12 Buffalo Business Autumn 2017
"Sustainability is how you ensure the long-term
supply of your key resources," he says. "By outsourc-
ing, companies increase the risk that factories will
be improperly managed or use child labor or that
farms will use harmful practices that threaten their
supply of high-quality crops. It's become incredibly
important for firms to audit their suppliers, ensure
visibility along the supply chain and incentivize their
suppliers to use sustainable practices."
For an increasing number of corporations,
climate change has become a critical issue, as busi-
nesses lead the charge to find innovative, collabora-
tive ways to reduce future climate impacts.
"Sustainability is a capital markets issue — it's
a financial bottom line," says Mindy S. Lubber, BS '75,
MBA '77, CEO and president of Ceres, a nonprofit that
brings companies, investors and advocates togeth-
er to tackle such challenges as climate change, water
scarcity and pollution, and human rights abuses. The
organization's networks include leading Fortune 500
companies and institutional investors with assets
totaling $17 trillion.
"Hundreds of companies and investors attend-
ed or sent commentary to the United Nations Climate
Change Conference in Paris about the imperative
of signing an international agreement," she says.
"Climate change has an impact on almost every sec-
tor of society, and companies are looking differently
at what they do and how they do it and incorporating
sustainability into that calculus."
engaging entrepreneurs, uplifting
communities
Bryana DiFonzo, PMBA '16, came to the School of
Management to add business skills to her nonprofit
background so she could approach social issues from
a new perspective. Today, as community development
director for the Westminster Economic Development
Initiative (WEDI), she supports the organization's
mission to create communities of entrepreneurs and
change neighborhoods across Buffalo.
As part of her role, she works with immi-
grant and refugee business owners in the West Side
Bazaar, a small business incubator for retail and food
vendors of many nationalities.
Piotrowski in Senegal with the Peace Corps.
