What 17 Leading Women Said at Sustainability LIVE Chicago

Sustainability LIVE Chicago brought together the brightest minds across industry, serving up a host of engaging, enlightening and vital conversations around risk, resilience and future-readiness, not to mention ESG, decarbonisation and Scope 3 emissions. 

Co-located with Procurement & Supply Chain LIVE, the Chicago edition offered a unique opportunity to explore the intersections of sustainability with procurement and supply chain management. 

Celebrating the voices of women

Women continue to play a pivotal role in advancing sustainability, procurement and supply chain sectors, yet their representation remains uneven across leadership. 

Events like Sustainability LIVE, co-located with Procurement & Supply Chain LIVE, provide a vital platform to highlight and celebrate female leaders driving impactful change, as well as amplify the voices of women in these sectors. 

On the Sustainability Stage in Chicago, leaders like Kristen Siemen (General Motors), Nina Eisenman (Nasdaq), Christina Shim (IBM) and Jennifer Motles (Philip Morris International) shared insights on accelerating corporate sustainability agendas.

By featuring panels like Women in Sustainability, we not only celebrate female leadership but also foster discussions on achieving gender parity and driving sustainable practices across industries.

These gatherings underscore the importance of inclusivity and diversity in shaping a more sustainable and equitable future.

Here, we explore the crucial takeaways our female speakers discussed during Sustainability LIVE Chicago 2025

Stephanie Benedetto, CEO at Aloqia

Circular Economy: Using tech to turn excess into opportunities

Stephanie unpacks the transformative power of integrating sustainability into core business processes through technology.

By embedding Aloqia’s software into SHEIN’s operating system, the fast-fashion retailer has enabled a 40% increase in rescued excess materials. 

This partnership has reframed what circularity can look like — not as an isolated project, but as an embedded and scalable part of everyday operations.

“There’s US$1.77tn worth of excess inventory in global supply chains. That’s not just a problem — it’s a massive opportunity.”​​​​​​​

Radha (RB) Balani, Expert Partner for Strategy and Leadership at Think Beyond

Changing the Game: How Sustainability Drives Commercial Success in Sport

Radha underscored the importance of sport as a platform for transformation and why sustainability is essential to business resilience, market relevance and engaging fans and partners meaningfully.

"It's not just about generosity or obligation anymore—sustainability in sport is about shared value. It's a business necessity to stay resilient, relevant and successful."

Riley Nelson, Head of Sustainability at NASCAR

Changing the Game: How Sustainability Drives Commercial Success in Sport

Riley showcases NASCAR’s commitment to achieving net zero operating emissions by 2035, and the role that having direct operational control over half its racetracks has enabled it to accelerate change and develop a holistic strategy focused on three pillars: STEM excellence, community building and healthy environments.

“By understanding our carbon footprint, we’re not just improving sustainability—we’re cutting costs and changing how the entire NASCAR ecosystem thinks and operates.”

Elina Vives, Executive Vice President, North America at Signify

Global Decarbonisation Strategies Panel

Elina reflected on Signify’s sustainability strategy, highlighting the company’s shift from conventional to connected lighting technologies as a major decarbonisation success.

Over 60–70% of Signify’s revenue in North America now comes from its connected portfolio, demonstrating how purpose-driven innovation can generate substantial commercial value.

Elina’s core message – translating a company’s environmental purpose into profitable outcomes is both achievable and essential for long-term growth.

“We incentivise our suppliers to use low-carbon components so our entire value chain moves in lockstep with our sustainability ambitions.”

Carol Stickler, Global Consulting Principal, Social & Environmental Impact at Ogilvy Consulting

Sustainability Needs to Reframe to Survive

Carol’s message was clear – sustainability must be reframed to remain effective and relevant.

She outlines four strategic shifts to revitalise engagement: 

• Changing the language from “sustainability” to “social and environmental impact”
• Focusing on present-day local benefits over distant global goals
• Prioritising credible, solvable issues close to core business 
• Highlighting “selfish” consumer benefits instead of solely ethical arguments.

"By reframing the conversation, there’s an opportunity to increase all of our impact—and for me, that can only be a good thing."

Christina Beckman, Head of Sustainability at Culligan International

The Future of Corporate Sustainability

Christina emphasised the importance of transparency, integrity and accountability in corporate responsibility.

Her core message was that sustainability must permeate a company’s entire structure—from the boardroom to consumers—and that ESG should not be siloed but embedded into every function, including audit and legal.

"I am already thinking about how better to position ourselves with product sustainability and with green procurement. 2030 will be a reckoning for many companies."

Eryn Devola, Head of Sustainability at Siemens

Driving Climate Action Through Data Collaboration

Eryn focused on the need for cultural transformation through data transparency and collaboration if climate action in industry is to be successful.

She highlighted Siemens’ shift towards digital-first manufacturing, using digital twin technology and life cycle assessment (LCA) modelling to embed sustainability into both product design and factory operations.

“You can’t control that which you don’t measure, that transparency in that data gives you understanding.”

Cara Williams, Global Head of Climate and Sustainability at Mercer

Women in Sustainability Panel

Cara stressed the importance of embedding sustainability within core leadership, calling for CEOs to personally champion diversity and inclusion.

She warned that without top-level buy-in, DEI risks becoming superficial.

“If the boss doesn't buy it, it's not ever really going to happen."

Sonja Trierweiler, VP of Community Development at Global Network for Zero

Women in Sustainability Panel

Sonja reflected on the significance of storytelling to increase female visibility and empowerment.

She advocates for not just inviting women to decision-making tables but ensuring they can lead.

"When you see yourself reflected in someone else's story, you begin to envision different futures for yourself."

Karina Delacruz, Vice President of Community at CSAA Insurance Group

Women in Sustainability Panel

Karina highlighted the value of internal systems reform. From diverse recruitment pipelines to equitable succession planning, she stressed the need for tangible KPIs such as pay equity and turnover rates.

“Diversity is a fact—what matters is whether people thrive."

Rosa Chang Claro, Director - Global Black Belt Sustainability at Microsoft

Women in Sustainability Panel

Rosa explored the role of education, mentorship and personal resilience.

She urged the integration of sustainability into STEM and highlighted how personal well-being supports professional impact.

"We need to start thinking with the mindset of sustainability in every career path."

Jennifer Motles, Chief Sustainability Officer at PMI

Sustainability as a Driver for Competitiveness & The CSO Strategy Forum Panel

Jennifer delivers a powerful message acknowledging the inherent contradiction of a tobacco company leading sustainability discussions, but stressed that genuine transformation starts with acknowledging and tackling your largest negative externalities.

“All companies create negative externalities. Sustainability begins to make sense when you strategically address those with the greatest impact.”

Jennifer also emphasised that sustainability must be structurally embedded into the core of an organisation. By reporting directly to the CFO, Jennifer ensures sustainability is fully integrated into financial strategy, governance and performance metrics.

"We embedded sustainability within our financial system because strategy, measurement and resource allocation must evolve together."

Chelsea Lamar, Vice President, Global Sustainability at AIT Worldwide Logistics

The CSO Strategy Forum Panel

Chelsea demonstrated how sustainability creates immediate business value. 

She detailed practical decarbonisation steps such as transitioning from air to ocean freight and investing in sustainable fuels, proving that emission reductions and financial returns can be achieved in tandem.

"We’re using mode shifts to slash emissions and cut costs — then reinvesting those savings into sustainable fuels."

Michelle Bachir, Managing Director of Sustainability at Arcadis

The CSO Strategy Forum Panel

Michelle highlighted the critical role of sustainability leaders as change enablers. 

She stressed embedding sustainability KPIs into all business functions to scale transformation, focusing on supply chain collaboration, governance and accountability to deliver both environmental and business impact.

"To enable transformation, sustainability must move beyond metrics to influence responsibility and decision-making across all functions."​​​​​​​

You can watch all these sessions and more from Sustainability LIVE Chicago over on Sustainability LIVE.

Sustainability LIVE and Procurement & Supply Chain LIVE Chicago will return in 2026… Subscribe to Sustainability Magazine to be the first to know more.