Ten outstanding leaders from CEF member companies have been chosen from a highly competitive field of applicants from around the world to attend the CEF Sustainability Leadership Development Program, “Harnessing Collaborative Leadership to Achieve Sustainability at Scale” led by Bruno Sarda, President, North America, CDP and CEF Advisory Board Member and Julia Novy-Hildesley, Professor of the Practice and Executive Director of Stanford’s Change Leadership for Sustainability Program.
The winners were deemed to be at an inflection point in their lives or careers with regard to sustainability—ready and eager to take their sustainability leadership to the next level within their communities and/or organizations—as well as being strong team players accomplished in setting ambitious goals and getting results.
Congratulations to the winners!
Lynda Clemmons, Vice President, Sustainable Solutions, NRG Energy
Lynda Clemmons is a Vice President of NRG Energy’s Sustainable Solutions group. As the leader of multiple teams from advisory to engineering, she manages Fortune 500 customer interface to actual steel-in-the-ground implementation. She is working to create a sustainable energy future through technology, innovation, renewables and efficiency. She has been at NRG since 2012. Lynda started her career as an analyst in an investment bank. She then spent eight years at Enron where she started the weather derivatives business as well as the SO2 and NOx emissions trading desk. In 2000, Lynda co-founded and served as COO of XL Weather and Energy (a division of XL Capital Ltd), a trading and insurance company based in Connecticut. She also co-founded and was the former President of the Weather Risk Management Association. Lynda is on the board of Resilience Economics LTD, a Bermuda-based entity whose mission is to advise companies on managing climate risk.
Margaret Fenwick, Manager, Corporate Sustainability Engagement, BASF Corporation
Margaret is the Manager of Corporate Sustainability Engagement at BASF in North America. She works with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders to strategically embed sustainability throughout the value chain and drive sustainable solutions. Margaret has extensive experience working with private, non-profit, and public sectors, including Fortune 500 companies, world-class CSR platforms, top-tier media, and the United Nations. She is the author of several publications including A Call to Climate Action: The UN Global Compact – Accenture CEO Study Special Edition (UN Global Compact, Accenture Strategy 2015), and Exploring the Business Case for Corporate Action on Sanitation (UN Global Compact, CEO Water Mandate 2014). Margaret holds a Masters degree in Sustainable Development and Environmental Management from Harvard University, as well as a Masters degree in Spanish Language from Middlebury College Language Schools.
Jeff Halvorson, Senior Manager, Global Sustainable Agriculture, PepsiCo
Jeff recently joined PepsiCo’s Sustainable Agriculture team to accelerate and scale efforts to improve the long-term sustainability of our ag supply chains through partnership with non-traditional actors across Latin America and Asia. This involves working with corporate peers/competitors, supplier partners, financial institutions, donors (e.g. USAID, Walton Family Foundation), and the international development community to tackle the systemic issues facing PepsiCo’s farmers and operations that we cannot address on our own. Jeff recently joined PepsiCo from Resonance, a boutique consulting firm that specializes in public-private partnership design, creation, and management in emerging markets. In previous life adventures, he led experiential education programs across the developing world, created (and closed) an import/export business, taught (very basic) yoga and salsa dancing, and built houses for Habitat for Humanity. Jeff has an MPA from University of Washington and a BA from the University of Southern California.
Paul Hendricks, Senior Manager, Environmental Responsibility, Patagonia
Paul is the Senior Manager of Environmental Responsibility at Patagonia, Inc. In this role, Paul leads Patagonia’s carbon neutrality and oversees many of the company’s efforts to reduce its energy, waste, and water footprint. Before working at Patagonia, Paul worked at various social and environmental-focused non-profits working at the nexus of environmental and social justice. He heads up a local non-profit that brings at-risk kids out rock climbing and volunteers with other groups that tie together outdoor recreation and conservation. Paul has a MA in International Relations from the University of Chicago and a BA in Business, Spanish, and Secondary Education from Hope College. In his free time, he normally heads to the mountains to climb with his wife and friends, but most recently has focused his efforts on changing diapers and taking long stroller rides with his 3-month year old son, Oliver.
Tiffani Jarnigan, Sustainability Manager, Hewlett Packard Enterprise
Tiffani Jarnigan is the strategy lead for customer and stakeholder engagements on Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s corporate sustainability team, Living Progress. In this role, she draws on her strong analytical background to define and measure sustainability-driven purchasing metrics, engages in external working groups focused on solving societal challenges through cross-sector collaboration, and leads the company’s alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals. Since joining HPE, Tiffani has spearheaded the expansion of the company’s sustainability sales enablement team, which has generated millions in new revenue for the company, and has earned HPE industry-leading performance on ESG ratings including the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and EcoVadis. Tiffani brings a diverse background in environmental development and business intelligence reporting, including two years serving in the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic where she specialized in rural water infrastructure projects. Tiffani holds a Master’s degree in International Environmental Policy from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies and a Bachelor’s degree from Rutgers University.
Bonnie Lei, Project Manager, AI for Earth, Microsoft
Bonnie Lei is currently the project manager for Microsoft’s AI for Earth program. She leads its strategic partnerships and grants program, which empower researchers and innovators to leverage artificial intelligence technology for environmental solutions in the areas of climate, water, agriculture, and biodiversity conservation. Previously, she traveled the globe as an environmental scientist and conservationist. She helped start the marine program for Wildlife Conservation Society in Myanmar, discovered a new sea slug species in the Caribbean, and researched climate adaptation of endangered penguins in South Africa. She has degrees in biology and economics & business from Harvard and Tsinghua Universities. She is based in Seattle, where she served on the city’s Urban Forestry Commission and has been recognized as a National Geographic Explorer for her work in environmental education.
Karyn Margolis, Executive Director, Sustainability, The Estée Lauder Companies
Karyn Margolis is the executive director of The Estée Lauder Companies’ sustainability team. In her role, Karyn is responsible for advancing the company’s enterprise-wide sustainability strategy and goals with a focus on sustainability governance, policy development and responsible sourcing. She leads a team supporting sustainable packaging, green chemistry, ingredient transparency, sustainable buildings and sustainability collaboration with the company’s retail partners. Prior to joining The Estée Lauder Companies, Karyn was the Director, CSR & Sustainability at Avon Products, Inc. where she managed environmental sustainability and social responsibility for the company. Before this position, Karyn oversaw PR and communications for the Avon Foundation for Women. Previously, she held CSR/sustainability positions at Colgate-Palmolive, at global PR firms MSLGroup and Edelman, and served as a press secretary for a member of Congress. Karyn holds an M.S. in Integrated Marketing Communications from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism and a B.A. in English and History from the University of Rochester.
Olivia Ostrand, Global Supply Manager, Apple
Olivia works on Apple’s Operations Environmental Initiatives team where she develops and deploys supply chains to support Apple’s Closed Loop initiative. Prior to this, Olivia was a Global Supply Manager for Apple’s iOS front facing camera modules. Before she joined Apple in 2014, she worked in both direct and indirect strategic sourcing roles at Procter and Gamble. She graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with a BS in Economics and has an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
David Paul, Senior Leader of Supply Chain, Flat Rolled Products, Allegheny Technologies, Inc.
David manages the flow of work-in-process inventory for specialty metals producer Allegheny Technologies Incorporated’s $1.2 billion-dollar, flagship facility known as the Hot Rolling and Processing Facility (HRPF). David has been on the HRPF team for five years and has held several other roles within Allegheny Technologies across four locations over the span of his eleven-year tenure with the company. During his career with Allegheny Technologies, David has focused on continuous improvement including safety and environmental opportunities, change management, and production efficiencies. David holds a master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Pittsburgh, a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from the University of Vermont, and is a Certified Supply Chain Professional (CSCP).
Alenja von Winterfeld, Global Sustainability Supervisor, McDonald’s Corporation
Alenja is a Global Sustainability Supervisor at McDonald’s with a focus on strategy, engagement, and the activation of the company’s global Packaging and Recycling goals. Working across multiple functions, Alenja spearheads the global crew engagement strategy, manages ESG reporting via the corporate website platform, and leads several initiatives to accelerate guest recycling in McDonald’s restaurants. She also leads the company’s global logistics sustainability strategy. Previously, she helped coordinate the development and external launch of McDonald’s Scale for Good strategy and its five bold commitments, for which she was recognized with the McDonald’s Circle of Excellence award. Alenja holds a BSc in Environmental Economics from University of York and an MSc in Environmental Technology (Business & the Environment) from Imperial College London. She is a German native who lives in London, UK, after having lived also in Germany, Norway, and Oman.