From the Spokane River to Our Common Planet: Turning Local Stories into Global Impact

About This Event

Are our universities reinforcing elitism – or overcoming class divisions?
Are our universities overlay politicized – or not engaged enough?
Are our universities agents of capitalism – or catalysts for a better society?

These are questions that every higher ed institution, including Gonzaga, continue to be asked. The role that universities play in addressing issues surrounding climate change, sustainability initiatives, and social inequities remains undefined and on April 8, expert in sustainability and integrated value, Dr. Wayne Visser, and Isabel Braga da Cruz will share their insights and perspectives on how Catholic Universities are drivers of social impact.

About the Speakers

Wayne Visser

Dr Wayne Visser is a global renowned practical academic in sustainable and regenerative business, innovation and leadership. He is a Professor of Practice at Católica Porto Business School, where he is Director of the Católica Centre for Thriving Futures and holds the GALP Chair in Regenerative Business, Innovation and Technology. He is also a Fellow and Head Program Instructor at the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership.

Dr Visser’s work has taken him to over 80 countries to work with over 250 clients. He previously served as Director of Sustainability Services for KPMG and Strategy Analyst for Capgemini in South Africa, and Vice President of Sustainability for Omnex in the USA. He is the author of 44 books, including the international bestseller Thriving. He has also published over 400 chapters, articles and reports and been a guest columnist for The Huffington Post, The Guardian and the World Economic Forum.

Dr Visser is Director of Kaleidoscope Futures, through which he co-produced and presented the award-winning documentary film on the circular economy called Closing the Loop. In addition, he is Founder of CSR International and Board Member of the Globally Responsible Leadership Initiative (GRLI).

Dr Visser has been listed as one of the world’s top 10 ESG speakers, top 10 most influential faculty thinkers on issues of responsible business in social media, and top 100 thought-leaders in trustworthy business. He is also the recipient of the Global CSR Excellence & Leadership Award, and the Emerald Literati Outstanding Author Contribution Award.

Isabel Braga da Cruz

Isabel Braga da Cruz is the President of the Regional Center of Porto at Universidade Católica Portuguesa, where she is also an Associate Professor at the School of Biotechnology (2017). She was reappointed as pro-rector for the Porto Campus, taking on the theme of "Sustainability". Leading the Porto Regional Centre of Universidade Católica Portuguesa since 2017, she has embraced social responsibility, sustainability, and infrastructure improvement as her pillars of action in recent years and for the future. Engineer by training and Católica's alumna, she states that she is pragmatic and that her work “is always teamwork.”

She holds a B.Sc. in Food Engineering from School of Biotechnology of Universidade Católica Portuguesa (1994) and a Ph.D. in Food Science and Engineering in the area of Biotechnology from Universidade Católica Portuguesa (2006). Throughout her career, Isabel has fostered numerous collaborations between industry and academia, promoting and developing technology transfer and R&D projects to seize market and technological opportunities. In her previous roles as Executive Director and Knowledge Director at PortugalFoods, Isabel dedicated her energy to leveraging knowledge as a stimulus to innovation. Isabel also took active roles in key international expansion initiatives for the Portuguese Agro-food industry, with a focus on emerging markets (2010-2016). As an entrepreneur, Isabel is founder and partner at Wedotech (2006) and Wedoeko (2015).