etc.venues 360 Madison Avenue, New York
The rise of the ‘anti-ESG’ movement is gaining momentum in certain circles of the capital markets. Meanwhile, there is increased emphasis on the role of companies in delivering a smooth and ‘just’ energy transition.
ESG appears to be at a crossroads, and understanding the changing expectations of stakeholders will be critical for listed companies in 2023.
To help IR, governance and sustainability teams at public companies understand expectations for ESG reporting and communications in today’s environment, Corporate Secretary and IR Magazine will host the ESG Integration Forum – US 2023. View the agenda and speaker sections below to see what you can expect.
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08:30 AM
Registration and networking
09:00 AM
Welcome to the ESG Integration Forum – US
09:30 AM
Fire-side chat: High-level ESG priorities for 2023
Moderator: Laurence Taylor, senior conference producer, IR Magazine and Corporate Secretary
Sarah Bratton Hughes, head of ESG sustainable investing, American Century Investments
10:00 AM
Navigating new domestic and international regulations: What should you be doing now?
Moderator: Ben Maiden, editor-at-large, Corporate Secretary
Chris Fenwick, head of ESG center of excellence, Onetrust
John Miller, director of ESG and sustainability policy, Cowen
Curtis Ravenel, founding member, FSB TCFD Secretariat
10:45 AM
Morning networking break
11:15 AM
Is the ESG backlash a significant challenge for public companies?
As the ESG movement continues to gain momentum, so too does its counter-movement. In this session, our speakers will discuss the impact this trend is likely to have on IR and governance teams at public companies.
Moderator: Steve Wade, head of event content, IR Magazine and Corporate Secretary
Benjamin Martin, vice president of ESG, Solebury Strategic Communications
Chad Reed, VP of strategic initiatives and ESG, Hannon Armstrong
11:45 AM
Defining, redefining and measuring material ESG issues
Moderator: Laurence Taylor, senior conference producer, IR Magazine & Corporate Secretary
Frank Kelley, director of ESG, DFIN
Zach Rothberg, head of investor relations sales, AlphaSense
Alison Sternberg, senior vice president of investor relations, fuboTV
12:30 PM
Lunch
13:30 PM
Sending the right message: Trends in ESG communicating and reporting
Moderator: Steve Wade, head of event content, IR Magazine & Corporate Secretary
Aaron Chew, VP of investor relations, Proterra
Wesley Gee, chief sustainability officer, Works Design
John Nunziati, investor relations partner, Q4
14:15 PM
Taking a top-down approach to ESG: Getting senior management and the board on board
Moderator: Ben Maiden, editor-at-large, Corporate Secretary
Matthew Abenante, director of investor relations, Lightbridge Corporation
Colin Etnire, head of ESG, Navex
Jeffrey Taylor, VP, chief SEC counsel and secretary, American Water Works Company
15:00 PM
Afternoon networking break
15:15 PM
Champagne roundtables: Exchange ideas with your peers in sector-specific discussions
How the roundtables work:
Roundtable topics include to be confirmed
16:15 PM
Closing remarks and networking drinks
08:30 AM
Registration and networking
09:00 AM
Welcome to day two
09:10 AM
Focusing on G: Taking a stand on sensitive political issues
Moderator: Ben Maiden, editor-at-large, Corporate Secretary
Joshua Black, editor-in-chief, Insightia, a Diligent brand
Alexandra Higgins, managing director, Okapi Partners
10:00 AM
Taking a holistic approach to environmental governance
Moderator: Laurence Taylor, senior conference producer, IR Magazine and Corporate Secretary
Raechelle Munna, assistant general counsel, Entergy
Jeffrey Taylor, vice president, chief SEC counsel and secretary, American Water
10:45 AM
Morning networking break
11:15 AM
Spotlight on ‘S’: Tackling and reporting social issues effectively
Moderator: Ben Maiden, editor-at-large, Corporate Secretary
Leahruth Jemilo, VP and head of ESG practice, Corbin advisors
Sofia Martos, partner, ESG & Impact, Kirkland and Ellis
Scott Powell, VP of investor relations, VolitionRx, and CFO, Volition America
12:00 PM
The evolving role of ESG ratings agencies and how to improve your ESG score
Moderator: Laurence Taylor, senior conference producer, IR Magazine and Corporate Secretary
Keri Mattox, chief communications and administrations officer, Zimmer Biomet
Emmanuelle Palikuca, managing director and head of sustainability advisory, Alliance Advisors
Ally Rodrigues, lead ESG advisor and senior specialist, Nasdaq
12:45 PM
Lunch
14:00 PM
Investor Q&A: How are shareholder needs changing with regards to ESG?
Moderator: Steve Wade, head of event content, IR Magazine and Corporate Secretary
Laura Kane, head of ESG research, Voya Investment Management
Fionna Ross, sustainability investment specialist & head of the sustainability institute, Americas, abrdn
14:45 PM
Closing keynote perspective: Making ESG a strategic priority
Moderator: Steve Wade, head of event content, IR Magazine & Corporate Secretary
Jennifer Motles, chief sustainability officer, PMI
15:15 PM
Closing remarks and end of conference
15:30 PM
End of conference
To inquire about speaking opportunities, contact [email protected] or +44 20 8004 4818
Alison Sternberg
Senior vice president of investor relations
fuboTV
Fionna Ross
Sustainability investment specialist & head of the sustainability institute, Americas
abrdn
Jeffrey Taylor
Vice president, chief SEC counsel and corporate secretary
American Water
Mr. Taylor is the Vice President, Chief SEC Counsel and Secretary of American Water Works Company, Inc., where he is responsible for American Water’s securities law, corporate law and corporate governance compliance and leads the corporate secretary function. Mr. Taylor also serves as an advisor to the Board of Directors and the executive leadership team and a legal business partner to the company’s accounting, communications, human resources and executive compensation, finance, investor relations and treasury functions. For over 26 years, including more than ten years working in the in-house corporate secretary function, Mr. Taylor has represented a variety of clients in securities, mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance and capital raising, corporate governance, executive compensation and business and corporate law matters.
Ally Rodrigues
Lead ESG advisor and senior specialist
Nasdaq
Ally is a Lead Advisor within Nasdaq’s ESG Advisory practice. Prior to joining Nasdaq, Ally spent five years with Sustainalytics, a leading ESG Ratings provider. In her Client Advisory capacity, Ally advised institutional asset managers, wealth managers, and banks on the integration of ESG data throughout the investment process. She holds a M.S. in Environment and Development from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and a B.S. in Science, Technology, and International Affairs from Georgetown University. Ally is also an ESG Investing certificate holder with the CFA.
Keri Mattox
Chief communications and administration officer
Zimmer Biomet
Alexandra Higgins
Managing director
Okapi Partners
Matthew Abenante
Director of investor relations
Lightbridge Corporation
John Nunziati
Investor relations partner
Q4
Aaron Chew
Vice president of investor relations
Proterra
Zach Rothberg
Head of investor relation sales
AlphaSense
Benjamin Martin
Vice president, ESG
Solebury Strategic Communications
Laurence Taylor
Senior conference producer
IR Magazine and Corporate Secretary
Raechelle Munna
Assistant general counsel
Entergy
Raechelle Munna is Assistant General Counsel at Entergy Corporation, a Fortune 500 electric utility based in New Orleans, Louisiana (NYSE: ETR), where her practice is focused on advising on ESG strategy, performance and disclosure as well as investor relations, corporate governance, capital markets, corporate transactions and securities law matters. She works closely with Entergy’s sustainability and environmental policy team and in that role has advised on the preparation of two TCFD-aligned climate reports, ESG risk oversight and governance matters, and the development of ESG disclosure controls and procedures to ensure accurate and consistent reporting on ESG matters. She also advises the investor relations team on ESG and other disclosure matters and investor outreach and engagement.
Prior to joining Entergy, Raechelle practiced law in the corporate and securities group of Jones Walker LLP in New Orleans. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and a Masters in Business Administration from Spring Hill College. She received a Juris Doctorate Degree from Loyola University New Orleans College of Law. Raechelle is also a licensed CPA in Louisiana and previously served as an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Law at Tulane University Law School, where she taught an Accounting & Auditing course.
Sofia Martos
Partner, ESG & impact
Kirkland and Ellis
Scott Powell
VP, investor relations and CFO
VolitionRx and Volition America
Sarah Bratton Hughes
Head of ESG and sustainable investing
American Century Investments
Joshua Black
Editor-in-chief
Insightia, a Diligent brand
Frank Kelley
Director of ESG
DFIN
Frank Kelley is a Director and Head of ESG at Donnelley Financial Solutions (DFIN). He is responsible for providing thought leadership on corporate governance, executive compensation, proxy disclosure & design, shareholder activism, and sustainability with an emphasis on corporate issuer ESG.
Frank was formerly a Senior Advisor at the largest proxy advisor, Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), where he reviewed director independence, equity plans, ESG, say-on-pay, and shareholder proposals. Prior to ISS, Frank worked at MacKenzie Partners, a leading proxy solicitor specializing in M&A, where he counseled boards, corporate executives, and shareholders on proxy contests, solicitations, tender offers, and other complex corporate transactions. During this time, Frank was responsible for helping to implement strategies and campaigns for some of the largest proxy fights of the 2010s. Before MacKenzie Partners, Frank served as a Consultant for Willis Towers Watson where he designed executive compensation programs for corporate issuers, notably within the Electric Utility sector—the first major industry to utilize ESG metrics in compensation programs.
Prior to entering the corporate governance world, Frank was a Sell-Side Analyst in Equity Research. He resides in New York City and Tampa, Florida.
Emmanuelle Palikuca
Managing director and head of sustainability advisory
Alliance Advisors
Curtis Ravenel
Founding member
FSB TCFD Secretariat
Curtis Ravenel is a Senior Advisor to the co-chairs and Vice Chair of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) and a founding member of the Secretariat for the Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). He also serves as a Distinguished Fellow in Sustainable Finance at ClimateWorks Foundation, a Strategic Advisor to Persefoni Ai and Apollo Global Management and a Board Member of Context Labs BV.
Curtis founded the Sustainable Business & Finance Group at Bloomberg LP and served as its Global Head, reporting directly to the Chairman, from 2007-2019. Under his leadership, Bloomberg integrated sustainability considerations into the firm’s operations globally and developed a full range of Sustainable Finance products to evaluate sustainability-related risks and opportunities for finance professionals.
He was awarded a David Rockefeller Fellowship with the Partnership for New York City in 2011, appointed by the Obama Administration to serve on the US chapter of the G8 Advisory Board on Impact Investing in 2013 and received the Columbia Business School Exemplary Leadership Award in 2016. Curtis holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BA in History from Davidson College.
Colin Etnire
Head of ESG
BC Partners
Chris Fenwick
Head of ESG centre of excellence
OneTrust
Wesley Gee
Chief sustainability officer
Works Design
Combining academic expertise with extensive professional experience, Wesley leads The Works’sustainability practice. He provides guidance in stakeholder engagement, materiality and performance measurement, as well as CSR/sustainability communications and reporting. Wesley contributed to the development of the GRI G4 guidelines and serves on sector working groups with the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board. He is a judge for CPA Canada’s Corporate Reporting Awards and is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and events. He also lectures for the CSR certificate program at the University of Toronto and for the sustainability certificate program at Ryerson University. Before joining The Works, Wesley was senior sustainability consultant at Stantec and senior CSR advisor at the Canadian Business for Social Responsibility. He holds a Master’s in Sustainable Business from the University of Leeds.
Leahruth Jemilo
Head of ESG practice
Corbin Advisors
Prior to joining Corbin Advisors, Leahruth worked extensively in corporate governance and non-profit consulting. At Georgeson, a premiere proxy solicitation and corporate governance consulting firm, she managed shareholder engagement campaigns, which first introduced her to the growing importance of ESG from the investor perspective. At Equilar, an executive compensation and board data firm, Leahruth managed content and thought leadership for corporate governance conferences, co-hosted with Nasdaq, that addressed issues such as shareholder engagement, diversity in the boardroom, human capital management, and ESG, among other topics.
After graduating from Columbia Business School in 2016, Leahruth relocated to Chicago where she founded Girlspeak, a public speaking and empowerment program for middle and high school age girls. She was accepted into Google’s competitive Google for Entrepreneurs mentorship program and was a member at 1871, Chicago’s preeminent startup incubator. In 2019, Leahruth began consulting with the nonprofit Free Bikes 4 Kidz. Having worked with public companies, institutional investors and nonprofit organizations, Leahruth has developed a wide breadth of experience and understanding of the CSR and ESG landscape.
Leahruth earned her B.A. from Carleton College in Northfield, MN where she graduated cum laude and attended Columbia University’s M.B.A. program in NYC where she was accepted into the competitive Columbia Startup Lab for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Leahruth serves on the board of Advocate Illinois Masonic Hospital, where she is Chair of the Recruitment Committee. She lives in Chicago, is an avid student at Core Power Yoga, where she finds balance and strength and is an academic tutor and mentor for middle and high school age students.
John Miller
Director of ESG and sustainability policy
Cowen
John Miller joined Cowen Washington Research Group in September 2021 and covers ESG and sustainability policy. Mr. Miller previously served as a vice president and senior ESG research analyst at Calvert Research and Management, part of Morgan Stanley Investment Management, where he developed and built a quantitative, company-level ESG risk/reward assessment framework targeted towards the global energy and utility sectors. Mr. Miller also worked at the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) as branch chief in the Office of Enforcement, Division of Analytics and Surveillance. Earlier, he served as Technical and Policy Advisor to a FERC commissioner and as an energy analyst in FERC’s Office of Enforcement.
Mr. Miller holds a B.A. in economic history and political science from The George Washington University, and a Master’s in global history from The London School of Economics and Political Science, where he focused on developmental economics. John also holds the Fundamentals of Sustainability Accounting certification, which is granted by the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB).
Material prepared by the Cowen Washington Research Group is intended as commentary on political, economic, or market conditions and is not intended as a research report as defined by applicable regulation.
Chad Reed
Vice president of investor relations and ESG
Hannon Armstrong
Chad leads investor relations and ESG strategy for Hannon Armstrong (NYSE: HASI), a leading investor in climate change solutions.Previously, he served in various roles, including structured finance, risk management, and investor relations, with TerraForm Power –an integrated renewable energy company now owned by Brookfield Asset Management. Chad is also a co-founder of and current Board member with Blue Forest Finance, a non-profit focused on harnessing financial innovation to design sustainablesolutions to systemic climate resilience challenges. Chad started his career as an intelligence officer operating primarily in the Middle East.Chad holds degrees from the University of California at Berkeley, the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and the George Washington University.
Ben Maiden
Editor-at-large
Corporate Secretary
Ben Maiden is the editor-at-large for Corporate Secretary, an IR Media publication, having joined the company in December 2016. He is based in New York. Ben was previously managing editor of Compliance Reporter, covering regulatory and compliance issues affecting broker-dealers and asset management firms in the US and Europe. Before that, he was editor of Euromoney Institutional Investor’s International Financial Law Review and IFLR’s Americas editor, working in London and New York.
Steve Wade
Head of event content
IR Magazine
Steve Wade is a content researcher and conference producer at IR Magazine where he is responsible for crowd-sourcing intelligence on the big global issues facing investor relations. Steve also creates events where the IROs and the wider financial community can discuss, debate and learn about ways to develop the IR function.
Prior to IR Magazine, Steven’s background has been in corporate social responsibility and responsible investment. During his time at Ethical Corporation (now Reuters Events), Steve launched the ESG symposium, an event focused on connecting the socially responsible investment community with corporate sustainability leaders at listed companies. Steve was a judge for the Deloitte Green Frog Awards, celebrating the best corporate reporting in Eastern Europe. Steve also presented research at the Global Sustainable Event Summit in London and has spoken about extra-financial reporting with the United Nations Global Compact, the World Bank and the Polish Ministry of Finance.
Steve has a degree in Event Management and enjoys playing rugby in his spare time.
Jennifer Motles
Chief Sustainability Officer
Philip Morris International
Our attendees are leading governance, IR and sustainability practitioners with an established track record and strategic role within their company.
Below is a sample of some of our past attendees:
Company | Job title | Company | Job title | |
Farmland Partners | CFO | ViacomCBS | ESG specialist | |
PotlatchDeltic | CFO | Hewlett Packard Enterprise | ESG strategy and operations | |
Array Technologies | CMO, head of ESG | Bristol-Myers Squibb | Global head, sustainability strategy & operations | |
United States Steel | Corporate counsel | Vistra | IR and sustainability director | |
Nano One Materials | Corporate secretary & director of sustainability | The Water Council | President & CEO | |
KEB Hana Bank Canada | Corporate secretary and governance officer | Duke Realty | Senior corporate responsibility and brand manager | |
McDonalds Corporation | Corporate VP and associate general counsel | The Kroger | Senior Director, ESG | |
Easterly Government Properties | Director of Sustainability | Thermo Fisher Scientific | Senior director, investor relations | |
Micron Technology | Director of sustainability | MEG Energy | Senior sustainability advisor | |
Unitil | Director of sustainability & shared services | Sprouts Farmers Market | Sustainability manager | |
South Jersey Industries | Director, ESG | Capstone Mining | SVP, risk, ESG and corporate secretary | |
Coeur Mining | Director, ESG, Community & government relations | Whitestone REIT | Vice president, corporate communications | |
IAC | Director, finance and IR | Exterran Corp | Vice president, finance | |
AMN Healthcare Services | Director, investor relations & strategy | The Estee Lauder Companies | VP, global corporate citizenship & sustainability | |
Ideanomics | Director, Sustainability | Modern West Advisory | VP, ESG & sustainable business practice | |
Murphy Oil Corporation | Director, sustainability | MetaBank | VP, ESG and DEI | |
Adtalem Global Education | Director, sustainability & government relations | OGI | VP, investor relations | |
DaVita | ESG director | Columbia Banking System | VP, investor relations, ESG |
Why partner with us?
The ESG Integration Forum – US brings together some of the most influential people in the IR, governance and sustainability communities.
The event offers an effective approach to targeting clients when they are exploring how they can improve their ESG engagement and communication practice. Through our unrivalled knowledge of the subject matters and commitment to in-depth agenda research, our events are guaranteed to attract a qualified audience.
The unique buzz we create at our events makes them multi-faceted and highly interactive with great engagement in particular with decision-makers at listed companies. This allows our partners to have meaningful conversations with corporates who are deciding which parts of their ESG program to invest in, which service providers to engage and which consultants to retain. By partnering with us on an event, you can generate leads, showcase your thought leadership and position yourselves as the partner of choice.
We’d love to have a chat with you about how you can get in front of a truly engaged and motivated audience at the ESG Integration Forum – US. Get in touch with Ian Richman or call on +1 212 430 6895.
Forum Partners
DFIN is a leading global risk and compliance company. We’re here to help you make smarter decisions with insightful technology, industry expertise and data insights at every stage of your business and investment lifecycles.
As markets fluctuate, regulations evolve and technology advances, we’re there. And through it all, we deliver confidence with the right solutions in moments that matter.
Learn about DFIN’s end-to-end risk and compliance solutions. Visit www.dfinsolutions.com or call +1 800 823 5304.
Fenwick provides comprehensive legal services to ground-breaking technology and life sciences companies – at every stage of their lifecycle – and the investors that partner with them. Founded in 1972 in Palo Alto in the dawning days of Silicon Valley, Fenwick has been inextricably entwined with the history and growth of technology. We incorporated Apple, took Oracle and eBay public and over the years have represented many leading technology companies and their underwriters in numerous high-profile IPOs and M&A transactions.
Fenwick advises companies on the full suite of corporate governance matters. Clients and their boards benefit from our multidisciplinary team approach and our knowledge of the latest developments, whether in the areas of governance structure, boardroom refreshment and diversity, shareholder activism and defensive measures, executive compensation, proxy voting and advisors, or ESG.
With more than 400 attorneys and 1,000 employees firmwide, Fenwick has nationally ranked practices in complex financial and commercial transactions, corporate governance, intellectual property protection and licensing, mergers and acquisitions, “bet-the-company” litigation, domestic and international tax planning and tax controversies.
Our lawyers possess a deep understanding of the technology and science behind our clients’ businesses and, as a firm, we have always been committed to delivering the highest level of service in the most efficient, effective way possible, while maintaining a collegial and collaborative environment based on mutual respect.
Q4 Inc. (TSX: QFOR) is the leading capital markets access platform that is transforming how issuers, investors, and the sell-side efficiently connect, communicate, and engage with each other.
The Q4 Platform facilitates interactions across the capital markets through IR website products, virtual events solutions, engagement analytics, investor relations CRM, shareholder and market analysis, surveillance, and ESG tools. The Q4 Platform is the only holistic capital markets access platform that digitally drives connections, analyzes impact, and targets the right engagement to help public companies work faster and smarter.
The company is a trusted partner to more than 2,650 public companies globally, including many of the most respected brands in the world, and maintains an award winning culture where team members grow and thrive.
Q4 is headquartered in Toronto, with offices in New York and London. Learn more at www.q4inc.com.
Supported by
Founded in 1969, NIRI is the professional association of corporate officers and investor relations consultants responsible for communication among corporate management, shareholders, securities analysts and other financial community constituents. NIRI is the largest professional investor relations association in the world with more than 3,300 members representing over 1,600 publicly held companies and $9 trillion in stock market capitalization. For more information, please visit www.NIRI.org.
The Virtual Chapter is the second largest chapter in the NIRI ecosystem, with over 230 members representing 160+ publicly traded companies from a wide range of professional experiences, industries, geographies and market caps. The Virtual Chapter has been providing online educational, professional development and networking opportunities for its members and the broader IR community for more than 16 years, and is the only NIRI chapter to offer CPE credits in addition to IRC PDUs. For more information, please contact [email protected].
We will be hosting the event at:
etc.venues
360 Madison Avenue
New York
NY 10017
Directions
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Accommodation
IR Magazine and Corporate Secretary have arranged preferential rates for attendees at nearby hotels. View the hotels and rates by clicking here.
Register your interest for the 2023 forum by filling in the form at the link below. You will be the first to receive important updates about the event and details about how to book your place.
If you have any questions in the meantime, please contact Thomas Williams at [email protected] or call +44 208 090 2156.
For partnership inquiries
+1 212 430 6865
For agenda inquiries
+44 20 8004 4818
For all other inquiries
+44 20 8090 2156