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Winners of the Futur/io CSO Awards North America Revealed in New York


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The most important Chief Sustainability Officers of the United States and Canada were announced at the Futur/io CSO Awards last night, during a gala dinner at One World Center in New York.
Michael Kobori, Chief Sustainability Officer from Starbucks received the CSO Award in Gold. Additional CSO Awards were presented to Suzanne Dibianca from Salesforce (Silver), and Sophie Beckham from International Paper (Bronze). The Grand Jury also awarded three Special Honors Awards to Emma Stewart from Netflix, Melanie Nakagawa from Microsoft, and Ann Tracy from Colgate-Palmolive.
Cassandra Garber from Dell Technologies was granted a special Sustainable Supply Chain Award presented by premium partner IntegrityNext. The Peer Award, chosen by the live audience of the CSO Awards gala ceremony, went to Victoria Emerick, of Bristol Myers Squibb, and was presented by Phil White, the supporting partner of Grounded World.
The CSO Awards North America is an initiative of the Futur/io Institute, a pioneering organization dedicated to nurturing and inspiring leadership in sustainable innovation and building the most impactful network of Chief Sustainability Officers globally. The European version of the CSO Awards takes place every year during the World Economic Forum week in Davos.
“In a week when New York feels like the center of the world, hosting Climate Week and the UN General Assembly, we are honored to celebrate the Chief Sustainability Officers of North America in this iconic location,” said Harald Neidhardt, CEO & Curator of the Futur/io Institute. “In this pivotal moment in history, we must keep our spirits high and collaborate to solve the challenges that lie ahead. Tonight, by celebrating the people who are role models in sustainability, we hope to inspire others to be optimistic and work on building the desirable futures we want to live in.”
Vandinika Shukla, Deputy Director of Global Programs at the Obama Foundation, gave an inspiring keynote speech on the importance of intergenerational decision-making. She also reminded companies that corporate responsibility is, ultimately, essential for survival.
Sandrine Dixson-Declève, Co-President of the Club of Rome, spoke about the need for a new economy, highlighting that there is no point talking about the environment if we forget that humanity is part of nature. She urged the audience to address wealth inequalities and other systemic problems.
“Let’s go get them!” said Michael Kobori, of Starbucks, when he received the Gold CSO Awards. "We're all winners," he added. "We're all making it happen, and we have to make it happen faster as we're running out of time!"
After the CSO Awards Announcement, the guests enjoyed live music by Donna Grantis, a Canadian activist and musician who presented "The humanNATURE Project", her musical endeavour in which she credits "The Earth" as her co-writer. Grantis' project is part of the Earth/Percent Initiative, through which artists donate part of their income to fund organizations fighting the climate crisis. The initiative was introduced by Cathy Runciman, executive director of Earth/Percent.
The awards celebration also featured speakers such as Jan Artem Henriksson, from the Inner Development Goals (IDGs), Massamba Thioye, from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and Parneet Pal, from Systematically Well.
The CSO Awards North America is supported by premium partners IntegrityNext and Celonis.
Photo by Tom Clark/Kirsten Potts
For more info, visit the CSO Awards North America website or the Futur/io website.

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