The Western New York Sustainable Business Roundtable (SBR) is a collaborative group of 70+ member organizations across our region that are demonstrating how to integrate sustainability into their organizations to benefit staff, the environment, and their bottom line. Our business leaders across industries and in both public and private companies are optimizing use of energy and materials, reducing waste and pollution, and enhancing community investment.

By leveraging the collective knowledge and lessons learned from our member organizations, along with sustainability subject matter experts across our network, we offer advice and inspiration, along with access to tools that help reduce risk and advance sustainability.

Press releases & articles

May, 2021

Press Release May 5th, 2021 Awardee Announcement.

April, 2021

Press Release April 20th, 2021 Summit Speaker Announcement.

SRR’s Annual Report 2020

Article in Buffalo Spree, published March 29th, 2021: The Business Case for Sustainability.

November, 2020

SBR’s Year in Review: Goodbye 2020, Hello 2021.

September, 2020

Article in Buffalo Rising, published September 1st, 2020. Press Release September 8th, 2020 Summit Speaker Announcement.

August, 2020

The Virtual Western New York Sustainable Business Roundtable (SBR) Summit 2020 Brings Together Regional and National Business Leaders To Share Best Sustainable Business Practices. Press Release August 31st, 2020 Awardee Announcement.

March, 2020

We want to acknowledge all our members who are stepping up to respond to this crisis, producing ventilator and PPE gear. Read more about their efforts in this article: Essential Business Leadership. Thank you for all you do!

Mission, Vision, Value

Our Mission

The mission of SBR is to foster collaboration that enables our member businesses to create, build and act on sustainability goals, grow prosperity, and promote healthy communities.

Our Vision

Our vision is to grow and support an environmentally and economically resilient community that prioritizes the well-being of current and future generations.

Value Proposition

By leveraging the collective knowledge of a diverse business pool, SBR offers members practical advice, inspiration, and access to tools that can be implemented to reduce environmental impact while achieving economic gain and risk reduction. We provide leadership to create competitive advantage and contribute to a thriving, sustainable future for the Western New York region.

Board of Directors

“In 2015, I made a career move into Environmental Health & Safety. As a department of one, I needed local resources to learn from and share best-practices with. I am thankful to have found the SBR. The SBR has connected Harmac with many companies and amazing people that are willing to share their journey and knowledge. These connections have been invaluable.” Kris Ann Bolt, Harmac Medical Products

Stephanie Tisdale

SBR President

Senior Vice President, Strategic Initiatives Expert

M&T Bank

Willems Ransom, AIA

SBR Vice President

Principle

McCallum Sather Architects

Bonnie Lawrence

Deputy Commissioner

Erie County Department of Environment and Planning*

Nira Johri

Vice President, Global Inclusion & Sustainability

Rich Products

Anna Attea

Sustainability Program Manager

Life Storage, Inc.

Ryan McPherson

Chief Sustainability Officer

University at Buffalo*

Sarah Quintal

Senior Consultant, Sustainability, Energy and Climate Change

WSP

Jennifer Brazill

Co-Founder and Owner

Borderland Music Festival

Patrick Goraj

Director of Facilities and Engineering

Catholic Health

* Erie County and University at Buffalo hold permanent seats.

Acknowledgements

We’d like to extend our appreciation to the following individuals for serving on the steering committee during the development of SBR.

Eric Lindstrom, CannonDesign
Deb Gondek, Rich Products
Jeff Oliver, McCullagh Coffee
Mark Casell, Siemens Industry US
Thomas R. Hersey Jr., Erie County
Andrew Goldstein, Erie County
Mark Shriver, Curbell

Staff

Alexandra Holland

Executive Director

SBR

Brenna Reilly

Program Coordinator

SBR

Alexandra holds a PhD from the University of Bristol, England, where she studied the impacts of climate change in the Arctic, with a particular focus on the melt rate of the Greenland Ice Sheet. After finishing her degree, Alex desired a more hands on approach to tackling climate change and recognized that businesses have a key role to play in forwarding innovation and solutions. She relocated back home to Buffalo, where she began volunteering as SBR’s first Fellow. Alexandra worked directly with SBR’s previous executive director, becoming fully immersed in all aspects of the organization. Alexandra also co-leads Erie County’s Community Climate Action Plan Nature Based Solutions working group.

Email her at: alex@wnysustainablebusiness.org

Brenna Reilly is a recent graduate of the University at Buffalo School of Architecture & Planning, having earned both her Master in Architecture, as well as Master in Planning with an Advanced Certificate in Historic Preservation. While at UB, Brenna worked in the Resilient Buildings Lab where she researched the impacts of a changing climate on the social and physical aspects of the Great Lakes Region, while also interning at KTA Preservation. This has given her a unique multidisciplinary approach to climate mitigation. Currently Brenna is part of the Olmsted Park’s YPOP class of 2022, and continues to consult on preservation projects.

Email her at: brenna@wnysustainablebusiness.org

History

Earth Day 2014: SBR was kicked off with 35 founding member businesses after months of behind-the-scenes planning. 6 months later the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced award of a grant to Empire State Development and Erie County to fund a staff person for two years to assist the steering committee.

March 26, 2015: Members adopted Bylaws and elected our first Board of Directors.

In 2015, SBR launched the Sustainable Business EXPO, which transformed into our annual signature event, the Sustainable Business Summit.

In 2018 SBR implemented membership dues. In addition to a more diversified funding strategy, this enabled SBR to hire a full-time coordinator in 2019 to better advance SBR’s mission and vision on behalf of our members.

In 2020 the Board of Directors approved our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Policy that commits to a nondiscriminatory approach and provide equal opportunity for employment and advancement in all aspects of our programming. It also outlines action items that SBR is committed to to help promote diversity and inclusion in our workplace and the sustainable business community we serve.

In June 2021, SBR’s Board of Directors presented a Strategic Plan Summary to the membership.