May 2 Green Business Roundtable: Bringing International Corporate Sustainability to Local Impact

Green Business Roundtable invites everyone who is interested in issues at the intersection of business and sustainability to come for networking, discussion and insight.  Join us!

Date: Wednesday, May 2, 2018
Time: 11:30 am - 1:00 pm
Location: Offices of Green America - 1612 K Street, NW, Suite 600, Washington DC
(nearest Metro: Farragut West and Farragut North)
Lunch included

May 2 Green Business Roundtable Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD Early Bird (expired) $19.00 USD Registration (expired) $22.00 USD This month's Topic: Bringing International Corporate Sustainability to Local Impact: The Intersection of Strategy and Results On the Ground  Often, a consumer’s interaction with corporations that lead in international sustainability are rooted in traditional point of purchase or post consumption models, such as purchasing sustainable products or ensuring responsible disposal.  Equally as often, corporations focus on collating good data and anecdotes for their annual report.    But the true corporate leaders are those who approach sustainability as a systems innovation: working with their suppliers, strengthening the communities in which they operate, and growing the purchasing power of markets within which they sell. And often the greatest impact of these value chain-based implementations are in developing nations.   This Month's Speaker: Gwen Davidow, Acting President, World Environment Center The World Environment Center is an independent, global, non-profit, non-advocacy organization that advances sustainable development through the business practices of member companies and in partnership with governments, multi-lateral organizations, non-governmental organizations, universities and other stakeholders. WEC creates sustainable business solutions through individual projects in emerging markets; convenes leadership roundtables to shape strategic thinking across a range of sustainability topics. Ms. Davidow will share WEC’s experience in working with their members and governments in advising on and implementing "systems innovation" programs.   Thanks again to Green America for partnering with Green Business Roundtable and hosting this month's gathering Date: Wednesday, May 2, 2018 Time: 11:30 am - 1:00 pm Location: Offices of Green America - 1612 K Street, NW, Suite 600, Washington DC Lunch included May 2 Green Business Roundtable Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD Early Bird (expired) $19.00 USD Registration (expired) $22.00 USD

April Green Business Roundtable - WRI's Global Director of their Business Center, Kevin Moss

Green Business Roundtable invites all interested in issues at the intersection of business and sustainability to join us for networking, discussion and insight.

I look forward to seeing you there.  

Date: Wednesday, April 4, 2018
Time: 11:30am - 1:00pm
Location: Offices of Green America - 1612 K St. NW, Washington, DC
  (nearest Metros - Farragut North and Farragut West)
Lunch included.

April 4 Green Business Roundtable

Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD Registration $22.00 USD Early Bird (expired) $19.00 USD

One of the biggest elephants in corporate boardrooms is the dependence of today’s business models on unprecedented levels of consumption of material goods around the world. Can we imagine a future economy that supports human development, environmental stewardship, and business success?  We will discuss if and how tomorrow’s markets can thrive without the need to sell more stuff to more people in perpetuity and if the time is right to ‘out the elephant.’

 

This month's speaker: Kevin Moss, Global Director of WRI's Business Center

As Global Director of the Business Center, Kevin directs WRI’s program that helps the private sector develop strategies that support sustainable strategies and drive growth. He supports WRI’s Signature Initiatives in developing impactful strategies that leverage the private sector, provides thought leadership in the field of corporate sustainability and supports the integration of private sector perspectives and impact across the full range of WRI programs. These initiatives engage a broad spectrum of leading corporate partners around the world.

 
Thanks again to Green America for partnering with Green Business Roundtable and hosting this month's gathering

April 4 Green Business Roundtable

Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD Registration $22.00 USD Early Bird (expired) $19.00 USD

February 2018 Roundtable - Food and Agriculture in the DC Region

Green Business Roundtable invites all interested in issues at the intersection of business and sustainability to join us for networking, discussion and insight.

I look forward to seeing you there.  

Date: Wednesday, February 7, 2017
Time: 11:30am - 1:00pm
Location: Offices of Green America - 1612 K St. NW, Washington, DC
  (nearest Metros - Farragut North and Farragut West)
Lunch included.

February 7 Green Business Roundtable

Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD Registration (unavailable) $22.00 USD

 
This month's topic  - Linking Sustainability with Food in the DC Region


Interest in local food is at an all-time high locally and nationally. Food production, distribution, sale, consumption and disposal all have significant impacts on our environmental footprint.  Join us for a stimulating discussion about food and agriculture in metro DC and their environmental and economic contributions and impacts.  Lindsay Smith (COG) will present a regional overview of these dynamic sectors, and local entrepreneur Tom McDougall of 4P Foods will share his experience with building a food-related business that fosters sustainability while generating profits.

 

This month's speakers - Lindsay Smith and Tom McDougall

Lindsay Smith is working with the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) to build a multi-faceted Regional Food Systems Program in COG’s Department of Environmental Programs. This new efforts works with a range of stakeholders—from businesses to non-profits to local, state, and federal government to identify opportunities to grow the region’s food economy to the benefit of farmers and producers, consumers, and COG members.
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Tom is the founder of 4P Foods, a Benefit Corporation that works with over 200 local and regional farms, delivering their sustainably produced food to customers in and around DC.  4P's goal is to use food as a tool to create a more equitable, socially just and sustainable food system of tomorrow.  Tom is a passionate advocate for True Cost Accounting as a resource to change the conversation around what, ultimately, is the true purpose of business. 

 
Thanks again to Green America for partnering with Green Business Roundtable and hosting this month's gathering

February 7 Green Business Roundtable

Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD Registration (unavailable) $22.00 USD

December Green Business Roundtable - What they think they think is not what they think

Green Business Roundtable invites all interested in issues at the intersection of business and sustainability to join us for networking, discussion and insight.

I look forward to seeing you there.  

Date: Wednesday, December 6, 2017
Time: 11:30am - 1:00pm
Location: Offices of Green America - 1612 K St. NW, Washington, DC
  (nearest Metros - Farragut North and Farragut West)
Lunch included.

December 6 Green Business Roundtable

Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD Registration (expired) $22.00 USD

 
This month's topic  - What people are thinking about sustainability is not what they think they are thinking

This month's discussion will focus on behavior and behavior change that improves sustainable outcomes.

A company's sustainability efforts should influence their customers, their employees and other stakeholders... but how does that really happen? If you ask them, they will tell you ... but the answers could not just be incomplete, they could be wrong.
Much of what drives decisions is not logical or conscious: cues, clues and bias drive our decisions without us knowing it. Researcher Zack Boileau and marketer Peter Mitchell of the behavior-change marketing agency SalterMitchell / Marketing for Change talk about their work uncovering these forces.  Also: They look at what this means for companies trying to use their sustainability agenda to enhance their standing with customers and engage employees.

Discussion will include both the "how" part (the methodologies) and examples of how these insights played into efforts to influence consumers around health and environmental actions.

This month's presenters - Peter Mitchell, Partner and Zack Boileau, Senior Research Manager at SalterMitchell

A former journalist and legislative aide, Peter Mitchell has been designing and implementing behavior change programs for two decades, beginning with development of the Truth antismoking effort in the late 1990s. He has won numerous awards (Emmy, Silver Anvil, God Davey, Telly, Addy, etc.) and designed behavior-change efforts domestically and overseas  -- including one locally to reduce fertilizer use that urged homeowners to "save the crabs, then eat 'em."

For the past 5 years, Zack Boileau has designed and implemented behavior change research for clients including the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Safe Kids Worldwide, Compassion and Choices, the MacArthur Foundation and others. Whether conducting interviews focused on the deeper meaning behind the concept of "affordability" with uninsured populations or uncovering the reasons behind sugary drink purchases among suburban moms, Zack uses behavioral determinant research to push past the surface level reasoning behind behaviors.

 
Thanks again to Green America for partnering with Green Business Roundtable and hosting this month's gathering

December 6 Green Business Roundtable

Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD Registration (expired) $22.00 USD

November Green Business Roundtable - Carbon Pricing

Green Business Roundtable invites all interested in issues at the intersection of business and sustainability to join us for networking, discussion and insight.

I look forward to seeing you there.  

Date: Wednesday, November 1, 2017
Time: 11:30am - 1:00pm
Location: Offices of Green America - 1612 K St. NW, Washington, DC
  (nearest Metros - Farragut North and Farragut West)
Lunch included.

November 1 Green Business Roundtable

Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD Registration $22.00 USD Early Bird Registration $19.00 USD

 
This month's topic  - Carbon Pricing  
For decades, economists of all political leanings have favored carbon pricing as an effective solution to climate change. This comprehensive policy harnesses the power of the market to level the playing field for clean energy, incentivize efficiency, and generate revenue for public investment.  More than 40 jurisdictions worldwide already have a price on carbon, including California and nine states in the Northeast. More than 1,200 companies worldwide have implemented an internal price on carbon as a business practice and are achieving cost savings and emission reductions as a result.

Well-known brands Microsoft, Disney, Shell, and Unilever are incorporating carbon pricing into their business models. Some companies apply a carbon fee directly to their normal business activity, generating revenue to support projects that help meet internal greenhouse gas reduction goals. Others apply a "shadow price" as a risk assessment tool for operating profitably within carbon-constrained markets.

The Put a Price On It DC campaign is encouraging the DC government to create a carbon price for businesses in the District.  Join our discussion on the economic implications of carbon pricing, how it will affect businesses, institutions and other players and what they can do to best advantage themselves.

This month's speaker - Camila Thorndike, Carbon Pricing Coordinator at Chesapeake Climate Action Network

 
Camila Thorndike leads the D.C. team for the Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN), an award-winning climate and clean energy organization with a 15 year history of passing landmark policy in D.C., Virginia and Maryland. Camila coordinates a coalition of over 40 groups in the Put a Price on It DC campaign that is catapulting the District of Columbia to the forefront of smart climate leadership nationwide. She is the co-founder of Our Climate, an advocacy organization active in 17 states, and is a Udall Scholar, Sitka Fellow, and listed on the Mic50 and Grist 50.

 
Thanks again to Green America for partnering with Green Business Roundtable and hosting this month's gathering

November 1 Green Business Roundtable

Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD Registration $22.00 USD Early Bird Registration $19.00 USD

September Green Business Roundtable - Strategies and Tactics to Make American Manufacturing Competitive

Green Business Roundtable invites all interested in issues at the intersection of business and sustainability to join us for networking, discussion and insight.

I look forward to seeing you there.  

Date: Wednesday, September 6, 2017
Time: 11:30am - 1:00pm
Location: Offices of Green America - 1612 K St. NW, Washington, DC
  (nearest Metros - Farragut North and Farragut West)
Lunch included.

September 6 Green Business Roundtable

Registration $22.00 USD Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD

 

This month's topic  - Strategies and Tactics to Make American Manufacturing Competitive

In the US, heating and cooling account for more than 30% of total energy use across residential, commercial, and industrial sectors, costing $270 billion annually. Despite its large energy and carbon footprint, the use of renewable energy for heating and cooling applications has received very little attention in comparison with renewable electricity. Because heating and cooling comprise such a large percentage of energy and fossil fuel use, it will be impossible to achieve long-term climate and energy goals without dramatically increasing the use of renewable heating and cooling. Ryan Hodum will discuss a nascent effort led by large manufacturers and non-profit organizations, aimed at identifying and eliminating barriers that make purchasing renewable thermal energy so expensive. The conversation will focus on strategies and tactics to make American manufacturing competitive and think through with attendees how to put the ‘energy’ back in renewable energy, in order to decarbonize the manufacturing energy load and solve for both electricity and thermal needs.

 

This month's speaker - Ryan Hodum, Vice President, David Gardiner and Associates

Ryan Hodum has more than a decade of experience helping businesses, foundations, and non-profit organizations understand complex sustainability challenges and capture opportunities, especially focused on energy policy, energy efficiency, and renewable energy. He is currently Vice President at David Gardiner and Associates (DGA), a strategic advisory firm focused on climate change, clean energy, and sustainability. Prior to joining DGA, Ryan worked at the U.S. Department of State on international climate and clean energy partnerships in Asia, with a particular focus on China and India.

 
Thanks again to Green America for partnering with Green Business Roundtable and hosting this month's gathering

September 6 Green Business Roundtable

Registration $22.00 USD Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD

August Green Business Roundtable - Environmental Performance, Risk Management and Finance Strategies

Green Business Roundtable invites all interested in issues at the intersection of business and sustainability to join us for networking, discussion and insight.

I look forward to seeing you there.  

Date: Wednesday, August 2, 2017
Time: 11:30am - 1:00pm
Location: Offices of Green America - 1612 K St. NW, Washington, DC
  (nearest Metros - Farragut North and Farragut West)
Lunch included.

August 2, 2017 Green Business Roundtable

Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD Registration (sold out) $22.00 USD

Roundtable will be live-streamed 

on Lexus Media News

 

This month's topic 

Companies are more focused on environmental performance and risk management than ever before. Yet it is the increasing ability to measure and place a value on such performance that is diversifying corporate responses to things like climate change and creating new approaches and innovations in green finance. We will discuss climate-related risk disclosure standards and the next generation of corporate energy and green finance strategies. 

 

This month's speaker - Cameron Prell, Energy & Climate Lawyer at Crowell & Moring, LLP

Cameron has more than a decade of experience representing clients on climate and energy matters and green finance transactions. He works with companies and governments to develop and finance clean energy, water and environmental projects, design green finance mechanisms and instruments, engage in energy and environmental market transactions, and commercialize low carbon technologies.

 
Thanks again to Green America for partnering with Green Business Roundtable and hosting this month's gathering

 

August 2, 2017 Green Business Roundtable

Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD Registration (sold out) $22.00 USD

July Green Business Roundtable - Storytelling, Innovation & Impact: How Unleashing the Power of Narrative is Good Business

Green Business Roundtable invites all interested in the intersection of business and sustainability to join us for networking, storytelling (!), discussion and insight. I look forward to seeing you there. 

Date: Tuesday July 11, 2017
Time: 11:30am - 1:00pm
Location: Green America 1612 K St. NW, Suite 600 Washington, D.C. 20006
(nearest Metros - Farragut North/Farragut West ) 
Lunch included.

July 11, 2017 Green Business Roundtable

Registration $22.00 USD Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD

This month's topic: 
Storytelling, Innovation and Impact: How Unleashing the Power of Narrative is Good Business 

Our guest will discuss the current storytelling and communications landscape, and how embedding storytelling into your organizational culture can unleash new learnings, opportunities and ultimately, growth. She will share examples of stories that have shifted discourse and behavior, and she'll reflect on the exciting and necessary role for storytelling in making a more robust and global green business movement.

Guest presenter: Maggie Lemere: Documentary Filmmaker and Storytelling Strategist   Maggie Lemere is a documentary filmmaker, oral historian and social change and storytelling strategist whose projects focus on social and environmental issues.  She brings her skills to a variety of organizations and projects, including Ashoka (where she trains and coaches social entrepreneurs to tell their stories globally) and the Smithsonian (where she interviews scientists), among others. Maggie is a co-founder of Rhiza Collective, a women-led collective that uses storytelling, healing, organizing, and research to support social transformation and environmental justice.

Maggie is inspired by Washington D.C.’s history of social movements and its continued role as a gathering place for people with a principled belief in our power to make change.   She has a Masters in International Peace and Conflict Resolution from American University.

Thanks to Green America for partnering and hosting this month's Roundtable

 

July 11, 2017 Green Business Roundtable

Registration $22.00 USD Walk-in Registration $25.00 USD