Claudia Toussaint, General Counsel of Xylem, provides a terrific discussion of ESG issues from the perspective of a publicly traded corporation’s general counsel. In a nutshell, Claudia describes how little acorns of ESG can grow into mighty oaks when corporate boards use ESG to guide their business strategies.
In this session, you’ll learn about:
- Claudia’s unique background
- What ESG is from a publicly traded company’s perspective
- Why the water sector is so central to ESG issues
- How sustainability has morphed from primarily being an environmental concept to a business and social concept
- Why an entity’s business strategy needs to align with its sustainability strategy
- The ESG issues involved in the Exxon Mobil proxy fight
- Why ESG needs to be front and center for publicly traded companies (guess what – the logic applies to all businesses!)
- Why it is critical for corporate boards to have an ESG strategy
- How ESG supports a corporation’s access to capital and lowers the cost of capital
- How ESG supports a corporation’s workforce and the corporation’s strategic direction
- How businesses measure ESG
- Why Claudia thinks the water sector can lead on ESG
Resources and links mentioned in or relevant to this session include:
- Claudia’s LinkedIn Page
- Xylem’s website
- Smart sewer technology satisfies EPA consent decree, saves city $400 million
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