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When systems shift in times of crisis, leadership needs change, too. For its annual fall conference, Wake Forest University’s Sabin Center for Environment and Sustainability highlights resilient leadership approaches to navigate these challenges, from research and innovation to storytelling and brand-building.

“Sustainable, Just and Abundantly Wild: Resilient Leadership for Our Era” features expert scientists, business innovators, policy advisors, communicators, educators, students and alumni. Kate Williams, CEO of 1% for the Planet, will deliver the keynote address. Her organization serves as a global network of businesses that contribute at least 1% of annual sales to environmental programs and organizations. 

“This conference is a prime example of Wake Forest’s Pro Humanitate ethic,” said Sabin Center Executive Director Alan Townsend. “As pressures grow on both people and the natural world on which we all depend, we need bravery, new forms of collaboration and innovative leadership from all corners of society. November 5th will highlight some great examples of just that.”

The all-day conference, including the evening keynote, is free and open to the public, but registration is required.  

Conference schedule highlights

All daytime sessions will be held in the Sutton Center

9:30 a.m. – Organized Crime, Environmental Chaos. Through the lens of illicit gold mining in the Amazon, a look at how vacuums in governance wreak havoc on ecological, social and societal systems. 

11 a.m. – AI for the Amazon. Hear how Wake Forest faculty help fight illegal gold mining through leading-edge computer science. 

11:45 a.m. – Stewardship Stories. Wake Forest professors and students share rich storytelling about the real-world impact of their coursework. 

12:30 p.m. – Leading Change Through Storytelling. Noted podcaster Ed Roberson (Mountain & Prairie), science journalist Hillary Rosner (author of “Roam”) and the Sabin Center’s Alan Townsend (author of “This Ordinary Stardust”) talk about how storytelling can be the form of leadership that changes hearts, minds and outcomes.

2 p.m. – Building Better Brands With Purpose. How the leaders of Patagonia and Great Outdoor Provision Co. put values at the heart of their brands—and built generations of brand loyalists. 

7 p.m. – Kate Williams keynote at Broyhill Auditorium, Farrell Hall. Drawing on her experience leading a global environmental movement, 1% for the Planet CEO Kate Williams offers audiences facing any kind of challenge or constraint a framework for using the edge as a zone for growth and resilience.

Media are invited to cover the Nov. 5 keynote and conference sessions. Interested journalists should contact Alicia Roberts at (336) 758-3185 or for credentials and parking information.

About The Sabin Center for Environment and Sustainability

The Sabin Center at Wake Forest University brings together a team of over 130 faculty and fellows to work toward a shared vision of a sustainable, just and abundantly wild world. Collaborating across disciplines, cultures and perspectives to tackle the essential environmental challenges of our time, the Sabin Center’s work embodies Wake Forest’s Pro Humanitate spirit here in North Carolina and around the world.