
How BMW is Driving Decarbonization
- 24 MAY 2023
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- Climate Rising
This bonus episode of Climate Rising features Harvard Business Review’s Cold Cast
podcast with Brian Kenny interviewing HBS professor Shirley Lu on BMW Group’s decarbonization
strategy, which is the subject of a new case study that Shirley wrote with HBS colleagues
George Serafeim and Mike Toffel. They discuss why BMW is focusing on reducing vehicle
lifecycle emissions, and why the company has so far avoided setting a phase-out date
for internal combustion engine BMWs. For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org.
Guest/Host: ● Brian Kenny, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Harvard Business
School and host of Cold Call ● Shirley Lu, Assistant Professor, Harvard Business School
This bonus episode of Climate Rising features Harvard Business Review’s Cold Cast
podcast with Brian Kenny interviewing HBS professor Shirley Lu on BMW Group’s decarbonization
strategy, which is the subject of a new case study that Shirley wrote with HBS colleagues
George Serafeim and Mike Toffel. They discuss why BMW is focusing on reducing vehicle
lifecycle emissions, and why the company has so far avoided setting a phase-out date
for internal combustion engine BMWs. For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org.
Guest/Host: ● Brian Kenny, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Harvard Business
School and host of Cold Call ● Shirley Lu, Assistant Professor, Harvard Business School

Innovating, Funding, and Scaling Climate Solutions at Harvard Business School: Day Three of Harvard Climate Action Week
Re: By: Shona Simkin; Peter Tufano; Debora Spar; Srikant Datar; George Serafeim; Jim Matheson; Robert Kaplan; Shirley Lu; Rosabeth Moss Kanter; Eleanor Laurans; Juan Alcacer
- 19 May 2023
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- Harvard Business School

Students Strive to Solve Climate Change
- 12 May 2023
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- Harvard Business School
Decarbonizing Health Care: Engaging Leaders in Change
- MAY 2023
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- NEJM Catalyst Innovations in Care Delivery
Health care leaders are often surprised to learn that their operations contribute significantly to a warming climate. In addition to their roles as responders to and victims of extreme weather events, health care organizations have an obligation to reduce their substantial greenhouse gas emissions as part of their overall mission to do no harm and to improve health. Representing close to one fifth of the U.S. gross domestic product, the health care sector can use its purchasing power to drive the transition to clean energy and a low-carbon supply chain for the rest of the nation. Moreover, much of the shift in focus to preventive models of care and safer, higher-quality care that reduces unnecessary utilization will naturally produce lower carbon footprints. With the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, nonprofit organizations can now use the new tax credit provisions for renewable energy to support desired investments in buildings, energy infrastructure, and transportation, among others. Health care organizations and their global value chains can be influential and important catalysts for the journey to a net-zero carbon future. Here, the authors share recommendations for how leaders can build climate-smart strategies that take advantage of tax incentives and drive changes that can both energize their employees and build a more resilient system to care for their communities.
Sweden’s Northvolt Electric Battery Maker: A Startup with a Mission
- 28 APR 2023
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- Cold Call Podcast
In Stockholm, Sweden an upstart battery maker, Northvolt, is trying to recreate the value chain for European car manufacturers making the switch to EVs. With two founders from Tesla and two experienced financiers at the helm, the company seems bound for success. But can they partner with government, scale fast enough, and truly be part of the climate solution? Harvard Business School professor George Serafeim discusses what it takes to scale a business—the right people, in the right place, at the right time—with the aim of providing a climate solution in the case, “Northvolt, Building Batteries to Fight Climate Change.” As part of a new first-year MBA course at Harvard Business School, this case examines the central question: what is the social purpose of the firm?
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