Speakers

Amy McWhirter
Event Host, PresentingAmy.com

Amy is a dynamic and inspiring speaker, born to connect with audiences. From wrapping a boa constrictor around her neck at age 5 to performing in her first dance recital as a bumble bee ballerina, she’s always known that the stage is where magic happens. With a background in communications as an emcee, moderator, broadcast & TV host, video producer, and scriptwriter, she brings a unique set of skills to engage audiences. Her passion lies in empowering people through performing and speaking, fueled by a heart for energetically inspiring them to connect. Amy’s medical and technical undergraduate background, a B.S. in biopsychology at the University of Michigan, gives her a broad perspective, and her extensive experience with theater, dance, improv comedy, and communication technology add breadth to her skillset. Her intense curiosity and passion for growth drives Amy to create exciting and personalized experiences for every event, leaving audiences with valuable insights they can put into action in their organizations and personal lives. Amy’s mission is to connect with hearts and minds, weaving together authentic and memorable moments that leave a lasting impact.

Andrea Crespi
Managing Director, Eurojersey Spa

Andrea Crespi is the Managing Director of EUROJERSEY Spa, the leading Italian company specialized in the patented warp knit Sensitive® Fabrics’ range.
He joined the company in 1991 with different roles in the production chain and sales department.
In 2008 he became the Managing Director with the decision to embark on a challenge of a sustainable production project.
Inspired by a corporate vision share by the entire EUROJERSEY’s team, the mission consisted in converting costs into values by turning the investments for a purchase of advanced machineries into efficiency advantage, also resulting into a lower environmental impact into the production cycle.
In 2019, EUROJERSEY adopted the PEF (Product Environmental Footprint) international program, which employs very specific and well-defined criteria to assess the environmental impact of the whole production chain. By embracing the PEF, EUROJERSEY upgraded its environmental performances and production chain control system, gaining several competitive advantages as well as managing to obtain complete product traceability.
Since 2015 Andrea Crespi became Delegate of Sustainability for SMI, Sistema Moda Italia ( the Italian Fashion & Textiles Federation) and from 2017 he joined the role of President for the Sustainability Committee.

Andrew Martin
Executive Vice President, Sustainable Apparel Coalition

As Executive Vice President of the SAC, Andrew is responsible for delivering strategic and operational leadership for the organization. While continuing to oversee the Membership, Stakeholder Engagement, Collective Action, and Public Affairs teams, as second-in-command at the SAC he is responsible for driving growth of the organization to ensure it can scale impact and deliver value to members. This involves broader strategic development of the organization, including into new verticals / adjacent product categories, development of new revenue streams, and expansions of key partnerships. Prior to joining the SAC, Andrew was at amfori, the leading business association for open and sustainable trade, where, as VP Services, he was responsible for global operational activities. In addition to a strategic role in the development of the vision and strategy of the organization, Andrew managed membership services, led the implementation of global social and environmental audit assessments, including launching a pioneering audit integrity program, and also the largest capacity building program of its kind for social and environmental performance in global supply chains. Andrew has a degree in philosophy and theology from King’s College London, an MBA with distinction from the University of Exeter, where he was awarded ‘Dissertation most likely to change global thinking,’ and a postgraduate qualification in team coaching, from UWE, Bristol. During his extensive career, including more than 20 years in global textile manufacturing, Andrew has worked for a multi-national corporation, his own consultancy, and more recently in the education and non-profit sectors. A highlight of his work and interest is the Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan, and its philosophy of Gross National Happiness, an alternative progressive values-based model for measuring and guiding economic, societal, and personal well-being.

Beth Jensen
Climate+ Impact Director, Textile Exchange

Beth Jensen is Director of Climate+ Impact at Textile Exchange, the leading global nonprofit organization dedicated to accelerating the use of sustainable materials and fibers within the apparel, footwear, and home textiles industries. She oversees the evolution and implementation of Textile Exchange’s “Climate+” strategy, supporting the industry’s efforts to achieve beneficial outcomes in the areas of climate, biodiversity, soil health, and water. Prior to Textile Exchange, Beth held leadership roles overseeing and driving sustainable materials and products programs at VF Corporation, parent company for outdoor and active brands including Vans, The North Face, Timberland, and Smartwool; and at Outdoor Industry Association, the North American-based trade association for the outdoor apparel, footwear, and gear sector. She is based in Colorado, USA, and holds a B.A. from St. Olaf College and an M.B.A. from the University of Colorado at Boulder Leeds School of Business.

Bryant LaPres
Senior Director of Industry Engagement, Apparel Impact Institute

Bryant serves as Senior Director of Industry Engagement for Aii where he is responsible for leading the team that is establishing, maintaining and building Aii’s programmatic partnerships with global brands, manufacturers, service providers and stakeholders. In this role, he develops and manages projects, strategies and tools for industry partners working towards environmental impact goals, while maintaining visibility across Aii’s programs to grow results for environmental impact and revenue for Aii. Prior to joining Aii, Bryant has worked in a number of roles over his 14-year career. Bryant owned and managed a tool and die business supporting the automotive, medical and furniture industries. Bryant also spent 7 years leading sustainability projects which included materiality, strategy and goal setting, external reporting, stakeholder engagement and innovative business models around the circular economy for Target Corporation. Bryant began his career working on risk management and due diligence for banks and developers with a focus on energy and capital reserve planning. Bryant earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Sustainable Business from Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Del Hudson
Executive Vice President, Market Impact, Worldly

Del Hudson is Executive Vice President of Market Impact at Worldly, where she oversees marketing, communications, stakeholder relations, and policy and also stewards the company’s impact strategy. Her career spans external relations and sustainability leadership roles, including with global brands AstraZeneca Plc. and Nike Inc.

Del first became involved with advancing fashion industry sustainability while at Nike, supporting the open sourcing of the company’s materials data to spur creation of the first version of the Higg Index — a groundbreaking industry approach to establishing comparability and consistency in environmental and social measurement metrics. Under Del’s leadership, Nike was a founding contributor to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s New Textiles Economy Initiative, won the Multinational category of The Circulars business awards at the 2017 World Economic Forum, and established a supplier financing program with the International Finance Corporation to provide manufacturers that demonstrated commitment to compliance and environmental improvement with access to low cost capital for further investment in sustainability solutions.

Before joining the Worldly executive team in 2020, Del ran the North American office of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation circular economy think-tank, working with companies, academics, and governments to promote regenerative and circular business models and policies as alternatives to today’s “take-make-waste” linear economic models.

When not championing the critical role of data-driven impact reduction, Del enjoys studying the concept of “food as medicine” and spending time on Oregon’s coast.

Dr. Delman Lee
Vice Chair, TAL Apparel Limited & Board Chair, Sustainable Apparel Coalition

Dr. Delman Lee is the Vice Chair of TAL Apparel Limited. He leads TAL Apparel on its long-term strategy and continuous innovations in various aspects of the business. His major focuses are sustainability, digital transformation, lean operations, disruptive technologies and business model innovations. He is responsible for the innovative services of TAL such as Vendor Managed Inventory and leads the sustainability journey of TAL for the past 20+ years.
Dr. Lee holds a doctorate from the University of Oxford and a Bachelor Degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the Imperial College, London. Dr. Lee possesses extensive experience in information technology and management in global operations. He also has a strong background in research.

Dr. Gregory Norris
Director, Sustainability and Health Initiative for NetPositive Enterprise (SHINE), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

Gregory Norris directs SHINE (the Sustainability and Health Initiative for NetPositive Enterprise) at MIT, whose research focuses on advancing and applying methods for Net Positive sustainability: creation and assessment of positive social and environmental “handprints” that exceed the actor’s footprints. He teaches Life Cycle Assessment at Harvard. Norris co-founded and is Director of Science at Earthster.org, a web-based platform democratizing LCA. Norris leads LCA and handprinting activities at McLennan Design of Perkins+Will. He is a Fellow of the Mind and Life Institute, which seeks to build a scientific understanding of the mind to reduce suffering and promote well-being. In 2012 Time Magazine named his work on Handprints as one of “10 ideas that are changing your life.”

Helen Crowley
Managing Director, Pollination Group
Helen is a recognised nature and biodiversity expert, delivering pioneering and impact led climate and nature focused solutions for our clients. Formerly the Head of Sustainable Sourcing Innovation at the French company Kering, Helen advised luxury brands on best practices in sustainability. Prior to this, Helen worked with Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) for over a decade on conservation strategy. ​Early in her career, she worked as a senior consultant to companies on building out environmental health and safety programs to encompass broader sustainability issues. In October 2019, Helen took a year-long sabbatical as a Fellow and Senior Advisor for Resilient Supply Chains at Conservation International, developing new approaches for business to address climate and biodiversity challenges. ​Helen has a PhD in Zoology from the Australian National University and is on the Boards of non-profit organizations including Textile Exchange, Wildlife Friendly Enterprise Network and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature US. She is also on the advisory boards of the GEF Planet Gold Program and Alante Capital. Helen contributes to the business and biodiversity work of the World Economic Forum as an advisor and member of the Global Futures Council.

Holly Syrett
Impact Programmes & Sustainability Director, Global Fashion Agenda

Holly Syrett is the Impact Programmes & Sustainability Director at Global Fashion Agenda. Her responsibilities include contributing to the strategic mission and sustainability agenda, driving GFA’s impact programmes such as the Circular Fashion Partnership and ensuring strategic engagement with key stakeholders and partners. Holly Syrett joined Global Fashion Agenda as Senior Sustainability Manager in May 2020 to mobilise and guide the fashion industry to take bold action on sustainability by researching, project leading and writing new and existing GFA publications, commitments and reports such as the CEO Agenda. Syrett brings 10 years of experience working on sustainability and transparency programmes in the fashion industry for both public and professional audiences. Syrett is a World Economic Forum Global Shaper, Climate Reality Leader and she holds a BA in Fashion and Branding from the Amsterdam Fashion Institute. As part of the Global Shapers’ Community, she co-founded the Shaping Fashion movement that is now active in 50+ cities worldwide.

Ipek Kurtoglu Firat
Global Product Impact Lead, Sustainability, H&M Group

Ipek Kurtoglu Firat is the Global Product Impact Lead in H&M Group and working in sustainability more than 10 years. Before this, Ipek was on several roles within H&M Group, like Environmental Sustainability Program Manager, Sustainability Developer on both social and environmental agenda and Product Life Cycle Expert. Ipek receives her Bachelors in Environmental Engineering both from Istanbul Technical University and State University of New York at Buffalo. Ipek continued to receive Masters of Degree from Istanbul Technical University on Environmental Sciences and Management and another Bachelors degree on Justice from Istanbul University. Upon graduation, Ipek worked in various consultancy companies on Sustainability specifically on LCA, sustainability strategies and carbon footprint before joining H&M in 2015. Ipek’s specialties are on sustainable leadership, social and environmental sustainability, stakeholder engagement, product impact and sustainability management.

James Schaffer
Chief Strategy Officer, Worldly

James Schaffer is Chief Strategy Officer at Worldly. He oversees business development, client services, partnerships, and corporate development. James’s career synthesizes business leadership and growth through innovation and partnerships, and a profound commitment to social impact and environmental sustainability. Before joining Worldly, James co-founded Schaffer & Combs, a consultancy that served purpose-driven organizations. During his tenure, James led engagements with leading sustainability organizations, including SAC, AII, ZDHC, BlueSign, WRI, B Lab, Rainforest Alliance, and Outdoor Industry Association, and dozens of social sector organizations.

Janet Mensink
Executive Director, Social & Labor Convergence Program

Janet holds 20+ years of experience in sustainable supply chains, including sustainability consultancy and leadership roles in international development (non-profit). She has served on several boards and councils of multi-stakeholder initiatives. Being the Executive Director for the Social & Labor Convergence Program (SLCP), she is currently responsible for overseeing SLCP’s strategic direction and execution.

Jimmy Summers
Vice President, EHS/Sustainability, Elevate Textiles
Jimmy Summers is the Vice President of Environment, Health, and Safety, and Chief Sustainability Officer at Elevate Textiles, Inc., manufacturer of distinguished fabric brands and thread solutions for automotive, apparel (including denim), interior furnishing, and specialty products, through Elevate’s iconic brands including Cone Denim, American & Efird, and Burlington Industries. He is responsible for the EHS and Sustainability programs for the company’s 40 manufacturing facilities and support facilities throughout the world. Jimmy has worked in the textile and apparel industry for over 25 years, both in manufacturing and corporate positions. Summers has significant experience in managing textile wastewater treatment systems around the world, include the design and start-up of new and upgraded systems. He is a member of the Wastewater Council of ZDHC and is a member of the Supplier Advisory Group and several Task Teams of ZDHC. Jimmy is currently the Vice Chair of the Environmental Committee of the American Apparel & Footwear Association, and Chairman of the Standards Steering Committee of the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute. Jimmy earned a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering, and a master’s degree in Environmental Engineering from Clemson University.

John Armstrong
Chief Technology Officer, Worldly

John is the CTO at Worldly, where he builds the enterprise platform that enables consumer goods businesses — at every stage in their sustainability journey — to accurately measure a company or product’s sustainability performance.

John has worked with some of the world’s leading companies, building meaningful products, services, and experiences to meet their unique needs. He relies on a common-sense approach to software design and construction. Through his leadership, Worldly is using agile technology to help create global change.

Joleen Ong
Sustainability Director, Brand Responsibility, Fanatics

Joleen Ong is a human rights and sustainability professional working to drive change throughout the supply chain. As Sustainability Director at Fanatics, she leads its sustainability engagement and responsible purchasing practices initiatives to drive ethical supply chain management across divisions and acquisitions.

Prior to Fanatics, she worked to advance both social and environmental initiatives at Columbia Sportswear Company, leading its Sustainable Manufacturing climate program with the Higg FEM and global licensing program for social responsibility. Originally from New York, she earned her Master’s degree from the New School in Nonprofit and Sustainability Management. Joleen previously worked at the human rights NGO, Social Accountability International (SAI). She is a published writer on the topic of human rights and edited two award-winning short documentaries. She is a regular guest speaker at the University of Oregon’s Sports Product Management program and Portland State University’s Athletic and Outdoor Industry program. She also serves on the Board of the international NGO, Days for Girls International.

Jonas Eder-Hansen
Chief Operating Officer, Global Fashion Agenda

Jonas Eder-Hansen is the Chief Operating Officer at Global Fashion Agenda (GFA). Jonas is responsible for designing and implementing strategies and policies that drive GFA and its stakeholders to reach a net positive fashion industry. Jonas oversees GFA’s operations, public affairs, educational activities, and events including Global Fashion Summit – the leading international forum for sustainability in fashion. With more than ten years of tenure at GFA, Jonas has deep insights in driving industry change. Recently, Jonas spearheaded GFA’s increased strategic focus on engaging policymakers to accelerate the fashion industry’s urgent transition to a circular economy. Jonas joined the SAC Board of Directors in 2017. He was formerly Development Director for Danish Fashion Institute. Prior to that, he was Research Director at Copenhagen Business School’s Centre for Sustainability.

Joyce Tsoi
Director, Collective Action Programs, Sustainable Apparel Coalition

Joyce Tsoi is the Director of Collective Action Programs at the SAC. She leads SAC’s Decarbonization Collective Action programs and activities. She works closely with SAC members and ecosystem partners to integrate sustainability into their business strategies, prioritize actions on climate change, accelerate sustainable environmental and social impacts and transform our industry into one that gives more than it takes- to the people and the planet. She brings over 17 years of diverse global industry experience, leading global supply chain sustainability program for multinational companies, driving key corporate and industry-wide sustainability strategies and efforts through the adoption and verification of Higg tools, water and wastewater compliance program, Science Based Targets (SBTs), energy efficiency and renewable energy program across multiple industry sectors including apparel and footwear, electronics, hardgoods, home goods, food and beverage, home goods and toys industries globally. She is also a Honorary Senior Lecturer of the Sustainability Leadership and Governance Program at the University of Hong Kong.

Krishna Manda
Vice President Corporate Sustainability, Lenzing Group & Board Director, SAC
Krishna Manda has worked around 20 years with various sectors and stakeholders. He is passionate about embedding sustainability in the core business and functions to nurture culture change anchored in values. Krishna holds the role of VP Corporate Sustainability and member of the executive leadership team at the Lenzing Group, which is a world leading producer of sustainable cellulosic fibers with brand names TENCEL™, ECOVERO™ and REFIBRA™ which are used for fashion, home textile and hygiene products. He is responsible for sustainability & ESG strategy, targets, governance, incentives and strategic engagements with stakeholders and policy makers for orchestrating systemic change in the industry. Krishna served as a co-chair of the Policy Hub during 2020 – 2022. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC). Krishna has a Ph.D. in Sustainability. He worked and lived in five countries and currently lives in Austria with his wife and daughter who are a continuous inspiration.

Liam Salter
CEO, RESET Carbon

Liam is CEO at RESET Carbon Ltd. RESET’s work focuses on developing and implementing commercially driven low carbon and other environmental management programs for Asian and international corporate clients. The company is also increasingly regarded as a leading practitioner in the emerging field of supply chain sustainability solutions, working with sectors such as apparel, consumer retail, electronics and food and beverages to drive improved environmental performance with a strong commercial focus. ​ ​ Previously Liam was the Director of WWF’s International’s Asia-Pacific Climate Programme, where he built and managed a ten-country team. At WWF Liam also co-led the design and set-up of the Gold Standard, which is now a leading certification system for project level carbon offsets and other environmental and social attributes. Liam holds a Masters of Science in Environmental Technology from Imperial College, London.

Mariette van Amstel
Head of Membership, Fair Wear Foundation

As head of membership at Fair Wear, Mariette van Amstel is responsible for guiding, supporting, and verifying the Fair Wear member brands in conducting meaningful human rights due diligence (HRDD). She also works on developing instruments for HRDD facilitation for all garment brands, accelerating broader industry alignment and progress. Mariette has 10+ years’ experience as a sustainability consultant, has worked as an Assistant Professor at the Free University Amsterdam and has written a dissertation about the reliability of sustainability product labels.

Matthew Guenther
Director, Environmental Sustainability, TAL Apparel Limited

Matthew Guenther is the Environmental Sustainability Director for TAL Apparel, a multi-national garment manufacturer. He oversees the implementation of the company’s environmental strategy with a focus on decarbonizing the company’s operations, reducing fresh water use, and eliminating waste. He is currently co-chair of steering committee for the Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action and co-chair of Low Carbon Manufacuring Working Group. He is also an active member of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, working to build tools to measure, manage, and reduce the environmental footprint of the global textile industry. He holds a MSc in Environmental Policy from Bard College, and an BA in International Relations from Bilkent University. He currently resides in Bangkok, Thailand.

Matthijs Crietee
Secretary General, International Apparel Federation (IAF)

Matthijs Crietee’s career is fully focused on the fashion industry. He started with the Dutch fashion industry association FENECON to support its members with trade policy affairs. After a brief stint at the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs Matthijs returned to fashion to work with the successor of FENECON, MODINT, as its deputy director. In the ten year period from 2000 to 2010 he build up an important part of MODINT’s consultancy department, heavily focused on compliance support, trade policy and sourcing, market information and labour law.

From 2010 he helped the Dutch fashion industry to get full recognition as part of creative industry and one of the ‘top sectors’ in the Netherlands and he helped MODINT to secure government support for its innovation promotion work. He build up MODINT Logistics, a successful division of MODINT organizing buying power in logistics for its members.

Starting 2012, Matthijs was named deputy secretary general of the IAF and in January 1st 2015, Matthijs became IAF’s Secretary General. The IAF has evolved as the global representation of the apparel manufacturing community, which, among other activities, manifests itself in the IAF’s co-founding of STTI, the Sustainable Terms of Trade Initiative.

Matthijs has served on the Board of the Dutch Federation of Creative Industries, was adviser to the Dutch innovation institute for the creative industries and he frequently lectures at several Dutch fashion management institutes as well as the academy for industry association management in the Netherlands.

Mitsuko Wong
Sustainability Lead, Product & Supply Chain, Ralph Lauren Corporation

Mitsuko Wong is a sustainability expert who has spent the last 15 years working to integrate sustainability into corporate and supply chain strategies. In her capacity at Ralph Lauren as the Sustainability Lead, Product and Supply Chain, she is responsible for developing and implementing the company’s sustainability strategy and initiatives in the product supply chain space. She is also a co-chair of the UNFCCC Fashion Charter Low Carbon Manufacturing Working Group and a member of its Steering Committee.

Mostafiz Uddin
Managing Director, Denim Expert Ltd. & Founder & CEO, Bangladesh Apparel Exchange

Mostafiz Uddin Managing Director, Denim Expert Ltd. and Founder & CEO, Bangladesh Apparel Exchange (BAE) Mr. Mostafiz Uddin is the Managing Director of Denim Expert Ltd – an internationally renowned, cutting edge, fully integrated, environmentally sustainable and social responsible compliant garment manufacturing plant based in Chittagong, Bangladesh. He is a visionary entrepreneur in the development of sustainable apparel systems. He is personally driven by social and environmental ethics and is recognized to be a game changer through the introduction of sustainable practices, innovation and fashion disruption, which he sees as keys to the future of the Bangladesh apparel. Mr. Mostafiz founded the Bangladesh Apparel Exchange (BAE) to promote sustainable practices within the Bangladesh apparel industry and to raise the country’s image through different initiatives under the banner of BAE, including the Sustainable Apparel Forum (SAF), Bangladesh Fashionology Summit, Bangladesh Denim Expo, Best of Bangladesh, Bangladesh Circular Economy Summit, Made in Bangladesh Week & Bangladesh Climate Action Forum. Through these endeavors he strives to promote the advance of sustainable practices, including environmentally sound production methods, full transparency, innovation, circularity and technology.

Natalie Grillon
Executive Director, Open Supply Hub

Natalie Flournoy Grillon is the Executive Director of Open Supply Hub. Championing access to open data and transparent practices, Natalie has worked for over a decade to launch innovative solutions to complex problems in the supply chains. Previously, she co-founded Project JUST, an online platform to help bring transparency to fashion supply chains and empower consumers to shift their purchasing behavior and has launched the sustainability programs of changemaker brands, Another Tomorrow and CHNGE among others. She is an Acumen Fellow, a Return Peace Corps Volunteer and a graduate of Georgetown University (BS) and Cornell University (MBA).

Nemanthie Kooragamage
Director – Group Sustainable Business, MAS Holdings

Nemanthie describes herself as a ‘product specialist with a passion for sustainable business.’ Today she leads the execution of the MAS Plan for Change in her role as Director – Group Sustainable Business at MAS Holdings. She has over 20 years of experience in the apparel industry, providing leadership to business development and marketing initiatives, including leading the PVH business for MAS, and most recently being the Director of Product Creation and Sustainable Business for MAS’s largest strategic business unit.

Pascal Brun
Vice President Sustainability and Diversity & Inclusion, Zalando

Pascal Brun serves as the Vice President of Sustainability, Diversity & Inclusion at Zalando, a prominent online fashion platform. In this influential role for our Industry, he is driving sustainability, diversity, and inclusion initiatives within the organization.

Now based in Berlin, he boasts over 20 years of invaluable experience in the apparel and textile industry, gathered through his diverse roles within multinational corporations like H&M and Camaieu. His professional journey has encompassed a wide spectrum of responsibilities, ranging from hands-on execution to high-level strategic management.

Paul Wright
Group ESG Director, PDS Group

Paul Wright is the Group ESG Director at the PDS Group. He heads the Ethical & Social Compliance, Sustainability, and Innovation efforts for the PDS group across business verticals and subsidiaries. He and his team ensure that the Business Units within the PDS Group, the factories with which they work, and their suppliers actively support the PDS Group and its Customers’ Policies, Code of Conduct, and defined standards of Ethical & Social Compliance and Sustainability. Paul brings with him 35 years of rich experience in the fields of Retail and Manufacturing. He started his career in garment manufacturing in the U.K. as an engineer, before moving into Production and Quality management and running manufacturing facilities in Morocco and Portugal. His retail experience involved running teams responsible for Ethical Sourcing, Quality, and Sustainability covering all types of products from Apparel, H&B, and General Merchandise for several leading retailers. He has previously worked with reputed organisations such as Primark, Asda, George Clothing, Matalan PLC and Dunelm.

Sandra Durrant
Senior Director of Environmental Sustainability and Traceability, Target Corporation

Sustainability and Traceability at Target Corporation, bringing over 25 years of textile and sustainability experience across multiple product categories. Since 2015, she has been responsible for driving strategies for transparency, environmental performance, and elevation of Targets’ manufacturing supply chain. During her tenure, she has implemented environmental standards into Target’s code of conduct, published Target’s apparel tier-two factory list and driven the creation of Target’s public commitments within net zero manufacturing. Sandra believes that transparency drives accountability and that everyone can make a positive impact, whether you are an individual or a business. To maximize efforts and accelerate change it is necessary to work together and harness the power of the collective.

Sarah O’Brien
Chief Executive Officer, Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council

Sarah O’Brien is CEO of the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council (SPLC), a nonprofit organization that leads a global community of 180 procurement, supplier, advocacy, and research organizations dedicated to building a sustainable world through the power of procurement. SPLC’s public sector and corporate procurement and sourcing members represent some $700 Billion in annual purchasing power. Ms O’Brien is a recognized expert on sustainable procurement, and environmentally and socially sustainable supply chain interventions. Under Ms O’Brien’s leadership, SPLC has drawn on its decade of experience with sustainable procurement strategy to develop programs and resources that deliver relevant and timely coaching and support that empower members to build strategic, effective sustainable procurement programs. SPLC has also moved to engage procurement and supply chain professionals in collaborative efforts to align their asks and aggregate their spend, sending clear market signals to enable transformative change. Prior to joining SPLC Ms O’Brien was Founding Director of the multi-stakeholder Clean Electronics Production Network (CEPN), where leading IT brands, NGOs, and suppliers collaborated to eliminate worker exposure to toxic chemicals in electronics production. For a decade previously, Ms O’Brien led global stakeholder engagement with the EPEAT IT hardware sustainability rating tool (which she participated in developing through a US EPA-sponsored stakeholder process) for the Green Electronics Council. Earlier, Ms. O’Brien developed and led the Environmentally Preferable Purchasing program of the US nonprofit Hospitals for a Healthy Environment (now Practice Greenhealth), and served as a Senior Outreach Associate for nonprofit INFORM, assisting states and cities across the US to reduce procurement of products containing mercury and other persistent toxics. Prior to entering the field of sustainable procurement, she worked as a state and regional legislative advocate and community organizer for the National Wildlife Federation and Vermont Public Interest Research Group, with a focus on toxics elimination, pesticide regulation, power plant pollution controls and other environmental health issues. Ms O’Brien holds a BA from Yale University and an MA in anthropology from Temple University. She divides her time between Portland, OR and rural Vermont.

Scott Raskin
Chief Executive Officer, Worldly
Scott Raskin is the CEO of Worldly, where he champions the idea that impactful change springs from actionable measures. Leveraging years of leadership experience in tech companies, he steers Worldly toward sustainable growth, providing brands, manufacturers, retailers, and suppliers with solutions to enhance their positive environmental and social impact.

Scott’s commitment to results and customer satisfaction positions Worldly as an essential platform for consumer goods companies seeking to lessen their footprint, adhere to regulations, and promote transparency. His management style, deeply rooted in valuing people and culture, inspires creativity and teamwork. Guided by a firm resolve to create significant change, Scott’s leadership shapes Worldly’s contribution to a more responsible corporate world.

Scott is focused on leading the evolution and expansion of Worldly’s platform to include new capabilities, innovations, and automation to empower sustainability-minded companies to analyze, understand, report, and improve their supply chain and product impacts.

Scott Vitters
Senior Director, Responsible Supply Chain (Environment), Nike, Inc.

As a leader on Nike’s Responsible Supply Chain team, Scott is accountable for elevating environmental performance across Nike’s end-to-end value chain – from raw materials to consumers and back again.

Scott has over 25 years of experience operationalizing environmental sustainability programs for leading consumer companies. Prior to joining Nike, Scott worked for The Coca-Cola Company where he helped embed sustainability into the company’s operations – demonstrating ways innovation can be used to turn environmental challenges into a competitive opportunities. Scott also served as a consultant to the US Environmental Protection Agency.

As a globally recognized business leader in sustainable innovation, Fortune magazine called Scott a “green star at the World’s Most Admired companies” for his work in advancing new sustainable business solutions. He is on the board of trustees of the Keystone Policy Center and is a past member of the Governing Board for the Industrial and Environmental Section of the Biotechnology Industry Organization.

Scott holds an MBA from Georgetown University and a bachelor’s degree from Franklin & Marshall College. He lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife and three children.

Sean Cady
Vice President, Global Sustainability, Responsibility, Trade and Government Affairs, VF Corporation | Board Director, Sustainable Apparel Coalition

Sean Cady is Vice President, Global Sustainability, Responsibility and Trade at VF Corporation, a global leader in lifestyle apparel, footwear and accessories. VF is the owner of 12 iconic brands, including The North Face®, Vans®, Timberland®, Dickies® and Supreme®.
Cady’s direction of VF’s global sustainability strategy has been instrumental in the implementation of the company’s comprehensive and industry-leading actions to reduce the environmental impacts of products, direct operations and the supply chain. In leading VF’s global trade strategy and product stewardship team, Cady ensures best-in-class management of product impacts through design and manufacturing due diligence, regulatory compliance, traceability, and substantiation of raw materials, while simultaneously representing VF’s interests to eliminate barriers to free trade. Additionally, he oversees the global responsible sourcing team across VF, ensuring the over 1.2 million workers making VF products, which are sold in more than 170 countries and 1,400 owned retail stores across the globe, are assured fair treatment and a safe workplace.
Prior to joining VF in 2010, Cady was the Director of Environment, Health and Safety at Levi Strauss & Co. His perspectives have been shared in numerous publications including Fast Company, Yahoo Finance, Environment + Energy Leader, Women’s Wear Daily, and Triple Pundit, and at recent events such as the Textile Exchange Sustainability Conference, the Redress Design Awards and the Sustainable Denver Summit.
Cady holds an M.B.A. in International Business from Saint Mary’s College of California and a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University at Buffalo. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of California. He serves on the boards of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, where he is the Immediate Past Chair, and the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety.

Shari Friedman 
Managing Director, Eurasia Group

Shari Friedman leads Eurasia Group’s Climate and Sustainability practice, focusing on environmental and social policies and trends affecting energy companies, industrial production, retail, supply chains, technology companies, agribusiness, and financial institutions. Shari and the team work across regions and sectors to help clients understand the evolving policies and how they will affect client’s business today and in the future. Prior to joining Eurasia group, Shari worked in climate and sustainability for over 25 years. She began working for the U.S. government during the Kyoto negotiations and moved to venture capital, consulting and banking. Most recently Shari worked at IFC, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, where she led corporate-wide climate strategy and managed a team of industry specialists focused on renewable energy, green buildings, battery storage, sustainable waste, electric vehicles, low-carbon cities, and emerging green technologies such as hydrogen and CCSU. Shari received a bachelor’s degree in political science and music from Tufts University, and a masters in public policy from Georgetown University. She has received course training in finance and capital markets, as well as solar PV and wind installation and biodiesel production.

Shelly Gottschamer
Senior Director of Sustainability, Roots

Shelly is an apparel supply chain veteran, who understands the reality of how social and environmental policies translate on both the factory floor and the bottom line. Starting with Levi’s San Francisco, Shelly has served in sourcing/sustainability roles with leading global brands, including Patagonia, Crocs, and Canada Goose. As Chief Sustainability Officer with Outerknown, Shelly led this startup through FLA accreditation before manufacturing began – an FLA first. Her industry work includes chair or co-chair of working groups with Social Labor Convergence Program and the Accelerating Circularity Project, and advisor at Bard, the Responsible Business Alliance / Fordham University and Outdoor industry Association. Shelly is currently Senior Director of Sustainability Integration and Reporting at Roots.

Shyla Raghav
Chief Climate Officer, TIME

Shyla Raghav is the Co-Founder at TIME CO2. She has had a long career working on both climate change adaptation and mitigation, with a focus on international policy and natural climate solutions. Her background includes serving as Vice President of Climate Change at Conservation International, and previously held roles at the World Bank, Adaptation Fund, United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. She was named an InStyle BadAss woman in 2019, a Grist Top 50 Fixer, a AAAS/IfTHEN Ambassador for women in STEM, and has been featured on CNN, Vice News, and Elle Magazine.

Stacy Smedley
Executive Director, Building Transparency

Stacy Smedley is the Executive Director of Building Transparency, a nonprofit organization that provides open-access data and tools to foster a better building future and aid in reversing climate change. Building on her 20 years of experience in the architecture and construction professions, Stacy is keenly focused on the continuous development and refinement of the resources, education and technological advancements needed to drive decarbonization strategies and investment in green procurement. She leads a growing team of experts driven to execute on the nonprofit’s mission with speed, quality and efficiency.
In her role, Stacy partners with policymakers on a local, state, federal and global level to inform and support low-carbon procurement or buy clean policies by leveraging the data and insights from the nonprofit’s cornerstone tool, the Embodied Carbon in Construction Calculator. Through this work, she has been invited to serve on the GSA’s Acquisition Policy Federal Advisory Committee and as a member of the Industry Advisory Group for the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Overseas Buildings.

Steffen Müller
Program Director, Gesellschaft für internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ)

Steffen Müller studied electrical engineering and worked for EnBW, Siemens Energy and Renewables Academy AG (RENAC), among others. For almost 10 years he has been working for the Deutsche Gesellschaft für internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. His stations here included consultant and project management positions in the global project “Energy Partnerships” and the “Project Development Program (PEP)”, before he took over the team leadership responsibilities for the PEP in 2019.