Shaping Future Leaders: The Role of Sustainability in Business Schools

Join us as we explore how business schools can be powerful catalysts for sustainable change in the corporate world and beyond.

This event is being held as part of London Climate Action Week which will brings together students, academics, and business professionals to examine the evolving role of sustainability in shaping curricula, corporate strategy, and leadership development.

In an era where global challenges demand urgent and innovative solutions, the integration of sustainability into business education has never been more critical. Sage Publishing, in collaboration with Bayes Business School, invites you to a dynamic panel discussion exploring how sustainability is being embedded into business education and leadership development.

Moderated by Sage Publishing’s Sustainability Manager, the panel features Professor Bobby Banerjee, a leading scholar in corporate (un)sustainability and climate justice at Bayes, and Dr. Simon Parker, a Senior Lecturer whose research critically examines justice and alternative organizational forms. They will be joined by Julia Percegoni-Taranti, an MSc student in Sustainable Management and Finance at Bayes, currently conducting research with Hitachi Digital Services.

Our fourth and final panellist—soon to be announced—will bring a vital perspective from the business world, helping to complete the circle and ensure a well-rounded discussion that bridges academia, student insight, and industry practice.

Moderator:

Elle Parker, Sage Publishing, Sustainability Manager

Speakers:

Professor Bobby Banerjee,  Professor of Sustainability, Bayes Business School

Bobby Banerjee is Professor of Sustainability at Bayes Business School (formerly Cass). He was the Associate Dean of Research & Enterprise from 2018-2022 and was also Director of the Executive PhD program from 2013 to 2019. His primary research interests are in the areas of corporate social irresponsibility, (un)sustainability, climate change and decolonial resistance movements. Other research interests include critical management studies, Indigenous ecology, and postcolonial studies. He has published extensively in leading scholarly journals and is the author of two books: Corporate Social Responsibility: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly and the co-edited volume Organizations, Markets and Imperial Formations: Towards an Anthropology of Globalization. He serves on the editorial board of seven international journals and was a Senior Editor at Organization Studies from 2007 to 2019. He is an Associate Editor at Business & Society. He is also a cofounder of ETHOS: The Centre for Responsible Enterprise at Bayes Business School.

Prof Banerjee teaches an undergraduate module on Climate Change and the World Economy, which offers critical and multidisciplinary perspectives on climate change focusing on issues like climate justice, policy and climate activism. He also leads an MBA international elective on Sustainability Business Challenges and Opportunities which involves a study tour of the Netherlands and Belgium on sustainability challenges and opportunities through site visits of ongoing clean energy and other sustainability projects.

He also conduct various seminars for PhD candidates. He currently supervises 4 PhD candidates.

Dr Simon Parker, Senior Lecturer in Business and Society – Leadership, Bayes Business School

Dr Simon Parker is a Senior Lecturer in Business and Society. He joined Bayes Business School in July 2024 following previous roles at Nottingham University Business School, Bayes Business School and Warwick Business school, where he was awarded his PhD.

In his research Simon adopts a critical perspective and covers a wide variety of topics and phenomena largely related to issues of justice and fairness. Often this is through the examination of alternative organizational forms such as cooperatives and sustainable financial institutions that are aimed at challenging and disrupting the dominate ways of organizing and doing business. Other times his work seeks to problematize existing organizational practices exploring deviant actors and misconduct.

Simon has taught a variety of topics across all levels and was awarded the Lord Dearing award for student engagement and teaching in 2023 at the University of Nottingham for his use of creative pedagogical methods in the classroom.

Julia Percegoni-Taranti, MSc Sustainable Management and Finance Student, Bayes Business School

A MSc student in Sustainable Management and Finance at Bayes Business School. Julia is currently undertaking a research project with Hitachi Digital Services, where she is analysing how ESG and technology strategies are driving value in the insurance and reinsurance sector. Their goal is to uncover the trends and investment approaches that can shape a more sustainable and high-performing industry.

Before Bayes, Julia studied Economics at Queen Mary University of London, where I developed a strong foundation in finance, data, and strategy. Coming from Brazil and having lived in several countries, I’m especially passionate about global sustainability challenges and the role of financial innovation in addressing them. I’m excited to be part of London Climate Action Week and contribute to conversations about the future of sustainable business.

London Climate Action Week (LCAW)

London Climate Action Week (LCAW) was founded in 2019 by E3G in partnership with the Mayor of London. It is the largest city-wide climate festival in Europe and one of the world's largest independent climate change events.

Its mission is to harness the unique power of London for global and local climate action. It mobilises London’s unparalleled ecosystem of climate and non-climate organisations to accelerate global climate action and supports action in London to ensure it acts as a global climate leader.

London Climate Action Week showcases London as a leading example of how the whole of society can come together to shape and drive climate action.