Upcoming Events
Connecting Today’s Experts with Tomorrow’s Problem Solvers
Tomorrow’s leaders must act with the understanding that the purpose of business extends beyond creating short-term value for shareholders.
One of the primary ways we reinforce that message is by connecting today’s top professionals with the problem solvers of tomorrow. Our students learn from experts who have changed their companies and industries for the better so that they can apply those lessons throughout their own careers.
Our event programming has concluded for the fall 2021 semester, but check back soon for the spring 2022 listing of events. In the meantime you can learn more about our recurring series below.
Recurring Programs
Ideas to Impact Program
Bringing leaders to campus, and to our students specifically, is central to the Business for a Better World Center’s mission. It is essential for student to hear from and have access to those who are changing the world. Our Ideas to Impact program (formerly the Semester Speaker Series) brings social impact and sustainability thought leaders from top-tier organizations directly to our students. Speakers during the 2020-2021 academic year included Kerry Kennedy of the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Foundation; authors Robert Putnman and Shaylyn Romney Garrett; and Dymphna van der Lans and Jean-Louis Racine of the Clean Cooking Alliance.
Stakeholder Capitalism Discussion Series
The belief that the sole purpose of a corporation is to make money for its shareholders—or “shareholder capitalism”—is currently experiencing a long-overdue reexamination and upheaval in favor of “stakeholder capitalism”—the belief that corporations should be oriented to serve the interests of all of their stakeholders. The Business for a Better World Center launched the Stakeholder Capitalism Discussion Series in 2021 to explore stakeholder capitalism and how it can be applied to businesses in a world rife with persistent inequality, social injustice, racial bias, and environmental degradation, and to drive stakeholder capitalism further into the mainstream, thereby changing the trajectory of our corporations.
Lunchtime Conversations
The Business for a Better World Center’s Lunchtime Conversations engage and connect with expertise available across George Mason University. These informal sessions are a place to share unique perspectives and knowledge on topics surrounding the intersection of business and sustainability to drive research, curriculum, and policy action at Mason.
The Center hosts three Lunchtime Conversations each semester. Conversations during the 2020-2021 academic year focused on Sustainable Development Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities. Sessions showcased Mason researchers focused on the many facets of this critical issue.
Past Events On-Demand
December 2, 2021On Thursday, December 2, 2021, the Business for a Better World Center welcomed B Lab, JUST Capital, and World Benchmarking Alliance as part of the Stakeholder Capitalism Discussion Series. Watch on-demand.
November 19, 2021On Friday, November 19, 2021, the Business for a Better World Center welcomed leaders from a wide range of disciplines and communities who outlined a framework by which the United States can empower the American people, in partnership with government, business, and civil society, to act on the climate crisis. Watch on-demand.
October 27, 2021On Wednesday, October 27, 2021, the Business for a Better World Center welcomed Joshua Specht, author of Red Meat Republic, as part of the Ideas to Impact Speaker Series. Watch on-demand.
October 7, 2021On Thursday, October 7, 2021, the Business for a Better World Center welcomed Perry Chen, founder of Kickstarter, as part of the Stakeholder Capitalism Discussion Series. Watch on-demand.
July 17, 2021On Friday, Thursday, June 17, 2021, the Business for a Better World Center welcomed Franz Paasche, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at PayPal as part of the Stakeholder Capitalism Discussion Series. Watch on-demand.
April 29, 2021On Thursday, April 29, 2021, the Business for a Better World Center welcomed Seth Goldman, founder of Eat the Change as part of the Stakeholder Capitalism Discussion Series. Watch on-demand.
April 16, 2021On Friday, April 16, 2021, the Business for a Better World Center welcomed Kerry Kennedy, President, Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights as part of the Semester Speaker Series. Watch on-demand.
February 11, 2021On Thursday, February 11, 2021, the Business for a Better World Center welcomed Peter Georgescu, former Chairman and CEO of Young & Rubicam and author of Capitalists, ARISE! as part of the Stakeholder Capitalism Discussion Series. Watch on-demand.
November 17, 2020On Tuesday, November 17, 2020 the Business for a Better World Center welcomed co-authors Robert Putnam and Shaylyn Romney Garrett to discuss their new book The Upswing: How America Came Together A Century Ago, and How We Can Do it Again. Watch on-demand.
October 21, 2020On Wednesday, October 21, 2020, the the Business for a Better World Center welcomed Dymphna van der Lans and Jean-Louis Racine of the Clean Cooking Alliance as part of the Semester Speaker Series. Watch on-demand.