Kroger Appoints First Sustainability Director; WRI Names President

Kroger has appointed Suzanne Lindsay as its first director of sustainability, and in another major hire, global think tank the World Resources Institute named Andrew Steer as its next president.

Lindsay will direct internal sustainability initiatives for the grocery retailer, and will lead the company’s sustainability leadership team, Kroger said. She previously created and led sustainability initiatives at PetSmart.

Lindsay has also worked extensively in real estate, development, and civil engineering. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Lawrence Technological University, in Michigan.

Kroger operates in 31 states under two dozen local banner names including Kroger, City Market, Dillons, Jay C, Food 4 Less, Fred Meyer, Fry’s, King Soopers, QFC, Ralphs and Smith’s. The company also operates 791 convenience stores, 348 jewelry stores, 1,090 supermarket fuel centers and 39 food processing plants in the U.S.

Meanwhile Andrew Steer (pictured) will take the lead position at WRI, a global think tank, as the organization marks its 30th anniversary. WRI is perhaps best known in the business community for the GHG Protocol, its decade-long partnership with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, which publishes international accounting tools for the management of greenhouse gas emissions. The protocol published Scope 3 and product lifecycle GHG standards last October.

In the past year GRI and its corporate partners have also launched an alliance to assess and address water risks, and started a collaborative to develop low-carbon business models.

Steer takes over for Manish Bapna, WRI’s managing director, who has served as the organization’s acting president since July 2011.

Steer is currently serving as the Special Envoy for Climate Change at the World Bank, where he helps guide climate change activities in more than 130 countries. Ge also co-chairs the Strategic Climate Fund and serves on UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s High Level Panel on Sustainable Energy for All, and on the B20 Board on Green Growth (the private sector wing of the G20).

Photo: World Resources Institute