Last week, I got to visit my old stomping grounds, NYC, and spend the day touring companies that are making big moves in sustainability—each in their own way.
🍽️ Rethink Food: Started the morning seeing how they turn excess food into 40,000+ meals every week for NYC and Miami communities. By partnering with local restaurants, they’re tackling food insecurity and waste at the same time.
💎 Tiffany & Co.: Their sustainability team is doing fascinating work in diamond traceability, ensuring ethical sourcing through a fully integrated supply chain. We also got to check out their T Smile cord bracelet, made from recycled ocean-bound plastic and supporting The Nature Conservancy’s goal to protect 4B hectares of ocean by 2030.
🧴 Kiehl's Since 1851’s: Loved hearing from Maggie Kervick about how sustainability isn’t just a department—it has to be embedded into every function. Their refillable packaging and “Recycle & Be Rewarded” programs are great examples, and I was especially intrigued by their renewed commitment to cleaning up Mount Everest—transforming collected waste into art to raise awareness.
🚚 The Rounds: Wrapped up the day diving into circular economies and the challenges of scaling sustainable food delivery. The balancing act of growth + impact is real, and seeing how they’re tackling it was a great way to end the day.
Biggest takeaway? Sustainability isn’t a one-time initiative or a single department—it has to be woven into everything. Whether it’s food security, ethical sourcing, packaging innovation, or systems-level change, every company has a role to play.
I’ll definitely be taking the lessons I learned on this trip into the rest of my time at Kellogg and in my next career. Excited to keep learning and finding ways to make an impact.
Big thank you to Shubha Ganesan and Jamie Asfaw-Cooper for organizing this amazing trek!
#Sustainability #Innovation #Impact #MBAAdventures