Miriam Warren, Chief Diversity Officer at Yelp, shares how her childhood home was the beginning of her journey to the field, the three questions she asks herself before pushing for corporate action amid pivotal social moments, and the fellow leaders that inspire her leadership.

Michele Jawando, Senior Vice President at Omidyar Network, talks about the untold story of ESG’s unlikely allies, the importance of strong and engaged workers for any organization, and why we don’t have permission to surrender to the sorrow — even when working to advance justice becomes incredibly challenging. 

Jennifer Skyler, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at American Express, discussed the importance of leveraging your core values in times of disruption, drawing new strength from embracing discomfort, and the timeless, underappreciated value of resilience.

Melissa MacDonnell, President, Liberty Mutual Foundation and Vice President, Community Investments, Liberty Mutual Insurance discusses what this moment in corporate philanthropy means for practitioners, the power of a collaborative framework for funding, and how employee volunteerism programs can better center inclusion.

Vilas Dhar, President of the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation (PJMF) shares what this moment in artificial intelligence (AI) means for ESG practitioners, the importance of pushing past digital literacy and towards digital agency, and the big questions that leaders should ask as we build an equitable and human-centered future enabled by technological innovation.

Brandee McHale, Head of Community Investing and Development at Citi and President of Citi Foundation, talks about the unexpected challenges of headwinds becoming tailwinds, the necessity for leaders to break out of their echo chamber for inspiration, and why economic mobility is the foundation of her unlikely journey to the field of ESG.

Shannon Schuyler, Chief Purpose and Inclusion Officer at PwC, talks about the importance of an organizational North Star, why there’s no more safe zone for having difficult discussions about society at work, building coalitions with unlikely allies, and why going deep is sometimes better than going wide.

Ali Hartman, Head of Responsible Investment at Tiger Global, talks about the power of building unlikely bridges, the importance of the “G” in ESG, and the opportunity for clarity and leadership in responsible investment — especially amid the current backlash. 

Shamina Singh, Founder and President of the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth and Executive Vice President of Sustainability at Mastercard discusses the “S” in ESG, her commitment to continued learning and service, and the power of leaning into the urgency of the moment.

Caitlin Morris, Vice President of Social + Community Impact at Nike, talks about this moment in ESG, the intertwining of people and planet, and the unique power of measurement not to gauge impact,  but actually facilitate it. 

Michael Kobori, Chief Sustainability Officer at Starbucks, talks about why this is the most crucial moment for ESG that the field has ever faced, the power of leadership companies to change whole industries, and why tapping into your employees is essential.

Alison Whritenour, Chief Executive Officer at Seventh Generation, talks about her journey from traditional marketing to corporate social responsibility, her concerns about this moment in ESG, and how her hope that Seventh Generation’s new approach to CSR reporting will provide the blueprint for its future.

NationSwell interviewed Jenny Flores, Head of Small Business Growth Philanthropy at Wells Fargo, about how her experience as an immigrant in America informed her journey to human-centered banking, the unique impact of flexible capital, the importance of fearless philanthropy, and the not-so-secret powers of her approach to collaboration.

Tricia Winton, Partner and Global Head of ESG at Bain Capital, talks about why she thinks ESG isn’t going away anytime soon, the power of a private partnership model in advancing ESG work, and the importance of focusing on the upside while you navigate the risks and pitfalls.

Kate Behncken, Corporate Vice President of Microsoft Philanthropies, talks about the importance of tying together purpose and profit, the power of capacity-building leadership, and this moment of tremendous opportunity for social impact and sustainability leaders.

Nili Gilbert, Vice Chairwoman of Carbon Direct, spoke to NationSwell about her personal journey to sustainable finance, why equitable solutions are only possible with cross-sector collaboration, and why she thinks ESG won’t be enough to get us to where we need to be.

Pete Stavros, co-head of U.S. Private Equity at KKR, talked to NationSwell about his journey to the field of ESG, the leaders and books that inspire him, and why the movement for broad worker ownership is good for just about everyone — even if its myriad of implementational challenges can be daunting.

Rose Stuckey Kirk, Chief Corporate Social Responsibility Officer at Verizon, talked to NationSwell about the importance of professionalizing the field of ESG, the false premise that leaders have to choose between business opportunity and social good, and the art of “walking the halls” of your company to achieve internal buy-in on your impact initiatives. 

George Serafeim, author and Harvard Business School Professor, spoke to NationSwell about the current state of the field of ESG, why criticism of the field — even bad faith or partisan criticism — can be a good thing, and the integral ways that purpose and profit depend on one another. Here’s what he had to say.

Lata Reddy, Senior Vice President, Prudential Financial Chair, The Prudential Foundation, spoke with NationSwell about the importance of place-based impact, the power of anchor institutions, the next frontier for ESG measurement, and the importance of tried-and-true approaches alongside newer, more disruptive technologies.

Justina Nixon-Saintil, Vice President and Chief Impact Officer at IBM, spoke with NationSwell about why passion and partnership are paramount to an ESG leader’s success, why engineering and corporate social responsibility work go hand-in-hand, and why the future of ESG might just be its “S.”

Amanda Nusz, Target Senior Vice President of Corporate Responsibility, spoke with NationSwell about the connectivity between ESG and business growth, and the importance of co-creating within your business and across your stakeholders.

Letitia Webster, Managing Director + Chief Sustainability Officer, Merchant Banking Division, Goldman Sachs, spoke to NationSwell about what the precipice of this moment in ESG means for sustainability leaders, the importance of integrating corporate social responsibility across your entire business, and the leaders that inspire her.