The Kellogg Climate ConferencE PRESENTS:
Leading the ChargE
Redefining business strategy for a changing climatE
The Kellogg Climate Conference is a forum to educate, strategize, and mobilize passionate and curious members of the community to become climate-capable leaders. This year’s theme stems from the expected $1.3 trillion that climate change is expected to cost businesses over the next three years. Industries around the world are undergoing massive transformations influenced by technology and climate change, creating an urgency for new business leaders to prioritize sustainability as a core component of strategic decision making.
No matter your career, climate will play an important role, and we'll help you prepare.
April 10th, 2024
Kellogg Global Hub, Evanston, IL 60201
9am-5pm
Featured Speakers
BEA PEREZ
Executive Vice President and Global Chief Communications, Sustainability & Strategic Partnerships Officer
The Coca-Cola Company
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Beatriz "Bea" Perez is Executive Vice President and Global Chief Communications, Sustainability and Strategic Partnerships Officer for The Coca-Cola Company.
Perez oversees a diverse portfolio and manages networked teams that lead and support the company's business objectives. This includes commitments to global leadership in the areas of environmental, social and governance (ESG). Perez leads global external and internal communications, including digital media strategy for company-owned channels; global brand public relations; financial communications; and leadership communications.
Perez also leads the strategic direction and business performance for the company's retail, licensing and attractions portfolio of assets. Until January 2022, Perez oversaw strategic marketing assets of the company, including renewal of a partnership with the International Olympic Committee; marketing activations for FIFA; and all global marketing assets.
Her roles included serving as chief marketing officer for Coca-Cola North America, where she built brands and developed key relationships, including with American Idol and NASCAR. Perez was named as the company's first chief sustainability officer in 2011. Her team went on to become the driving force behind the company's World Without Waste program. Her team also developed and led global commitments to advance water stewardship and women's economic empowerment, among other key ESG goals.
Perez began her career at the company in 1996. She went on to hold senior-level branding, marketing, operations and public policy roles that utilized her breadth of experience, business acumen and passion for sustainability to create and build programs and partnerships that have enhanced the lives of people and communities worldwide. This included learning how to drive a Coca-Cola delivery truck to see the business from the ground up.
Numerous organizations have recognized her commitment and accomplishments: Perez has been recognized as a "Conservation Trailblazer" by The Trust for Public Land; the Association of Latino Professionals for America named her to its "50 Most Powerful Latinas" ranking in 2017, 2018 and 2019; she was on Hispanic Executive magazine's list of top ten leaders; she was featured as one of the "25 Most Powerful Latinas" on CNN and People en Espanol; she is a member of the American Advertising Hall of Fame, the Sports Business Journal's Hall of Fame and the PR Week Hall of Fame; and PRovoke (formerly The Holmes Report) has listed her as a member of the Influence 100 for communicators since 2017.
Perez is a committed advocate for community engagement, serving on various boards. She is chair of The Coca-Cola Foundation, the company's global philanthropic arm. She serves in leadership positions for several not-for-profit organizations, including the board of trustees of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and the Hispanic Scholarship Fund. She is a public director for Primerica and W.W. Grainger, Inc. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Maryland.
Meera bhat
Global Director of Equitable Conservation
The Nature Conservancy
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Meera Bhat (she/they) is the Global Director of Equitable Conservation at The Nature Conservancy.
Alongside her team, Meera works to ensure that conservation and climate decisions center Indigenous rights and sovereignty, human rights, gender and racial equity. She is a changemaker, a celebrated speaker and an intentional movement builder, drawing upon experiences with the power of collective action and networks. Meera came to The Nature Conservancy in 2014 to build the North America Cities Network, leading a network of 100 and a team of ten to help transform cities into green, just, climateresilient places where people and nature thrive. Her driving motivation is to help ensure communities have the resources and access they need to make decisions that shape their lives, and to align the power of institutions in a way that drives and sustains systems change, drawing upon cross-movement coalitions and their collective expertise, networks and impact.
Previously, Meera was a Program Manager at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health in New York City, supporting international pathogen discovery research. Their claim to fame was catching subway rats to figure out which diseases they carry (turns out – a LOT of diseases.)
Meera was a community gardener in Brooklyn and a devoted advocate for NYC urban agriculture and vacant land, and served on the Brooklyn Queens Land Trust board of directors. Meera now serves on the board of the Fireweed Community Woodshop, a Minneapolis-based nonprofit dedicated to building new futures for women and non-binary folks through woodcraft. Meera lives in Minneapolis with their family.
Andrew FLANAGAN
'04 MBA
Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
RWE Clean Energy, LLC
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As Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of RWE Clean Energy, LLC, Andrew Flanagan leads the fourth largest renewables business in the United States with more than 9 GW of installed capacity and operating assets in more than 19 states. In this role, Flanagan is responsible for executing on RWE’s growth strategy in the U.S. and driving the business toward its mission to be the leading renewable energy company in America. Flanagan also serves on RWE’s Board of Directors, a position he has held since 2022.
Prior to being named CEO in January 2024, Flanagan served as Chief Development Officer for RWE Clean Energy, a position he held since the company’s inception in March 2023 following RWE’s acquisition of Con Edison Clean Energy Business. As Chief Development Officer, Flanagan played an instrumental role in standing up the newly formed US business unit and leading the expansion of the company’s onshore wind, solar and battery energy storage development pipeline.
Andrew joined RWE in July 2022 as Chief Operating Officer (COO) of RWE Renewables Americas. As COO, Andrew led the development, engineering, construction and operations of RWE’s operating portfolio and its growth initiatives in North America. Prior to joining RWE, Andrew held leadership positions with Leeward Energy and Invenergy focused on the development, construction, financing and operation of power generation projects.
Andrew brings more than 25 years of experience in the energy industry in North America and has worked with various international teams in several countries across Europe.
Andrew holds an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management, a BS from the United States Merchant Marine Academy and served eight (8) years in the United States Naval Reserve.
Shashank Sane
'11 MBA
EVP Transmission
Invenergy
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Shashank Sane leads the Invenergy Transmission business with responsibility for the multi-faceted execution of complex transmission projects, including analyzing the market for new development opportunities, working with customers to commercialize the projects, and building relationships with key stakeholders to advance projects that benefit communities and customers. Previously, Shashank led Invenergy’s Corporate Development team where he executed on value accretive M&A transactions and identified new business opportunities for Invenergy. Earlier in his time at the company, Shashank held various finance-oriented roles, successfully completing over $5 billion in financings and divestitures. Prior to joining Invenergy, Shashank spent time advising energy companies at Oliver Wyman, after beginning his career in investment banking at Lehman Brothers. He earned a BS in Finance and International Business from the New York University’s Stern School of Business, and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
