Today kicks off the annual International Corporate Citizenship Conference in Boston, MA. The Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship will welcome hundreds of CSR professionals for two-and-a-half packed days of learning and networking for the first time in three years.

This year the Conference is hosted by Liberty Mutual, a company that embodies this year’s theme of Brighter, Bolder, Better. Liberty's year-round comprehensive giving, service, and volunteer program, Liberty Torchbearers, is a beacon for successful employee engagement programs. This and other programs by the Liberty Mutual Foundation—which in under a decade has become one of the largest corporate donors in the city of Boston—are blazing the way for corporate community involvement.

At this year’s event, we are looking forward to hearing from global corporate citizenship leaders about how they innovate and push the boundaries of corporate citizenship such that they can better serve employees, customers, investors, and all stakeholders to create progress on ambitious environmental, social, and governance (ESG) objectives.

Here is just a sampling of what’s to come this week in Boston:

Profound and practical insights

Over the course of seven illuminating sessions, top business leaders and thinkers will take the stage to share their lessons learned on trending topics in the ESG field and beyond. These mainstage speakers include (in order of appearance):

• Hedieh Fakhriyazdi, Director, Social Responsibility and Weil Foundation, Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP  
• Kristi Jobson, Assistant Dean for Admissions, Harvard Law School            
• Dr. Adriana Alejandro Osorio, Managing Director, Aspen Young Leaders Fellowship              
• Barb Short, Director, Corporate Social Responsibility, Sanofi       
• Jonathan Chan, Impact Manager, Earthwatch, and Weil Legal Innovator
• Melissa MacDonnell, President, Liberty Mutual Foundation; Vice President, Liberty Mutual Insurance
• Sylvia Stevens-Edouard, Senior Director of Community Relations, Liberty Mutual Insurance
• Trish Gillis, Senior Program Manager, Liberty Mutual Insurance 
• Jazmine Ramirez, Senior Program Manager, Liberty Mutual Insurance    
• Patricia Mayers, Assistant Director of Global Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Strategy, Entities, and Partnerships, Liberty Mutual Insurance       
• Courtney Quinn, Vice President of Brand Strategy, Liberty Mutual Insurance
• Ebony Thomas, Racial Equality and Economic Opportunity Initiative Program Executive, Bank of America        
• Yasmin Cruz Ferrine, General Partner and Co-Founder, Visible Hands VC
• Daniel Acheampong, General Partner and Co-Founder, Visible Hands VC
• Jennifer Hunter, Senior Vice President, Corporate Citizenship, Altria Client Services LLC
• Jennifer Sirangelo, President & CEO, National 4-H Council           
• Immanuel Sutherland, Senior Manager, Community Impact, Altria
• J. Reymundo Ocañas, Executive Vice President, Director of Community Development Banking, PNC Bank         
• Sally McCrady, Executive Vice President and Director of Community Affairs, PNC Bank; Chair and President, PNC Foundation     
• Dana Suskind, MD, Professor of Surgery, Pediatrics, and Public Policy (affiliated), University of Chicago; Co-Director, TMW Center for Early Learning + Public Health
• Georgette “Gigi” Dixon, Executive Vice President and Head of External Engagement Diverse Segments, Representation, and Inclusion, Wells Fargo & Company          
• Mauricio Calvo, Executive Director, Latino Memphis       
• Njemile Davis Michael, Digital Program Analyst, Technology Division, USAID       
• Shyam R. Gadwal, Vice President of Scholarships and Programs, Asian and Pacific Islander American (APIA) Scholars
• Ronald Brown, Vice President for Community Impact, Target
• Ron Garan, NASA Astronaut, Combat Fighter Pilot, and Active Social Entrepreneur

Connecting with colleagues—in person!

Participants are already excited to meet old friends and new colleagues for the first time in three years! The Conference provides a unique networking environment with attendees who are almost exclusively from companies. From the open-to-all newcomer summit and cocktail receptions, to the Gallagher Networking Breaks and Vertex Conversation Lounge, attendees can look forward to forging connections in a relaxed environment. For more structured networking, attendees also have the opportunity to meet on a variety topics—from corporate giving to net zero—at the Idea Exchange Breakfast, and connect with colleagues in similar sectors at the Industry Lunch.

Volunteering to support local communities

Sponsored by Ally, this year's onsite volunteer project will involve compiling financial education kits for students at the Manthala George, Jr. Global Studies School, a member of the Brockton Public School system. Volunteers will pack books, flashcards, and other items designed to support financial literacy among local youth. Our goal this year is to pack 500 kits!

Breaking out into engaging sessions on pressing topics

Year after year, breakout sessions are consistently a favorite among Conference attendees—they provide participants a chance to learn best practices from other leaders in the field, both on the stage and sitting right in the audience. 

The sessions are organized by topic tracks so that participants can choose the panels which best suit their needs: Strategy and Organizational Change, Community Investment and Social Impact, Communications and Reporting, and Sustainability. Attendees can find topic tracks, along with the agenda and other session resources in the Pitney Bowes mobile event platform.

Participants can also choose between three panel types: traditional panels, hands-on workshops (brought to attendees by Vanguard), and company case studies featuring Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, EY, Samsung, and Takeda.

• Here are just a few breakout sessions we’re especially excited about:
• Corporate giving trends for 2022: What’s next?
• Diversity, equity, and inclusion: Commitments and action
•  From Woodstock to TikTok: Engaging socially conscious employees across generations
• How to achieve net zero
• Impact from anywhere: Navigating the new landscape of volunteering
• What is the future of ESG reporting?

We’ll be blogging throughout the 2022 International Corporate Citizenship Conference to give you daily recaps and deep dives into the event’s unique content. Visit the Corporate Citizenship Perspectives Blog to follow along and recap the event.