Dateline: Cleveland – GCP hosts nation’s largest public-private sustainability summit
By Terry Troy
It might have been the heart of a cold dark winter, but the attendees’ minds were all green. The Greater Cleveland Partnership (GCP) hosted more than 850 sustainability leaders, CEOs, students and community stakeholders at its second annual Sustainability Summit at the Huntington Convention Center, which was billed by keynote speaker Kaitlin Bergan, head of Sustainable Client Solutions for the Americas at BlackRock, as “the largest civic-private event like this in the country.”
During her keynote, Bergan discussed how rapidly evolving sustainability offers opportunities for companies across many industry sectors, further noting that institutional investors are increasingly focused on sustainability initiatives, with 56% globally planning to increase low-carbon transition options.
“Sustainability is a business imperative that is right for your purpose, right for our people and right for our planet,” said Baiju Shah, president and CEO of the GCP, at the event. “The summit builds upon a strong regional tradition of sustainability that goes back more than 50 years, a region that sparked the modern environmental movement leading to the Clean Water Act and the founding of the EPA.”
GCP Board Chair Paul Dolan, who is also part-owner, chairman and CEO of the Cleveland Guardians, also noted Northeast Ohio’s sustainability strengths.
“We are uniquely suited to be a global leader in sustainable transformation and growth,” Dolan said. “We have abundant natural resources and a prime location on the Great Lakes—home to 20% of the world’s fresh water—a strong, innovative and diverse business base, visionary leadership and history of public-private partnerships for the greater good.”
The chair also cited a few recent examples of sustainability leadership in the Greater Cleveland area, such as Lincoln Electric, which recently launched a new EV supercharger production facility in Euclid.
Ohio EPA Director Anne Vogel also spoke about Ohio’s sustainability and environmental priorities. Vogel noted that Greater Cleveland will soon see studies on water sources in the region as a part of long-term efforts to protect the future. Other topics covered at the summit included developing a regional climate plan, decarbonization, solar power and talent attraction, among many other initiatives.
In addition to its annual Sustainability Summit, the GCP champions a long list of sustainability initiatives, including the establishment of a Sustainability Leaders Group of more than 35 of the largest companies and organizations in the region. The group meets regularly to build relationships, exchange ideas and plan broader initiatives. The group initiated a Labs program where each quarter, its companies work together to solve common challenges through innovation, exchanging best practices and collaborative solutions.