Your path: Business Leaders to Speak
Business Leaders to Speak About the Economics of Sustainability
For Release: April 08, 2008REVISED: May 2, 2008
Due to unforeseen circumstances, the Networking Breakfast scheduled for 8 to 10 am has been cancelled. The Sustainable Business Practices seminar scheduled for 10:30 am to 5:30 pm will continue as planned. Chris Van Dyke will not participate in the seminar panel discussion.
Chris Van Dyke, CEO of the Portland-based green outdoor apparel company Nau, will speak about The Economics of Sustainability at Marylhurst University's networking breakfast on Saturday, May 10 from 8 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. Three Northwest business leaders in sustainability will join Van Dyke from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. for the Sustainable Business Practices and Real Results seminar: Chuck Kilo of Greenfield Health Systems, Kathleen Lansing of Lansing Linoleum and Rick Gruen of Clackamas County Soil & Water Conservation District.
Registration is required. Networking breakfast $25; Breakfast plus seminar $75. To register, call 503.534.4059.
"It's time to move beyond defining sustainability to a conversation about making our businesses both sustainable and profitable," said David McNamee, chair of Marylhurst's undergraduate business department. "We'll get to the heart of the triple bottom line—economic, social and environmental sustainability—by showcasing individuals who are making sustainability work for their organizations."
Van Dyke will share how Nau has redefined the retail environment by building every facet of business around sustainable practices that are bottom-line driven and ahead of the competitive curve. Nau's commitment to "doing well by doing good" has resonated with its online and storefront consumers by generating a dialogue about business as a catalyst for positive change.
During the seminar, leaders in sustainability from four business sectors—retail, healthcare, manufacturing and agriculture—will explore how to combine economy with ecology. They will discuss their experiences adapting sustainable practices with human resources, operations and marketing strategies to increase profitability.
Marylhurst University, located one mile south of Lake Oswego on Highway 43, offers a Master of Business Administration (MBA), Bachelor of Science in Business & Leadership and professional certificates in Business & Management and Human Resources.
About Chris Van Dyke
Van Dyke gained more than 15 years of experience working for Nike, most recently as the Asia Pacific director of marketing and the vice president of marketing and product development at Patagonia. In 2004 he co-founded Van Dyke & Zilligen, a firm dedicated to helping corporations become financially stronger by making social environmental responsibility a core value of its business and a key component of its branding message. Van Dyke is currently the CEO of Nau, an outdoor apparel company dedicated to the integration of environmental, social and economic factors. Nau's business model is built around sustainable business practices, innovative use of technology and philanthropic partnerships.