Although Kermit said, “It’s not easy being green,” many associations know the importance of pushing forward sustainability and ESG initiatives both internally and for their industries and professions. With Earth Day right around the corner, read on for some new things your association colleagues are doing when it comes to sustainability and ESG.

Jesse Levine

Senior Director, Energy and Environmental Policy, American Forest & Paper Association

With our initiative Better Practices, Better Planet 2030: Sustainable Products for a Sustainable Future, we’re committed to advancing a circular value chain. Our industry contributes to a circular economy by sourcing renewable raw materials from sustainably managed forests, optimizing product design and maximizing efficient manufacturing processes to reduce waste, and improving recycling of our industry’s products to keep materials in use. To me, the circular economy means reducing waste from start to finish of a product and being mindful of the resources used and impacts throughout.

Megan Radavich

Assistant Executive Director, Zonta International

Zonta International has launched Zonta Says NOW to Gender-Equal Climate Action to highlight the importance of educating girls, having more women in parliament, and closing gender gaps in economic participation and responses to climate change. With the launch of this initiative, Zonta International is embedding climate actions into its service projects, highlighting how behavior in one part of the world affects another, and supporting Zonta clubs around the world in educating and raising their voices about gender-equal climate action.

Anne Bird

Director of Membership, Society of Architectural Historians

We’ve made some changes at our headquarters, including putting lights on timers and using reusable glasses, plates, and silverware for staff events. And to get away from paper at our annual conference, we now have a conference app; tickets for events on Eventbrite; and PDF versions of our onsite program, attendee roster, and book of abstracts.

Robin Godfrey

Executive Director, GALA Choruses

We are committing to reducing the carbon impact of our quadrennial music festival, including air travel. To do this, we are forming teams at each of the participating choruses who will be looking at ways to reduce or offset the emissions from their group’s travel.

Chris Williams, CAE

Executive Director, Voluntary Protection Programs Participants’ Association

Safety and health are an important, yet underutilized, component of corporate ESG programs. VPPPA is working alongside members to raise awareness of the contributions that employee safety, health, and well-being programs make toward ESG scores and improvement.

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