Events - Business & Environment - Harvard Business School

04 MAR 2020 |
Boston

Alumni Conference

The global financial landscape is increasingly being shaped by factors associated with climate change––including forecasts about its physical effects and public sector responses. The wide-ranging effects of environmental risks, technological advances, infrastructure challenges, business model innovations, and national and international policy shifts are impacting the financial sector in unprecedented ways. This conference addressed broad systemic risk across every aspect of the finance sector and asked alumni to consider the question: What will you do to stay ahead of the curve, preserve access to capital, anticipate and manage risk, and invest in new opportunities? Read the story here. View conference videos here.

Feb12

Business and Climate Policy: Your Vital Role

12 FEB 2020 |
Washington, DC

Faculty-led Alumni Discussion & Networking Reception, Climate Change Regional Event

Scientists agree that the world must reduce carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 in order to avoid the most damaging impacts from climate change. The discussion and reception explored how current U.S. government policies with respect to climate change - at the federal, state, and local levels - are affecting key business sectors; the state-of-play of climate legislation and critical trends; and how business leaders can make a difference. BEI Faculty Chair Michael Toffel moderated an expert panel featuring voices from the energy, environmental, and governmental sectors; attendees from fields as diverse as education, health care, and investing weighed in on the pressing issue. Read the full story here.

Organizers: BEI and the HBS Club of Washington, DC

May15

Confronting Climate Change: Opportunities and Risks for Midwest Agribusiness

15 MAY 2019 |
Chicago

Faculty-led Alumni Discussion & Networking Reception, Climate Change Regional Event, Alumni Conference

Climate change is leading to warmer temperatures and more frequent and intensive storms. These and other impacts will grow stronger over the coming decades, influencing the future of Midwest agribusiness. HBS Alumni convened at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago to explore how climate change is impacting, and will impact, the conditions for agribusiness—and the new business opportunities it is creating for investors and innovators in this sector. The workshop included two panels. The first, moderated by HBS Professor Forest Reinhardt, explored what climate change will mean for food prices and availability, and agribusiness investor opportunities. The second, moderated by HBS Professor Jose Alvarez, examined the steps that leading business innovators are taking to seize opportunities and enhance the sustainability of their businesses in this dynamic landscape. Read the Alumni Bulletin article highlighting key takeaways from the event.

Organizers: BEI, HBS Club of Chicago, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago

Mar07

The Reckoning: Reimagining Capitalism in a World on Fire

07 MAR 2019 |
Los Angeles

Faculty-led Alumni Discussion & Networking Reception, Climate Change Regional Event, Reunion Presentation

More than 80 alumni and guests gathered for an HBS faculty-led discussion on business and climate change. Opening remarks from Alan Horn (MBA 1971), chairman of Walt Disney Studios and chair of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) Board of Trustees, underscored the night’s charge: “There is an opportunity, if not a requirement, for the business community to step up where the political community has failed.” These comments were echoed in remarks by guest speaker Roland Hwang, managing director of NRDC’s Climate and Clean Energy Program. Led by Prof. Rebecca Henderson, the panel called for urgent action on climate change among business leaders and outlined a practical roadmap for how business can help. Read about the event in this HBS Alumni Bulletin article.

Organizers: BEI, HBS Association of Southern California, HBS Association of Orange County, and HBS Club of San Diego

Feb12

Confronting Climate Change: Boston-Based Ideas that Can Change the World

12 FEB 2019 |
Boston

Faculty-led Alumni Discussion & Networking Reception, Climate Change Regional Event, Alumni Conference

Over time, climate change will transform Boston’s landscape and economy. Disruption will bring opportunities as well as risks. What are Boston-area businesses doing to confront this challenge? What can they do? What should they do? This event, moderated by BEI Faculty Chair Michael Toffel, featured alumni panelists as well as faculty from Harvard Chan School of Public Health. Read the Alumni Bulletin article highlighting key takeaways from the event.

Organizers: BEI, HBS Association of Boston (HBSAB)

Nov13

An Investor’s Guide to Climate Change: Disruption and Opportunity

13 NOV 2018 |
New York

Faculty-led Alumni Discussion & Networking Reception, Climate Change Regional Event, Alumni Conference

This alumni panel, moderated by Prof. Joe Lassiter, explored ways in which finance professionals can manage climate risk in existing portfolios and through new investment opportunities. More than 70 HBS alumni gathered to learn from each other and confront the business implications of climate change. Hosted by the BEI and the HBS Club of New York, the event offered faculty and alumni perspectives on the role of the investment community in addressing climate change. Professor Joseph Lassiter moderated the four-person panel that included Hui Wen Chan (MBA 2010), vice president of corporate sustainability at Citigroup; Michael Ellis (MBA 2008), managing director of Inherent Group; Claire Broido Johnson (MBA 2002), president of CBJ Energy; and Jackson Lehr (MBA 2007), director of distributed energy ventures at National Grid. Read the HBS Alumni Bulletin article.

Organizers: BEI and the HBS Club of New York

Oct13

Climate Change and Business Responses

13 OCT 2018

Reunion Presentation

10:00-11:15am

Moderator: Michael W. Toffel, Senator John Heinz Professor of Environmental Management

Panelists: Matthew Arnold (MBA 1988), Managing Director and Global Head of Sustainable Finance, JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Ruthanne Fuller (MBA 1983), Mayor of Newton
John Replogle (MBA 1993), Partner, One Better Ventures; Chair, Seventh Generation
Carter Roberts (MBA 1988), President and CEO, World Wildlife Fund

Apr19

Climate Change in South Florida: When to Invest in Resilience

19 APR 2018 |
Miami

Faculty-led Case-Based Discussion & Reception, Climate Change Regional Event, Alumni Conference

Potential sea level rise, worsening storms, and increasingly exposed assets create a difficult dilemma for South Florida. The HBS Business & Environment Initiative and the HBS Club of South Florida gathered local alumni for a case-based discussion about the significant challenges and opportunities that climate change creates for Miami and South Florida. Prof. John Macomber, fellow alumni, and local leaders explored climate projections, insurance models, and the benefit/cost approach to investments in reinforcement, relocation, and rebuilding. This event was part of a series of climate change discussions that HBS is organizing with alumni clubs across the globe.

Organizers: BEI and the HBS Club of South Florida

Feb15

The Role of Business Leaders in the Age of Climate Change

15 FEB 2018 |
San Francisco

Alumni Panel & Reception, Climate Change Regional Event, Alumni Conference

HBS alumni shared perspectives about climate change and launched a network of those interested in taking a leadership role—by pursuing business opportunities, advocating for effective public policies, and designing their own approaches. The event was part of BEI’s “listening tour” that will culminated in an alumni conference at HBS in March 2020. A panel representing the perspectives of startups, established companies, and investors offered framing comments, followed by discussion and a reception. View a of the highlights of the evening.

Oct03

Is "Good Governance" Good for Companies?

03 OCT 2015

Joseph L. Bower, Donald K. David Professor of Business Administration, Emeritus; Lynn S. Paine, John G. McLean Professor of Business Administration, Reunion Presentation

At a time of changing technology, shifting environmental and market conditions, and increasing competition from giant Asian companies, business leaders also face heightened pressure to increase returns to shareholders and improve corporate governance. In the name of good governance and greater accountability to shareholders, many companies have declassified their boards, introduced majority voting for directors, and eliminated so-called “poison pills." Others, under pressure from activist investors, have bought back shares, spun off divisions, or taken other steps to modify their business models. In this session, Professors Bower and Paine will review the intellectual foundations of the “good governance” movement and report on the conversations they have had with corporate executives, investors, and asset managers about the implications of this movement and the role of shareholders in the modern public corporation.

Oct03

Rethinking Nuclear: How Can We Change the World’s Cumulative Carbon Emissions Soon Enough?

03 OCT 2015

Joseph B. Lassiter, Senator John Heinz Professor of Management Practice in Environmental Management, Emeritus; Ray Rothrock (MBA 1988), Partner Emeritus, Venrock; Chairman and CEO, RedSea, Reunion Presentation

Today’s existing nuclear power alternatives as well as renewables are forecast by the EIA and IEA to be losing the race with fossil fuels worldwide and are expected to continue to do so for the forecast future. A new suite of nuclear power alternatives that is capable of competing economically with fossil fuels (coal in Asia and natural gas in the United States) is needed, but time is of the essence if we want to keep cumulative, worldwide CO2 emissions from reaching what could well be threatening levels.

Oct02

Sustainable Capitalism: An Oxymoron?

02 OCT 2015

Rebecca M. Henderson, John and Natty McArthur University Professor, Reunion Presentation

The world’s population has doubled in our lifetime and tripled in our parents’. These growing numbers are placing increasing pressure on many of the earth’s resources, but particularly on land and water, while accelerating economic growth is simultaneously accelerating emissions of greenhouse gases, so that there is now a serious risk of destabilizing the earth’s climate. Business is often identified as the source of many of these problems, but business is also the source of the freedom, prosperity, and opportunity that is so central to meeting humanity’s needs. In this talk, Professor Henderson will discuss both the risks and the tremendous opportunities inherent in harnessing the power of private enterprise to build a more sustainable world. She will also explore how people can hold the tension between the demands of the bottom line and their desire to make a difference in the world.

Related Resources: Fall 2015 Presentation Slides