Hi, I’m Lauren and I love art! Whether that be naturally occurring art or creations of all sorts from humans, I love looking at the world around me and interpreting it in beautiful ways. I am curious about the future of the earth and how the climate crisis will impact the future of not only businesses, but my everyday life. I am excited to explore strategies to make businesses more sustainable as I learn from my peers and profs throughout the certificate. 

What is your personal definition of sustainability?

Post summer camp “pack out”, I was overwhelmed by the amount of waste that accumulated from 12 people over just one month in our cabin. I thought to myself, “how can we continue to take from the Earth without reciprocating and showing respect to it?”. From here, my personal definition of sustainability developed into an understanding of how humans to interact with the earth and all that it creates. Making small swaps in everyday life or making changes to allow people to feel more included allows for positive exchange with our world, and a future that is sustainable. 

What role do you see sustainability playing in your professional career? 

I see sustainability as a lens that I will use over the various business decisions that I make. As I go through my career, I am committed to asking myself questions that push me to consider more than just the profitability of an outcome. To me, when I think of sustainability, I often think of long-term action plans as today’s actions can have delayed tangible effects. I hope to continue to consider long term sustainability plans in my career without disregarding actions that can be made immediately to live a more sustainable life. I also hope to do pro bono projects and continue to volunteer in my community so that I can learn from and give back to the earth and communities I am surrounded by. 

What sustainability projects have you been engaged in?

In the summer before my HBA1, I had an internship in the Sustainability and Climate Change practice of a large accounting firm. I looked at various company’s integrated and ESG reports to benchmark and compare the quality of each report. From here, I learned more about what is encompassed in ESG, what is reported to the public in terms of environmental and social issues, and how a company chooses to incorporate sustainability into its overall strategy. 

At Ivey, I’ve been an executive on the Ivey Social Impact Club, specifically in the Education and Advocacy portfolio. In this role, I have created debriefs on a range of sustainability-related conferences, including COP27, which has allowed me to stay up to date on the latest developments in the field. Additionally, I have been working with the club and other members of the Ivey community to increase the number of sustainability related cases that are in the Ivey curriculum. I look forward to discussing even more sustainability cases as I progress through the certificate!