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Environmentally Sustainable Business Club

The Environmentally Sustainable Business Club's goal is to inform students about the environmental concerns and opportunities that emerge in today's business world.

The Environmentally Sustainable Business Club focuses on:

  • Awareness
    Increase awareness in the GSB community of environmental issues and our role in providing both social value and competitive advantage.
  • Education and Discussion
    Providing expert perspectives and education on important and emerging environmental business issues, and forums for further discussion.
  • Career and Community
    Provide information, resources, and contacts for members interested in environmental careers, by coordinating with the Career Management Center and the alumni network.

Business will play a crucial role in finding solutions to the world's environmental challenges. To solve these problems, and to maintain a competitive edge, business leaders now need to be familiar with concepts of sustainability. The GSB is working to train leaders to link environmental impacts to business strategy.

GSB students are increasingly interested in environmental issues. Membership in the Environmentally Sustainable Business Club, as well as demand for classes, activities, and careers in green business, has grown over the past few years.

Members are encouraged to participate in ongoing activities (see below) or start their own projects.

Description of Activities

  • Awareness

    The "Greening the Bottom Line" project was the GSB's Public Management Initiative for 2006-07. Actions include:
    • Composting in the GSB cafeteria, with compostable utensils and containers, diverting 27,000 lbs. of waste from the landfill in its inaugural year.
    • Improving recycling bin visibility and layout in the GSB
    • Adding recycling bins to every student's room in the Schwab Residential Center
    • Working with procurement to purchase only recycled paper for printing
    • Making double-sided printing the default option for all computers at GSB
    • Communicating energy saving and greening tips to students
    • The Club updated the GSB cafeteria’s composting signage in 2008 to improve student, faculty, and staff participation.
  • Academics
    The Club hosts the Business & Environmental Issues seminar in the Spring Quarter, which features a different leader in the field each week. The 1-unit course is cross-listed with the Materials Science and Engineering (MS&E) Department, and can be audited.

    Environmental Science for Managers and Policy Makers is a 4-unit course, first taught in Winter Quarter 2008. The course is cross listed with the Law School and IPER, and fulfills an MBA1 core requirement.

    There are other environment-oriented electives, and the Club is working with the Public Management Program to integrate environmental content into other GSB courses. The club leadership and membership ranks also include several Joint MBA/MS students in the Interdisciplinary Program of Environment and Resources (IPER).

  • Career
    The Club works with the Career Management Center to help students gain knowledge about and pursue careers in environmental management and environment-related fields. Activities include:
    • Career panels
    • Alumni events
    • Presentations by business leaders
    • Peer advice
    • Job posts
    • Company contacts
  • Speakers and Panels
    The Club hosts and co-sponsors speakers and panel discussions throughout the year. Most events are open to all GSB students and some to the whole Stanford community.

    Partial List of recent speakers:
      • Carter Roberts – President & CEO, World Wildlife Fund (part of the Conradin von Gugelberg Memorial Lecture)
      • Rick Duke – Director of Center for Market Innovation, Natural Resources Defense Council
      • Felicity Barringer – National Environment Reporter, New York Times
      • Chip Giller – President and Founder, Grist.org
      • Gene Sykes – Co-chairman Global Mergers and Acquisitions Business & Chairman of the TMT Group, Goldman Sachs
      • Mark Tercek – Managing Director & Head of the Center for Environmental Markets, Goldman Sachs (now President and CEO of The Nature Conservancy)
      • David Arfin – VP Customer Finance, SolarCity
      • Paulo Diniz – CFO, COSAN
  • Sustainability Standard for New GSB Knight Management Center
    The Environmentally Sustainable Business Club advised the team designing the new Knight Management Center to make the project as sustainable as possible. The new campus will be certified LEED Platinum, the highest rating under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) system.
  • Site Visits
    Club members visit environmentally focused organizations in the Bay Area to learn from their practices on-site. Past and future locations include:
      • Orchard Hotel, San Francisco (LEED-certified hotel)
      • Google (visit to rooftop solar installation)
      • Altamont Pass Wind Energy Area
      • Cardinal Co-Gen, Stanford's on-site natural gas power plant
      • Agricultural Land-Based Training Association
  • Social
    The ESBC hosted a Friday happy hour with compostable utensils. Compostable cups were provided for those that didn't bring their own mug, and the club distributed free compact fluorescent light bulbs to students who pledged to use them to replace an incandescent bulb. The club aims to work with other GSB events to make them waste-free and sustainable.

Student Leadership

  • Ann Bordetsky (Co-president)
  • Tom Mercer (Co-president)
  • Andy Martin (Treasurer)

Contact Us

Email the Environmentally Sustainable Business Club leaders.