Profit & Purpose '23 - WCA Sustainable Business Conference

Gillian Griffin is the Sustainable Supply Chain (SSC) Program Manager and a Senior P2 Engineer at the NYS Pollution Prevention Institute at RIT, where she provides technical assistance to businesses. Areas of expertise include zero waste to landfill assessment and planning, organizational GHG accounting, materiality assessment, performance metrics benchmarking, manufacturing process assessments, third-party sustainability certification, supplier scorecard compliance, and supplier codes of conduct. She also conducts research to identify industry-wide solutions and best practices for sustainable supply chain management, waste reduction and diversion, and pollution prevention.

Ms. Griffin holds an M.S. in Sustainable Systems from the Golisano Institute for Sustainability at Rochester Institute of Technology, an M.B.A. with concentrations in Sustainable Management and Leadership and Change Management from DePaul University in Chicago, and a B.A. in Sociology from the University of Minnesota. She is also a TRUE Advisor, a recognized zero waste professional trained on the TRUE zero-waste to landfill certification rating system.

Kim Bawden is the Green Technology Accelerator Center (GTAC) Program Manager and is a Senior Staff Engineer at the NYS Pollution Prevention Institute at RIT, where her primary role is to provide technical assistance to industry. Ms. Bawden supports manufacturers throughout the supply chain by assessing manufacturing processes for improvement opportunities, performing material and energy balances for baseline metric quantification, researching and identifying environmentally preferable and cost-effective alternatives, and by assisting companies in meeting sustainability certifications/scorecards.

Prior to joining NYSP2I, Ms. Bawden worked in industry for eight years in various manufacturing engineering capacities for Harris RF Communications and Microwave Data Systems. She holds an M.S. in Sustainable Systems from RIT’s Golisano Institute for Sustainability as well as a B.S. degree in Industrial Engineering and a M.E. in Engineering Management, both from RIT. She is also a Life Cycle Assessment Certified Professional (LCACP).

Michael N. Romita, a dynamic business leader with extensive public policy expertise, was named the President & CEO of the Westchester County Association on March 1, 2020. Romita was a former executive with Castle Oil, a partner at National Public Policy Firm, and a former U.S. Department of Justice litigator.

Romita holds a BS from Tufts University; Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School, and Master of Laws from The London School of Economics. Besides his work at Castle Oil and the Department of Justice, he has published numerous articles on business and energy policy. Romita has served on the Boards of many charitable and civic organizations, including the Westchester County Parks, Recreation, and Conservation Board and MINT, a mental health foundation. In addition, he recently co-chaired the County Executive’s Transition Committee on Economic Development.

Anna Snider is a Managing Director and Head of Due Diligence for the Chief Investment Office (CIO) within Bank of America Corporation. In this role, she leads the Due Diligence team and is responsible for manager research and implementation guidance across all asset classes supporting Bank of America Private Bank and Merrill. She is a voting member of the Global Wealth & Investment Management Investment Strategy Committee (GWIM ISC), which sets asset allocation guidance. Anna also co-leads the Sustainable and Impact investing initiative for the wealth management businesses, focusing on investment solutions research and development, metrics and measurement.
Previously, Anna was part of the Alternative Investments group where she advised clients on hedge fund and private assets portfolio construction and became head of research for externally managed alternative investment fund of funds. She was also a senior analyst in the risk management division at Bank of America Private Bank. Anna offers many years of investment and risk analysis experience, having held positions at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, JP Morgan and UBS focusing on market, credit and operational risk management.
She graduated from Connecticut College. She holds the Chartered Alternative Investment AnalystSM (CAIASM) designation. Anna serves as chair of the board for High Water Women, a foundation based in New York City. She was cited within Barron’s 2018 magazine as one of “The 20 Most Influential People in Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) Investing” and is a Aspen Institute First Mover Fellow.

Juan Lois, Executive Director, is the Lead Strategist on the Sustainable Investing team responsible for implementing the firm’s sustainable investment strategy, solutions and product innovation in the Americas. In partnership with our distribution and product teams, he leverages our extensive data and research capabilities, proprietary technology and ESG expertise to deliver sustainable solutions to our clients. Prior to joining the firm in May 2020, he was at Wespath Benefits and Investments, where he lead the organization’s sustainable investing activities, including overseeing ESG integration, as well as research and product design for Wespath’s impact investment program. Juan obtained an M.A. in Latin American and Hemispheric Studies from the George Washington University and a B.A. in Latin American Studies from Tufts University.

With over 30 years of industry experience, John has focused his career as a Program Manager for Large Regional Banks with extensive experience with Third Party Marketing (TPM) Broker Dealers. He has been with Webster Investments since 1997 and has consistently implemented progressive plans and programs to set the directional course for his team. John provides strategic strategies to the Regional Bank and implements plans driving growth for Wealth at Webster.

As Senior Managing Director, Head of Webster Investments, John oversees strategy and sales distribution for a team of Financial Advisors that service the unique financial needs of clients. He provides support to Advisors by helping them implement comprehensive analytical tools along with a wide array of investment and insurance products, which help them, develop customized solutions that align with each client’s personal and financial goals

John has been awarded as a one of the Top 25 Program Managers in Bank Investment Consultant (BIC) for 8 consecutive years.* He was also recognized as a Top 5 Nationwide Program Manager by Kehrer-Bielan.**

He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics degree from Boston College, and he also earned a Master of Science degree in Financial Management from Carnegie Mellon University, The Heinz School.

As an active member of the community, John is a board member for the Bank Insurance and Securities Association (BISA) and has recently been named as President–Elect for the BISA. He is on the board of directors for the Cranston Veterans Memorial Scholarship Committee in his childhood hometown of Cranston, RI. Currently, he is also a member of the LPL PAC Advisory Board.

He holds his Series 7, 63, 65, and 24 securities registrations through LPL and holds a Life & Health insurance license.

Kristen Motel is a Partner at Cuddy & Feder LLP in the firm’s Land Use, Environmental and Telecommunications practice groups and is Chair of the firm’s Cannabis Law group. Kristen has extensive experience with federal, state and local permitting and real estate development. She frequently appears before municipal land use boards and permitting agencies to secure approvals for clients in numerous controversial projects. Kristen is uniquely suited to guide applicants through the state cannabis application process and represent clients in municipal forums to obtain land use approvals. Kristen is an active member of the Hudson Valley Cannabis Industry Association, the Westchester County Bar Association’s Cannabis Law Committee, the Westchester Women’s Bar Association, and serves on the Executive Committee of the New York State Bar Association’s Local and State Government Law Section. She also serves as Co-Chair of the Westchester County Association’s Real Estate Sustainability Committee. She regularly presents on local land use and municipal considerations related to New York’s adult-use cannabis legislation. She holds a B.A. from the University of Rhode Island and received her juris doctor from Pace University School of Law.

With a background in environmental policy, Cameron joined the geothermal industry in 2019 and spent the last 4-years focused on the growth and development of district geothermal systems. During that time, he led multiple district geothermal studies and development efforts impacting hundreds of buildings in New York. Drawing upon this experience, Cameron drives projects towards implementation and electrification by applying a multidisciplinary stakeholder-centered approach. In addition, he currently serves on the International Ground Source Heat Pump Association’s Advocacy Committee.

Julia is Turner Construction Company’s Chief Sustainability Officer, responsible for setting and implementing sustainability policies, standards, and strategies across Turner’s national and international operations. Turner’s program addresses topics relevant to the building industry including low carbon materials, energy, construction emissions, resiliency, waste, green building rating systems, and more. Julia has over 17 years of construction industry experience and holds a BS in Civil Engineering from Cornell University. She serves as a Board Member of the Institute for Market Transformation, non-profit that aims to identify and address the critical barriers to unleashing the widespread benefits of energy-efficient buildings. In 2022, Julia was recognized by Sustainability Magazine as a Top 100 Leader in Sustainability.

Laziza has been working in energy efficiency field since 2011. Prior to that she worked for United Nations and the International Committee of Red Cross.

In her role at ConEdison, Laziza is working with building owners and developers to help meet New York’s decarbonization goals, transition away from fossil fuels, and achieve company’s Clean Energy Commitment.

In her previous roles, Laziza worked on energy efficiency and customer acquisition strategies in Europe and North America. She advised efficiency frameworks and collaborated with cities in France, Netherlands, and Sweden to create third-party financing operators for climate projects.

Laziza worked on integrated project delivery and deep retrofits (focusing on electrification, steam to hot water conversions) helping significantly decrease carbon emissions and to improve the bottom line of end users in the US and Canada.

Laziza holds a Master’s degree in Development Economics and International Project Management, UPEC France and Master in Finance from joint Tashkent Finance Institute and Texas A&M Program.

Laziza enjoys running marathons and she is on the board of New York’s largest running team. Laziza has curated and participated in environmental art exhibitions, including at the United Nations HQ.

For 24 years, Myrrh has worked in the construction and development industry—supporting, advising and managing the LEED® certification process for 208 projects across various building types and industries in North America and Europe. She has provided oversight and consulting on LEED, WELL, Parksmart, Envision and other projects throughout the country, including many with higher reaching goals such as Net Zero Energy. She also leads our U.S. initiatives around carbon, community investment and healthy buildings. Myrrh’s most recent experience includes advising city clients and campus owners in pursuing Net Zero goals and incorporating resiliency measures into their master planning. Her experience includes leading the sustainability effort on behalf of Skanska during the design and construction of the Net Positive Energy, Living Building Challenge, Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design at Georgia Institute of Technology. The value that Myrrh brings to this Whole Building LCA analysis, and the additional carbon research needed, is in organizing the work, leading her national SME team in compiling and completing the tasks in a timely manner, and partnering with Gensler and AWS as needed to provide valuable and forward-thinking results.

Professor Jason J. Czarnezki is the Gilbert and Sarah Kerlin Distinguished Professor of Environmental Law, and Associate Dean of Environmental Law Programs and Strategic Initiatives, as well as the inaugural Faculty Director of the Sustainable Business Law Hub at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University (New York).

Professor Czarnezki has held academic appointments at Marquette University Law School, DePaul University College of Law, Vermont Law School and Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. He has served as Faculty Director of the U.S.-China Partnership for Environmental Law, Fulbright Scholar at Sun Yat-sen University in China, and Research Associate at Oxford University’s Environmental Change Institute, as well as named by the Swedish National Research Council the Olof Palme Visiting Professor at Stockholm University.

Professor Czarnezki specializes in environmental and natural resources law and policy, sustainable business strategies, and food systems policy, with particular expertise in sustainable procurement, ESG criteria, eco-labeling, and life cycle assessment and costing. Professor Czarnezki received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Chicago and his PhD in Environmental Law from Uppsala University in Sweden.

Harriette Resnick is an Assistant Deputy Superintendent in the Climate Division of the New York State Department of Financial Services. Before joining the Department of Financial Services, Harriette had served as internal counsel to JPMorgan Chase & Co. As Managing Director and Associate General Counsel, she led the legal team supporting the Global Trade unit within JPMorgan’s Corporate & Investment Bank. She was co-chair of the International Chamber of Commerce Banking Commission’s Working Group on Sustainable Trade Finance. Harriette has a JD from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and a Masters in Environmental Law from Pace University’s Elisabeth Haub School of Law, where she specialized in Global Environmental Studies. Her article, Seeing the Forest for the Trees: Public and Private Law Tools for Halting Deforestation, was published in the January 2020 issue of the Pace Environmental Law Review.

Michael L. Arnold is a member of the Corporate Governance and Board Advisory practice. Mr. Arnold counsels clients with respect to their most sensitive and highest risk matters, advising boards of directors and senior management on a broad range of corporate governance, public reporting, disclosure and compliance matters, including in connection with restatements and other financial crises, as well as cybersecurity incidents.

Mr. Arnold also advises companies on matters relating to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) issues, particularly with respect to investor engagement, ESG shareholder proposals and activism, voluntary and mandatory ESG reporting and ESG related governance processes.
Mr. Arnold’s sophisticated understanding and insights into legal and business risks are derived from his broad experience across multiple corporate practices, including capital markets and mergers and acquisitions.
Mr. Arnold is a frequent speaker and author on legal developments impacting the areas of corporate governance and ESG. His writings have been published by outlets including the Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance, Columbia Law School’s Blue Sky Blog and Wolters Kluwer’s Insights: The Corporate & Securities Law Advisor. Mr. Arnold currently serves as Co-Chair of the American Bar Association’s ESG Subcommittee, a joint subcommittee of the Corporate Governance Committee and Federal Regulation of Securities Committee in the Section of Business Law, and served as Co Chair of the drafting committee for the Federal Regulation of Securities Committee in their comment letter on the SEC’s climate change disclosure rulemaking proposal.
Mr. Arnold has been named to the Lawdragon Green 500: Leaders in Environmental Law list, which recognizes lawyers for their advice on corporate governance, environmental transactions and ESG matters. He received Euromoney Legal Media Group’s 2022 Americas Rising Star Award for “Best in Corporate Governance.”
Mr. Arnold was raised in Longmont, Colorado. He received a B.A. with general honors from the University of Chicago in 2010 and a J.D. from Columbia Law School in 2013, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar.
Mr. Arnold joined Cravath in 2013 and was elected a partner in 2020. He worked in the Firm’s London office in 2017 and 2018.

Marc Rinaldi is the Partner-in-Charge of the Firm’s Financial Services; Director of Family Office Investments; and CEO of O’Connor Davies Administration, LLC. He is also Senior Managing Director of PKF Funds and Family Office, which includes PKF member firms in London, Scotland and Dublin. He has over 30 years of industry experience and is a leader in the fields of sustainable investing, alternative investment accounting, reporting and valuation, due diligence and investment and portfolio performance and risk reporting. His clients include family offices, private foundations, endowments, and private equity, hedge, venture capital, infrastructure and real estate funds; and broker-dealers. Marc creatively combines alternative investment, private fund and family office global technology and accounting and reporting solutions and systems to help streamline operations and improve timely and accurate reporting.
Marc’s accounting, trading and risk management experience includes: Goldman Sachs & Co.—New York and London; Merrill Lynch International Bank, Ltd.; Kleinwort Benson, Ltd.; and Bank of America, Ltd.—London. Marc serves on the New York State Society Investment Management and Private Equity Committees and Sustainability Committee. He is a Board Member of Family Wealth Report.
Marc recently presented on the impact of socially responsible investing on family office and private foundation investors at the firm’s annual Private Foundation Symposium and Investor Symposium; at the NYSSCPA FAE’s Sustainability Investment Leadership Conference; and at The Clearview Family Wealth Forum in London.

Tanya Southerland is Vice President, Senior Managing Counsel for Strategic Growth at Mastercard, where she serves as lead counsel for the Center for Inclusive Growth, Mastercard Impact Fund, Corporate Sustainability, Community Engagement, and Cause Enablement teams.  She advises on commercial transactions, philanthropy (both company giving and private foundation activities and governance), ESG strategy, reporting and operations, cause or impact-related products and services (development and deployment), special events and initiatives, and contracting with nonprofits, educational institutions, governments, and international organizations. Drawn to impactful work at the nexus between law, business, and inclusive growth,  she has spent over two decades as a lawyer, a diplomat, and a senior executive in both private and public sectors.  Prior to Mastercard, Tanya served as a Resident Country Director and an Assistant General Counsel, International, with the Millennium Challenge Corporation; as an Attorney-Advisor, International, with the Commercial Law Development Program of the US Department of Commerce; and as a Corporate Associate with Cravath, Swaine & Moore.  Tanya holds a Juris Doctor from NYU Law and a Masters in Public Affairs from Princeton. She is admitted to practice law in New York..

Jackie Hattar is an experienced and accomplished litigator who focuses her practice on general tort liability matters and the defense of complex litigation. Jackie has defended many high-exposure personal injury and wrongful death actions involving premises and construction/Labor Law, trucking, and transportation liability claims. She also has experience with medical and dental malpractice cases. In all matters, she vigorously endeavors to protect the interests of her clients while resolving litigation with maximum cost effectiveness.

During the course of her career, Jackie has successfully defended property owners, commercial business owners, construction companies, trucking companies, municipalities, short line railroad companies, hospitals and healthcare facilities in general and premises liability cases involving personal injury and wrongful death claims. She has extensive trial experience in all courts throughout the state of New York as well as a strong background in alternative dispute resolution. She also has significant appellate experience, having written more than 50 appellate briefs and argued cases in the New York Appellate Division, First and Second Departments.

Prior to joining the firm, Jackie was in-house counsel at Frontier Insurance Group where she defended high-exposure general liability cases throughout the state of New York. Earlier in her career, she served for six years as an assistant district attorney in the Bronx County, NY, District Attorney’s Office, where she prosecuted major high-profile offenses from grand jury through trial and was profiled in The American Lawyer for her work on domestic violence cases.

Jackie currently serves as a member of the firm’s Diversity Committee and the steering committee of Wilson Elser’s Women Attorneys Valued & Empowered (WAVE) initiative, which exemplifies the firm’s enlightened approach to advancing the professional and personal well-being of its women attorneys.

Professional/Community Involvement
Jackie is an active member of national, state and local bar associations and other professional organizations that support and promote the practice of law. She serves on the Ninth Judicial District Committee to Promote Gender Fairness in the Courts, and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Pace Women’s Justice Center.

Jackie has spearheaded various diversity initiatives both within the firm and through outside organizations. She currently serves as co-chair of the Diversity Committee of the Westchester Women’s Bar Association (WWBA), and is the co-founder of the WWBA Diversity Lecture Series. In addition, Jackie is a member of the New York State Bar Association’s Committee on Women in the Law. She has presented various CLE and diversity programs for the NYSBA and the WWBA.

In addition, Jackie devotes a significant amount of time serving the community by participating in events to promote reading and literacy in the Yonkers Public Schools. Since 2007, she has been a volunteer for the National Education Association’s Read Across America program and has received certificates of recognition for her efforts.

Natasha Fapohunda serves as Senior Vice President and Assistant General Counsel, Strategic Growth, responsible for leading a global legal team at Mastercard focused on growing strategic partnerships, scaling new business opportunities, and advancing the company’s efforts to partner with governments and other institutions to address major societal and economic issues. Her team also supports all aspects of Mastercard’s sustainability/ESG, financial inclusion, and inclusive growth efforts.

Natasha is driven to make a meaningful difference in her local and global communities. She is co-chair of the Mastercard Law Department Community Service/Pro Bono Committee and is a co-lead of Mastercard’s global ‘In Solidarity’ program, a company-wide initiative to combat racism and advance inclusion and equity. She also serves as Secretary of the environmental justice organization, Groundwork Hudson Valley. Natasha is particularly focused on advancing meaningful police reform both as an advisory board member of the Active Bystandership for Law Enforcement (ABLE) Project and through her appointment to her hometown of New Rochelle’s, Community Police Partnership Board.

Natasha started her legal career as a corporate associate with the NYC law firm of Willkie, Farr & Gallagher after earning a law degree from Georgetown University Law Center. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Industrial & Labor Relations from Cornell University. Natasha is the mom of three curious and dynamic children, and enjoys trail running and listening to audio books, sometimes at the same time.

Joan Chaya, MA, (She/Her), is Senior Director, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Montefiore Einstein. She is responsible for the development and oversight of Montefiore Medical Center’s governance infrastructure for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).

Working with leadership teams and departments, Ms. Chaya identifies new diversity and inclusion strategies and programs. She has partnered with the Einstein Office of Diversity to publish and update a department guide for launching DEI Committees and has launched Business Resource Groups at Montefiore Einstein.

After completing her Bachelor of Arts in psychology at Montclair State University, Ms. Chaya attended Kean State University, earning her Master of Arts in human behavior and organizational psychology. She continued her professional training, earning a certificate in Advanced Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations. Ms. Chaya is a senior certified professional (SHRM-SCP) with the Society for Human Resource Management and a Prosci Certified Change Practitioner.

Ms. Chaya’s research studies key motivators for healthcare professionals. She has shared her work through presentations and journal articles.

During her career, Ms. Chaya has held various roles in Human Resources and Workforce Planning. She has developed strategic workforce practices to advance diversity and inclusion initiatives, change management, employee engagement and retention, employer branding, and healthcare competencies. Prior to joining Montefiore Einstein, Ms. Chaya led the development and implementation of a comprehensive workforce development and cultural competency strategy for Montefiore Hudson Valley Performing Provider System.

Christina is a Senior Manager on Deloitte’s Sustainability and ESG Services team. She serves as a subject matter advisor for financial service, private equity, private company, and pre-IPO companies.

Christina brings an investor perspective on sustainability, coming from over twelve years’ experience in the investment management industry. Her experience includes integration of ESG factors into the investment process, analysis of public and private companies through a sustainability lens, guidance of portfolio companies through the changing sustainability landscape, alignment with ESG standards and frameworks, and understanding of shifting shareholder priorities. At Deloitte, she guides many companies who are in the earlier stages of their ESG journey and helps them understand and prioritize activities to meet the evolving needs of their stakeholders.

Christina received her B.S. in Policy Analysis and Management from Cornell University and her MBA from Yale School of Management.