Manager of Impact Monitoring & Evaluation, Fair Trade USA
Julia Wolfe - Director of Environmental Purchasing, Operational Services Division (OSD), Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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Workshops

Optimizing E-Procurement Systems for Sustainable Purchasing

Led by Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, Empower Procurement featuring Ecomedes and Workday
In large organizations, electronic purchasing systems drive what gets bought. If your organization’s e-procurement systems are configured to support purchasing sustainable products, you’ll be better equipped to reach your sustainability goals. ERP systems are commonly used for procurement in large organizations and have the capability to make “buying green” the new normal. ERP systems that are able to identify and verify green products, as well as track organizations’ progress towards sustainable procurement goals, can make buying sustainable products much easier for purchasers.
This workshop will help organizations realize the potential of ERP systems in supporting their sustainable procurement goals and spark a discussion around implementation barriers and solutions. Purchasers will explore what to request when acquiring a new ERP system and how to optimize their existing ERP system for more cost and GHG savings.
Getting Started with Supplier Sustainability Reporting for Small Businesses

Led by Bob Willard, Sustainability Advantage
This workshop introduces SME suppliers and purchasers to organizational-level sustainability assessments through the use of a free, open source tool - the Basic Sustainability Assessment Tool (BSAT). Suppliers will learn how to use the tool to self-assess their progress on sustainability issues, while purchasers will be provided with a basic approach to comprehensively measure supplier sustainability performance across multiple suppliers, regardless of their size and sector.
Evaluating and Selecting Product Sustainability Labels

Led by Kate Harris, Global Ecolabelling Network (GEN) featuring the U.S. EPA
This workshop will help to provide a general introduction to product sustainability / eco labeling. Participants will learn how to objectively evaluate and select those aligned to their organization’s sustainability objectives, hear about the U.S. EPA’s work in helping to prioritize and implement ecolabels at the Federal level and beyond; and get a chance to work with their peers to identify sustainability / eco-label opportunities for their own organizations.