Meet Julia Silberman

Posted on May 9, 2017 by Hank Boerner – Chair & Chief Strategist

#Business & Society #Corporate Citizenship #Corporate Responsibility #Corporate Sustainability #Sustainability Professionals 

Joining Outstanding Faculty for Spring CSR Certificate Course
At Rutgers University – May 16th and 17th at Business School
On May 16th and 17th, the Rutgers Institute for Ethical Leadership and Governance & Accountability Institute present the Spring 2017 CSR Certificate Program for corporate managers, not-for-profit and foundation managers, and others interested in career opportunities and advancement in the fields of Corporate Social Responsibility (“CSR”), Corporate Citizenship, Corporate Sustainability, Philanthropy, Risk Management, Ethics, and related positions.
An outstanding faculty of professionals from leading CSR and sustainable investment organizations will lead the interactive discussions which are a feature of the course.   For information about the course and to register, visit: 
Meet one of your hosts and course leaders:
Julia Silberman
Sector Lead, Disclosure Services, CDP – the Global Environmental Reporting System
Topic:  “CDP Global Environmental Reporting System”

A conversation with Julia:
Q:  How is your day-to-day work related to the CSR Certificate Program?
[JS]  Environmental reporting is a fundamental component of corporate social responsibility. Disclosure through CDP, the largest global environmental reporting platform, allows companies across all sectors to learn from best practices in environmental management, benchmark performance against their peers, and communicate their sustainability work to a wide variety of stakeholders.
In addition to communicating environmental resource management information to requesting investors and customers in a standardized and comparable format, data disclosed through CDP is publicly disseminated through annual reports and analyses, allowing companies who participate to be widely recognized for their commitments to sustainability.  
In my day-to-day work, I am in touch with representatives from a wide variety of corporate departments that deal with CSR, ranging from investor relations, to procurement, to corporate communications. I work directly with large, influential North American companies to facilitate disclosure through CDP, and encourage the adoption of best practices in environmental management and reporting.  
Q:  What can attendees expect to learn from your session?
[JS]  CDP is an international non-profit that runs the largest global disclosure platform for investors, companies, cities, states and regions to manage their environmental impacts. Join this session to learn more about the most comprehensive collection of self-reported environmental data in the world, and how your organization can (or already does!) work with CDP.
You’ll discover how some of the world’s largest organizations provide information annually on climate-related risk, water stewardship, and commodities linked to deforestation; how companies drive sustainability in their supply chains through the power of disclosure; and how investors use CDP data to make more informed environmental decisions. 
Q:  What advice do you have or opportunity that you see for attendees who complete the CSR Certificate Program?
(JS)  In 2016, 800+ institutional investors representing over $100 trillion in assets requested information through CDP’s programs. In addition, over 5,800 companies, including 70% of the S&P 500, disclosed on their environmental management through CDP. The growing scale of CDP’s corporate participation demonstrates that investors, companies and other stakeholders, recognize that climate change, water scarcity, and deforestation are significant, long-term business risks.
Transitioning to a low-carbon economy is a global challenge – but also an opportunity for individuals and companies to capitalize on this momentum, and contribute to this transformation. 
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Career Background:  Julia Silberman – Sector Lead, Disclosure Services, CDP
CDP, formerly Carbon Disclosure Project, is a premier global environmental reporting system.
As a Sector Lead on CDP’s Disclosure Services Team, Julia leads corporate engagement with North American companies in the consumer discretionary, consumer staples, information technology, and telecom sectors who respond to CDP’s climate change, water, and forests programs.
In this role, she works with companies to support first time responses to CDP programs, share best practices in environmental management and disclosure, and highlight leadership opportunities.
Prior to joining CDP, Julia worked as the Marketing Director for a sustainability software startup.
Julia earned a B.A. in political science from Tufts University.
The course is hosted at Rutgers University Business School in Newark, New Jersey (easily reached by train from Newark’s Penn Station from New York City, Philadelphia and parts of New Jersey, and convenient to Newark International Airport).
For information about the course and to register, visit: