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Advancing Justice and Regeneration in the Food System

Join the conversation with the American Sustainable Business Network and Forum for the Futureas we explore pivotal issues surrounding farm worker rights and the role businesses can play in driving meaningful change through advocacy and regenerative practices in their supply chains. This engaging roundtable discussion will feature insights from leading policy advocates, a third-party certifier, and a brand exemplifying their commitment to ethical principles within their supply chains.

Following the discussion, participate in two interactive breakout sessions designed to help your brand get tactical about linking justice and regeneration in your supply chain, while also engaging in impactful advocacy efforts pivotal to the ongoing Farm Bill negotiations.

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from industry leaders and discover practical strategies for fostering a more equitable and sustainable agricultural system.

Guest speakers include:


Katherine Renner

Katherine Renner
Director of Farm Operations
Gaia Herbs

The opportunity to be the Director of Farm Operations at Gaia Herbs is the culmination of Kate’s life journey thus far, as her earliest memories are of playing in the dirt in a home garden. Intrigue of living things led her to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in Biological Sciences. Kate served as a Peace Corps Volunteer for three years in El Salvador and emerged with a conscience towards the global impact of conventional farming systems, health and nutrition, and cultural sensitivity. Bringing these learnings home, Kate worked as an apprentice on an organic farm and connected the dots from soil health to nutrition, leading her to pursue a Master’s Degree in Nutrition Sciences with a focus on Sustainable Agriculture. At Gaia Herbs, Kate combines all facets, from migrant farmworker health and awareness, organic and regenerative agriculture practices, local community relations, and working with fellow Gaians to provide the freshest, purest, quality herbs for the natural wellness of our bodies and world.

Paul Alvarez

Paul Alvarez
Program Director
Regenerative Organic Alliance

Forward-thinking leader skilled in providing strategic and operational direction, intra- and cross-unit coordination, and oversight for strategic business partnerships. Proven to achieve company business growth, expansion and increase profitability. Collaborative problem solver adept at leveraging financial modeling and making data informed-decisions, with excellent prioritization and project management skills. Highly proficient in identifying business opportunities, root cause of issues and translating complex processes into clear, understandable, and actionable strategies. International expert on life cycle management of operational plans, strategic alliance programs and large portfolio of business and non-profit partners, driving deep meaningful relationships that deliver mutually beneficial growth opportunities. Passion for international markets and willingness to travel.

Marianne Martinez

Marianne Martinez
Executive Director
Vecinos

My experience in a variety of public sectors including education, community development, and health care, along with my skills in program planning, immigrant advocacy, budgeting, and presentation give me a holistic view of the community. I thrive in a team setting but also excel independently, seeking out the correct resources to address community issues.

My work in research throughout Western North Carolina and as a Public Service Leader Fellow at UNC Chapel Hill has helped me gain analytical, community outreach, and collaboration skills. I enjoy working across natural barriers to bring people together.

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ASBN Live: Transformative Strategies for Moving Capital to Communities of Color

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The American Sustainable Business Network and The Belonging Collaborative cordially invite you to a crucial webinar on May 29, 2024, at 1pm ET. The webinar will focus on preserving equity across the investment industry. The session aims to provide a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities in maintaining and enhancing racial equity in investing. It will emphasize the role of community capital and restorative strategies in this endeavor.

Highlights Include:

  • How community capital, raised from a broad cross-section of a venture’s community, plays a crucial role in supporting racially equitable investments and nurturing local economies.
  • Insight into the systemic barriers affecting BIPOC entrepreneurs.
  • Necessity of restorative investing practices in closing the racial wealth gap.
  • Innovative models like Diversified Community Investment Funds (DCIF) and their impact on promoting racial equity in the investment sector.

An examination of the current legal framework impacting racial equity investing, focusing on the need for vigilance and adaptability in response to evolving legal challenges. We invite you to participate in this important discussion, facilitated byDerekPeebles, Senior Director of Inclusive Economy at ASBN. Join us in our collective effort to preserve and advance equity within the investment industry. Speakers to be announced soon.

TheBelonging Collaborative

Belonging Collaborative is the collaboration of six peer networks to develop a shared vision to advance racial equity across the investment industry. The Collaborative includesAmerican Sustainable Business Network (ASBN),Confluence Philanthropy,The ImPact,Impact Capital Managers (ICM),Intentional Endowments Network (IEN),, andToniic. The Collaborative’s mission is to create an activated global network of values-aligned investors who collaborate, inspire action, and elevate the industry best practices for racial equity investing.

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Allegra Stennet

Allegra Stennett
Co-Founder
New Majority Capital

Allegra Stennett is co-founder of New Majority Capital, an impact investing firm focused on small business buyouts by underrepresented entrepreneurs. Allegra sits on the firm’s Investment Committee and also oversees external partnerships.

Prior to NMC, Allegra completed an MBA at MIT Sloan School of Management and an EdM in Education Policy & Management at Harvard Graduate School of Education. Following completion of her undergraduate studies, Allegra was a banker at J.P. Morgan in New York for 5 years. She split her time equally across the investment banking and commercial banking divisions. During her tenure, Allegra covered a variety of multi-billion dollar client relationships in the Healthcare, Industrials, Natural Resources, and Nonprofit sectors, launched a second language program to prepare 5,000 tri-state employees for international opportunities, and completed an expat assignment in London.

Allegra is a native New Yorker and currently resides in Boston.

Anandi Somasundaram

Anandi Somasundaram
Program Lead
Racial Justice Investing Coalition

Anandi Somasundaram is an independent social impact project manager, organizer and facilitator, and currently serves as the Program Lead for the Racial Justice Investing Coalition (RJI). RJI offers an introspective space for professionals working in capital markets to reckon with individual and institutional responsibility, pooling knowledge and building relationally with impacted communities to support orienting the frameworks and practices they operate under — both internally within their own organizations, as well as in their engagements with portfolio companies — towards racial equity and racial justice.

Anandi’s project management and facilitation work supports groups and organizations in building values-led, sustainable structures to support their own social impact work. As a community organizer, Anandi works primarily on issues related to economic justice and healing justice. Prior to becoming an independent consultant, Anandi worked in the health/insurance technology sphere, where she honed her program design and management skills. She received her BA in Economics and Community and Global Health from Macalester College in Saint Paul, MN.

Courtney Wicks

Courtney Wicks
Executive Director
IASJ

Courtney Wicks has served as the Executive Director of IASJ since October 2021. Wicks is an experienced professional with proven management skills and a strong record of accomplishment in the development and implementation of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) strategies, policies, and objectives. She assumed her duties on October 18, 2021.

Courtney Wicks has 15 years of experience in the development and implementation of strategies, policies, and practices that advance diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DE&I”). She has a track record of driving transformational change and creates meaningful impact that helps attract, retain, and engage a diverse community while building DE&I leadership capabilities across the organization.

Courtney began her career as a community organizer. She was most effective at building consensus and bridges between community organizations and institutional leadership on public policy initiatives concerning criminal justice reform, economic inclusion, environmental justice, health equity, and school equity and access. Courtney’s ability to work with diverse constituencies and translate community-based issues to government and institutional leaders landed her a Chief of Staff role within the State of New Jersey’s General Assembly.

One of Courtney’s most notable achievements was working with the Ramopough Indians leadership to galvanize support from members of NJ’s Congressional delegation and the Governor’s office for state and federal resources concerning an environmental disaster caused by Ford Motor Company’s illegal dumping on Ramapough lands. Courtney also received the Barack Obama Leadership award from the NAACP in 2014 for her work on criminal justice reform and school equity and access public policy initiatives. Franklin Walker, Superintendent of Jersey City Public Schools, appreciated her assistance in the development of the Athletes’ Academy, a college readiness program for athletes across the Jersey City school district. “Courtney Wicks is an individual who can be presented with a problem, size it up quickly, and develop a solution.”

Most recently, Wicks held the position of Senior Vice President for Community Development at the Peyser Real Estate Group. At Peyser, she worked across departments to assure that the company’s real estate development projects and investment strategy were aligned with the diverse needs of communities in underinvested areas.

Courtney Wicks earned a B.S. in Business Management at Saint Peter’s University.

Michael H. Shuman

Michael H. Shuman

Michael H. Shuman is an economist, attorney, author, and entrepreneur, and a leading visionary on community economics. He is an Adjunct Professor at Bard Business School in New York City. He is also a Senior Researcher for Council Fire, where he performs economic-development analyses for states, local governments, and businesses around North America. He is credited with being one of the architects of the 2012 JOBS Act and dozens of state laws overhauling securities regulation of crowdfunding. He has authored, coauthored, or edited ten books. His two most recent books are Put Your Money Where Your Life Is: How to Invest Locally Using Solo 401ks and Self-Directed IRAs and The Local Economy Solution: How Innovative, Self-Financing Pollinator Enterprises Can Grow Jobs and Prosperity. One of his previous books, The Small Mart Revolution: How Local Businesses Are Beating the Global Competition (Berrett-Koehler, 2006), received as bronze prize from the Independent Publishers Association for best business book of 2006. A prolific speaker, Shuman has given an average of more than one invited talk per week, mostly to local governments and universities, for the past 30 years in nearly every U.S. state and more than a dozen countries.

Derek Peebles

Derek Peebles
Moderator

Derek Peebles is a key figure in community economic development, currently serving as the Senior Director of Inclusive Economy at ASBN. He focuses on sustainable economic growth by fostering collaborations among businesses, residents, and institutions to leverage private, public, and social capital for transformative community opportunities. His efforts include establishing peer networks, advocating for policy changes, promoting place-based finance, and revitalizing local economies. Previously, he led an organization that supported 60 business alliances across 32 states, aiding over 50,000 small business owners, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Derek’s work involves facilitating dialogues among various stakeholders including economic developers, investors, advocacy groups, and community organizations, aiming to align investment strategies with community needs and empower local stakeholders through connected conversations and focused strategies.

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ASBN Live: Faithful Finance

Faith-based investors from all over the United States are increasing their investment activities in order to align with their missions and support communities that have been affected by disinvestment, institutional racism, and lack of opportunity. The pioneers of faith-based investing have played a crucial role in capitalizing Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) for decades. Nowadays, many more faith-based organizations and congregations are following their footsteps.

On May 22, 2024 at 1 PM ET, ASBN will host a Zoom discussion for faith-based organizations that will focus on CDFI investment as a part of a faith-driven investment strategy. This discussion will build on our previous conversations about values- and mission-related investing in CDFIs. We have partnered with Pam Porter of Stepping Stone Partners and Liz Rogers of Tern Strategies to update research on this important topic of faith-based investors and CDFIs.

Join us for an interactive conversation covering:

  • Trends in faith-based investing in CDFIs
  • Trends in other forms of mission-related investing
  • Obstacles to starting or growing mission-related investing
  • Characteristics of successful mission-related investing programs
  • Leading with faith while considering scale/return/impact

The results of the research will be shared with everyone through the ASBN website and future webinars.


Pam Porter

Pam Porter
Managing Partner
Stepping Stone Partners

Pam Porter is managing partner of Stepping Stone Partners, a boutique consulting firm that works in close partnership with clients to achieve impact and build strong and trusted relationships. Pam brings extensive experience working with impact investors, asset managers, and community development practitioners nationally. Over the past 15 years, Pam has worked with a client roster that includes: Georgia Health Initiative, Baldwin Brothers Investment Advisors, National Disability Opportunity Coalition, and Appalachian Community Capital. Pam is also a member of Investors’ Circle and co-chair of Community Investing at American Sustainable Business Network. In these roles, she has worked closely with colleagues to create resources for individuals and mission-driven organizations to invest in CDFIs. Prior to running Stepping Stone Partners, Pam was EVP at Opportunity Finance Network for nearly a decade, where she led the national consulting practice providing services to thousands of CDFI practitioners each year and building strong relationships across the industry. Pam started her career at JPMorgan and holds a B.A. from Wellesley College.

Elizabeth Rogers

Elizabeth Rogers
CEO
Tern Strategies

Liz Rogers is the CEO of Tern Strategies, a consulting practice at the intersection of strategic communications, investment and policy development. In her prior role as Chief Communications Officer at Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI), Liz was a key player in financial management and product design, capital raising, and investor relations. At CEI and as Vice President at national healthcare advocacy organization, Oral Health America (OHA), Liz’s leadership helped secure over $160 million in debt, equity, program-related investments, and grant awards. Her issue-driven communications initiatives at CEI and OHA include award-winning, multi-faceted programs and campaigns that were instrumental in attracting capital, building coalitions, and influencing state and federal policy change. Early in her career, Liz owned Rogers Public Relations Co. and was a producer at Chicago Public Radio. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Virginia, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and University of Southern Maine.

Derek Peebles

Derek Peebles
Moderator

Derek Peebles is a key figure in community economic development, currently serving as the Senior Director of Inclusive Economy at ASBN. He focuses on sustainable economic growth by fostering collaborations among businesses, residents, and institutions to leverage private, public, and social capital for transformative community opportunities. His efforts include establishing peer networks, advocating for policy changes, promoting place-based finance, and revitalizing local economies. Previously, he led an organization that supported 60 business alliances across 32 states, aiding over 50,000 small business owners, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Derek’s work involves facilitating dialogues among various stakeholders including economic developers, investors, advocacy groups, and community organizations, aiming to align investment strategies with community needs and empower local stakeholders through connected conversations and focused strategies.

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ASBN Live: Aligning Justice and Sustainability Goals with Your Company Retirement Plan

Are you committed to justice and sustainability? Do you know if your retirement savings are supporting industries that contradict your values? Join guest speakers, Andrew Behar, CEO of As you Sow and Kristin Hull, PhD, Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Nia Impact Capital to learn how to align your investments with your principles, maintain or improve returns, and vote for positive change. Take control of your future and build a better world starting with your retirement investments.
Andrew Behar

Andrew Behar
CEO
As You Sow

Andrew Behar is CEO of As You Sow, the nation’s leading non-profit practitioner of shareholder advocacy and engagement. With a 30-year track record of success, As You Sow advances values-aligned investing and uses shareholder power to compel companies to reduce material risk on issues including climate change; toxins in the food system; ocean plastics; diversity, equity, and inclusion; racial justice; and wage equity. Previously Andrew was a documentary filmmaker and entrepreneur founding start-ups that developed innovative physiological monitoring devices and grid-scale fuel cells. He is an inventor on five patents and was recently named as one of the Purposeful-50 “true changemakers who deliver on social justice, environmental protection, diversity, inclusion, racial equality, and gender and pay equity.” He is currently on the board of the Responsible Sourcing Network. His book, The Shareholders Action Guide: Unleash Your Hidden Powers to Hold Corporations Accountable, was published by Berrett-Koehler.


Kristin Hull

Kristin Hull, PhD
Founder and Chief Investment Officer
Nia Impact Capital

Kristin is founder and CIO of Nia Impact Capital, a diverse-led, woman owned asset manager investing in the transition to a more just inclusive and sustainable economy. Kristin is devoted to democratizing access to impact investing, promoting inclusion and diversity in leadership, to re-envisioning capitalism, and to changing the face of finance.

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Virtual Event

Native-led Bison Restoration & Economy

Join us for an important discussion on March 28, 2023, from 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM EST, as we host the “Native-led Bison Restoration & Economy: The Opportunity to Engage and Support” event. Organized by the American Sustainable Business Network (ASBN), Department Of Interior (DOI), Native Americans in Philanthropy (NAP), Inter-Tribal Buffalo Council (ITBC), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), this roundtable aims to spotlight opportunities for collaboration in bison restoration, conservation efforts, and the development of a sustainable bison economy. Register now to participate and contribute to the preservation of bison populations and the empowerment of Native-led initiatives.

Sponsors:

American Sustainable Business Network (ASBN)
Department Of Interior (DOI)
Native Americans in Philanthropy (NAP)
Inter-Tribal Buffalo Council (ITBC)
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Public-Private Partnership


David Levine

David Levine
President
American Sustainable Business Network

David is the co-founder and president of the American Sustainable Business Network. He has worked as a social entrepreneur for over 30 years focusing on the development of whole systems solutions for a more sustainable society through building strategic partnerships and broad stakeholder initiatives. Previously, he was the founding director of Continuing Education & Public Programs at The Graduate Center, City University of New York. From 1984-1997, David was the founder and executive director of the Learning Alliance, an independent popular education organization. David is also a principal partner at Miracle Springs Farm, a family farm in the Hudson Valley.


Heather Dawn Thompson

Heather Dawn Thompson
Director of the Office of Tribal Relations
U.S. Department of Agriculture

Heather Dawn Thompson is a distinguished Lakota attorney from the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, currently serving as the Director of the Office of Tribal Relations at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in the Joe Biden administration. Her appointment, announced on January 25, 2021, marked a significant step towards enhancing the government-to-government relationship between the USDA and Tribal Nations. Thompson reports directly to the Secretary of Agriculture, emphasizing the office’s crucial role in maintaining nation-to-nation relationships and ensuring meaningful tribal consultation across the department.

Thompson’s extensive background in American Indian law, federal Indian policy and advocacy, tribal sovereignty, and tribal economic development-including areas such as e-commerce, international trade, energy, finance, telecom, community economic development, and nation-building-has prepared her well for this role. She is recognized for her work in both the public and private sectors, bringing a wealth of experience from her previous positions. These include serving as a member of the American Indian Law Practice Group at Greenberg Traurig, a Presidential Management Fellow at the Department of Justice, a law clerk with the Attorney General’s Office for the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, Counsel and Policy Advisor to the U.S. Senate’s Democratic Policy Committee, and an Assistant U.S. Attorney for South Dakota’s Indian Country Section, where she focused on cases involving violence against women and children.

In the private sector, Thompson was a partner at Dentons, where she stood out as one of the few Native American partners at an “AmLaw 100″ law firm. She has also led as the Director of Government Affairs for the National Congress of American Indians, and served as President of both the South Dakota Indian Country Bar Association and the National Native American Bar Association.

Her education includes a Juris Doctor cum laude from Harvard Law School, a master’s degree in public policy from the University of Florida, and a bachelor’s degree in International Studies from Carnegie Mellon University.

Thompson resides between the Black Hills in South Dakota and Washington, D.C., embodying her commitment to both her tribal heritage and her national responsibilities. She is fluent in English, Spanish, and Lakota, reflecting her broad communication skills and cultural depth. Her leadership at the USDA is aimed at empowering tribal nations and improving systemic economic conditions in Indian Country, fostering a future where tribal communities can thrive and maintain sovereignty.


Wizipan Garriott

Wizipan Garriott
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs
U.S. Department of the Interior

Wizipan Little Elk Garriott, an enrolled member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, is the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs in the U.S. Department of the Interior. He serves as the first assistant and principal advisor to the Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs in the development and interpretation of policies affecting Indian Affairs bureaus, offices, and programs. Prior to his appointment, Mr. Garriott served as chief executive officer from 2012 to 2021 of the Rosebud Economic Development Corporation, an ecosystem of Tribal organizations serving the Rosebud Indian Reservation. In this capacity, Mr. Garriott led and started businesses and community-based programs, including a Native language immersion school and 1,500-head buffalo herd. Mr. Garriott’s previous federal service included serving under the leadership of Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk from 2009 to 2011. Mr. Garriott was born and raised on the Rosebud Indian Reservation where he attended St. Francis Indian School, a Bureau of Indian Affairs (now Bureau of Indian Education) facility. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in American Studies from Yale University. Mr. Garriott received his Juris Doctor degree in 2008 from the University of Arizona’s James E. Rogers College.


Martha Kauffman

Martha Kauffman
Vice President Northern Great Plains Ecoregion
World Wildlife Fund

As vice president for World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) Northern Great Plains ecoregion, Martha Kauffman oversees WWF-US’s largest domestic field program, which covers 5 US states and 2 Canadian provinces and seeks to conserve one of the last temperate grasslands on the planet. In this role she oversees the program’s strategic vision and supports an outstanding team that partners with Native Nations and ranching communities, develops leading science, drives for needed policy changes, and influences through strategic communications. She’s a leading member of a continent-wide grassland conservation initiative coalescing around a common vision, strategic priorities, and measurable outcomes. Martha is also a tireless champion for global grassland conservation, helping to establish and support WWF’s Global Grasslands and Savannahs Initiative. She also serves on the boards of the Northern Great Plains Joint Venture and Working Dogs for Conservation. Martha received a B.S. in applied earth sciences from Stanford University and a master’s degree in earth sciences from Montana State University.


Troy Heinert

Troy Heinert
Executive Director
InterTribal Buffalo Council

Troy Heinert, Sicangu Lakota, currently serves as Executive Director of ITBC. Prior to his selection as ED, Mr. Heinert assisted ITBC with the surplus buffalo shipments since 2015. His extensive experience in transporting buffalo has helped Tribes safely restore buffalo back to their lands.

You may also recognize him as Senator Troy Heinert as he has served in the South Dakota State Legislature since 2013, and as the Senate Minority Leader since 2018. Troy is also a decorated Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association (PRCA) and Indian National Finals Rodeo Association (INFR) Pickup man in his spare time.

Mr. Heinert lives on his family ranch west of Mission, SD with his wife Gena and youngest son Harold. Their son, TJ, lives on a ranch in the Southwest corner of the Reservation and their daughter, Jordan, lives in Edinburgh, Scotland.


Joel Moffet

Joel Moffett
Director of Environmental & Special Projects
Native Americans in Philanthropy

Joel Moffett serves as the Director of Environmental and Special Projects at Native Americans in Philanthropy.

As a former Tribal leader, Joel has served as Vice Chairman of the Nez Perce Tribe Executive Committee. In 2013, he was also elected to lead the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC) as its chairman. Most recently, Joel was the Natural Resources Policy Coordinator for the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (ATNI).

Joel currently lives in Suquamish, WA with his two children.

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ASBN Live: Sustainable Pathways: Building Inclusive Supply Chains

Image advertising webinar on March 20th 2024

Join leaders from ASBN, LocalContent.com and network partners of the National Supplier Diversity Institute (NSDI) for a panel discussion about engaging BIPOC businesses in sustainable-industry supply chains. Receive insights from U.S. Offshore, the Oceanic Network, NSDI, and those who are driving local content development and advocacy for supplier diversity, environmental justice, and social impact within their supply chains.
Angele Doyne

Angele Doyne
Strategist | Innovator | Cultivator
Ampersand Group | National Supplier Diversity Institute

Angelé is a strategist, innovator, and cultivator of multi-stakeholder ecosystems that intersect business, education, social equity, and public service to advance positive outcomes for diverse communities. Angelé has served in the Obama Administration, where she supported federal supplier diversity initiatives, and has also consulted with Fortune 500 corporations to develop diverse business practices.

At the Ampersand Group, Angelé leads initiatives to stimulate diverse business investment, robust supplier diversity, and intentional talent development in emerging industries.

Her passion for building sustainable ecosystems connects businesses, people and places to nurture strategic partnerships and equitable supply chains that ignite a shared responsibility toward the longevity and well-being of networks and communities. This work advances equitable engagement of stakeholder groups and public/private interest to adopt innovative technologies and collaborative practice.


Brian Moore

Brian Moore
National Director | Local Content

Mr. Moore is the National Director at Local Content – a trusted source for local content measurement, reporting, and compliance. Local Content bridges the worlds of industry, community, and government to ensure the use of local services, goods, workforce, and community benefit investments within infrastructure developments a national supplier diversity and development firm.

Mr. Moore’s role as National Director ensures local content compliance and measurement of economic development, workforce development, community benefit investment, and stakeholder engagement for large industry projects throughout the country.

Mr. Moore is a Senior Associate with Chasing Winds, an energy efficiency business providing clean energy services in New York and New Jersey.


Monica St Claire

Monica St Claire
CEO, US Offshore Group

As CEO of the US Offshore Group, a growing number of companies dedicated to the clean energy transition and other vital infrastructure projects, Monica St Claire works with a talented team of global and domestic specialist who build, connect, dive, repair, inspect, train, and provide other services and solutions for renewable energy, telecommunications, and other sectors.

Committed to building a skilled, equitable, and representative domestic workforce, US Offshore is creating a US hub of marine, construction, workforce development, and strategic intelligence solutions that capitalize on what we have learned in the wind farms and waters across the globe.


Paula Bowens

Paula Bowens
Co-Founder & CEO – One Degree Consulting
Director of Growth Strategy – MRV Group

Paula Bowens is a highly experienced marketing and business development consultant with decades of expertise in sales and marketing across various industries. She began her career with Xerox, which sparked her passion for technology and enabled her to work in diverse fields such as healthcare, media, sports marketing, and supplier diversity. With her background in corporate America, nonprofits, and entrepreneurship, she has a deep understanding of what it takes to achieve success. Paula’s latest obsession is working with AIs, hanging in the Metaverse and Cryptocurrency!


Ross Gould

Ross Gould
Oceanic Network, Vice President for Supply Chain Development & Research

Ross oversees the growth and evolution of the offshore wind supply chain as well as the offshore wind industry’s workforce development. He is also responsible for designing, developing, and coordinating the Network’s Northeast Corridor strategy, including planning, policy and regulatory engagement, programs, and research.

Ross has experience in private, public, and non-profit sectors. Before following his passion for energy, Ross spent nearly 10 years as an attorney. In 2007, Ross attended an evening continuing education class at NYU that focused on the use of natural resources and energy. From this moment, Ross was hooked on the energy sector.

From 2010-2013 Ross served as the Air & Energy Program Director at Environmental Advocates of NY working on clean energy jobs, energy efficiency, renewable energy, state energy planning, siting of electricity generation, and global warming. After that, he worked as Legislative Counsel in New York State Senate from until 2015. In 2015, he joined the Workforce Development Institute (WDI) where he focused on growing the workforce and supply chain of the offshore wind industry.


David Levine

David Levine
Co-founder and President
American Sustainable Business Network

David is the co-founder and president of the American Sustainable Business Network. He has worked as a social entrepreneur for over 30 years focusing on the development of whole systems solutions for a more sustainable society through building strategic partnerships and broad stakeholders initiatives. Previously, he was the founding director of Continuing Education & Public Programs at The Graduate Center, City University of New York. From 1984–1997, David was founder and executive director of the Learning Alliance, an independent popular education organization. David is also a principal partner at Miracle Springs Farm, a family farm in the Hudson Valley.

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2024 Achieving Climate Resilience Through Water Symposium

Join SBN for its symposium being held on March 20, 2024! The day-long conference will convene business-owners, professionals, and other interested parties that work in the green stormwater infrastructure field and other issues relating to water management, quality, equity, and climate resilience. The Symposium will be held at the Science History Institute and will include special guests & speakers, technical and engaging sessions, breakfast and lunch, refreshments, and excellent opportunities for growing your networks.

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Racial Equity Investing

Is racial equity investing on the cusp of irrelevance? Four years after George Floyd and all the proclamations, how much capital has being deployed? Are we going to become the issue that was and is no more? Longtime racial equity investors Jim Casselberry, Morgan Simon and Rachel Robasciotti will reflect on what has changed, what remains unchanged, and the path ahead.

Presented by: The Belonging Collaborative

Hosted by: Toniic

For more information and to register click here

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Appalachian Sustainable Business Network Listening Session

The Appalachian Sustainable Business Network (ASBN) is a dynamic and collaborative initiative dedicated to fostering sustainable innovation, economic resilience, and community well-being throughout the Appalachian region. Committed to the principles of environmental stewardship, social responsibility, and economic equity, the network serves as a catalyst for positive change by connecting businesses, entrepreneurs, and stakeholders. This network champions a diversified and resilient regional economy, emphasizing the preservation of cultural heritage and natural resources. ASBN envisions a thriving community where sustainable practices drive innovation, create jobs, and contribute to the long-term prosperity of the Appalachian region. For more information about the network and how to get involved, join our first virtual Listening Session on Tuesday, February 20 at noon.

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Virtual Event

Exploring Legal Perspectives in Racial Equity Lens Investing

This summer’s Supreme Court ruling against affirmative action in universities was quickly followed by a lawsuit targeting the Fearless Fund, which will test the legal limits of diversity-focused funding. Subsequent lawsuits have targeted other DEI-focused efforts in the private sector, and we expect this will continue. Grantmakers and investors who support diversity in asset management, amongst other DEI efforts in the investment and philanthropic industries, are concerned about the implications, both for their work and for the ecosystem of racial equity efforts more broadly.

Please join us for a webinar briefing about the evolving legal landscape for racial equity lens investing. We will hear from a panel of legal experts and philanthropy practitioners about their interpretations of recent events and discuss how to safeguard progress in advancing DEI-focused efforts throughout the investment and philanthropic sectors.

For more information on this Webinar and to Register please click here

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