SPEAKER
Marc Ross
Head of Impact & ESG
Vicente Sederberg
SESSION
One Size does not fit all: A look at ESG programs and practices from across the legal profession
OCTOBER 26
2:45pm – 3:30pm / US Central Time
BIO
Marc Ross is the Head of Impact & ESG and co-chair of the Environmental, Health and Safety Practice Group at Vicente Sederberg LLP. He provides counseling and consulting to the cannabis, hemp, and entheogen industries on all things ESG (Environmental, Social & Governance), CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility), JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion), community engagement, employee engagement, strategic philanthropy, sustainability, and other associated areas.
With a mission to drive the inclusion, measurement, benchmarking, reporting, and continuous improvement of all of these important elements, Marc draws on nearly 30 years of legal practice in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors to help build more sustainable, profitable, and responsible businesses, as well as reducing potential liability from a variety of stakeholders.
Prior to joining VS, Marc served as the director of community outreach for Harvest Health & Recreation. In this role, he oversaw a team of four in strategizing and scaling the company’s national Corporate Social Responsibility efforts while assisting with public and governmental affairs, licensing, and employee engagement. Before his work at Harvest, Marc founded and served as the executive director and general counsel to Rock the Earth, a national environmental advocacy organization that works with the music industry. He also served as in-house environmental Counsel to Alcoa Inc. and as an environmental litigator for Reed Smith and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
Marc holds a Juris Doctorate from The Dickinson School of Law, a Bachelors degree from The Pennsylvania State University, and Executive Certificates in Sustainability Leadership & Implementation from the Daniels College of Business, University of Denver, as well as in Corporate Social Responsibility from the Leeds School of Business, University of Colorado, Boulder.
Since 2016, Marc has been a member of the City of Denver’s Cannabis Sustainability Working Group. He also serves as the corporate social responsibility mentor to Canopy Boulder, a venture fund and business accelerator in the cannabis and hemp space since 2018, in addition to serving on the advisory board to Headcount’s Cannabis Voter Project. Through his lifelong commitment to advocacy, sustainability, and social change, Marc brings a wealth of experience and passion to his work in helping cannabis businesses be the most thoughtful, responsible, and profitable in the industry.
