Women We Admire is pleased to announce The Top 25 Women Chief Sustainability Officers of 2024. Over the last decade, corporations, nonprofits, and other organizations have increasingly demonstrated their commitment to sustainable practices and social responsibility by adding the role of Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) to the C-suite. The CSO plays a crucial role in overseeing all aspects of sustainability within an organization, driving initiatives, setting goals, and ensuring that environmental preservation remains a top priority.
Among this year’s honorees is Jennifer Silberman, Senior Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer of Dollar Tree Stores. With over 25 years of experience as a senior global executive, Silberman has a proven track record of turning complex challenges into impactful sustainability programs. Her expertise in corporate responsibility and sustainability has been key in driving initiatives that enhance business value and brand reputation across Dollar Tree's expansive operations.
Next, we honor Kristen Siemen, Vice President of Sustainable Workplaces and Chief Sustainability Officer at General Motors. In this role, Siemen leads the company’s vision of a future with zero crashes, zero emissions, and zero congestion, while also driving its commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2040.
Finally, we congratulate Paulette Frank, Chief Sustainability Officer at Johnson & Johnson, the world’s largest and most broadly based healthcare company. Under Frank’s leadership, J&J launched ambitious climate goals in September 2020, which will accelerate the company’s transition to 100% renewable electricity and carbon neutrality for its operations.
Please join us in celebrating the accomplishments of The Top 25 Women Chief Sustainability Officers of 2024.
1. Nira Johri
Chief Sustainability Officer, KFC
Nira Johri is the Chief Sustainability Officer of KFC. She first joined the company in 2023. KFC is an iconic brand that has been making world-famous fried chicken since 1952, now serving chicken and delighting customers at more than 28,000 restaurants in 150 countries and territories around the world.
Johri is a sustainability executive with over 20 years of experience leading transformational, global strategies, and has dedicated more than 10 years to enhancing the value that big food companies can generate through sustainability. She is passionate about delivering impact in organizations, where inclusion and sustainability are fundamental parts of doing business. Johri is adept at developing and implementing enterprise-wide strategy, engaging stakeholders at all levels, and influencing without authority. She is a self-starter who is inspired by challenging learning environments and innovative workplaces.
Previously, Johri was a vice president of global inclusion and sustainability at Rich Products Corporation. Before that, she was a senior director of sustainability strategy and learning at the World Cocoa Foundation. Earlier in her career, she worked with Jack Morton Worldwide as a strategic planner and account manager. Johri earned an MBA in Beyond Profit from the University of Cambridge and an undergraduate degree in marketing government and politics from the University of Maryland.
2. Jennifer Silberman
SVP & Chief Sustainability Officer, Dollar Tree Stores
Jennifer Silberman is the Senior Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer of Dollar Tree Stores. Dollar Tree operates more than 8,000 stores and 25 distribution centers across 48 contiguous US states and five Canadian provinces.
Silberman is a senior global executive with more than 25 years of diverse experience leveraging corporate responsibility, sustainability, advocacy, and communications to generate business and brand value. She is a passionate and purpose-driven leader who thrives in fast-paced environments demanding strong strategic, communication, and interpersonal skills. She has a proven record of developing and driving innovative global multi-brand programs, transforming complex global issues into solutions with maximum impact, influencing change at all organizational levels, and implementing initiatives across different cultures and languages in diverse corporate environments.
Before joining Dollar Tree Stores, Silberman was a VP of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) at YETI. Before that, she was a founder and president at Creative Disruption, Inc. Earlier in her career, she worked with Issue Dynamics as an associate. Silberman graduated from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) with a Master’s degree in International Economics and Latin American Studies and from Mount Holyoke College with an undergraduate degree in Latin American Studies. She is trilingual in Spanish, Portuguese, and English, and she has extensive experience working closely with stakeholders and traveling to over 90 countries.
5. Paulette Frank
Chief Sustainability Officer, Johnson & Johnson
Paulette Frank is the Chief Sustainability Officer at Johnson & Johnson, the world’s largest and most broadly based healthcare company. Frank is responsible for defining J&J’s strategic direction to accelerate and amplify positive environmental impact and for identifying and supporting solutions at the intersection of human and environmental health. Under her leadership, J&J launched ambitious climate goals in September 2020, which will accelerate the company’s transition to 100% renewable electricity and carbon neutrality for its operations, while also partnering with suppliers to reduce upstream carbon emissions.
Frank has been with J&J for 25 years, and before being appointed CSO, she served as J&J’s vice president of global environmental health, safety, and sustainability. She is a member of the J&J Supply Chain Leadership Team and co-chairs the J&J Enterprise Governance Council. She is also a passionate advocate for advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion and co-chairs the Supply Chain Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council.
Frank has been working in the fields of environmental stewardship, employee health and safety, and sustainability for 30 years. She is a sought-after speaker and contributor at international workshops and conferences, providing a voice for the company’s values and long-standing commitment to help create a healthy future for people, their communities, and the planet. She was previously co-chair and continues as a member of the Center for Business and the Environment at Yale (CBEY) Advisory Board. Frank earned her Bachelor of Science in Biology from Duke University and her Master of Environmental Studies from Yale University’s School of the Environment.
6. Caroline Roan
Chief Sustainability Officer, SVP of Global Health & Social Impact & President, The Pfizer Foundation, Pfizer
Caroline Roan is the Chief Sustainability Officer, SVP of Global Health and Social Impact, and President of the Pfizer Foundation of Pfizer, celebrating 175 years of daring scientific innovation. At Pfizer, Roan has been responsible for guiding philanthropic investments, deploying disaster relief funding, overseeing colleague community engagement, and ensuring equitable access to Pfizer’s medicines and vaccines. She has helped shape Pfizer’s global health strategy, long-term public-private partnerships, and investments to improve public health systems.
In her current role, Roan oversees environmental, social, and governance (ESG) and global health work across Pfizer to help build a healthier, more prosperous, and more sustainable world for all. Together with her global team, she leverages the full scope of their resources and partnerships to advance ESG issues, ensuring better health for everyone everywhere. This includes redefining how they fight infectious diseases, efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and expanding affordable access to Pfizer's breakthrough medicines and vaccines. She also leads Pfizer's patient advocacy team, working closely with a range of external stakeholders in the research, development, and delivery of medicines and vaccines to help address patients' needs.
Before joining Pfizer, Roan worked on the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Community Health Team, which focused on promoting individual and community health by increasing social support and connection. She also served as the associate director of the Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS (CIRA) at Yale University’s Department of Epidemiology and Public Health. Roan graduated from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs with an MPA and from Earlham College with an undergraduate degree in sociology and anthropology.
9. Monica Batchelder
Chief Sustainability Officer, Hewlett Packard Enterprise
Monica Batchelder is the Chief Sustainability Officer at Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), the global edge-to-cloud company. Batchelder directs a global team at HPE and is focused on driving the business value of sustainability and solving social and environmental challenges in collaboration with key stakeholders. She guides the development and management of strategic programs and collaborates with senior leaders across the organization to ensure the integration of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) into the company’s business strategy.
Before joining HPE, Batchelder built sustainable business strategies at a boutique consulting firm in Sydney, Australia, advising multinational corporations and NGOs on corporate sustainability, collective impact, and brand purpose. She started her career in 2008 as a researcher at the Urban Ecology Institute. From there, she went on to Republic of Everyone before eventually rising to senior manager for PG&E energy solutions at Butler/Till, her most recent position before joining Hewlett Packard Enterprise.
Batchelder graduated from the University of Sydney with a Master’s in Environmental Science and Law and from Boston College with an undergraduate degree.
10. Maureen Mazurek
Chief Sustainability & EHS Officer, BD
Maureen Mazurek is the Chief Sustainability and EHS Officer of BD. She first joined the company in 2021. BD is one of the largest global medical technology companies and is advancing the world of health by improving medical discovery, diagnostics, and the delivery of care.
Mazurek has a record of success in developing and leading multistakeholder strategies, partnerships, and collaborations for social and environmental impact at scale. She has expertise in contract negotiations, program strategy and planning, relationship and activation management, community relations, corporate responsibility, environmental affairs, communications, and issues management.
Previously, Mazurek was a senior vice president of sustainability and ESG strategy at FleishmanHillard. Before that, she was a vice president of communications at NewLeaf Symbiotics, Inc. Earlier in her career, she worked with GE as a purchasing agent. Mazurek earned an MBA in Marketing and Marketing Management from Tulane University and an undergraduate degree in manufacturing engineering and supply chain management from Bowling Green State University.
13. Nurit Katz
Chief Sustainability Officer, UCLA
Nurit Katz is an educator and sustainability professional who cares deeply about creating a sustainable, resilient, and healthy region for all Angelenos. As Chief Sustainability Officer for UCLA, Katz led the development of the university’s first comprehensive sustainability plan and fostered collaboration across the leading public university to advance sustainability through education, research, operations, and community partnerships. UCLA offers a rare combination, especially among public research universities.
Katz has over 15 years of teaching experience and is an instructor for the UCLA Extension Sustainability Certificate Program. She has also taught for the UCLA Institute of Environment and Sustainability and before UCLA worked in environmental and outdoor education. She currently serves as commissioner for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP). She has served in several public sector and nonprofit advisory capacities, including on the LA 100 Advisory Group, the Los Angeles County Climate Vulnerability Assessment Technical Advisory Committee, and the Resilient Infrastructure Working Group for Resilient LA. She currently serves on the Biodiversity Expert Council for the City of Los Angeles and the Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Areas Steering Committee.
Katz holds an MBA and a Masters in Public Policy from UCLA and a BA in Environmental Education from Humboldt State University. She is currently pursuing a PhD in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UCLA and is a trainee in the National Science Foundation Research Traineeship (NRT) Innovation at the Nexus of Food, Energy, and Water Systems (INFEWS) program.
View the complete list of awardees.
15. Jess Bissey
Managing Director & Chief Sustainability Officer, AEW
Jess Bissey is a Managing Director of AEW and the firm’s Chief Sustainability Officer. She is responsible for overseeing the evolution of AEW's sustainability efforts across the firm. At AEW, she implements innovative systems, enhances responsible transparency, and fosters the exploration and adoption of best practices, while leading a team of subject matter experts for the firm’s operating partners, investors, property managers, and other vendors.
Bissey brings with her extensive experience in guiding and advising companies on sustainability, governance, social impact, and transformational change, recognizing these initiatives can reduce operating costs and enhance the overall performance of their portfolios to align with their investors’ investment objectives and goals. In her most recent position before AEW, Bissey was the director of ESG at Booz Allen Hamilton, where she launched and led an enterprise-wide ESG function and was responsible for establishing a data-driven, integrated approach to corporate sustainability, reporting, and stakeholder engagement. While at Booz Allen, she also served as associate general counsel and assistant secretary.
Previously, Bissey was the deputy chair of the Social Enterprise and Impact Investing Practice Group at the global law firm, Morrison & Foerster LLP, and practiced corporate law at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP. Bissey has a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law and a BA from Cornell University.
16. Jennifer Field
Chief Sustainability Officer, Henry Schein
Jennifer Field is the Chief Sustainability Officer for Henry Schein, Inc., the world's largest provider of solutions for healthcare professionals. Field brings over 25 years of experience to Henry Schein in the areas of business development, program management, strategic planning, corporate philanthropy, and strategic partnerships. She is responsible for the company's global environmental, social, and governance (ESG) work and for integrating ESG into the company's strategies and activities.
Field collaborates with the board of directors, the Sustainability Committee, and key business teams, such as investor relations, supply chain, finance, legal, human resources, global data organization, and corporate communications, as well as external partners to develop a global climate roadmap, including carbon reduction goals, ensure their progress and performance meet evolving global auditing and regulatory requirements, and attract new investors focused on corporate sustainability. She oversees the Henry Schein Cares team and program focused on advancing wellness, building capacity in the delivery of healthcare services, and assisting in emergency preparedness and relief for at-risk and underserved populations globally.
Before joining Henry Schein, Field worked at the United Nations Foundation, where she led public-private partnerships with Fortune 500 companies in support of the UN. She also oversaw the launch of the Girl Up campaign, a global movement of empowered young women leaders who defend gender equality. Field is on the board of the Eastman Dental Center Foundation, co-chair of the American Dental Association's National Advisory Committee for Smile at Kids, and chair of the Corporate Citizenship Leadership Council of The Conference Board. She serves on the advisory council for the Women's Philanthropy Institute at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University and the Northeast Council for MedShare. Field graduated from Bowdoin College. She hails from Alabama, where she acquired a taste for grits and fried catfish and now lives on Long Island with her husband and two young children.
19. Kristina Wyatt
Deputy GC & Chief Sustainability Officer, Persefoni
Kristina Wyatt serves as Deputy General Counsel and Chief Sustainability Officer at Persefoni, a leading carbon management and accounting SAAS software company. She previously served as the senior counsel for climate and ESG at the US Securities and Exchange Commission, where she led the drafting of proposed rules related to climate change disclosures. Before joining the SEC, she was a senior counsel and director of sustainability at Latham & Watkins LLP, where she developed and built the firm’s sustainability program, co-chaired its ESG practice, and was a member of the firm’s ESG Steering Committee.
Wyatt is a noted author, lecturer, and advisor. She has spoken globally at events throughout the world, including with Harvard Business School, Yale School of Management, COP27 in Sharm el Sheik, Egypt, World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), Council of Institutional Investors (CII), Morgan Stanley Climate Disclosure Summit, Financial Executives International (FEI), Deloitte Natural Capital Conference, UN Principles for Responsible Investing, Senate Banking Committee Staff Briefing Panel, NYC Bar Association, American Bar Association, US-Sweden ESG Fintech and Innovation Roundtable, Stanford Sustainable Finance, and Investment Forum, Fortune Investment Initiative, WSJ CFO Summit, Environment, and Energy Leadership Summit, B7 Summit (Business Community of G7), Oxford Sustainable Finance Summit, Society for Corporate Governance, National Academy of Sciences, Earth X Dallas, GreenBiz, National Investor Relations Institute, and Google Food Lab.
Wyatt holds a BA from Duke University, a JD from the University of Colorado, and an MBA in Sustainability from Yale University. She is a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors, the Paul, Weiss Rifkind ESG and Law Institute’s Sustainability Advisory Board, the Persefoni Sustainability Advisory Board, and the Association of Corporate Counsel’s ESG Steering Committee. She previously served on the boards of Robin Song Productions and the St. Francis Episcopal Day School. Wyatt was named to the 2023 NACD Directorship 100 in the Governance Professionals category.
20. Margaret Lo
Chief Sustainability Officer, Ball State University
Margaret Lo is the Chief Sustainability Officer of Ball State University. In this position, Lo is responsible for implementing a University-wide centralized sustainability organizational structure, focusing on educating, nurturing, and promoting sustained collaboration across all academic and operational units.
Lo was most recently the director of business engagement at the Institute for Market Transformation. She has over 15 years of sustainability experience in the private, nonprofit, and academic sectors. Her higher education experience includes positions as the sustainability director at George Mason University (Mason) and the sustainability lead at the University of Central Florida (UCF). While at Mason and UCF, Lo directed high-impact sustainability initiatives, including infrastructure improvements; marketing and communications campaigns for behavioral change, signature events, and volunteer days; and the creation of a university Climate Action Plan, energy and recycling policies, green building standards, and sustainable procurement guidelines.
Lo’s professional experience in sustainability and conservation also includes roles at ICF, where she served as a senior manager of commercial energy efficiency, and at The Nature Conservancy, where she served as corporate partnerships manager to Fortune 500 companies. Lo earned her Master of Business Administration from the University of Michigan and her Bachelor’s degree in Management from the State University of New York at Binghamton. She also earned certifications in Sustainability in Existing Buildings, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), and Leadership Coaching in Organizational Performance.
23. Leslie Hyde
SVP & Chief Sustainability Officer, Koppers Inc.
Leslie Hyde is the Senior Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer for Koppers. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Koppers is a global wood preservation technology company that creates safe and environmentally responsible solutions to solve their customer’s most important challenges. Hyde is responsible for driving global sustainability initiatives while advancing the company’s strategic vision for the future. She also leads the enterprise risk management and product stewardship functions. Hyde joined Koppers in 1999 and most recently served as vice president of corporate strategy and risk management for Koppers in 2019. Before that, she was the vice president of risk management and deputy general counsel from 2016 to 2017. Among her many accomplishments, she developed a Global Enterprise Risk Management System for the company and assumed responsibility for Product Stewardship.
Previously, Hyde held the role of vice president of safety, health, and environmental affairs, progressing from manager of environmental affairs, for a combined total of 16 years. In this capacity, she developed and implemented the compliance and management systems that were instrumental in advancing the company’s Environmental, Health, and Safety practices, culminating in achieving certifications for the ISO14001 standard in 2003 and the Responsible Care Management System in 2015. Hyde championed a broad spectrum of sustainability concepts, encompassing environmental, social, and governance topics, as well as published the company’s first Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Compliant Sustainability Report in 2013. Additionally, she introduced several community initiatives at Koppers, including Community Advisory Panels at manufacturing locations and the Koppers Cares employee volunteer program.
Hyde earned a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from the United States Military Academy, an MBA from Golden Gate University, and a JD from Duquesne University. She currently serves on the board of directors for the Pittsburgh CLO.
25. Bridgette Miller
Chief Marketing & Sustainability Officer, Melissa & Doug, LLC
Bridgette Miller is the Chief Marketing and Sustainability Officer of Melissa & Doug, LLC. Since the company’s founding 30 years ago, Melissa & Doug has consistently delivered innovative products that inspire open-ended thinking and encourage kids to see new possibilities.
Miller is a dynamic and results-driven marketing executive with a strong track record in the consumer-packaged goods (CPG) industry. With over six years of experience in marketing leadership roles, she specializes in developing and executing strategic marketing initiatives that drive growth and enhance brand presence. Key highlights of her career include playing a pivotal role in the successful transaction of two private equity-owned companies. Her expertise spans innovation, P&L management, and extensive experience in direct-to-consumer (D2C) and e-commerce, particularly with Amazon. She excels at leveraging digital platforms to optimize product visibility, enhance customer engagement, and drive sales growth.
Miller started her career in 2002 as an associate brand manager at Kao Brands. From there, she went on to Parfums de Coeur, before eventually rising to head of marketing for NA beauty at Henkel, her most recent position before joining Melissa & Doug, LLC. Miller graduated from Post University with an undergraduate degree in marketing.
View the complete list of awardees.