Engaging ESG with Jennifer Owens and Kati Kallins

Engaging ESG is a bimonthly series exploring the evolving landscape of ESG communications. Join Jennifer Owens, senior director of marketing at CEEZER, and Kati Kallins, global sustainability lead at Adobe, as they talk with fellow ESG pros to address the pitfalls and possibilities hidden in each of our ESG comms plans — and provide practical answers you and your team can use today. Learn more abo...

We’re ending Season Two by tackling the question we’ve all been asked at one time or another: Why should we care about ESG?   In this episode, Kati and Jennifer look at our history, from the early concepts of a “license to operate,” to today’s increasing regulations around sustainability claims coming from both EMEA and the U.S.   As Mike Wallace, decarbonization officer at Persefoni, states: “You...

Scope 3 emissions are the big beast many companies must tackle to truly reduce their carbon footprint. In this episode, Jennifer and Kati explore how major companies like Walmart are going beyond their own operations to drive emissions reductions across their vast supply chain. They also look at what lies beyond Scope 3 in the journey towards true net zero.  Have a question for us? Email us today...

From the roofs over our heads to the floors beneath our feet, the environment built around us surrounds us an estimated 90% of our day — everyday.   In this episode, Kati and Jennifer consider what it takes to make our homes and workplaces healthy, from our carpets, desks and office chairs to massive green roofs designed to support biodiversity.   Have a question for us? Email us today at engaging...

When it comes to the road ahead there are no easy fixes, only continuing progress, for the automotive industry. Relatable education on the nuances, trade-offs and limitations in play across vehicles, supply chains and business models are key but so are activist voices.   In this episode, Kati and I flip the script and explore climate activist messaging targeting the auto industry, focusing on grea...

Just Transition seeks to build economic and political power for communities to move away from extractive systems towards regenerative ones — but what will take to get there?  In this episode, Jennifer + Kati consider the frameworks and elements that fuels the work towards a just transition, including reparations, social equity as well as decentralizing production/consumption.  Have a question for...

The finance sector is key to unlocking the system-wide change needed to reach net-zero emissions and a recent survey finds the vast majority of senior investors and business executives planning to increase their ESG investment over the next five years. In this episode, Kati + Jennifer consider where financial institutions are investing and lending money — and how major players like Blackrock, Citi...

This week, Kati and Jennifer drive up a semi-sequel to our retail and packaging episode — as in what comes next when it comes to getting food into your fridge and your clothes in your closet.   Shipping and trucking are complicated industries that touch nearly every aspect of our lives. In this episode we’ll consider how ESG professionals are communicating a puzzle that consists of a zillion inter...

In this episode, Kati + Jennifer cover how big familiar consumer brands like PepsiCo, H&M, Unilever and Amazon are approaching sustainability in packaging and materials — and the lessons we can take from them as ESG comms professionals. Join us as we dive into the upstream efforts of these companies to reduce waste and carbon emissions, learn how they are communicating these efforts to consumers a...

Fasten your seatbelts because we’re going to zoom into travel — specifically, airlines. It's certainly a hot topic for sustainability but it’s also a return visit for a theme we considered in Season One: airline advertising. From carbon-neutral claims to sustainable airline fuel, travel is a hotbed of sustainability questions, concerns and even lawsuits. Join Jennifer + Kati as they break it all d...

Kati and Jennifer are back on the mic for a brand-new season of Engaging ESG. This time they're shifting gears to spotlight how specific industry sectors are navigating and communicating through the ever-evolving sustainability landscape. The new season kicks off with a round-up of key sustainability news and policy changes impacting the world of ESG comms. Have a question? Email us today at engag...

This week Kati and Jennifer are looking to the future of ESG comms work. From stories told at the intersection of diversity and sustainability to those told by AI, where do you see ESG content going? This episode marks the end of our current season but we’d love to hear what — or who! — you’d like us to cover in the future. Email us today at engagingESG@gmail.com. Our theme music is “Lost in Trans...

This week Kati and Jennifer are taking your ESG comms questions — from tips on building a global strategy to working with your subject matter experts without getting lost in the weeds and everything in between. Have another question for us to consider or a strategy you’d like us to cover? Email us today at engagingESG@gmail.com. Our theme music is “Lost in Translation” by Wendy Marcini and Elvin V...

Get out your dirty laundry! This week Kati and Jennifer are talking greenwashing, diversity washing, rainbow washing — and what it means for our future when companies are too worried to talk about their ESG work at all. Have a question for us to consider or a strategy you’d like us to cover? Email us today at engagingESG@gmail.com. Our theme music is “Lost in Translation” by Wendy Marcini and Elvi...

Customers are more conscious and informed about diversity, sustainability and social issues than ever before. This week, Kati and Jennifer discuss the important connection between authentic commitment and meaningful action — as well as what can happen when that connection doesn't exist. Have a question for us to consider or a strategy you’d like us to cover? Email us today at engagingESG@gmail.com...

This week, Kati and Jennifer dissect the difference between corporate ESG and ESG investment — and discuss what some opponents deem “woke capitalism.” How should your company respond to a dust-up over your efforts to curb emissions, improve circularity or crack down on discrimination in the workplace? We have thoughts. Have a question for us to consider or a strategy you’d like us to cover? Email...

Many companies speak of the importance of their “people” in driving company strategy and ESG topics are no different. This week, Kati and Jennifer focus on employee engagement, a key stakeholder group for your ESG communications strategy, and offer tips for educating employees, tackling real-time questions and empowering your “super greens” to act as ambassadors for your work. Have a question for...

Partners can play an important role in not only in establishing or strengthening your ESG strategy but verifying and amplifying your messaging as well. This week on Engaging ESG, Jennifer and Kati spell out the benefits, challenges, and best practices of working with external organizations — and offer strategies for vetting the best partners to work with for your company. Have a question for us to...

This week on Engaging ESG, Jennifer and Kati discuss the evolving world of required and voluntary reporting — and how each impacts the other. From crafting an ESG narrative and deciding who owns it to targeting specific audiences where they live, we tackle what it really takes to create impact. Have a question for us to consider or a strategy you’d like us to cover? Email us today at engagingESG@g...

This week on Engaging ESG, Jennifer and Kati map the “who” and “what” of ESG comms, as in the many, many reports and content options available to your team and the even more stakeholders, partners and experts who will play a part in showing and sharing your ESG story. Have a question for us to consider or a strategy you’d like us to cover? Email us today at engagingESG@gmail.com. Our theme music i...

Welcome to Engaging ESG, the new podcast that considers what it takes to get ESG communications right — and how it can go oh so wrong. This week, Jennifer Owens, former external content strategy lead for Meta Sustainability, and Kati Kallins, former head of sustainability engagement at Meta, map out the fundamentals of what Environmental, Social and Governance really means — to your business, to y...

Engaging ESG is a bimonthly series exploring the evolving landscape of ESG communications. Join Jennifer Owens, former external content strategy lead for Meta Sustainability, and Kati Kallins, former head of sustainability engagement at Meta, as they address the pitfalls and opportunities hidden in your ESG comms plan and provide practical answers you and your team can use today. Learn more about...