The Corporate Accountability Agenda Taking Shape for 2027
It's been a great couple of months for the Future 500 community. From a rich two-day gathering in San Francisco — the city of our birth — to a thought-provoking virtual session with NYU Professor Alison Taylor on what stakeholder engagement really means, we're facilitating timely conversations critical for corporate leaders seeking guidance in navigating rising political and legal risks. Our team moderated candid discussions in Boston, Minneapolis, New York, and Washington DC, alongside remarkable voices from business, academia, and advocacy. And we have two well-deserved celebrations to share. Perhaps our brief update leaves you informed, inspired, and perhaps a little provoked — in the best possible way (don’t miss our June Fun Fact!).Future 500 Corporate Affinity Network (CAN) Update
Corporate Network Meeting in San Francisco
Corporate Network Meeting
For our second in-person Working Group meeting this year for our Corporate Affinity Network (CAN), we gathered corporate and advocacy leaders in San Francisco for two days of interactive discussions with three experts: Kate Gordon, CEO of California Forward; Jason Walsh, Executive Director of the BlueGreen Alliance; and Dr. Jennifer McGowan of Nature Matters, who covered the following topics:
The cost/benefit of shifting corporate accountability for human rights across corporate value chains,
Ensuring shared value deployment of data centers to ensure energy affordability and faster project deployment,
Risks/benefits of rising philanthropic support to guide the responsible and ethical deployment of AI,
Collaboration between organized labor and environmental groups on responsible infrastructure build-out, and
Growing sophistication in assessing corporate nature-based strategies for economic and ecological benefits.
In choosing San Francisco, we returned to Future 500’s birthplace. We recalled our roots and the continued relevance of our bridge-building mission. The meeting generated active participation, a wonderful multi-stakeholder dinner where attendees forged new and deepened valuable collaborative relationships.
CAN Virtual with NYU Professor Alison Taylor: Clarifying Stakeholder Engagement to Enable Positive Impact for Business & Society
For our June 3 CAN virtual gathering, Professor Alison Taylor shared her informed opinions about the efficacy of corporate stakeholder engagement programs, something the F500 team lives and breathes every day.
We explored what “engagement” actually means in practice. When everything and everyone is labeled a stakeholder, how do you make meaningful business decisions? If engagement is owned by a specific function, can it effectively guide business planning for core activities such as procurement, operations, or overall leadership and management? And when engagement becomes routine, how do you avoid creating the appearance of inclusion without changing outcomes?
We grounded our discussion in the operating realities of various sectors, where even well-established approaches can lack clarity and influence when they lose sight of who matters in different contexts, how to navigate real trade-offs, and how best to connect stakeholder insights to business functions where decisions are made so there is accountability for actions that have measurable, real-world impact.
Next Corporate Working Group Theme: The Implication of the U.S. Mid-Term Election on Corporate Accountability
We are planning our next in-person Corporate Network meeting in December or January in Washington, DC. Stay tuned for more info!
For Brendon Steele, a VP at Future 500, the mission to bridge divides began with a childhood love for Star Trek and a vision of a future in which humanity moves beyond its polarized divisions.
Growing up between two worlds, with a father in the oil industry and his own deep commitment to climate advocacy, Brendon learned early on that "opposing sides" usually hold more truth than we realize. That experience taught him that the distance between groups is often shaped as much by perception as by reality.
Today, Brendon helps organizations lean into the uncomfortable trade-offs between things like energy security and climate protection. He’s traded the search for one "right" solution for a commitment to a process where every voice is heard. For Brendon, progress isn't about satisfying everyone—it's about building the trust necessary to move forward together.
Read more about Brendon’s journey here.
Future 500’s Thought Leadership
Future of Food & Beverage Innovation Forum
It takes shared value—and shared values.”
That is our VP Brendon Steele’s one insightful takeaway from facilitating a discussion on forging effective collaboration at the Future of Food & Beverage Innovation Forum in Minneapolis.
Brendon was joined by General Mills’ Jay Watson, Senior Director of Sustainability; Lamb Weston's Trudy Slagle, Sr. Director of ESG Administration; JBS' Sarah Fox, Senior Director of Sustainable Food Systems; and ADM's Michelle French, Senior Director of Global Sustainability Programs, who together shared wisdom on navigating the ins and outs of partnerships in the food sustainability space.
Brendon facilitated a candid conversation on AI's role in sustainability alongside Cargill's Matt Wood, VP, Sustainability | Data, Digital, & Analytics, and Watershed’s Yubing Zhang, Head of AI Product. AI developments are unfolding so rapidly—with the present time always noted as an inflection point—that what is true about AI’s capabilities and limitations today may be outdated in a few months.
A big thanks to Innovation Forum’s Hannah Oborne, Anita Thomson, and Ian Welsh for hosting another insightful convening in Minneapolis.
Earth Day Art Advocacy, Houston TX
Our colleague, Gleeson Ryan, enjoys tackling environmental issues from multiple angles! As featured artist for the City of Houston’s 2026 Earth Day Celebration, she led a community art project to help people understand different ways to work towards environmental progress. Community members added over 1000 plastic bottle caps to a collaborative mosaic to represent the power of collective action.
Reuters Responsible Business USA Summit, NYC
Our colleagues Brendon Steele and Wynn Kwan were honored to organize and facilitate a highly informative, powerhouse session at Reuters Events Sustainable Business in Boston on building a carbon accounting ecosystem that finance will trust. They were joined by Robert Eccles from Oxford’s Saïd Business School, Steven Rothstein, Chief Program Officer at Ceres, and Carmen San Segundo, Global Communication Director for Carbon Measures. And, they got to meet up with former colleague, Phoebe Fu, who is studying around “Har-vahd Yahd!”
Du Monde Award
A big congratulations to our CEO, Erik Wohlgemuth, who was named a 2026 Moves DuMonde Sustainability Award honoree by New York Moves Magazine.
Erik’s approach to sustainability goes beyond metrics—it’s rooted in connection. Across industries, ideologies, and human experience, his work focuses on bridging divides to drive meaningful, lasting change. “Math, business, nature—it’s all systems. If you understand the relationships, you understand the outcome.” See Du Monde’s profile of Erik and Future 500’s work.
What’s Next?
Sun Valley Forum , June 15-18, 2026, Sun Valley, ID
Our CEO, Erik Wohlgemuth, will be in Idaho moderating a panel at a gathering of global thought leaders advancing real solutions for people, planet, and profit.
His session will explore how U.S. stakeholders are accelerating methane pollution reduction from organic waste, a major methane source in the Pacific Northwest region, by aligning community-based solutions, advancing data transparency, enabling policy, encouraging private-sector implementation, and deploying carbon market mechanisms.
This year’s theme, Powered by Nature: A Blueprint for Innovation, Investment, and Impact, comes at a critical moment. Hosted by Christensen Global, the Forum convenes leaders, innovators, and changemakers across sectors to drive progress across climate, business, policy, Indigenous leadership, and beyond.
Innovation Forum’s Sustainable Packaging USA, October 27-28, Chicago
Our VP, Brendon Steele, will be moderating a panel at this year’s Innovation Forum on Sustainable Packaging. This two-day business conference will bring together stakeholders from across the packaging and waste value chain to explore how innovation can move from risk management to value creation. They will focus on how organizations can leverage sustainable packaging to drive commercial performance, meet regulatory requirements, and respond to evolving consumer expectations.
Participants will explore the practical realities of material choices, design, infrastructure, and collaboration—highlighting how businesses can scale solutions that deliver across environmental, operational, and financial priorities.
As a member of F500’s community, use the exclusive discount code FUTURE50010 at checkout to receive 10% off your conference pass.
JUNE FUN FACT
The Strawberry Moon: June's full moon is traditionally called the "Strawberry Moon" by Native American tribes, as it signals the time to gather ripe wild strawberries. Bring on Oregon’s Hood strawberries - simply the best!
