Joel Makower is chairman and co-founder of Trellis Group Inc., (formerly GreenBiz Group), the leading media and events company at the intersection of business, innovation and sustainability. An award-winning writer, speaker, and advisor on corporate sustainability and climate tech, Joel has authored more than a dozen books and previously served as a nationally syndicated columnist.In this episode, Joel shares the story of what sparked his journey into sustainability — a path that led to the founding of GreenBiz Group — and reflects on the state of sustainability today: what’s changed, what’s endured, and the lessons he’s learned throughout his remarkable career.

Show Notes

• Follow Joel Makower on LinkedIn
• Ecology of Commerce by Paul Hawken
• Two Steps Forward Podcast - Joel Makower and Solitaire Townsend
• Drawdown, the Book edited by Paul Hawken
• Biomimicry by Janine Benyus
• God Storm by Solitaire Townsend (preorder)

Through the advisory firm she founded, Aimée leverages deep expertise and a diverse network of relationships to build a just, resilient and thriving world. She develops, accelerates and scales solutions in key impact sectors, including with climate solutions innovators such as Aleph Farms, Hempitecture and RiskThinking.Ai, global impact initiatives including Apparel Impact Institute, Clinton Global Initiative, Global Ocean Commission and Sustainable Energy for All, major corporations such as Duke Energy, Ford Motor Company, Google, Microsoft, Swiss Re and Virgin, and philanthropies including Mastercard Impact Fund, Rockefeller Brothers Fund and the United Nations Foundation. She is Senior Adviser for Climate Finance to the Milken Institute and partnered with the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth to release at the UN climate talks at COP29 an award-winning report and call to action, “Unlocking the Power of Small Business to Deliver Climate-Smart Inclusive Growth.” She was the first climate hire at Google as Climate Maven at Google.org, and negotiated the first US bilateral and regional agreements on climate change. She is also the founder and curator of the Sun Valley Forum, where she gathers a community of global leaders and innovators to accelerate impact together.

Trish Kenlon is the founder of Sustainable Career Pathways, a popular career coaching service that provides free, actionable resources to job seekers and has helped thousands of professionals transition into climate and sustainability work. In this episode of the Sustainability Recruiter, I team up with Trish to share real-time insights from both sides of the sustainability job market.

Show Notes

• Trish on LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trishkenlon/

• Trish’s website: https://sustainablecareerpathways.com/

• Trish’s Trellis author page: https://trellis.net/article/author/trish-kenlon/

• The Design Your Climate Career program at Voiz Academy (listeners can use code TK10 for 10% off): https://www.voiz.academy/dcc?id=TRK_A720E4FD

• Two Steps Forward: Sustainability Meets Business Reality podcast with Joel Makower and Solitaire Townsend: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/two-steps-forward-sustainability-meets-business-reality/id1812060290

• The EDF Climate Corps fellowship: https://business.edf.org/climate-corps/

• Ed’s Clean Energy and Sustainability Jobs list: https://edscleanenergysustainabilityjobs.com/

Kristen Siemen, the former CSO of General Motors, retired from the company after 30+ years of service. She held the CSO position for 4 years after several years in product development and engineering.

In this episode, Ellen and Kristen discuss advice for those considering retirement as well as musings on the word retirement and what it means. Does retirement mean you are done working? For Kristen, she is by no means done.

Shownotes:

Follow Kristen Siemen on LinkedIn

Tim Mohin’s book ESG & Climate News Newsletter https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/6773642479246831618/

Episode 1: Exit Interview - Michael Kobori, former Chief Sustainability Officer, StarbucksAfter a nearly 30 year career in sustainability, Michael Kobori, best known for his work at Levi's where he developed and led the company's sustainability strategy, retired from his role as Chief Sustainability Officer at Starbucks. So what's next for this sustainability rock star?In this episode Ellen talks to Michael about his career, the state of sustainability, and what's next as he looks ahead.

Shownotes:

• Follow Michael Kobori on LinkedIn
• Hear John Elkington’s interview
• Recommended reading: The Culture Code, by Daniel Coyne
• From Strength to Strength, by Arthur Brooks