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John Friedman

John Friedman is Managing Director - ESG & Sustainability at Grant Thornton LLP. Prior to that, he led Sustainability at WGL, and headed corporate responsibility communications for Sodexo Worldwide.

John is an award-winning communications professional and internationally recognized sustainability expert with more than 25 years' experience in internal and external communications and a decade in the areas of corporate responsibility and sustainability. His background includes developing and implementing effective and award-winning programs that maximize stakeholder engagement, community relations, organizational development, change management, and strategic philanthropy.

John has helped companies ranging from small companies to global enterprises to live their values and tell their authentic stories; enhancing their ability to increase prosperity while being protective or restorative to the environment and enhancing the human condition. @JohnFriedman on twitter, John has been recognized by Triple Pundit (#2), the Guardian (#14) and Fast Company's Brandfog blog as a 'leading voice' in sustainability; his insights are regular features on Huffington Post, CSRWire's Talkback and ‘Sound Living with John Friedman’ on EcoPlanetRadio.

An Albany State (New York) communications graduate, John earned a management certificate as part of the Lafarge/Duke Management Training program at the Fuqua School of Business in 2000. He makes his home in the Washington, DC suburbs.

John Friedman is tagged in 6 assets.
Article
Lessons from a Very Difficult Year

Life presents us with opportunities to learn lessons every day; whether we choose to take the lessons to heart is up to us. 2020 has provided exceptional opportunities for learning by forcing us to face exceptionally difficult circumstances. ... View More

Article
Bright Ideas Will Usher in the Clean Energy Future

A clean energy future will require innovation and creativity, including an increase in investment in high-efficiency energy solutions. But once we eliminate the kinks — and the misconceptions — it is a bright future. ... View More

Article
Passion Fruit: Growing a Farm into a Climate-Beneficial Enterprise

Many farmers avoid wasting excess fruit by turning it into animal feed, but Sidehill Farm has found much more delicious solutions. ... View More

Article
¿'Pura Vida' Es una Vida Sostenible?

News stories that praise Costa Rica’s use of ‘100 percent renewable energy’ for a growing number of days on end are focusing on the fact that the nation laudably generates a great deal (and sometimes all) of its electricity from wind, solar, hy... View More

Article
Thought Leadership Is Overrated

My first problem with so many people focusing on “thought leadership” is the myriad of people (and organizations) who confer the title on themselves — rather than understanding that, to be a thought leader, one must be considered such by others... View More

Article
The Year in Review: Sustainability Leaders Raise the Bar Rather Than Toe the Line

While in the past I have written summaries that looked back on accomplishments and challenges in sustainable development over the last 12 months, this year, I’ve decided to take a different approach. Instead, on the heels of COP22, I asked sustaina... View More

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