Chloé Bailey is Program Officer for Legal and Business Initiatives at the Freedom Fund, a leader in the global movement to end modern slavery. In this role she oversees the Freedom Fund’s work on global supply chains and strategic litigation, working in collaboration with country programs across India, Nepal, Ethiopia and Thailand. Prior to this Chloé worked at a development consultancy managing the monitoring and evaluation of political reform projects in the MENA region, and conducted research and analysis on African governance at the Mo Ibrahim Foundation. A lawyer by training, Chloé holds an LLM in Public International Law from King’s College London and a double degree in English Law and French Law from King’s College London and Université Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne.

Read article: “The Growing Regulatory Risk Of Modern Slavery In Global Supply Chains”

Susan is a Vice President and a member of Trillium’s Shareholder Advocacy team, overseeing engagement with corporate leadership on numerous environmental, social, and governance issues including Board and workforce diversity, human rights, environmental health, and sustainable agriculture. This advocacy work includes direct dialogue with corporate leadership; communications through the proxy process by filing shareholder proposals; and communicating with elected officials on public policy issues. She has over 20 years of experience in the investment industry having started her career at Harvard Management Company and later moving to Trillium where she held investment management and equity research positions under the leadership of Joan Bavaria.

Susan serves on the Board of The Thirty Percent Coalition, and previously served on the Boards of Pesticide Action Network, North America, and the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility. She received her B.A. from Middlebury College and earned a Master’s Degree from Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Read article: “Diversity In The C-Suite: Why It’s Time To Shine A Light On Executive Leadership”

Meredith Benton leads Whistle Stop Capital, LLC.  Whistle Stop assists in the development of active investor strategies to address social and environmental concerns across asset classes.   She has formerly served as the Director, Head of Client Relations at Sonen Capital, a Vice President at Boston Common Management and the Associate Director of Social Research at Walden Asset Management.  Meredith has led numerous successful shareholder engagement programs, conducted extensive analyses of corporate human rights and environmental practices, and directed the impact investment parameters of more than $2 billion in assets.  Meredith was twice-elected by her industry peers to the board of US SIF: The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment.  She obtained her BS at Oberlin College and her MBA at INSEAD.

Read article: “‘Keep It Secret’ Policies Enable Cultures Of Harassment And Discrimination”

Robert Buesing, Jr. is a Research Analyst for Consumer Staples at ClearBridge. Robert joined ClearBridge in 2016 and has 7 years of investment industry experience. He previously worked at Barclays as an Investment Banking Associate. Robert’s key ESG considerations for the consumer staples sector include resource utilization; packaging; water initiatives; recycling; labor management; product safety; health and wellness; and animal welfare issues. Robert has an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BA in Economics and Mathematics from Williams College.

Read article: “Electric Vehicles Drive Shift To Low Carbon Economy”

As director of the Nathan Cummings Foundation's Corporate & Political Accountability program, Laura employs both grant making and active ownership strategies to address the ways in which corporations can both advance and hinder progress on climate change and inequality. In her prior role as the Director of Shareholder Activities at the Foundation, Laura successfully engaged public corporations on topics ranging from climate change to corporate governance.  Laura’s work has been covered by numerous publications and her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Chronicle of Philanthropy and The International Business Times among others. Prior experience includes projects for the Arcus Foundation, the Aga Khan Foundation and Christian Aid. Laura holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from the College of Wooster and an MSc, Economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Read article: “‘Keep It Secret’ Policies Enable Cultures Of Harassment And Discrimination”

Dan Carroll is the Center’s Director of Programs. Prior to joining the Center, Dan spent six years on Capitol Hill, advising a senior House member on campaign finance issues, the judiciary, and tax policy. Dan also tracked judicial nominations, researched and analyzed federal appellate court decisions, and created advocacy materials for a national non-profit advocacy organization, and served in the chambers of a federal magistrate judge. He earned a degree in Public Policy from Hamilton College and a J.D. from William & Mary Law School, where he was a fellow at the Institute of Bill of Rights Law.

Read article: “Shareholders Expand Political Disclosure And Accountability Effort As 2020 Elections Heighten Company Risks”

Jim Coburn leads Ceres’ efforts to improve mandatory disclosure of sustainability risks and opportunities by corporations. He also develops guidance on climate risk disclosure that strengthens corporate risk management and improves investor decisions. He collaborated with institutional investors on an initiative that led to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s issuance of climate disclosure guidance in 2010. Jim manages Ceres tools and reports on sustainability disclosure, including the SEC Sustainability Disclosure search tool. He manages Ceres’ work supporting global initiatives to improve reporting, including the Climate Disclosure Standards Board and the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures.

Read article: “Growing Support For Climate Financial Disclosure And Scenario Analysis”

Jackie Cook is a specialist in corporate disclosure analysis focusing on developing data solutions that strengthen investor stewardship on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. Jackie joined Morningstar in October 2018, as Director of Sustainable Stewardship Research, with Morningstar’s acquisition of Fund Votes Research Ltd., a company that she founded in 2007. Fund Votes had been a provider of mutual fund and exchange-traded fund proxy voting data on corporate resolutions and shareholder proposals across ESG topics.  Previously, Jackie had been a senior research associate at The Corporate Library (which merged with GMI in 2010 and was acquired by MSCI in 2014) and a junior research fellow at the Centre for Business Research at the University of Cambridge. Over the past 18 years, Jackie has also worked as a consultant on governance research projects for UNCTAD and several non-government organizations and have published academic articles on mutual corporate form, investor advocacy, and energy governance.

Jackie holds a bachelor’s degree with honors in clinical psychology and a master’s degree in research and experimental psychology from South African universities. She also holds a bachelor’s degree with honors in economics and management from Saïd Business School of the University of Oxford, where she studied as a Rhodes Scholar.

Read article: “Proxy Vote Data Complements Fund Ratings On Sustainability”

Carla F. Fredericks is Director of the American Indian Law Clinic at the University of Colorado Law School and Director of the First Peoples Investment Engagement Program. Ms. Fredericks is a graduate of the University of Colorado and Columbia Law School. Ms. Fredericks's areas of expertise include indigenous peoples law, federal Indian law, human rights, development, finance, and business and human rights.

Ms. Fredericks has significant practice experience in securities litigation and was previously a partner at Milberg LLP in New York, where she also founded Milberg's Native American practice and directed the firm's civil/human rights litigation. She maintains an active pro bono practice focused on complex and appellate litigation and Native American affairs. She is chair of the Board of Trustees for the Mashantucket Pequot (Western) Endowment Trust. She is also a Board Member of the Investor Alliance for Human Rights. Finally, she is a proud, enrolled citizen of the Mandan Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation of North Dakota.

Read article: “Social Cost And Material Loss: The Dakota Access Pipeline”

Bruce Freed is president of the Center for Political Accountability, a Washington, D.C. based NGO whose mission is to bring transparency and accountability to corporate political spending. It has pioneered the examination of corporate political spending and the risk it poses to companies and shareholders and produces the CPA-Zicklin Index that benchmarks companies on their political disclosure and accountability policies and practices. As a result of CPA’s efforts, political disclosure has been adopted by 130 large companies and is becoming a mainstream corporate practice.In his work with CPA, which he founded in 2003, he has drawn on his three decades of experience in journalism, Congress, and strategic public affairs. Mr. Freed speaks widely and co-authored The Conference Board’s Handbook on Corporate Political Activity. He has appeared in the Washington Post, Financial Times, Reuters, US News & World Report, the Sacramento Bee, the International Corporate Governance Network 2013 Yearbook, and The Conference Board Review.

Read article: “Shareholders Expand Political Disclosure And Accountability Effort As 2020 Elections Heighten Company Risks”

Danielle Fugere is President and Chief Counsel at As You Sow. She brings a wealth of experience in achieving broad and lasting change and in-depth knowledge of clean energy, conservation policy, toxic enforcement, and team building. Danielle served most recently as Executive Director of the Environmental Law Foundation. Prior, she was Legal Director and Regional Program Director for national nonprofit Friends of the Earth, where she spearheaded innovative legal strategies to reduce global warming pollution and directed campaigns to reduce pollution and promote sustainable alternative energies and fuels. Through her work, Danielle has been instrumental in securing compliance with environmental laws and industry conversions to environmentally sound technologies, including a settlement with the City and County of Los Angeles resulting in a $2.1 billion sewer system upgrade. Danielle was recognized with the WaterKeeper’s Environmental Achievement Award in 2000 for her outstanding achievements protecting California waters from pollution and compelling polluters to assume the costs of environmental degradation. She holds a JD from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law and a BA in Political Economics from the University of California, Berkeley.

Read article: “Energy & Banking Companies Need Plan To Reduce Full Climate Footprint In Line With Paris Goals”

Michael Garland is Assistant Comptroller for Corporate Governance and Responsible Investment for New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer. The Comptroller serves as investment advisor, custodian and a trustee to the New York City Pension Funds, which have more than $160 billion in assets and a long history of active ownership on issues of corporate governance and sustainability. Mr. Garland and his team are responsible for developing and implementing the Funds’ active ownership programs for public equities, including voting proxies, engaging portfolio companies on their environmental, social and governance policies and practices, and advocating for regulatory reforms to protect investors and strengthen shareholder rights. He also co-chairs the Activism Committee of the Council of Institutional Investors and serves as Comptroller Stringer’s designated representative to the CERES board of directors.

Read article: “NYC Pension Funds Sues Transdigm To Include Greenhouse Gas Reduction Proposal On Proxy”

Carly is a Manager of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Investing at Boston Trust and Walden Asset Management. She manages the evaluation of existing and potential securities relative to ESG factors and leads shareholder engagement initiatives on a range of sustainability issues including workplace equality and ESG reporting. She is a member of the Securities Research Committee, ESG Research & Engagement Committee, and Corporate Governance Committee.

Prior to joining Walden in 2012, Carly worked for two years with Walden as an intern while she completed her Master’s degree. She earned a BA, magna cum laude, in Economics and International and Global Studies from Brandeis University and an Master of Arts in International Economics and Finance (MAIEF) from the International Business School at Brandeis University. She holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation and is a member of the CFA Society Boston and the CFA Institute.

Carly currently serves on the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Advisory Committee.  From 2015-2017, Carly served as the President of the Boston Chapter of Building a Sustainable Investment Community (BASIC), a sustainable, responsible, and impact (SRI) investing professionals’ group.

Read article: “Change In Proxy Voting As Major Asset Owners Accept Esg As Part Of Fiduciary Duty”

Jon Hale, Ph.D., CFA, is global head of sustainable investing research for Morningstar. He directs the company’s research initiatives on sustainable investing, beginning with the launch of the Morningstar Sustainability Rating™ for funds in 2016. He also writes extensively about sustainable investing, including on his blog, The ESG Advisor.

Before assuming this role in 2016, Hale was director of manager research, North America, for Morningstar, where he led approximately 60 manager research analysts based in North America and oversaw the team’s operations, thought leadership, and manager research coverage across asset classes. Jon first joined Morningstar in 1995 as a mutual fund analyst and helped launch the institutional investment consulting business for Morningstar in 1998. He left the company in 1999 to work for Domini Social Investments, LLC before rejoining Morningstar as a senior investment consultant in 2001. He became managing consultant in 2009 and head of the Investment Advisory unit in 2014. Hale holds a bachelor’s degree, with honors, from the University of Oklahoma and a doctorate in political science from Indiana University.

Read article: “Proxy Vote Data Complements Fund Ratings On Sustainability”

Lila Holzman manages the Energy Program at As You Sow, which engages companies on issues relating to climate change and the release of toxins that pose serious health and environmental risks to local communities. Lila’s previous work experience includes working in the residential solar industry, serving as a sustainable agriculture volunteer in Panama with the Peace Corps, implementing a clean cookstove pilot in Ghana, and interning with the United Nations Global Compact.She currently serves as President of the Board of Directors of the Northern California Peace Corps Association. Lila holds an MBA from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania with a focus on Environmental & Risk Management as well as an undergraduate degree from Rice University where she double majored in Environmental Engineering and Policy Studies.

Read article: “Fossil Fuel Industry Sees Plastic As Saving Grace, But Demand May Plummet”

Robert J. Jackson Jr. was appointed by President Donald Trump to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and was sworn in on January 11, 2018.

Commissioner Jackson has extensive experience as a legal scholar, policy professional, and corporate lawyer. He comes to the SEC from the NYU School of Law, where he is a Professor of Law. Previously, he was Professor of Law at Columbia Law School and Director of its Program on Corporate Law and Policy.

Before joining the Columbia Law School faculty in 2010, Commissioner Jackson served as a senior policy advisor at the U.S. Department of Treasury, working with Kenneth Feinberg, the Special Master for TARP Executive Compensation. In this role, he oversaw the development of policies designed to give shareholders a say on pay, improve the disclosure of executive bonuses, and encourage TARP recipients to more closely tie pay to performance. Earlier in his career, Commissioner Jackson practiced law in the executive compensation department of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz.

Commissioner Jackson holds two bachelor’s degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, an MBA in Finance from the Wharton School of Business, a master’s degree from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, and a law degree from Harvard Law School. He was born in the Bronx, New York, and is a lifelong Yankees fan.

Read article: “Investors Determine Materiality”

Luan Jenifer, Executive Vice President, joined Miller/Howard Investments in 2002. Luan has worked in the operations department since joining the firm. During her tenure she was promoted to Head Trader and then to Director of Operations and Shareholder Advocacy. Prior to joining the firm, her work experience included managing a local TV station, customer service, inventory control and data management for various businesses and non-profit organizations. She continues volunteer work for several community organizations in the Woodstock area. She received her Associate of Science degree from the State University of New York at Ulster in 1993.

Read article: “Shareholders, Working In Concert, Change Kinder Morgan’s Tune On Sustainability”

John Keenan is a Corporate Governance Analyst for Capital Strategies for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), which is the largest union in the AFL-CIO representing state and local government, health care and child care workers. John serves on the board of the Council of Institutional Investors, where he previously co-chaired the its Shareholder Advocacy Committee. Before joining AFSCME, he was a proxy voting analyst at Institutional Shareholder Services and also a paralegal in Washington, DC. He is a graduate of Brown University.

 Since November 2003, Corporate Governance Analyst, Capital Strategies for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, working on corporate governance research, pension fund activism and pension defense. Since 2016, board member of the Council of Institutional Investors (CII) and is currently a board co-chair. From 2012 - 2016, co-chair of the Shareholder Advocacy Committee of the CII. In 2008, was named one of the “Rising Stars of Corporate Governance” by the Yale Millstein Center.

From 2001 through October 2003, served as Senior Policy Analyst for Proxy Voter Services, a division of Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) serving the Taft-Hartley community. Responsibilities included proxy voting analysis, corporate research, proxy voting according to AFL-CIO guidelines, policy research and serving as lead analyst in proxy contests.

From 1995 to 2000, worked as a paralegal at the law firm of Williams & Connolly. Casework included anti-trust, lease-backed securitizations, the Lanham Act and discrimination.

Graduate of Brown University, 1994, with a B.A. in Political Science.

Read article: “Companies Publicly Support Climate Policies But Lobby Against Them”

Laura Krausa is the System Director of Advocacy for Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI). In this role, she is responsible for advocacy efforts that focus on public health and social issues that impact socioeconomic and health disparities. She has extensive experience in violence prevention and has been a principal leader for a multi-faceted violence program within CHI. She is a regular speaker for the Catholic Hospital Association and the American Hospital Association in violence prevention and addressing human trafficking. Laura has a diverse background that included nearly two decades in the performing arts and arts administration. She is particularly interested in addressing social equity and in utilizing public health strategies to build resilience along the social-ecological spectrum.

Laura received her BA from the University of Northern Colorado, and her MS in Nonprofit Business Management from Regis University.  

Read article: “Shareholder Majority Calls On Gun Makers To Help End Gun Violence”

Jonas Kron is Trillium’s Director of Shareholder Advocacy. With almost 20 years of experience in shareholder advocacy, Jonas is responsible for leading and coordinating Trillium’s extensive advocacy program, which works to engage companies on their environmental and social performance. His advocacy work includes direct communications with company leadership, investor education and awareness, filing shareholder proposals, and public policy advocacy at the municipal, state and federal levels. Jonas is co-chair of US SIF’s Public Policy Committee and is a member of the US SIF Board of Directors. As a recognized legal expert in the field and a leader in shareholder advocacy, Jonas regularly represents Trillium in the media, at public events, and with clients. Prior to joining Trillium, Jonas was an environmental attorney and public defender as well as outside counsel to many socially responsible investment organizations. Jonas holds J.D. and master’s degrees from Vermont Law School.

Read article: “Scandal Plagued Facebook Needs Independent Board Chair”

Natasha Lamb is a Managing Partner and Director of Equity Research & Shareholder Engagement at Arjuna Capital. Natasha integrates Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors into Arjuna’s investment process while engaging major corporations to improve their performance through shareholder advocacy. Previously, Natasha was Vice President, Shareholder Advocacy and Corporate Engagement, and an Equity Analyst at Trillium Asset Management. Natasha has been profiled in Forbes and the Boston Globe, while her work has been featured in Rolling Stone, the Economist, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Times, as well as on NPR and CNN. In 2016, Natasha received the Upstart Business Journal Upstart 100 Award and the Aiming High Award from Legal Momentum for pioneering a shareholder campaign on gender pay equity. Her 2014 landmark negotiation with Exxon Mobil led to the company’s first public report on global warming and carbon asset risk. Natasha is a trustee of The Food Project and Chairman of the Crane Institute of Sustainability, host to the Intentionally Designed Endowments Network. She teaches sustainable investing at Pinchot University and holds an M.B.A in Sustainable Business from Pinchot. Natasha received her B.A. cum laude from Mount Holyoke College.

Read article: “Facebook Investors Press For Content Governance”

Sanford Lewis is an environmental attorney with 35 years of experience in environmental law and policy. His clients include institutional investors,  social investment firms and nonprofit organizations. His practice is focused on shareholder proposals, shareholder rights and improving corporate environmental and social disclosure requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Mr. Lewis is the Director and General Counsel of the Shareholder Rights Group  http://ShareholderRightsGroup.com and was co-author  of  “Fooling Investors and Fooling Themselves: How Aggressive Corporate Accounting and Asset Management Tactics Can Lead to Environmental Accounting Fraud.” He is also a documentary filmmaker.  Mr. Lewis has a BS in Environmental Studies and Urban Communications from Cook College, Rutgers University, and a JD from the University of Michigan Law School. 

Read article: “Micromanagement And Executive Compensation Challenges Under New Sec Staff Bulletin”

Conrad MacKerron has more than a decade of experience managing corporate dialogues and shareholder advocacy initiatives on cutting-edge social and environmental issues. Conrad founded the As You Sow Corporate Social Responsibility Program in 1997. He is former senior social researcher at Piper Jaffray Philanthropic & Social Investment Consulting, and Social Research Director at Progressive Asset Management (both social investment firms). He also served as Senior Analyst, Energy and Environment, at the Investor Responsibility Research Center (now part of RiskMetrics Group). Formerly a journalist, he was Washington Bureau Chief for Chemical Week and a writer for BNA’s Environment Reporter. He is author of Business in the Rainforests: Corporations, Deforestation and Sustainability (IRRC, 1993) and Unlocking the Power of the Proxy (2004). Conrad served on the board of the Social Investment Forum (SIF), and was chair of the steering committee for its Advocacy and Public Policy Program. He also served on the As You Sow Board of Directors from 1993 until 2005. In 2007, he received the SRI Service Award from SIF for “outstanding contributions to the SRI community.” He holds a Masters Degree in Journalism and Public Affairs from The American University.

Read article: “Fossil Fuel Industry Sees Plastic As Saving Grace, But Demand May Plummet”

Aeisha Mastagni is a Portfolio Manager within the Corporate Governance Unit of the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS), the nation’s largest teacher retirement fund.  She is responsible for working with a governance team to further CalSTRS’ mission to secure the financial future and sustain the trust of California’s educators.  Aeisha’s main areas of focus are the corporate engagement program, executive compensation, selecting and monitoring managers in the activist manager portfolio, and working with regulatory authorities on market-wide issues.

In 2012, Aeisha joined the Board of Directors at the Golden 1 Credit Union, one of the nation’s largest credit unions with more than $10 billion in assets and over 800,000 members.  In 2015, she joined the Board for the Council of Institutional Investors, whose mission is to be the leading voice for effective corporate governance.  

Aeisha has a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the California State University, Sacramento.  

Read article: “Counting Women Counts: Mixing Genders On Boards Is Good Business”

Mary Jane McQuillen is a Portfolio Manager and the Head of the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Investment Program at ClearBridge Investments. Mary Jane co-manages the ClearBridge Sustainability Leaders Strategy, as well as a number of other active equity ESG strategies, and is a member of the ClearBridge Proxy Committee. She has 20 years of investment industry experience. Mary Jane serves on the Board of Directors for the Investor Responsibility Research Center Institute and the Sustainable Investments Institute. She is a member of the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI) Listed Equities Steering Committee and ESG Integration Sub-Committee, and the United Nations Environment Program Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) Asset Management Working Group. Mary Jane received her MBA in Finance from Columbia Business School. She holds a BS in Finance from Fordham University.

Read article: “Electric Vehicles Drive Shift To Low Carbon Economy”

Donna Meyer, PhD, is director of shareholder advocacy for Mercy Investment Services, Inc.; she provides advocacy services for the socially responsible investment program with a focus on health issues, including domestic health, global health, and nutrition. Together with the UAW Trust, she is co-leading the Investors for Opioid Accountability (IOA).  Donna served as a healthcare administrator for a number of years prior to becoming the CHRISTUS Health system leader for Community Health; in the latter position, she directed their socially responsible investment program. She also has provided SRI consulting services for Dignity Health and several other organizations and has an adjunct faculty appointment at the Saint Louis University College for Public Health and Social Justice, Department of Health Management and Policy. She served on the board of directors of the Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) from 2007 through 2013. She currently serves on the Texas Health Institute Board and the CHI Mission and Ministry Fund. Donna has bachelor's with high distinction and master's degrees from the University of Minnesota and a PhD from the University of Texas School of Public Health.

Read article: “Majority Support For Disclosure Of Opioid Financial Risk”

Brianna is a Vice President and member of Trillium’s Shareholder Advocacy team and joined Trillium in 2010. Brianna’s responsibilities include engaging companies on environmental, social, and governance issues and public policy advocacy. Prior to Trillium she was a Portfolio Administrator at US Bank in Trust Services.

Brianna earned a B.A. in Economics from the University of New Hampshire and an ALM in Sustainability and Environmental Management from Harvard University Extension School. She previously served on Bentley University’s Sustainability Advisory Board and was Board Treasurer of the IGLTA Foundation.

Read article: “Diversity In The C-Suite: Why It’s Time To Shine A Light On Executive Leadership”

Nadira Narine is  Senior Program Director of Strategic Initiatives at the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), primarily responsible for research and analysis, coordination and support of program work on water and food issues.

She has been a staff member at ICCR since 2004, and prior to this assignment served the organization as a Program Assistant and Associate Program Director. Nadira provides a strategic approach and thinking across ICCR’s water and food program areas and has a global view that enhances both individual and collective efforts of the organization.

Nadira was born in Trinidad. She obtained a BA and MA in Political Science from The Graduate Center, The City University of New York.

Read article: “Companies Engaged In Immigration Detention And Family Separation Face Human Rights Risks”

Michael Passoff is the founder and CEO of Proxy Impact, a shareholder advocacy and proxy voting service for sustainable and responsible investors (SRIs). Michael has over 20 years of experience in corporate social responsibility, shareholder advocacy, and philanthropy. For more than a decade Michael served as the Senior Program Director for the As You Sow Foundation’s Corporate Social Responsibility Program. In 2005 he founded the Proxy Preview to alert foundations, SRIs, pension funds, labor, and faith-based communities to upcoming shareholder resolutions that are relevant to their mission. Michael has led and participated in more than 300 shareholder dialogues and resolutions on environmental, social and governance issues. His shareholder advocacy work led him to be named as one of 2009’s “100 Most Influential People in Business Ethics” by Ethisphere Magazine and he also received the Climate Change Business Journal award for a shareholder campaign that prompted greenhouse gas emission reductions and renewable energy development at public utilities.

Read article: “Gender Pay Gap Is More Than Just Salary – It Is Also About Opportunity”

Since 2003, Cathy Rowan has been the Director of Socially Responsible Investments for Trinity Health, one of the largest Catholic health care systems in the nation and a member of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility. Cathy leads Trinity Health’s shareholder advocacy work on health, food and nutrition tobacco control and environmental issues.   She also serves as a consultant for the Maryknoll Sisters and the Tri-State Coalition for Responsible Investment. 

Read article: “Your Investments, Your Voice – New Tool For Individual Shareholder Advocacy”

Tracey is responsible for active ownership strategies at CBIS, focused on engagement with boards, corporate management, regulators, and fellow investors to encourage robust environmental, human rights, and corporate governance practices worldwide. She joined CBIS in 2016 and has over 18 years of experience in Responsible Investment and corporate engagement, including on the issues of climate change, responsible lending, governance, and labor and human rights risks. Tracey previously served as director of Investor Programs at Ceres; at US SIF: The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment as head of its Shareholder Action Network; and at Pax World Funds and the Service Employees International Union, where she coordinated shareholder engagement at each. She has authored several guides on shareholder advocacy, including 21st Century Engagement: Investor Strategies for Incorporating ESG Considerations into Corporate Interactions, which she co-published with BlackRock in 2015. She began her career path as an Environmental Journalist.

Read article: “Child Sexual Exploitation Online—a Growing Risk For The Technology Sector”

Gabe Rissman is the Co-Founder and President of Yourstake.org. Gabe also co-founded Real Impact Tracker, which scores the social impact of investment funds. Gabe is the former co-head of Yale’s Dwight Hall Socially Responsible Investment Fund, which became the first undergraduate organization to file a shareholder resolution. Gabe graduated from Yale College with a B.S. in Physics. When he’s not working, Gabe likes to eat Thai food and talk about moral philosophy.

Read article: “Your Investments, Your Voice – New Tool For Individual Shareholder Advocacy”

Paul Rissman is Co-Founder of Rights CoLab and Board Member of the Sierra Club Foundation. He is formerly an analyst, portfolio manager, and director of research at AllianceBernstein.

Read article: “Sasb Addresses Growing Demand For Sustainability Disclosure”

Since 2003, Cathy Rowan has been the Director of Socially Responsible Investments for Trinity Health, one of the largest Catholic health care systems in the nation and a member of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility. Cathy leads Trinity Health’s shareholder advocacy work on health, food and nutrition tobacco control and environmental issues.   She also serves as a consultant for the Maryknoll Sisters and the Tri-State Coalition for Responsible Investment. 

Read article: “The Link Between Higher Drug Prices And Executive Pay”

Leslie Samuelrich leads Green Century Capital Management, focusing on the firm’s investment strategies, business development, and impact investing program. She has more than 25 years of experience in ESG investing, corporate accountability, and environmental protection. Ms. Samuelrich is a frequent speaker on sustainable investing and has appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, and other financial and environmental news publications. Prior to joining Green Century, she was Chief of Staff at Corporate Accountability and a member of the Advisory Board for Business Ethics Network. Ms. Samuelrich currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment (US SIF), the Management Council for Divest-Invest Individual and the Advisory Board of the Intentional Endowments Network. She also is a guest lecturer on impact investing at The Wharton School. She holds a BA in Economics from Boston College.

Read article: “Shareholders Play Key Role In Reducing Deforestation And Climate Risk”

Colleen Scanlon is the executive vice president and chief advocacy officer of CommonSpirit Health, a national Catholic health system formed Jan. 31 through the alignment of Catholic Health Initiatives and Dignity Health. In this role for over 20 years, she leads the ongoing development and integration of a comprehensive advocacy program within one of the largest Catholic health care systems in the country. Previously, she was director of the American Nurses Association Center for Ethics and Human Rights in Washington, DC and a clinical scholar in the Center for Clinical Bioethics at Georgetown University Medical Center. Colleen has published multiple articles and book chapters, and lectures frequently.  Special interests include advocacy on behalf of vulnerable persons, palliative care ethics, violence prevention and professional and organizational integrity.

Colleen received her BSN from Georgetown University, an MS in Gerontology from the College of New Rochelle and a JD with a health law and policy certificate from Pace University School of Law. 

Read article: “Shareholder Majority Calls On Gun Makers To Help End Gun Violence”

Mr. Smith serves as the director of ESG shareowner engagement at Walden Asset Management.  Walden and Boston Trust & Investment Management incorporates environmental, social and governance (ESG) analysis into investment decision-making for our clients.  We also strive to strengthen corporate ESG policies, performance, and accountability through shareholder engagement. As of February 2018 Walden and Boston Trust managed $8 billion in assets for individual and institutional clients.

Mr. Smith joined Walden in October 2000 and leads Walden’s ongoing shareholder engagement program to promote greater corporate leadership on ESG issues. This includes company dialogues, shareholder proposals, proxy voting, and public policy advocacy. Among the areas Walden focuses on are sustainability reporting, political spending and lobbying, board diversity, executive compensation and governance, climate change, supply chain standards, water use, and human rights. Mr. Smith is actively involved in representing Walden at public events and in fostering long-term client relationships. He is chair of Walden’s ESG Research & Engagement Committee and a member of the Corporate Governance Committee.

Previously, Mr. Smith served as executive director of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) for 24 years.  ICCR coordinates corporate responsibility programs for over 300 religious, institutional investors committed to using shareholder advocacy to influence corporate conduct and promote social justice. ICCR has been a primary player in the corporate responsibility movement and social investment community since the early 1970s.

In 2007, Mr. Smith was named as one of the “Top 100 Most Influential People in Business Ethics” by Ethisphere Institute. In 2008, he was elected as a board member of the Wespath (the Board of Pensions of the United Methodist Church, one of the largest pension funds in the U.S. He serves on Wespath’s Principles Committee. In 2010, Mr. Smith received the Bavaria Award for Impact at the third annual Joan Bavaria Awards for Building Sustainability into the Capital Markets. In 2011 and 2012, he was named one of the most influential people in corporate governance by the National Association of Corporate Directors

Mr. Smith previously served as chair of USSIF, an industry trade group, for five years, and presently serves as co-chair of their Public Policy Committee. He chairs the board of Shared Interest, a South Africa development fund. Previously, Mr. Smith served on the boards of the Domini Social Equity Fund for ten years, World Neighbors, an international development organization, and the Kimberly-Clark Sustainability Advisory Board.

Mr. Smith earned a B.A. from the University of Toronto and masters of divinity degree from Union Theological Seminary.

Read article: “Change In Proxy Voting As Major Asset Owners Accept Esg As Part Of Fiduciary Duty”

Christy Spees leads As You Sow’s Environmental Health Program, engaging investors and companies to ensure consumer safety from environmental contaminants, especially through agricultural practices. Christy has previously worked to promote clean and fair food and farming as an educator for Whole Foods Market. She was also a community organizer for urban farmers and farmers markets in Chicago, Illinois. She earned a Masters in Public Health from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a Bachelor of Arts in Writing from Illinois Wesleyan University. Christy has also held positions as a Research Associate with UIC’s Institute for Health Research & Policy and as Health Equity Intern with Health & Medicine Policy Research Group.

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Heidi Welsh, the founding executive director of the Sustainable Investments Institute (Si2), has analyzed corporate responsibility issues for 30 years.  Starting at the Investor Responsibility Research Center in 1987, she provided detailed coverage of shareholder advocacy and monitored corporate compliance with a fair employment code in Northern Ireland for 16 years.  In addition, she co-authored CDP’s S&P 500 report in 2007, headed up sustainability research within a unit of what is now MSCI, and consulted on Global Reporting Initiative guidelines.  Welsh is the lead author of three Si2 studies about corporate political activity governance and spending.  She received her B.A. from Carleton College, cum laude, and an M.S. from the Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution at George Mason University.

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Pawel is a member of ClearBridge’s Global Growth investment team and co-manages numerous international and global growth strategies. He has 22 years of investment industry experience.

Pawel joined ClearBridge as a Research Analyst from predecessor firm Global Currents Investment Management, which was founded in 2008 by a group of portfolio managers from Brandywine Global Investment Management. He was named a Portfolio Manager in 2013. Prior to joining Global Currents, Pawel was an Equity Research Analyst at Allianz Global Investors & Oppenheimer Capital division. Previously, he was a Senior Research Analyst with CA-IB Securities, a Research Associate with Credit Suisse First Boston, and an Auditor with Deloitte & Touche.

He is a member of the CFA Institute and received an MA in Finance from the Warsaw School of Economics and an MBA from Columbia Business School.

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