News & Events

The Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business and the Net Impact – MBA Chapter co-hosted the sixth annual panel on sustainability in careers on October 9. Speakers shared insights with nearly two dozen MBA students eager to hear how their careers could be aligned with their environmental and social values.

The faculty affiliated with the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business participated in the Global Climate Action Symposium. The event brought together engineers, government delegates, business and policy experts, activists, and students from around the world. It was jointly sponsored by Georgia Tech and six European consulates during European Climate Diplomacy Week.

Six universities and higher education organizations including Georgia Tech participated in the University Global Compact’s (UGC) inaugural “17-Rooms-U” at Rutgers University. Georgia Tech President Dr. Ángel Cabrera and Beril Toktay, Scheller professor among attendees.

The Alliance for Corporate Sustainability (ARCS), an organization advancing rigorous academic research on corporate sustainability issues, has selected Basak Kalkanci for its Emerging Sustainability Scholar Award.

Beginning in Fall 2019, Georgia Tech undergraduates from any major will have the opportunity to pursue a Certificate in Sustainable Business.

Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business entered a time machine on August 20, 2019—and came out ten years in the future. During the “Reports from the Future” symposium, MBA students, pretending it was the year 2029, spoke about the progress society has made addressing global issues related to environmental and social sustainability.

How do you stop millions of pounds of heat-trapping Carbon Dioxide from ever being emitted? In Georgia Tech’s Summer 2019 Carbon Reduction Challenge, student interns used their ingenuity to identify opportunities for scalable carbon reduction projects at a wide variety of partnering organizations.

Although car sharing has the potential to cannibalize car sales, it can boost auto manufacturers’ profitability. Manufacturers can reach more customers and increase the selling price of products because car sharing allows for better market segmentation. Higher-end manufacturers benefit more from providing this type of service

What does it take to transform a community from “striving” to “thriving”? Ask undergraduate students in Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business who recently learned about creating sustainable communities through an innovative project.

Two recent sustainability-focused op-eds featured Scheller faculty in Corporate Knights and Environmental Leader.

On July 29, 2019, Scheller College of Business Professor Beril Toktay was selected as a finalist for the 2019 Atlanta E3 Awards in the “Impact” category. The Atlanta E3 Awards, which are presented by the Metro Atlanta Chamber (MAC), celebrate the companies, organizations and people whose work innovates at the intersection of sustainability and commerce.

In an op-ed published in Corporate Knights on July 3, Karie Davis-Nozemack argues that paying taxes should be considered a sustainability issue. Around the globe, corporations (just like many individuals) try to avoid paying taxes. In the United States alone, 60 profitable Fortune 500 companies earned ...

Sudheer Chava Discusses Capital Cost Reductions Introduced by Socially Responsible Investing

Collective recycling systems have long been criticized for restricting the environmental benefits of extended producer responsibility because of free-riding issues among producers. This study revisits and refines this assertion and shows that when recycling technology choice is taken into account, collective recycling systems can lead to higher environmental benefits than individual recycling systems.

The speakers discussed sustainability developments within their organizations and offered career advice based on their own trajectories. Panelists stressed the value of acquiring work experience in core business functions, especially ...

After working in the energy sector in places such as the Soviet Union, Kazakhstan, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines, Oxman witnessed firsthand how social and environmental risks affect companies and their bottom lines.

Steven Murchison (MBA 2019) was recently selected as Poets & Quants' “2019 Best and Brightest MBAs” for 2019. Murchison, who was recently awarded the Dean’s Award for the Full-time MBA Student Excellence Award at the 2019 Honor’s Day ceremony, is a second year student in the Full-time MBA program.

“We’re delighted to be a part of helping Delta generate business value from these environmental initiatives,” said Beril Toktay, Faculty Director of the Center. Center corporate sustainability experts helped five teams of employee finalists from three different countries ...

As part of Scheller’s Countdown to Commencement series, we interviewed a few soon-to-be graduates from our undergraduate, MBA, and Ph.D. programs to learn about their backgrounds, why they chose Scheller College, and what they plan to do after Spring 2019 Commencement.

In a recent episode of Jumpstart, a podcast from Bloomberg Financial Accounting, Dr. Jeffrey Hales, Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business Accounting Professor and Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Chair, discusses the SASB’s global mission...

The slate of destinations for the 2019 MBA International Practicum featured an exciting new option for students: South Africa. The South Africa course was co-sponsored by the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business (“Center”), giving Full-time and Evening MBA students an opportunity to exercise their sustainable business skills with hands-on projects. The International Practicum is one of the MBA Program’s most popular electives, designed to facilitate a semester-long client project between international organizations and MBA student consultants.

“Meeting Andrew Young at the southern tip of Africa was truly surreal—a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” said Peter Nguyen, an MBA Sustainability Fellow at the Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business...

As part of Scheller’s Countdown to Commencement series, we interviewed a few soon-to-be graduates from our undergraduate, MBA, and Ph.D. programs to learn about their backgrounds, why they chose Scheller College, and what they plan to do after Spring 2019 Commencement.

“When you have experience that can help other people, it’s your duty and responsibility to put that skill to use—to share that information and experience with other people to help them achieve their career goals,” said Steven Murchison, this year’s recipient of the Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business Dean’s Award for Full-time MBA Student Excellence.

The falling cost of solar power has led to a boom in recent years, with more and more photovoltaic panels popping up on rooftops and backyard solar farms around the world. But what happens to all of those solar panels in a couple of decades when they reach the end of their useful life? And what about electronic devices with even shorter life spans?

Applicants for the 2019 Ideas to Serve (I2S) competition are exploring and addressing a number of issues both locally and globally from plastic waste reduction, disaster response in low-income communities, food security, global health, prison reform, education, and more!

An NPO should invest more in guiding and advising its clients to choose the best-suited service when it is not severely resource-constrained, or when different types of clients are not evenly mixed in the population.

More than 50 scholars from the United States, Asia, and Europe convened at the University of San Diego for the Fifth Annual Early-Career Sustainable Operations Workshop earlier this month.

Scheller alumnus Chris Hagler recently spoke at the College about investor focus on sustainability.

In February, The Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business at the Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business opened its doors for an event unlike any other hosted in the five years since its founding.

Beril Toktay talks fast furniture and the trend's effects on the environment.

Scheller College's Jeffrey Hale says capital markets are "hungry" for better information on sustainability performance.

Misreporting firms experience an increase of 20-86% in their interest rate spread in the first eight years after they restate previously inaccurate financial information.

Why three students chose to pursue their MBA at Scheller College of Business

Engineer Victoria Dean left a burgeoning career to pursue a joint Scheller College of Business MBA and Ph.D. program with Georgia Tech's College of Engineering.

Scheller College is the first and largest entity on the Georgia Tech campus to be awarded the highest level of certification through the Work Green program.

Georgia Tech’s Carbon Reduction Challenge, a program that helps students design and implement large-scale projects to save energy, received two first-place awards at the 2018 Reimagine Education Conference & Awards in San Francisco.

Carolanne chose to pursue her Evening MBA at Scheller because of its “great reputation for STEM-focused MBAs, especially for those with a STEM background like me.”

Scheller Professor and Chair of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Jeffrey Hales recently rang the opening bell at NASDAQ and the London Stock Exchange as part of a worldwide tour to celebrate the launch of 77 sustainability accounting standards for global markets.

David Hogan, a Georgia Tech alumnus who majored in Management and minored in Engineering & Management through the Steven A. Denning Technology & Management Program, says he “will always cherish the accessibility and willingness of faculty to teach us how to learn…and how to be accountable for the education we received.” In 2017, he received his MBA from the University of Cambridge Judge Business School. David says his educational journey has led him to some of his strongest connections— a network that has provided him with invaluable business input over the years.

Michael Oxman and L. Beril Toktay of the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business highlight achievements in Atlanta’s sustainability efforts.

The Better World MBA Ranking is recognized as the only major ranking that evaluates accredited MBA programs’ commitment to equipping graduates with the skills necessary to solve pressing business and social challenges in order to succeed in a rapidly evolving global business climate. The ranking evaluates curriculum, research, and centers related to sustainability, as well as faculty diversity, across the top 100 schools on the Financial Times’ Global MBA Ranking.

How do a firm’s environmental strengths and concerns influence the interest rate it receives when borrowing money from financial institutions? How does a firm’s environmental footprint (its environmental strengths and concerns) affect the return required by investors? Is a firm’s environmental profile simply a substitute for unaccounted default risk? Do environmental concerns influence the number of institutional investors a firm has or the number of banks from which they borrow money?

Two dozen business leaders joined leaders of the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business (“Center”) at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business, Center-affiliated faculty, and Scheller College students at the inaugural Center Advisory Board meeting on October 5, 2018.

The Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business (“Center”) at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business and the Net Impact at Scheller College MBA Chapter co-hosted the fifth annual “Using Sustainability to Succeed” panel on October 16.

Scheller College of Business Professor Beril Toktay was featured in the fall 2018 issue of the Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine to talk about her experiences in academia and her commitment to advancing diversity and inclusion through her work as a Georgia Tech ADVANCE professor.

The passage of the EU’s Circular Economy Package in April placed many European companies in the face of mandates to reuse products they create for as long as possible.

Academic researchers at the Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business recently studied whether companies that make positive discretionary environmental announcements in the press improve their overall environmental performance more than companies that do not.

This year, the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business (“Center”) celebrates its fifth anniversary. It launched in 2013 as the Center for Business Strategies for Sustainability. In January 2015, after receiving a $5 million commitment from the Ray C. Anderson Foundation, the Center was renamed for Anderson, a sustainable business visionary and Georgia Tech alumnus (IE 1956, Honorary PhD 2011).

A Georgia Tech undergraduate student teamed up with Chick-fil-A staff over the summer to reduce millions of pounds of heat-trapping greenhouse gases while delivering significant cost savings.

How does tax avoidance raise issues related to sustainability?

Do firms that make positive discretionary environmental disclosures in the press improve their overall environmental performance more than firms that do not make such public disclosures?

Scheller College of Business Professor Atalay Atasu was recently published in Harvard Business Review for his research around successful business practices in a circular economy.

Designing New Climate Change Solutions with Inspiration that is Millions of Years Old

How do announcements of environmentally friendly initiatives affect the shareholder value of publicly traded companies?

The Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business (“Center”) has announced that Delta Air Lines will be the first participant in the Center’s Corporate Sustainability Program (CSP) Executive Council. Through the CSP, the Center seeks to collaborate with leading companies that share a vision for developing sustainability leaders and shaping a new economy that offers a more sustainable future for all.

It is with great pleasure that we announce Atalay Atasu has been named the new Departmental Editor of the Sustainable Operations division of the Production and Operations Management Journal. The Production and Operations Management Journal is one of the premier journals in Operations Management and the flagship journal of the Production and Operations Management Society.

The annual federal report on toxic material emissions from industrial sites across the country gains widespread media attention and serves as a reminder of the potential environmental impacts of industrial activities. But a team of researchers at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business wondered whether federal regulators can persuade companies to abandon toxic chemicals by simply highlighting that information.

Should there be a religious exemption for secular businesses from public accommodation statutes that protect prospective patrons from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation?

Scheller College’s John R. McIntyre has released a new book, CSR and Climate Change Implications for Multinational Enterprises. The book describes, explains, and predicts how multinational firms will rise to the multiple challenges posed by global climate issues and the organizational and behavioral various responses of the international corporate community.

For undergraduate business students curious about how an interest in sustainability can lead to a future career, the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business (“Center”) joined Center-affiliated faculty Ravi Subramanian in presenting “Sustainability in your Career.” The April 12th panel, held in Subramanian’s class, MGT 4803: Business Decisions for Sustainability and Shared Value, hosted George Halow (Global Investment Efficiency Manager, Ford Motor Company), Michael Oxman (Center Managing Director), and Steve Tochilin (General Manager of Environmental Sustainability, Delta Air Lines).

Meet Evening MBA student Grace Walton. Prior to the Evening MBA Program, Grace worked at Caraustar as the Manager of Direct Materials; however, as a result of obtaining her MBA, she has become a Sourcing Manager at Georgia-Pacific within their Innovation unit. As part of our Countdown to Commencement series, we spent some time with a few soon-to-be graduates from our undergraduate and MBA programs to learn about their backgrounds, why they chose Scheller College, and what they plan to do with their degrees after Spring 2018 Commencement.

Meet Full-time MBA student Adam Zenker. In his spare time, Adam plays hockey and is involved in multiple philanthropy projects, including serving as the Student Executive Leader for the MBA program’s Pro Bono Consulting Practicum. As part of our Countdown to Commencement series, we spent some time with a few soon-to-be graduates from our undergraduate and MBA programs to learn about their backgrounds, why they chose Scheller College, and what they plan to do with their degrees after Spring 2018 Commencement.

The Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business (“Center”) recently sent four students to ClimateCAP: The Global MBA Summit on Climate, Capital, & Business.

Meet Full-time MBA student Jason Alcedo. He describes himself as a “pragmatic idealist” who believes in the corporate responsibility to all stakeholders – not just shareholders. As part of our Countdown to Commencement series, we spent some time with a few soon-to-be graduates from our undergraduate and MBA programs to learn about their backgrounds, why they chose Scheller College, and what they plan to do with their degrees after Spring 2018 Commencement.

How should manufacturers allocate refurbished consumer returns between remarketing and warranty fulfillment to extract maximum value for the manufacturer? How does the optimal allocation of returns to remarketing and warranty fulfillment change over the product life cycle? How do return rates, remarketing potential, refurbishing costs, failure rates, and product pricing affect optimal allocation?

Meet Evening MBA student Jacqueline Smyth. She enjoys traveling, reading, knitting, and learning, and has visited 25 countries—seven of them twice. As part of our Countdown to Commencement series, we spent some time with a few soon-to-be graduates from our undergraduate and MBA programs to learn about their backgrounds, why they chose Scheller College, and what they plan to do with their degrees after Spring 2018 Commencement.

For their groundbreaking accomplishments with the Internship and Co-op Carbon Reduction Challenge, Kim Cobb and Beril Toktay have been selected as the recipients of the 2018 Innovation in Co-curricular Education Award, administered by the Center for Teaching and Learning.

As part of the Scheller College of Business’ Fall 2017 MBA Sustainable Business Practicum, the US Green Building Council (USGBC) worked with a student team on building out the business case for Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification in the Southeast United States.

The Center is pleased to announce the MBA students selected as 2017-2018 Scheller College Sustainability Fellows.

How do different policy requirements influence strategic design choices such as recyclability and durability? How can policymakers set requirements to achieve desired results, while avoiding unintended consequences?

The Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business (“Center”) hosted the 2018 Early-Career Sustainable Operations Workshop, now in its fourth year, from March 2-4.

The United Nations University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS) announced a new regional sustainability network, RCE Greater Atlanta, one of six Regional Centres of Expertise on Education for Sustainable Development.

The Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business ("Center") launched a publication series to help academics influence the way that business is conducted today.

How can medical surplus recovery organizations (MSROs) overcome a challenging supply chain—limited supply, high and varied demand, and limited information about recipient needs—to deliver the right medical product to the right recipient healthcare facility? Can MSROs simultaneously provide information about their inventory levels and obtain accurate need information from recipients?

How did stock markets react to the Rana Plaza disaster, which killed more than 1,200 garment workers and injured another 2,400 in Bangladesh in 2013?

Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business is 4th in the U.S. and 10th globally in the 2017 Better World MBA rankings.

On October 25th, the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business (“Center”) at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business and the Scheller MBA Net Impact Chapter co-hosted the fourth annual “Your Business Career and Sustainability” panel. Business leaders from Delta Air Lines, NextEra Energy, SunTrust Bank, and Steelcase Inc. provided guidance for MBA students wishing to contribute to environmental and social goals within the business sector.

On October 25th, the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business (“Center”) at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business and the Scheller MBA Net Impact Chapter co-hosted the fourth annual “Your Business Career and Sustainability” panel. Business leaders from Delta Air Lines, NextEra Energy, SunTrust Bank, and Steelcase Inc. provided guidance for MBA students wishing to contribute to environmental and social goals within the business sector.

Researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology have identified how medical surplus items can be distributed more efficiently by humanitarian organizations. Two recent articles, “Effective Medical Surplus Recovery” and “Truthful Mechanisms for Medical Surplus Product Allocation,” identify operations methodology that enables recipients to request and receive items that best match their needs.

Prof. Rodriguez's research on "Competing on Social Purpose" was published in Harvard Business Review's Online Sept- Oct issue.

A team composed of two Scheller College of Business and four Industrial and Systems Engineering students who interned this summer at SunTrust won the top prize in the inaugural Internship and Co-op Carbon Reduction Challenge.

The Manufacturing and Service Operations Management Society (MSOM) has elected Professor L. Beril Toktay as a Distinguished Fellow of the organization. "Election as an MSOM Fellow should be considered a rare distinction," according to the society's web site.

During Spring 2017, students from our Center-led sustainability practicum helped Grubbly Farms develop a marketing strategy for one of the key customer segments.

Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business is looking to creating the next leaders to take on carbon reduction, thanks to an innovative new co-curricular initiative launched in partnership with the College of Sciences. Starting in May 2017, Professors Kim Cobb (College of Sciences) and Beril Toktay have joined forces to run the Internship and Co-op Carbon Challenge.

A team of Georgia Tech students including Ivan Allen College digital media student Sally Xia won the Toyota Next Generation Mobility Challenge last week.

The SASB Foundation Board of Directors announces the appointment of the SASB Standards Board, responsible for the oversight of SASB standards. Center-affiliated faculty Jeffrey Hales was one of nine members appointed.

Meet Farzeen Tejani. Farzeen is from Atlanta and earned her bachelor’s degree in architecture with an architecture history certificate from Georgia Tech.

Meet Elizabeth Schultz. Elizabeth is from Marietta, Georgia and earned her bachelor’s degree in industrial design from Georgia Tech.

On March 4th, 2017, the Scheller College of Business hosted Net Impact Local, a one-day conference organized by the Georgia Tech MBA Chapter of the national organization.

Dionne Nickerson, a Ph.D. marketing candidate in the Scheller College of Business, researches the way companies and consumers can promote positive social change.

Michael Oxman joins the Scheller College of Business as the new managing director of the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business.

Green Guy Media Podcast: Guest Host John Lanier talks with Faculty Director Beril Tokay

The book, Environmentally Responsible Supply Chains, edited by Associate Professor of Operations Management and Center-affiliated faculty member Atalay Atasu, was published.

Bac-Off, a long lasting antibacterial solution for textiles that targets reducing hospital acquired infections, and Memora Health, a personalized healthcare solution, were the top teams in the 2016 Ideas to Serve (I2S) Competition at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business.

CIBER executive director John R. McIntyre edits new volume in Edward Edgar Publishing Ltd's 'New Horizons in International Business series'.

More than at any other time in history, humanity is collectively aware of its impact on the planet. And a increasing number of business school students want to get involved in this important work.

Howard Connell, managing director of Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business’ Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business, recently assembled a cross-section of sustainability experts for a panel discussion on Atlanta’s Business Radio X.

With support from the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business, Operations Management Associate Professor Atalay Atasu recently held a workshop that convened 45 of the leading sustainability operations researchers from the world at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business.

While working as global vice president of integrated marketing communications for Coca-Cola, Omar Rodriguez-Vila spent several years living in China in preparation for the company’s sponsorship of the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics.

Toothbrush technology that would empower people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to care for their teeth more effectively and independently won the 2015 Ideas to Serve (I2S) Competition March 27 at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business.

Seventeen teams will present business concepts that could help create a better world in the final round of the Ideas to Serve Competition (I2S) on Friday March 27 at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business.

The Georgia Institute of Technology’s Scheller College of Business has received a $5 million commitment from the Ray C. Anderson Foundation to rename the Center for Business Strategies for Sustainability. To honor this commitment and Ray Anderson’s legacy, the Center will now be known as the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business.

Before enrolling in Georgia Tech’s MBA Program, Brian Edgerton had long been interested in sustainability. “But when I came to Tech, I had the opportunity to embrace it,” he says.

Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business is ranked 8th in Corporate Knights magazine’s Global 100 Sustainable MBA rankings for our success at integrating sustainability into the school experience.

Operations Management Professor Atalay Atasu’s interest in how companies manage balancing environmental and manufacturing concerns began during his PhD studies at INSEAD.

Georgia Tech’s Center for Business Strategies for Sustainability (CBSS) was recently named one of the grand prize winners for the Dr. Alfred N. and Lynn Manos Page Prize for Sustainability Issues in Business Curricula.

During a recent panel discussion on sustainability at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business, Novelis President and CEO Phil Martens recalled an alarming conversation he had with a climatologist a decade ago. They had discussed the repercussions if society didn’t reduce carbon emissions, ranging from the melting of polar ice caps and jet-stream shifts to the contamination of the air, soil, and water.

Major corporate executives and other thought leaders on the environment will converge at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business at 4 p.m. on Thursday, May 1, to discuss “The Sustainability Advantage: The Art and Science of Creating Sustainable Value.”

Sophia Bromfield believes that environmentally friendly design is going to be a factor that influences every company's real estate decisions in the future.

Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business’ Center on Business Strategies for Sustainability recently named Howard Connell professor of the practice of sustainable business.

Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business’ Net Impact chapter recently received the prestigious Gold standing designation.

Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business’ new Center on Business Strategies for Sustainability recently received a $300,000 grant from the Kendeda Fund. This follows a $750,000, three-year grant received earlier this year from the Ray C. Anderson Foundation to start the Center.

As a young girl growing up in Turkey, Beril Toktay accepted water and air pollution as a fact of life. “It wasn’t until I went abroad that I saw how much better it could be,” says the professor of operations management and holder of the Brady Family Chair at Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business.

Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business is establishing the Center on Business Strategies for Sustainability, thanks to a three-year, $750,000 grant recently awarded by the Ray C. Anderson Foundation.