What went down at TL Insider’s Thought Leadership Panel on the Future of Sustainable Business

What went down at TL Insider’s Thought Leadership Panel on the Future of Sustainable Business

The special event was a deep dive into topics from sustainable investing to carbon-neutrality

On May 18, Toronto Life and Canadian Business Insider brought together leaders from the innovation and sustainability spaces for an intimate thought leadership panel. Members gathered at Workhaus in the heart of the city to join the conversation; addressing how businesses of all sizes are adapting to help Canada reach its climate action goals.

As the night’s moderator, Jason Maghanoy, vice president of digital solutions and business development at St. Joseph Media, shared the stage with three professionals from some of Canada’s top organizations in the areas of finance, tech and entrepreneurship. The panel included Nelson Switzer, managing partner and co-founder of Climate Innovation Capital; Anthony Duong, co-founder of Salesforce Web3 Studio, and Siân Canavan, senior director and head of RBC InvestEase®.

For the audience, this was a unique opportunity to engage with the business of sustainability from a three-fold point of view. Investments in decarbonization and the transitional economy are the expertise of Nelson Switzer, who shared the ins and outs of identifying megatrends in sustainable innovation. “It’s not just about identifying the potential of a solution,” said Switzer, “but the demand it has in the marketplace.” Highlighting the distinction between “clean tech” of the past and”‘climate tech” of today.

Anthony Duong has spent more than 15 years helping CXOs unlock the full promise of digital transformation, and spoke candidly about the responsibility a company has to adopt digital solutions, as well as the employees of a company, have to hold their executives accountable. “We all have the power to apply an Environment, Social, Governance (ESG) lens, and put our voices onto the table to make a difference,” he said, in reference to the advocacy he’s seen in his own working environments.

Answering to an eager group of members curious about the role of personal investing in sustainability, Siân Canavan broke down the many factors that may influence the companies in a sustainability-conscious investor’s portfolio. “The same thoughtfulness we put into where we spend our money as consumers can also guide our investments. Portfolios constructed with an ESG framework can help investors put that thoughtfulness into action,” she said. “Sometimes this is about reflecting their values, or it can simply be about managing risk and understanding the companies that may have better long-term potential.” While the panel was full of information, positioning members to consider the future of sustainable business from different perspectives, it was ultimately an evening of engaging conversation and community building. Following the interactive Q&A, the evening’s events included a lively networking session over a delicious selection of food and drinks.

Interested in learning more about sustainable investing? Visit RBC InvestEase to learn more about their Responsible Investing Portfolios. 

Click through snapshots from the event below:


RBC InvestEase Inc. is a restricted portfolio manager providing access to model portfolios consisting of RBC iShares ETFs. Each model portfolio holds up to 100% of RBC iShares ETFs. RBC iShares ETFs are comprised of RBC ETFs managed by RBC Global Asset Management Inc. (RBC GAM) and iShares ETFs managed by BlackRock Canada Limited (BlackRock Canada). RBC GAM and BlackRock Canada entered into a strategic alliance to bring together their respective ETF products under the RBC iShares brand, and to offer a unified distribution support and service model for RBC iShares ETFs.

Other products and services may be offered by one or more separate corporate entities that are affiliated to RBC InvestEase Inc., including without limitation: Royal Bank of Canada, RBC Direct Investing Inc., RBC Dominion Securities Inc., RBC Global Asset Management Inc., Royal Trust Corporation of Canada and The Royal Trust Company. RBC InvestEase Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada and uses the business name RBC InvestEase.

The services provided by RBC InvestEase are only available in Canada.