“I’m not convinced that categories such as “green energy” or “sustainable consumption” are overly useful at this point. For any consumable to be sustainable, the energy used to create it and the infrastructure that enabled its creation must also be sustainable. We must solve for the whole to solve for the sum of the parts. It’s complex, but complexity is no excuse for inaction.”

Lorraine Smith works from our New York office and directs SustainAbility’s Engaging Stakeholders network, informing and enabling the transparency efforts of over thirty companies dedicated to corporate accountability. She also directs client projects on strategy, stakeholder engagement and value chain or life cycle thinking. She has facilitated strategic development and engagement with global corporations in mining and metals, retail, consumer products, agriculture, and manufacturing, with a focus on the inter-connectivity across multiple sectors, and across functions within companies. Additionally, she brings extensive expertise in sustainability reporting initiatives involving external stakeholders.

Before joining SustainAbility she worked as a sustainability consultant beginning in 2004. Her work included projects with organizations from a range of sectors, including aluminum products manufacturer Novelis, garment manufacturer Gildan Activewear, retailer Walmart Canada, grocery products manufacturer Liberté, networking organization Canadian Business for Social Responsibility, environmental not-for-profit Evergreen Foundation, sustainability reporting and strategy consultancy BuzzWord, and consumer branding company Green Living Enterprises.

Prior to her focus on sustainability, Lorraine worked as a Senior Business Analyst for Manulife Financial, as a Manager of Logistics for a New Zealand-based electronic engineering firm, as well as supporting fundraising and communications for World Wildlife Fund Canada.

Education

• Honors BA from Mount Allison University in Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada

Languages

• English, French, German, Spanish and Portuguese