EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, Oil Industry Expert Amy Myers Jaffe, Food Tank’s Danielle Nierenberg and Fortune 500 Business Leaders to Headline Ceres Conference May 4-5 in Boston on “Sustainability in an Age of Disruption”

BOSTON, April 27, 2016 /3BL Media/ — On the heels of the historic signing of the Paris Climate Agreement, the nonprofit sustainability group Ceres will bring together 500 business, investor and nonprofit group leaders to discuss how leading businesses in key industries are responding to sustainability challenges and combating climate change threats on a rapidly warming planet.

Ceres’ 2016 annual conference, Business Not as Usual: Sustainability in an Age of Disruption, will be held May 4-5 at the Park Plaza Hotel in Boston. Business leaders from electric utilities, transportation, food and the finance sectors will be on hand to share their strategies for accelerating action on issues related to clean energy, water scarcity, sustainable agriculture and food, human rights and more. See full agenda at www.ceresconference.org.

“Business disruption is happening across the economy, much of it related to sustainability pressures that have sparked the Paris Climate Agreement, low-carbon transportation and electric power, and existential questions about the future of oil. During two provocative days, the world’s top sustainability leaders will discuss their responses to these mega trends and challenges that lie ahead. The urgency for bolder action will be a constant theme.” - said Mindy Lubber, president of Ceres.

What: Ceres Conference 2016: Business Not As Usual: Sustainability In An Age Of Disruption
When: May 4-5, 2016
Where: Boston Park Plaza Hotel, 50 Park Plaza, Boston, MA.

Please RSVP Meg Wilcox, (617) 247 -0700 x155, wilcox@ceres.org or Sara Sciammacco, (617) 247-0700 x172, sciammacco@ceres.org, if you are an accredited journalist and would like to attend and cover the conference.

Click here to see the full two-day agenda.

Among key highlights:

8:00-9:00 AM May 4 Breakfast Plenary: BICEP Breakfast of Climate Champions U.S. EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse D-RI will headline a session about the current state of climate and energy policies in the United States and how companies can help bridge political divides and create change.

9:30-10:30 May 4 (Plenary): Plug In And Power Ahead—How The Utility And Auto Industries Can Help Each Other Achieve A Clean Energy Future: The electric power and auto industries share common challenges and opportunities in the drive toward cleaner technologies. Learn how the two sectors can work together to advance electric vehicles and a “greener grid.” Jana Corey, Director, Electrification and Alternative Fuels, Customer Energy Solutions, Pacific Gas and Electric Company; Britta Gross, Director, Advanced Vehicle Commercialization Policy, General Motors; Brett Hauser, Chief Executive Officer, Greenlots; Peter Kelly-Detwiler, Principal at NorthBridge Energy

11-12:15 May 4: Individual Investor Options For Sustainable Investment: Hear from leading investment practitioners about the growing sustainable investment opportunities for individual investors. Anders Ferguson, Founding Principal, Veris Wealth Partners; Lynne Ford, Executive Vice President, Calvert Distributors, Inc.; Karina Funk, Portfolio Manager and Head of Sustainable Investing Strategies, Brown Advisory; Steve Schueth, President and Chief Marketing Officer, First Affirmative Financial Network; Richard Zimmerman, President’s Council, Ceres

11-12:15 May 4: Corporate Renewable Energy: Getting Big Deals Done: This session explores how hundreds of companies are overcoming obstacles and working with renewable energy developers to get projects done. It will also highlight key public policies that are enabling projects to move forward and trends that are catalyzing or inhibiting investment. Mark Bescher, Manager, Government Relations and External Affairs, Unilever; Michele Chait, Director, E3; Debora Fillis Ryba, Senior Sustainability Manager, Nestlé Waters North America; Craig Gordon, Vice President of Sales & Marketing, Invenergy LLC; Marty Spitzer, Director, US Climate and Renewable Energy Policy, WWF

1-2 May 4 (Plenary): Breaking Bread—How Companies, Consumers And Investors Can Partner To Achieve Sustainable Food Supplies: Global food companies face increasing pressure from climate change labor concerns and heightened consumer demands for healthy, responsibly-produced foods. This panel explores food sector risks, trends and opportunities, as well as innovative ways to ensure a healthy, equitable and sustainable food system. John Church, Executive Vice President, Supply Chain, General Mills, Inc.; Marc Gunther, Journalist, Nonprofit Chronicles; Eric Katzman, Senior Research Analyst and Managing Director, Deutsche Bank; Danielle Nierenberg, President, Food Tank

9-10:30 May 5 (Plenary): C-Suites: The New Nexus of Corporate Sustainability: This session explores how corporate boards and business leaders are considering sustainability in their assessment of risk, reputation and revenue. Rebecca Henderson, John and Natty McArthur University Professor, Harvard University; Mehmood Khan, Vice Chairman and Chief Scientific Officer, PepsiCo; Harmit Singh, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Levi Strauss & Co.; Deborah Spalding, Chief Investment Officer, Connecticut Office of the State Treasurer

1-2 pm: May 5 (Plenary): The State of the Global Oil Industry: Megatrends and Peak Demand Scenarios: This session will explore how the conventional wisdom on peak oil demand is changing and whether the global oil industry is adequately assessing the risks of an accelerating low-carbon future. Amy Myers Jaffe, Executive Director, Energy and Sustainability University of California, Davis; Candice Lo, Head of Greater China Expansion, Uber

ABOUT CERES:
 Ceres is a nonprofit organization mobilizing many of the world’s largest companies and investors to take stronger action on climate change, water scarcity and other sustainability challenges. Ceres directs the Investor Network on Climate Risk (INCR), a network of over 120 institutional investors with collective assets totaling more than $14 trillion. Ceres also engages with 100-plus companies, many of them Fortune 500 firms, committed to sustainable business practices and the urgency for stronger climate and clan energy policies. For more information, visit http://www.ceres.org or follow on Twitter @CeresNews.

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