Climate. Money. Work‪.‬ Shrug Content

Join host Keesa Schreane for Season Three’s third and final episode of Climate Money Work. In this dynamic discussion, she uncovers the nexus of sustainability, politics, and finance in New York City's urban landscape. Joined by Silda Wall Spitzer, former First Lady of New York and Vice Chair of the Urban Green Council Board along with John Mandyck, CEO of Urban Green Council, the episode delves into the pivotal role buildings play in carbon emissions and the innovative strategies reshaping the city's skyline.
From benchmarking initiatives to Local Law 97's fossil fuel ban in new construction, the Urban Green Council leads the charge in policy change. But challenges abound, especially in financing and navigating political landscapes.
Amidst these challenges lie opportunities, with private equity firms stepping up to support green buildings and Urban Green Council uniting stakeholders to what’s actually making a difference, like the health benefits of transitioning to electric heat pumps in NYC.
As the episode concludes, focus shifts to future sustainability efforts, emphasizing the need for uniform rating systems and independent verification for net-zero claims.Tune in for a compelling exploration of urban sustainability at the heart of the Big Apple. This is Climate Money Work.
To view a transcript of this episode, visit https://www.keesaschreane.com/podcast.
For show feedback, pitches and business enquiries, please email cmw@shrugcontent.com. 
Follow Keesa 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@keesac.schreane2215 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keesa-c-schreane-fsa-cams-6b45bbb/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/KeesaCamille 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keesaschreane/ 
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@keesaschreane 
Keesa’s latest book, Gambling on Green: https://www.keesaschreane.com/gambling-on-green-book 
Keesa’s newsletter: https://bit.ly/cmwnewsletter 
About Keesa 
Keesa Schreane is a fractional chief sustainability and revenue officer, author, keynote speaker, and consultant, whose expertise includes third-party risk, sustainability data, risk analysis, sustainable finance, revenue generation and sales, and corporate reporting. Her work has appeared in outlets including Black Enterprise, Bloomberg, CNBC, CBS, Essence, FinTech TV, and Latina, and she serves on numerous boards and committees, including Ceres President’s Council. 
About Climate Money Work 
Climate Money Work podcast explores complex climate, workplace, governance and social issues. Throughout each episode, host and author Keesa Schreane both hosts compelling conversations with experts and offers her own insights on how corporates, investors, and regulators might find solutions — and common ground.
 

Welcome to Season 3, Episode 2 of "Climate Money Work" with your host, Keesa Schreane. In this episode, Keesa interviews Leslie Samuelrich from Green Century Funds and Steve Rothstein, the founding managing director of the Ceres Accelerator for Sustainable Capital Markets.
Leslie and Steve shed light on the distinctions between sustainable and ESG investing, exploring how these strategies resonate with personal values and fit into the broader economic landscape. They offer insights into how factors like inflation, supply chain dynamics, and human capital considerations impact sustainable investment strategies.
Exploring recent legislation, they highlight the controversial New Hampshire bill, ultimately defeated, and the ongoing debate around ESG investing. They discuss the pushback from certain sectors and the efforts of organizations like Ceres to champion the freedom to consider all relevant factors in investment decisions and caution against companies' greenwashing rather than genuinely committing to sustainability practices.
From the emergence of green bonds to the role of AI in gathering and analyzing ESG data, join Keesa, Leslie, and Steve as they navigate the nuances of sustainable investing in a world grappling with polarization, legislative challenges, and the imperative to build a more resilient and equitable future.
To view a transcript of this episode, visit https://www.keesaschreane.com/podcast.
For show feedback, pitches, and business inquiries, please email cmw@shrugcontent.com. 
Follow Keesa 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@keesac.schreane2215  
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keesa-c-schreane-fsa-cams-6b45bbb/  Twitter: https://twitter.com/KeesaCamille  
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keesaschreane/  
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@keesaschreane 
Keesa’s latest book, Gambling on Green: https://www.keesaschreane.com/gambling-on-green-book  
Keesa’s newsletter: https://cmwnews.beehiiv.com/subscribe 
About Keesa 
Keesa Schreane is a fractional chief sustainability and revenue officer, author, keynote speaker, and consultant whose expertise includes third-party risk, sustainability data, risk analysis, sustainable finance, revenue generation and sales, and corporate reporting. Her work has appeared in outlets including Black Enterprise, Bloomberg, CNBC, CBS, Essence, FinTech TV, and Latina, and she serves on numerous boards and committees, including the Ceres President’s Council. 
About Climate Money Work 
Climate Money Work podcast explores complex climate, workplace, governance and social issues. Throughout each episode, host and author Keesa Schreane both hosts compelling conversations with experts and offers her own insights on how corporates, investors, and regulators might find solutions — and common ground.

Season Three of the Climate Money Work podcast is here! Host Keesa Schreane joins Nancy Mahon, CSO at Estée Lauder Companies, to explore the fusion of beauty, sustainability, and community engagement.
Discover how initiatives like the iconic Viva Glam and Back to Mac reflect Estée Lauder Companies' commitment to social impact and consumer activism. Learn about their sustainability goals, from greener packaging to responsible sourcing, and how they leverage their scale for positive change.
Nancy reveals the strategies for collaborating with stakeholders and suppliers to implement sustainable practices and discusses the importance of education, partnerships, and iteration.
This episode will provide insights into investor responses and the importance of corporate transparency in the quest to become a greener company. “Purpose” isn't just a buzzword for Estée Lauder Companies, but a guiding principle shaping the landscape of retail and sustainability. 
For show feedback, pitches and business enquiries, please email cmw@shrugcontent.com. 
Follow Keesa 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@keesac.schreane2215 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keesa-c-schreane-fsa-cams-6b45bbb/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KeesaCamille 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keesaschreane/ 
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@keesaschreane 
Keesa’s latest book, Gambling on Green:  https://www.keesaschreane.com/gambling-on-green-book 
Keesa’s newsletter: https://bit.ly/cmwnewsletter 
About Keesa 
Keesa Schreane is a fractional chief sustainability and revenue officer, author, keynote speaker, and consultant, whose expertise includes third-party risk, sustainability data, risk analysis, sustainable finance, revenue generation and sales, and corporate reporting. Her work has appeared in outlets including Black Enterprise, Bloomberg, CNBC, CBS, Essence, FinTech TV, and Latina, and she serves on numerous boards and committees, including Ceres President’s Council. 
About Climate Money Work 
Climate Money Work podcast explores complex climate, workplace, governance and social issues. Throughout each episode, host and author Keesa Schreane both hosts compelling conversations with experts and offers her own insights on how corporates, investors, and regulators might find solutions — and common ground.

Philip Morris International (PMI) is best known as a cigarette company. But, as our guest Jennifer Motles, PMI’s Chief Sustainability Officer, says, they are attempting to change fast to become a company that no longer bases its success on making or selling cigarettes. She even says they can become a wellness and healthcare company. 
Prior to joining PMI, Motles served as a human rights attorney with the United Nations. In today’s episode we discuss her unique career journey, her philosophy of change, as well as dig into some of the details on PMI’s ongoing corporate transformation. We also discuss PMI’s journey building a bespoke internal sustainability index that links executive compensation to the company’s ongoing sustainability work.
To view a transcript of this episode, visit https://www.keesaschreane.com/podcast. 
For show feedback, pitches and business enquiries, please email cmw@shrugcontent.com. 
Follow Keesa
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@keesac.schreane2215 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keesa-c-schreane-fsa-cams-6b45bbb/ 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KeesaCamille 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keesaschreane/ 
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@keesaschreane 
Keesa’s latest book, Gambling on Green: https://www.keesaschreane.com/gambling-on-green-book 
Keesa’s newsletter: https://bit.ly/cmwnewsletter 
About Keesa
Keesa Schreane is a highly in-demand author, keynote speaker, and consultant, whose expertise includes sustainability data, risk analysis, sustainable finance, and corporate reporting. Her work has appeared in outlets including Black Enterprise, Bloomberg, CNBC, CBS, Essence, FinTech TV, and Latina, and she serves on numerous boards and committees, including Ceres President’s Council.
About Climate Money Work
Climate Money Work is veteran podcast host and author Keesa Schreane’s show that explores complex climate, workplace, governance and social issues. Throughout each episode, Keesa both hosts compelling conversations with experts and offers her own insights on how corporates, investors, and regulators might find solutions — and common ground.

“We are a company that depends completely on the health and well-being of Mother Nature to be in business, she is our most important supplier. And if we don't act to help get this planet back on a trajectory of health, we will not be in business for another 155 years.”
Today on the show, Keesa sits down with Mary Jane Melendez, Chief Sustainability & Global Impact Officer at General Mills, a company operating in more than 100 countries around the world. Mary Jane shares why she hopes some day, companies don’t need a separate sustainability function as it’ll be integrated into every facet of every business. She also discusses General Mill’s current commitments to sustainability, some of their future goals and priorities, and why she sees regenerative agriculture as one of the most promising areas that can advance planetary health. 
Plus, she walks through how she engages with each stakeholder group on sustainability, including telling the story of taking a group of investors to a farm in Redwood Falls, Minnesota. 
📕 Enter to win a copy of Keesa's book, Corporations Compassion Culture: https://www.keesaschreane.com/giveaway
To view a transcript of this episode, visit https://www.keesaschreane.com/podcast. 
For show feedback, pitches and business enquiries, please email cmw@shrugcontent.com. 
Follow Keesa
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@keesac.schreane2215 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keesa-c-schreane-fsa-cams-6b45bbb/ 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KeesaCamille 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keesaschreane/ 
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@keesaschreane 
Keesa’s latest book, Gambling on Green: https://www.keesaschreane.com/gambling-on-green-book 
Keesa’s newsletter: https://bit.ly/cmwnewsletter 
About Keesa
Keesa Schreane is a highly in-demand author, keynote speaker, and consultant, whose expertise includes sustainability data, risk analysis, sustainable finance, and corporate reporting. Her work has appeared in outlets including Black Enterprise, Bloomberg, CNBC, CBS, Essence, FinTech TV, and Latina, and she serves on numerous boards and committees, including Ceres President’s Council.
About Climate Money Work
Climate Money Work is veteran podcast host and author Keesa Schreane’s show that explores complex climate, workplace, governance and social issues. Throughout each episode, Keesa both hosts compelling conversations with experts and offers her own insights on how corporates, investors, and regulators might find solutions — and common ground.
 

The modern corporate board has plenty to think about. Traditional focus areas like purpose, governance, strategy, risk management, brand, and reputation play a role, but equally as important are the interconnectedness of geopolitical risk, climate risk, and economic risk, as well as watershed technological transformations like the one we’re beginning to see take shape with Generative AI.
To help us unpack each of these is Tracy S. Harris, a veteran CFO currently serving as an Independent Director for both the Bally’s Corporation and 1847 Holdings, as well as a Trustee for the DC Retirement Board and a board member for The Council of Institutional Investors. 
Tracy explains how every company is a technology company now, how shareholder activism is viewed at the board level, and the integral role the board plays in creating company culture. Stick with us until the end of the episode to hear what makes for a great board member and Tracy’s thoughts on imposter syndrome. 
To view a transcript of this episode, visit https://www.keesaschreane.com/podcast. 
For show feedback, pitches and business enquiries, please email cmw@shrugcontent.com. 
Follow Keesa
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@keesac.schreane2215 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keesa-c-schreane-fsa-cams-6b45bbb/ 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KeesaCamille 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keesaschreane/ 
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@keesaschreane 
Keesa’s latest book, Gambling on Green: https://www.keesaschreane.com/gambling-on-green-book 
Keesa’s newsletter: https://bit.ly/cmwnewsletter 
About Keesa
Keesa Schreane is a highly in-demand author, keynote speaker, and consultant, whose expertise includes sustainability data, risk analysis, sustainable finance, and corporate reporting. Her work has appeared in outlets including Black Enterprise, Bloomberg, CNBC, CBS, Essence, FinTech TV, and Latina, and she serves on numerous boards and committees, including Ceres President’s Council.
About Climate Money Work
Climate Money Work is veteran podcast host and author Keesa Schreane’s show that explores complex climate, workplace, governance and social issues. Throughout each episode, Keesa both hosts compelling conversations with experts and offers her own insights on how corporates, investors, and regulators might find solutions — and common ground.