What if the biggest risk to net-zero supply chains is not ambition—but underinvestment in the people and SMEs expected to deliver it?

Climate change risk has prompted companies of all sizes to set sustainability targets. Large corporates increasingly look to their small- and medium-sized enterprise (“SME”) suppliers to help them reduce Scope 3 emissions and achieve net zero goals. Concurrently, SMEs recognize that demonstrating best-in-class sustainability practices can help open doors to new contracts and grow their business. However, gaps in SME workers’ skills and access to the funding needed to fill those voids often preclude their ability to meet the sustainability requirements imposed on them. If left ignored, this blind spot can lead to canceled supplier contracts that disrupt global supply chains and put people out of jobs, both of which counter economic well-being. When this happens, companies, workers and consumers find themselves between a proverbial rock and a hard place, having to choose between progress, people and planet. “Mapping, Matching and Money” – a soon-to-be launched initiative of the Ares Charitable Foundation in partnership with World Resources Institute, Harvard Business School’s Project on Managing the Future of Work and Pagitsas Advisors– seeks to solve for these challenges by uniting corporates and SMEs to future-proof workers with in-demand skills. Doing so will help these companies reduce margin pressure and invest in the people who comprise their supply chains to ward against potential disruptions, boost bottom lines and achieve sustainability targets. Join us for a luncheon and panel discussions that will bring senior leaders from the private, public and philanthropic sectors together for an action-oriented conversation on evidence-based research and practical, investable solutions to address these concerns.