Climate Action and Business Leadership in Georgia: Drawdown Georgia Business Compact Launch Event

Chapters

00:00 Welcome and Introducing the Business Compact 

02:38 Michael Oxman: The Compact’s Founding Members and Mission 

04:52 Dean Maryam Alavi Introduces the Panel 

08:01 Meet the Panelists: Goodr, Norfolk Southern, Better Earth, and Google 

14:09 How Each Company Is Committing to Carbon Reduction 

21:15 Where Collaboration and Innovation Can Have the Biggest Impact 

31:16 Making Equity Central to Climate Action 

37:10 Audience Q&A: 2022 Priorities and Policy Engagement 

49:56 Audience Q&A: Fighting Greenwashing and Building Trust 

53:27 Closing Thoughts and Upcoming Events

As the one-year anniversary of Drawdown Georgia approached, the Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business at Georgia Tech launched the Drawdown Georgia Business Compact, the first regional business compact in the U.S. focused on climate action.

In this launch event, Dean Maryam Alavi moderates a panel with representatives from Goodr, Norfolk Southern, Better Earth, and Google, exploring how Georgia businesses of every size are already committing to carbon reduction, collaboration, and equity as founding members of the Compact.

Meet the Compact’s Founding Companies

Beril Toktay and Michael Oxman of the Ray C. Anderson Center introduce the Business Compact’s mission and its 16 founding member companies, before Dean Maryam Alavi introduces panelists from Goodr, Norfolk Southern, Better Earth, and Google.

How Are These Companies Actually Cutting Carbon?

Each panelist shares concrete steps already underway, from Goodr’s nationwide food donation network to Norfolk Southern’s fuel efficiency targets, Better Earth’s domestic compostable packaging manufacturing, and Google’s push toward 24/7 carbon-free energy by 2030.

Where Collaboration Can Move the Needle

The panel explores where the Compact could have its biggest impact, from EV infrastructure and large-scale solar to giving customers better tools to understand and reduce their own supply chain emissions.

Why Equity Has to Be Part of the Climate Conversation

Panelists discuss why equity can’t be separate from climate action, sharing how their own companies are building diverse teams and directing investment toward historically underserved communities.

Your Questions, Answered

The panel closes with an extended audience Q&A covering 2022 priorities, how companies are engaging with federal and state policymakers, emerging legislation on food waste and packaging, and practical advice for spotting greenwashing.

What You’ll Learn

• What the Drawdown Georgia Business Compact is, and which companies joined as founding members.
• How four very different Georgia companies are approaching carbon reduction in practice.
• Why equity is treated as central to climate action, not separate from it.
• What emerging state and federal legislation could mean for businesses working on sustainability.
• How to spot greenwashing, and why terms like “compostable” carry more weight than “biodegradable.”

Continue reading in our companion blog for more on the Drawdown Georgia Business Compact and its founding member companies.

Download the Interview Transcript

Prefer to read the conversation instead? Download the complete transcript of this event to explore the panelists’ full remarks and audience Q&A.