Month: July 2023

Registration is now open for our next Impact Council on Wed, Aug 9 at 12pm ET / 9am PT! We’ll be joined by two titans of the social impact space: Joseph Kenner, President & CEO of Greyston Bakery, and Sean Greenwood, Director of PR & Communications at Ben & Jerry’s.

The Impact Relations Institute, in partnership with 3BL Media, will host a conversation on how brands can leverage or incorporate lived experiences into their brand story, responsibly, using the longstanding partnership between these two brands as a jumping off point. Since 1982, Greyston Bakery has been on a mission to unlock the power of human potential through inclusive employment through their Open Hiring process. Its workers, who have overcome various barriers to employment, have been baking the delicious brownies found in Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie and Half-Baked flavors since 1987.

Joseph & Sean will discuss the important details brands need to consider when forming purposeful partnerships, including the consideration and preparation that needs to happen before putting forward spokespeople for media interviews that touch on their lived experiences. Register here to secure your spot.

Moderator: Melissa Orozco (Founder & CEO, Yulu PR)

About Joseph Kenner: Since Joe became President and CEO of Greyston Bakery, one of the county’s most well-known social enterprises, the company has delivered millions of dollars in economic impact through job placements and expanded employer and service provider relationships. He frequently shares his expertise on purpose-driven business and building a more inclusive economy through employment, workforce development, and social services.

Joe has been featured in a variety of local and national media, including ABC Nightly News, Bloomberg, CNBC, Yahoo Finance, Forbes, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, Quartz and The Journal News. He serves on the Board of Directors of Conscious Capitalism, Inc., the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council, the New York City Workforce Investment Board, the B Team, Tompkins Bank, and is an Advisory Council member of the REDF Impact Investing Fund (RIIF).

About Sean Greenwood: Sean currently serves as Ben & Jerry’s Director of Public Relations and Communications, where he shares the company’s story and mission, namely, that businesses can thrive when they lead with their values and consider more than simply making a profit.

As an advisor and founding Board member of the Global Impact Relations Network, Sean has worked closely with the Executive Director to develop Impact Relations’ go-to-market strategies, and regularly provides strategic counsel on the direction of the organization.

World Water Week is the leading conference on global water issues, held every year since 1991. A non-profit event, co-created with leading organizations, World Water Week attracts a diverse mix of participants from many professional backgrounds and every corner of the world. Together we develop solutions to the world’s greatest water-related challenges, with topics ranging from food security and health to agriculture, technology, biodiversity, and the climate crisis.

World Water Week 2023 is focused on innovation at a time of unprecedented challenges. The theme Seeds of Change: Innovative Solutions for a Water-Wise World invites us to rethink how we manage water. BIER is pleased to announce our participation in this year’s event.

Join us for the presentation, Charco Bendito: BIER’s Unprecedented Watershed Collaboration in Jalisco, Mexico. 

Date: Monday, August 21, 2023Time: 18:00 – 19:00Location: OnlineSession ID: 10888

The session will be conducted in English and Spanish and is free to attend though pre-registration is required.

As shared previously in the post, BIER Project Spotlight: Charco Bendito, Charco Bendito, or “Blessed Puddle,” is an innovative, first-of-its-kind water stewardship collaboration comprised of beverage industry competitors, the local community, and committed local partners, working collaboratively to address complex watershed challenges in the Municipality of Tlajomulco de Zuniga, Jalisco Mexico.

During the World Water Week presentation, participants will learn why and how global beverage and food leaders collaborated to develop and implement this innovative basin-level watershed initiative that addresses three main goals: water accessibility, quality, and availability.

The session will share the model used to develop this initiative, how it is governed and financed, and the plans for the future, including scaling to have bigger impacts.Participants will gain insights into the project’s green infrastructure restoration activities, including reforestation and conservation, to increase availability up to up to 4.1 MM m3 by 2023.Attendees will leave inspired, knowing how Charco Bendito is promoting equitable water access and connection for the population of San Lucas Evangelista by 2023.And a call for action to enlist other participants as we look to scale the project further.

In keeping with Word Water Week’s theme, Seeds of Change: Innovative Solutions for a Water-Wise World, which invites us to rethink how we manage water, session participants will be educated and motivated to explore similar watershed collaborations after learning how various stakeholders have united to collaborate on a complex watershed collaboration at the basin level.

Additionally, participants will learn how a group of global companies share responsibilities and manage this diverse and inclusive watershed initiative. This includes how this initiative was first launched as a Beverage Industry Environmental Roundtable initiative and transitioned to local members, who now track and manage the initiative through a collaborative process where all participants are expected to be involved and are active.

Collaboration is at the heart of the Charco Bendito project, as such, our presentation aims to invite all collaborators into the effort so we can magnify the impact. BIER is exploring additional watershed collaborations using this model and welcomes participation by others.

Explore the full World Water Week program and .