Charting a New Course in Sustainability Reporting

There’s currently a debate brewing among sustainability and corporate responsibility professionals about the best way to report CSR and environmental information. Is a sustainability report the proper time for storytelling or do readers just want the facts? Truth is, we are often trying to reach multiple (and different audiences) with one report. This year, JetBlue decided to revisit how we report our environmental, social and purpose-driven initiatives. 

Questions always come up as we compile our annual environmental and responsibility report about investors vs. customers and communities. Are investors really looking at or interested in the “feel good” CSR report? Do they care about how we are inspiring humanity as much as they care about cost-cutting initiatives?

Sophia Mendelsohn is currently the Head of Sustainability at JetBlue Airways, where she is shaping policies and practices that enhance JetBlue’s competitive advantage and reduce environmental impact. Prior to JetBlue, Sophia was Head of Sustainability, Emerging Markets for Haworth Inc., a multinational manufacturer in the corporate real estate industry. At Haworth, she was responsible for increasing sustainable product offerings in emerging markets, including Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.

Previously, Sophia worked for the Jane Goodall Institute, and international NGO, in Shanghai, China helping spread education about the environment to local and international schools in China. She managed a program called Eco Office, which helped partner corporations with local students in order to reduce the footprint of both offices and schools. Sophia sits on the board of GIGA, a Shanghai based NGO whose mission is to promote green building materials and transparency in the construction and design industry.

Sophia is accredited in the Leadership in Energy Environment and Design (LEED) green building rating system and certified to perform Life Cycle Amylases (LCA) and lead Global Reporting Imitative (GRI) reports. She speaks, reads and writes Mandarin, and lived in China for more than 7 years and is a passionate rock climber and traveler.