2024 begins with climate action at the State House and networking opportunities...
– REGISTER NOW! –
Businesses for Climate Action Lobby Day Thursday, February 1
If you want to make a difference on climate change, bringing your voice to the State House is one of the most impactful things you can do.
VBSR, Champion Members Seventh Generation and SunCommon, and VPIRG will host the annual Businesses for Climate Action Lobby Day at the Vermont Statehouse on Thursday, February 1 in Montpelier.
Burton participants in the 2023 Businesses for Climate Action Lobby Day celebrate a productive day outside the State House in Montpelier.
The day will include a morning press conference, coordinated meetings with legislators, climate-focused professional development, and a Networking Meetup.
Stay for some, stay for all - but most importantly: get involved! Many Vermonters are craving ways to get involved on this issue and this day is a perfect opportunity for anyone and everyone to plug in.
Who's already committed to having their voices heard in Montpelier on February 1? Registrants include representatives from Burton, Capstone Community Action, Danforth Pewter, Encore Renewable Energy, Lawson's Finest Liquids, Norwich Solar, SunCommon, Ursa Major, and Vermont Green FC.
Join these committed organizations and more on February 1!
Vermont Green FC participants in the 2023 Businesses for Climate Action Lobby Day celebrate a productive day outside the State House in Montpelier.
2024 Businesses for Climate Action Lobby Day When: Thursday, February 1, 9:30 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. (join for some or all)
9:30 - 10:30 a.m. | Issue briefing and advocacy training
11:00 - 11:30 a.m. | Press conference
11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. | Coordinated meetings with legislators
1:00 - 4:00 p.m. | Climate-focused professional development
4:00 - 6:00 p.m. | Networking Meetup at Three Penny Taproom
Location: Various locations around the State House in Montpelier Cost: FREE and open to the public
Whether you want to join for some or all of the day – or if your organization is interested in donating food, transportation, or funds to support the Businesses for Climate Action Lobby Day, please click on the link below to get engaged.
Networking Get-Together at
Lawson's Finest Liquids Thursday, January 25
Help us kick off 2024 in Waitsfield for our first VBSR Networking Get-Together of the year – Lawson's Finest Liquids taproom beckons!
This is a great opportunity to catch up with colleagues, make new connections, gain new ideas and inspiration, and have some fun. This event is open to everyone interested in working toward a just, thriving, and transformative economy that works for all people and the planet.
Our hosts will provide free finger foods for attendees, including gluten free and vegan options. You will also have plenty of beverage options including beer, wine, and other non-alcoholic options such as seltzer, tea, and mapleade!
VBSR Networking Get-Together at Lawson’s Finest Liquids When: Thursday, January 25, 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Location: Lawson's Finest Taproom, 155 Carroll Road, Waitsfield, VT 05673 Cost: VBSR Members free; $25 for nonmembers
Special thanks to our host, Lawson's Finest Liquids, and our sponsors, Hagan, Let's Grow Kids, and Open Approach!
2024 Forecast: What Can We Expect
for Purpose-Driven Businesses? Thursday, February 8
Participants arrive at the 2023 VBSR/SI-MBA program at Kalkin Hall.
We can't wait to welcome you back to the UVM campus for another engaging evening of food, drinks, and inspiration!
Join VBSR and The University of Vermont – Grossman School of Business Sustainable Innovation MBA (SI-MBA) program as we network and connect while social responsibility experts share their mission-driven projections for the year – for Talent, People and Culture, ESG, Climate Resiliency, Supply Chain, and more.
The "2024 Forecast: What Can We Expect for Purpose-Driven Businesses?" panel promises to be a robust way to ground your organization in best practices as the year begins.
2024 Forecast: What Can We Expect for Purpose-Driven Businesses? When: Thursday, February 8, 5:00 - 7:30 p.m. Location: Kalkin Hall, University of Vermont - Central Campus, 55 Colchester Ave, Burlington, VT 05405 Cost: FREE and open to the public
Gold Member UVM offers a variety of ways for Vermont employers to attract current and future talent. (Image collage courtesy of UVM)
UVM: Gold Member University of Vermont (UVM) always has opportunities for Vermont businesses to engage with talented undergraduates and graduate students. Don’t miss these upcoming ways to connect with UVM students and avail yourself of campus assets related to hiring.
UVM Annual Spring Job & Internship Fair: UVM invites recruiters from regional and national organizations to campus to connect with UVM students about job and internship opportunities. The Wednesday, February 28 event is the largest career fair of the semester at UVM and includes organizations from all industries who want to recruit Catamounts. Learn more here. Still have questions? Don’t hesitate to reach out to John Kim, UVM SI-MBA Career Advisor, at John.Kim@uvm.edu.
UVM Summer Intern Housing: Have you got interns coming to (or staying in) the Burlington area this summer? If so, UVM has affordable, accessible housing for them. With residence halls located minutes from downtown Burlington and easy access to local attractions and transportation, your visiting interns can make the most of their experience. Learn more here.
Davis & Hodgdon CPAs: Davis & Hodgdon CPAs is seeking input for their annual survey related to the economy and local businesses. The goal is to better understand Vermont small- to medium-sized business owners' perception of the business climate. Since launching it in 2013, the resulting valuable feedback has been effectively shared with state media and legislators. The survey will remain open until February 13th. Learn more here.
NOFA-VT: The Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont (NOFA-VT) Winter Conference is open for registration. This year’s theme is Working Upstream. After a rugged year of extreme weather and crisis for Vermont's farmers, this year's conference will provide a space to focus on transformational work – a shift of attention upstream to food system issues at their source, creating more holistic change. Saturday, February 17 and Sunday, February 18, at the University of Vermont (UVM) in Burlington. Learn more here.
King Arthur Baking: Champion Member King Arthur Baking Company, along with Project Potluck, a nonprofit empowering People of Color to build successful careers in the consumer-packaged goods and food and beverage industries, has announced Baking Pitchfest 2024. The accelerator program is dedicated to championing innovative baking brands and providing equitable opportunities for POC entrepreneurs in the baking industry – and they are already pausing online applications due to overwhelming response to the program. Learn more here.
Union Mutual and Hickok and Boardman: Union Mutual is celebrating its 150th anniversary! As a mutual company, Union Mutual does not answer to corporate stockholders and instead exists to provide value to its policyholders. To kick off the 150th Anniversary Celebration, Union Mutual is joining forces with fellow VBSR member Hickok & Boardman Insurance Group for the 2024 Penguin Plunge to benefit Special Olympics Vermont. The Union Mutual & Hickok & Boardman Popsicles team has set a goal of raising a record-breaking $150,000. Support them and learn more here.
Let's Grow Kids: Vermont has established itself as a national leader in child care – and more work is needed to ensure successful implementation of the recently passed child care law (Act 76), as well as to make the continued investments necessary to fully fund this groundbreaking new legislation and the system overall. As the new legislative session gets underway, Aly Richards, CEO of Let’s Grow Kids, is making sure we all stay focused on the task at hand. Learn more here.
Are you a member with values-led news to share?
Has your organization accomplished something recently that is part of creating a just, thriving, and transformative economy that works for all people and the planet?
If so, we want to hear about it! Members are encouraged to post valued-led news at https://vbsr.org/post-news or share it directly with VBSR Communications Manager, Talley Summerlin, at talleys@vbsr.org.
Advocacy Actions You Can Take Now
Lawmakers have begun to settle into the pace of the legislative session through priority setting, walk-throughs of bills from legislative council and lead sponsors, and reports from state officials.
In addition to joining us on February 1 for Businesses for Climate Action Lobby Day, below are some quick actions you can take online that can make a big difference...in about 4 minutes total.
RES Reform:
Vermont must continue to lead in decarbonizing our electric sector and ending its reliance on fossil fuels.
VBSR supports moving Vermont to a 100% renewable energy future by 2030. We must ensure that new renewables, such as wind and solar, are brought online during this transition.
Sign our support letter if you support this vision. It takes 2 minutes.
Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance:
A robust paid leave program can support workers, businesses, and families when needed. Vermonters can't afford to wait for paid leave.
A new poll shows overwhelming support for Paid Leave in Vermont. Learn more here.
Join VBSR members below in calling for a universal paid leave program in Vermont. It takes 2 minutes.
Call For Ideas: VBSR Annual Conference
and Other Programming
The 2022 Annual VBSR Conference gets underway. (photo by Stephen Mease)
What kind of experiences do you want Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility to offer? Who do you want to hear from? About what? Where? We want to hear from you!
We are collecting ideas from our network to help shape the topics, themes, format, presenters, and venues for our programming (including our 34th Annual VBSR Conference, which will be held May 9th at Hula in Burlington).
We welcome ideas from both VBSR members and those in our extended network! Everyone in VBSR’s community has valuable expertise, policies, practices, and experiences that can help realize our vision of a just, thriving, and transformative economy for all people and the planet.
Submissions are due Thursday, February 1st. Submit your idea now!
