Welcome New 2018-2019 CRB Student Advisory Board Members
The Center for Responsible Business is delighted to announce the newest members of our Student Advisory Board (SAB). The SAB provides extensive support to the overall functions of the CRB and consists of exceptionally bright minds looking to create change. With their avid involvement in ongoing projects and willingness to take on new initiatives, these students are able to facilitate the goals of the CRB through various avenues.
Second year board members met with candidates during the interview portion of the application process. With such diverse backgrounds and interests, the CRB is thrilled to see what focus areas of sustainable business the board will put into action. Their passion and dedication to responsible business practices will be a significant asset to the CRB. We are excited to welcome them aboard!
Hasan Ahmad (Undergraduate Class of 2020)
As a dual member of the Haas undergraduate business program and College of Engineering, Hasan has developed an extensive network and unique perspective over his time at UC Berkeley. With an engineering background, he is interested in the optimization of overall functionality, but realized that without a business background, scaling this optimization would be nearly impossible.
As an undergraduate student, Hasan is able to connect other UC Berkeley students to responsible business initiatives coordinated by the CRB. His past participation in responsible businesses events and content, such as the Levi Strauss & Co. Screened Chemistry Forum, also brings insightful perspectives to the Student Advisory Board’s overall mission. Out of all the CRB’s activities, the Peterson Speaker Series led Hasan to want to increase his involvement with the Center. He feels that these are important conversations being held by individuals that are ultimately garnering a more sustainable future for businesses and society.
Katharine Hawthorn (FT MBA Class of 2020)
Katharine’s keen interest in finance as a tool for social change led her to the CRB’s Student Advisory Board. The initiative that attracted her most was the Sustainable Investment and Finance Initiative, which she sees as the epicenter of thought and action on this topic on campus. She is also passionate about impact investing and its ability to identify the most appropriate financing structure to achieve desired impact.
From her experience at Tiedemann Advisors this past summer, Katharine also provides a high level perspective on how impact and ESG are integrated across asset classes. Katharine’s background in global health and connection to UCSF’s research programs offer potential opportunities for cross-campus collaboration. Her global perspective from living in various countries and a desire to consider sustainability in the broader international context is also a major asset to the board.
Sarah Hilmer (EW MBA Class of 2021)
Sarah’s interest in the CRB was driven by the importance of social impact discussions in the classroom setting. She hopes to serve as a liaison for social impact and help drive curriculum that instills knowledge and expertise about social impact that the Haas community can take into their future workplaces.
Sarah also acknowledges that sometimes in the business setting (even in her role as a communicator about social impact at Intuit), it can be difficult to understand the scope of the social impact space. She is well versed in topics such as diversity and inclusion and sustainability, but is looking forward to learning more about impact areas like food and agricultural sustainability, energy, philanthropy, etc. Through her position on the Student Advisory Board, Sarah hopes to expose herself to experts and information on other responsible business practices and sectors.
Maribeth Hunsinger (JD Class of 2019)
Maribeth is passionate about regulatory and governance processes in promoting sustainable economic development in growing economies. In particular, she is interested in the role of the multinational corporation in facilitating sustainable development by employing socially responsible business practices. She cares deeply about the role of technology and data in improving environmental and social outcomes in multinational operations and cross-border infrastructure practices.
As a current law student and former engineer and economist for a multinational energy company, Maribeth brings a multidisciplinary perspective to the Student Advisory Board. She plans to actively increase participation in CRB events by Berkeley Law students by liaising with relevant student groups at the law school to better understand what type of programming would be attractive to them. She hopes to further develop the CRB’s curriculum and planning for electives, so she can achieve these goals.
Stacey King (FT MBA Class of 2020)
As a woman with a background in the STEM disciplines, Stacey understands the value of more women in business and technology. She wholly believes companies need employees of diverse backgrounds, skill sets, and perspectives to address emerging social and environmental challenges from factors such as climate change, artificial intelligence, and automation.
She wants to ensure that CRB’s programming continues to prioritize gender equity through speakers, programs, and forums. As a liaison between her classmates and the CRB, Stacey looks forward to ensuring that the CRB is offering programming that also aligns with the interests of her peers. As a Student Advisory Board member, Stacey hopes to introduce more programming around the topic of sustainable tourism to bring visibility into the industry by creating partnerships with various companies.
Malia Latin (FT MBA Class of 2020)
For Malia, the growing global environmental crisis prompted her to attend business school. She came to Haas to learn how to leverage her analytical and pragmatic problem-solving skills to address large-scale pollution challenges. After Haas, she will utilize the tools she gains to help others appreciate nature and empower them to participate in addressing climate change.
As a CRB Student Advisory Board member, Malia plans to build her network and knowledge base in the sustainable textile and apparel industry so that post-Haas, she’ll have the skills to start her own B-Corp that builds sustainable, durable outdoor apparel for women with muscles. Malia believes that the CRB is the nexus of sustainability work in the Haas community. She likes that the Board provides a community of like-minded people who gather to trade ideas and evolve solutions both to bring a sustainability lens into the classroom and to help each other find where they can be most effective after graduating. She wants to bring sustainability deeper into the Haas experience and help fellow classmates also interested in these topics dive into their chosen focus area.
Nerjada Maksutaj (FT MBA Class of 2020)
Nerjada attributes her rapport with social justice issues and how they affect the economy to the education she received at the University of Chicago and her diverse work experiences. Before joining Haas, she spent time at Accenture Strategy which exposed her to a wide variety of clients with varying challenges all centered around social impact initiatives. The work she completed ensured that future growth opportunities become more inclusive and socially impactful.
As a Student Advisory Board member, Nerjada would like to see the CRB foster more interdisciplinary work between the entrepreneurial and design communities across Berkeley. She recognizes that as new technologies and business models disrupt the status quo, it is easy to run up against the unintended consequences of rapid innovation. As sustainable finance initiatives and impact investing gain traction, she is excited to contribute to the growing field of social innovation and venture design, helping to structure modern business models that optimize for both profit and societal impact.
John Monaghan (FT MBA Class of 2020)
John joins Haas after spending several years working within the agricultural sector of rural America. Before joining Haas, he worked on sustainability strategy within the dairy sector and managed a multi stakeholder alliance of food sustainability stakeholders from across the value chain. After his experience in stakeholder engagement, he sees a great opportunity to bridge the gap between the corporate boardroom and conditions on the ground.
John wants to use the relationships he’s built to make Haas the world leader in the business of sustainable food. As a member of the Student Advisory Board, he hopes to contribute his expertise and leverage his professional relationships to strengthen the Haas community. While at Haas, he plans to dive deep into the CRB’s Sustainable Food Initiative by taking the Food Innovation Studio, participating in Edible Education 101, and joining the Food@Haas club, among other activities.
Nancy Reyes Mullins (MDP Class of 2020)
For Nancy, the potential to get involved with the CRB was one of the many reasons she selected the MDP program at UC Berkeley. Her experience and broad network enables her to help develop leading-edge programming with the CRB.
Previously, Nancy was on the board of US SIF, a member of the Global Sustainable Investment Alliance (GSIA) and of the US Impact Investing Alliance’s Industry Advisory Council. This experience provided her with in-depth knowledge of the challenges the industry faces in building consensus on issues such as what terminology should be used and how to best educate investment professionals about sustainability issues.
As a Student Advisory Board member, Nancy is most interested in supporting the events hosted and co-hosted by the CRB, specifically the annual Berkeley Sustainable Business & Investment Forum (BSBIF), and the ongoing Peterson Speaker Series. She is also interested in supporting the research initiatives of the CRB, the Moskowitz Research Prize and the Investment for Impact Research Prize.
Amberlyn Saw (Undergraduate Class of 2020)
As a double major in business administration and molecular environmental biology, Amberlyn brings a distinct perspective to the CRB. Her business education has provided her with knowledge on how to navigate the business realm, while her biology courses weave a narrative on the ecological footprint of business on the world.
Amberlyn is eager to share her passions for sustainable business practices and workplace equality with the Haas community. As a member of the Student Advisory Board, Amberlyn aims to serve as the liaison between the CRB and the Haas Undergraduate program in order to build a greater emphasis on social impact and sustainability into the undergraduate curriculum and to engage more undergraduates in CRB initiatives. She hopes the Board will provide a community of people who also care about creating impact and allow her to give back to her peers by expanding the opportunities for undergraduates to integrate social impact into their Haas experience.
Tiffany Tran (FT MBA Class of 2020)
Tiffany’s exposure to the CRB began when she was a UC Berkeley undergrad and co-hosted an event with the CRB. She had the opportunity to interact with CRB staff, CSR professionals from companies such as Annie’s and Levi’s, and students passionate about challenging the status quo. It was at this event, where she recognized the CRB’s unique ability to build sustainability into the MBA curriculum and foster a strong environment for mission-driven professionals and students.
Before Haas, Tiffany spent the last 4.5 years working as a corporate sustainability strategist at Annie’s and hopes to be a source of information and inspiration for those interested in driving positive environmental change. In her previous role, she educated business leaders on the importance of sustainability in areas such as sustainable sourcing and climate change and led several sustainable supply chain initiatives, including efficiency projects and packaging renovations that reduced the company’s greenhouse gas emissions.
When considering business schools, it was very important to Tiffany that she attend a school that had sustainability integrated into the student experience and access to this type of network. She is most interested in getting involved with the sustainable food programming that the CRB offers. Haas is continually being recognized as a school that fosters a hub of food entrepreneurs and she hopes to play a part in growing that recognition.
Riely White (FT MBA Class of 2020)
Before coming to Haas, Riely worked as a nonprofit consultant where he was exposed to the profound impact of philanthropy. He managed a fundraising campaign for curriculum delivery to 25 million students and developed the strategy for a fundraising initiative that will protect 500,000 acres of pristine landscapes. Though these projects were transformative, Riely also saw how uncertainty of funding and unsustainable revenue streams made it challenging for organizations to achieve long-term goals and large-scale impact.
Riely came to Haas to explore how businesses could be a force for good. He is deeply interested in the intricacies of business model design that allow a company to achieve social and environmental impact while making a profit. He looks forward to learning more about B Corp certification and exploring companies like Patagonia and others that are at the leading edge of responsible business. He is also interested in examining how companies like Salesforce use their product and company resources to create impact at scale and wants to learn how existing companies, like Nike, incorporate responsible business practices into pre-existing and well-defined business models.
