Introduction: 0:00

• Christine Uri, Founder of ESG for In-house Counsel, joins the podcast.
• Previously worked as Chief Legal Officer and Chief Sustainability Officer at ENGIE Impact, with more than a decade of experience at companies offering sustainability solutions.
• Christine on taking a half-year break before founding her own consulting business.

What are sustainability solutions?: 4:03

• On offering services that focus on sustainability, climate, and energy.
• Seeing the climate as one of the least sustainable things in the world.
• Helping corporations offer climate solutions.
• Seeing ESG grow from a voluntary program to a requirement.

The difference between Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental, Social, and Governance: 7:36

• Christine on corporations being responsible citizens.
• Developing a verifiable and comparable system to share with investors.
• Dealing with anti-ESG backlash.

Why she decided to launch a consulting company?: 10:09

• Christine on publishing about ESG on LinkedIn.
• Offering practical steps on how GCs can advocate to their companies.
• Seeing an opportunity to grow and help more companies.

Why should ESG matter to in-house counsels?: 11:59

• Christine on ESG requirements for private companies.
• Offering services to companies based in Europe.
• Dealing with ESG client requests.
• Answering to private equity.
• Disclosing requirements for public company general counsels.

Explaining why “ESG is the new privacy:” 15:28

• Christine on how GDPR affected US companies in 2015.
• Realizing that global privacy regulation can’t be avoided.
• Comparing the GDPR to ESG,

How GCs can advocate for adopting ESG practices: 20:11

• Leading with financial benefits.
• Offering proof that ESG will improve the business overall.
• Making it clear that sustainability isn’t going away.
• Deciding whether or not to advertise your ESG work.
• Letting the numbers do the talking.

Is ESG relevant at the board level?: 24:40

• Christine on ESG as “a new frontier of fiduciary duties.”
• Managing material risks to the companies.
• Going beyond environmental and social causes.
• Offering ESG training to board members.

Why ESG has become politicized in the United States: 26:52

• Christine on why Republicans have targeted ESG.
• Why ESG are a smart business choice and unrelated to the government.
• Companies sharing less information on ESG but maintaining their commitments.
• Dealing with the cost of rolling back on ESG.
• Understanding that ESG benefit businesses.

What ESG for In-house Counsel offers: 30:43

• Christine on her consulting company’s services.
• Assessing her clients’ targeted needs.
• Developing strategic items that require long-term investment.
• Dealing with issues like AI governance.

How to advocate for ESG at your company: 33:50

• Christine on useful readings to share with your executives.
• Volunteering to take it on yourself.
• Running into budget issues.
• Selling ESG as a smart financial decision.

Rapid-fire questions: 36:50

• Christine’s favorite part of the day-to-day.
• Professional pet peeves.

Book recommendations: 38:29

• ESG Mindset: Business Resilience and Sustainable Growth by Matthew Sekol
• The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski

What Christine wishes she’d known as a young lawyer: 40:02

• Christine on emphasizing relationships
• Requiring all of her new hires to build relationships in their first 90 days.