Alexis Haass is a sustainability expert and the Chief Sustainability Officer at Arcadis. Arcadis is the world's leading company delivering sustainable design, engineering, and consultancy solutions for natural and built assets. Headquartered in Amsterdam, Arcadis employs 27,000 people, in over 70 countries. Sustainability is at the heart of the Arcadis business strategy, and its purpose is to improve quality of life.

 

Before Arcadis, Alexis spent over a decade at adidas, elevating sustainability for the brand. In this conversation, we dive into her work both with Arcadis and adidas.

 

In this episode we discuss:

• The two most important factors for successfully driving sustainability across a business
• Career advice for future Sustainability officers
• How to drive record employee engagement
• A call to action for holistic systems solutions

 

Key Takeaways:

• Sustainability is a complex topic that can feel overwhelming fast. For a company starting its sustainability journey, take the time to do a materiality assessment to determine where you can have the biggest impact. Start there with your sustainability efforts, defining clear goals and targets.
• Sustainability can be a huge competitive advantage. It can future-proof a company from becoming obsolete when the world has moved on from (or prohibited) unsustainable practices. Taking the initiative to invest in innovation now can make your company a clear industry leader, enabling you to attract the best talent that’s inspired to solve complex problems and safeguard the future of the planet.
• The next two decades are critical and will determine if we can avoid the climate change catastrophe looming in our current path. Remember, we are writing history every single day through our actions—or our inactions. Consider what you’re contributing to in your company, and what your company is contributing to in the world. If it’s not moving in the right direction, take ownership and make a change.

 

 

References:

Arcadis

adidas + Parley for the Oceans

International Olympic Committee, London 2012: Embedding sustainability from the outset

Don’t Look Up trailer

 

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