SBN’s 31st Annual Conference

Building Local, Green, and Fair Economies - We’re All in this Together

On June 4th, the 31st Annual Conference from The Sustainable Business Network of MA (SBN) will feature an exciting and diverse array of dynamic local and national leaders who are aligned with SBN’s mission and are making an impact every day with their work.

Join us virtually as we address a range of topics from local business support and community development, to local food and sustainability, and racial equity and equitable economies.

Featuring our Conference Keynote Speakers:

Winona LaDuke

American Environmentalist and Economist, Program Director of Honor the Earth

Winona LaDuke is a Harvard-educated economist, environmental activist, author, hemp farmer, grandmother, and a two-time former Green Party Vice President candidate with Ralph Nader. LaDuke specializes in rural development, economic, food, and energy sovereignty and environmental justice. Living and working on the White Earth reservation in northern Minnesota, she leads several organizations including Honor the Earth (co-founded with The Indigo Girls 28 years ago), Anishinaabe Agriculture Institute, Akiing, and Winona’s Hemp.

These organizations develop and model cultural-based sustainable development strategies utilizing renewable energy and sustainable food systems. She is also an international thought leader and lecturer in climate justice, renewable energy, and environmental justice, plus an advocate for protecting Indigenous plants and heritage foods from patenting and genetic engineering. She has written seven books including, Recovering the Sacred, All Our Relations, Last Standing Woman, The Winona LaDuke Chronicles, and her newest work, To Be A Water Protector: The Rise of the Wiindigoo Slayers.

Niaz Dorry

Coordinating Director,

Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance (NAMA)

Niaz has been serving as NAMA's coordinating director since 2008. One of the first things NAMA did after Niaz took the helm was to join the National Family Farm Coalition as its first non-farming member. The two organizations entered into an innovative shared-leadership model on May 1, 2018, putting Niaz in the new role of serving the work of both organizations and further cementing the relationship and interdependence between land and sea. Niaz has been named as a Hero For The Planet by Time Magazine for her work with small-scale, traditional, and indigenous fishing communities to fight against the corporate takeover of the ocean and privatization of the marine environment and fishing rights.

Segun Idowu

Executive Director,

Black Economic Council of Massachusetts (BECMA)

Segun Idowu is one of the foremost leaders in Boston, and was recognized as one of the "100 Most Influential People in the City of Boston" by Boston Magazine (May 2020). He has led the conversation on empowering Black communities in Massachusetts, and has made significant breakthroughs at the State House advocating for Black-owned businesses, holding city and state governments, to equity standards in contracting. With Segun's leadership, BECMA raised $1.5 million last year through an initiative called the Greenwood Challenge, the majority of the funds for which are expected to go toward a technical-assistance program for Black-owned businesses.

Shirley Leung

Business Columnist,

The Boston Globe

Shirley Leung is a columnist and associate editor at the Boston Globe. She has written on everything from the intersection of business and politics to gender and diversity issues in the workplace. She has been a three-time finalist for the Gerald Loeb Award for Commentary. In 2018, Boston Magazine named her to its list of the “100 Most Influential People in Boston.” Shirley is also a contributor to WGBH’s “Boston Public Radio” and “Greater Boston,” as well as a regular guest on New England Cable News. Previously, Shirley served as the Globe's interim editorial page editor. She also has been the Globe’s business editor, where she oversaw its award-winning coverage of the 2008 financial crisis.

Rosario Ubiera-Minaya

Executive Director,

Amplify Latinx

Rosario Ubiera-Minaya is a leader, community activist, and social entrepreneur originally from the Dominican Republic. She has over 25 years of experience working and advocating for systemic change, social justice, and equity, on behalf of the Latinx community, in the areas of education, housing, voter engagement, public health, and the arts. She has successfully developed and implemented initiatives that have made impactful contributions to promoting the social and economic wellbeing of the Latinx community. As the Executive Director of Amplify Latinx, Rosario leads a Latinx power coalition of over 3,000 active members and over 140 business and community partners.