Sustainability Leadership Programs, Transparency & 3rd Party Certifications, and Materiality and
The 11th Annual Wisconsin Sustainable Business Conference is exactly a week away. After months of planning, it is hard to believe the big day is nearly here. We can not wait to celebrate a 11 years of sustainability at the beautiful Monona Terrace this December 13th. The following are three more break out sessions that will be offered on December 13th.
Register Here!
Sustainability Leadership Programs
Since the development of the Green Masters Program in Wisconsin, there have been many national sustainability programs that have emerged. Programs like B Corps and 1% for the Planet, and approaches like Conscious Capitalism have played a major role in forming and expanding a community of sustainable leaders. Whether it's by applying to the program (B Corps and 1% for the Planet) or subscribing to the tenants of Conscious Capitalism, Wisconsin companies are leading the way. Come hear from participants/practitioners about what's involved in applying, what the benefits have been, and how participation guides and shapes businesses practices.
Nancy Paustsch - Envision IT
Nancy Pautsch is the Chief Evangelist of Stakeholder Value (aka President) of Envision IT, a group of driven, curious, and compassionate people growing a soulful company. Envision’s mission is to improve the lives of their stakeholders. Their business is technology consulting focused on optimization helping to ensure technology is an enabler to employee engagement and business success. Envision IT is the go-to technology partner for organizations across the U.S. Nancy has been in the technology industry for 20+ years focused on business development. Keys to her leadership are a growth mindset and fostering collaborative cultures that breed a grounded sense of purpose while striving for excellence. Since heading-up Envision’s strategic transformation, the company has achieved triple-digit growth to the top and bottom line. Additionally, Envision has been lauded locally for their contributions to the community and economy; recognized globally in the technology industry as ‘best of the best’ for engineering quality, innovation, and customer experience; and highlighted by the Conscious Capitalism movement as a model for stakeholder orientation.
Scott Anderson - Artisan Dental
Scott Andersen’s professional experiences include roles with two global healthcare organizations, co-founding businesses across a variety of industries as well as co-ownership of two dental practices. He has served on a wide range of civic and non-profit boards, lectured at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and at the first global conference on managing sustainability in dentistry. Scott Andersen and his wife, Dr. Nicole Andersen, co-founded Artisan Dental, Wisconsin’s first dental practice to earn the Certified B Corporation designation. Artisan Dental was named Madison Magazine's, Best Places to Work in 2017 & 2018 and a winner of In Business Magazine's, 2018 Dane County Small Business award. Artisan Dental was also a finalist for the Force For Positive Change award in 2018. Artisan Dental incorporates a range of socially and ecologically responsible business practices, which include The Artisan Dental Recycling Program, Artisan Dental Wellness Series and the Artisan Dental Health Plan.
Spencer Schumacher - Spencer Real Estate Group
Spencer Schumacher is the owner of a boutique Real Estate Brokerage in Middleton WI. He received his bachelors degree from the University of Florida in Wildlife Ecology and his Masters Degree in Urban and Regional Planning with a Natural Resources and Environmental Planning specialty from the University of Wisconsin. As a citizen and a business owner in Middleton, Spencer Schumacher has worked for years to make all aspects of his life as sustainable as possible. Spencer has been a proud member of 1% for the Planet since 2014 and donates 1% of his gross revenue to local environmental non profits. Spencer has served on the City of Middleton’s Sustainability Committee since 2012 and has been the chair since 2014. During this time, the committee has successfully created Middleton’s first permanent recycling center, led the process in creating an innovative community shared solar power project, implemented a sustainable purchasing plan, overwhelmingly passed two Climate Change Referendums, and has helped lead Middleton to commit to 100 percent of all City operations energy needs with renewable energy by 2040 and 100 percent of community wide energy needs with renewable energy by 2050.
Transparency & 3rd Party Certifications
Transparency has become a critical expectation of businesses in Wisconsin. Customers and investors are asking for more transparency than ever before. One option toward credibly becoming more transparent is to participate in third party certification programs. The WI Sustainable Business Council offers the Green Masters Program, but there are many other third party programs available to businesses. We'll hear from 3 businesses regarding which programs they use and why, the benefits of becoming more transparent and the effort involved in using third party programs.
Lora Glaser– Kohl’s
Lora Glaser has been with Kohl’s Department Stores since 2012 and is currently the Senior Coordinator of Sustainability. She manages internal and external communication to drive excitement around green initiatives and to capitalize on the company’s goal to be the most engaging retailer in America. Her previous roles at Kohl’s include Executive Correspondence, Social Media, and Environmental Compliance. Lora has spent 5 ½ years living in Europe. She earned a BA from UW-Madison with a double major in French & Italian and studied International Business at Bocconi University in Milan, Italy. She is passionate about organizational development, health, and the environment, and she enjoys cooking, traveling, and winter sports in Wisconsin.
Ryan Piedot - Kohls
Ryan Piedot began his environmental career with Clean Harbors as a lab pack chemist and transitioned to Kohl’s in 2007 to manage and build out solid waste and recycling initiatives. Over the course of the last 11 years, he has held a number of progressive positions developing environmental compliance programs, building out company compliance policies, managing regulatory interactions, reporting and developing sustainability programming while driving engagement and collaboration across business units. Ryan proudly serves as the Senior Manager of Environmental Compliance & Sustainability and holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics & Environmental Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
Lisa Geason-Bauer
Lisa Geason-Bauer founded Wisconsin’s first triple bottom line managed marketing and sustainability consulting firm (Evolution Marketing) in 2007. Since then she has played an active role in shaping the discussion within the business world regarding adoption of strategic sustainability strategies and inclusion of corporate social responsibility programs/projects into day-to-day business operations. Ms. Geason-Bauer has been working at the intersection of sustainability, marketing/communication, and product innovation; she enjoys helping her clients to distinguish themselves from their competition via adoption of triple bottom line strategies and circular economy thinking. Lisa has been recognized repeatedly for her leadership within the sustainable business community. In 2014 she was the recipient of the “Wisconsin Earth Day Business Sustainability Leadership Award”, and was also named the “Women Business Leader of the Year” by the Oconomowoc Area Chamber of Commerce. In 2015, she was the recipient of the U.S. Green Building Council’s “Above and Beyond Volunteer Award.”
Ali Florsheim – Rebel Green
Ali Florsheim is the co-founder of Rebel Green, a natural household cleaning brand established in 2008. Along with business partner Melina Marcus, Ali has developed a full line of natural cleaners that are formulated without harmful chemical, include only essential oils and are priced to compete with conventional brands. Dedicated to transparency is packaging, Ali has focused all of her energy on creating a brand that compels customers new to the natural category to try naturals with award winning packaging and a mission to serve incredible social causes in clean air, food and water. She also serves as a family court mediator and family law arbitrator in Wisconsin. Ali received a degree in psychology from Washington University in St. Louis, a master's degree in counseling from Loyola University in Chicago and in 2000, she graduated from Marquette University Law School. Ali loves to plan product line expansions, spend time with her four teenage children and catch the occasional yoga class when she can get away.
Materiality and Sustainability
Companies interested in sustainability need to address both environmental and social challenges. Each of these aspects of sustainability present many options for companies to focus on. In deciding where to focus resources and attention, some assessment of what is most important both to the company and to its stakeholders must be done. This is where an assessment of materiality becomes quite useful. Jeff Jaeckels from MG&E has been working on what is material to his utility for several years, and will share what he has learned. Similarly, MillerCoors has used a materiality assessment to focus up their supply chain where the greatest opportunities to make a difference lie. If understanding what is material to your business is a challenge you face, this session will give you the tools and experiences to move forward.
Jeff Jaeckels – MG&E
Jeff’s leadership at Madison Gas and Electric Company includes governance and environmental/sustainability management including their ISO 14001 certification and Green Tier agreement. Under Green Tier, Jeff manages the citizen environmental advisory group that provides citizen input to MGE on sustainability and environmental matters. He chairs the Wisconsin Utility Association Environmental Subcommittee, is a graduate of Leadership Greater Madison, and is a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt. Jeff serves as a member of the Yahara WINs Strategic Planning Workgroup, WDNR’s Air Management Study Group, and Dane County Clean Air Coalition.Jeff has a BS Degree in Chemical Engineering, a MS Degree in Environmental Chemistry & Technology, and is a registered professional engineer.
Dave Burreson- Land's End
Dave is the Sr. Director of Facility and Corporate services and has worked with Lands’ End for over 30 years. Dave brings management experience in Facilities Maintenance, Environmental Health, and Safety, Food Service, Sustainability, and Corporate Travel overseeing over 2 million square feet of buildings on 400 acres of campus properties.
Dan Huhn- Bemis Manufacturing
Dan has worked in the polymer industry for over 20 years and is the manager of the Bemis Advanced Polymer Center located in Sheboygan Falls. As part of Bemis Manufacturing Dan oversees lab operations, material development, and polymer converting operations. Dan has been a part of Bemis recycling efforts for over 10 years and has been known to get knee deep in the waste to find something of value.
