Joel Makower

Joel Makower is chairman and executive editor of GreenBiz Group, Inc., creator of GreenBiz.com along with research and events on sustainable business and clean technology. He hosts GreenBiz.com’s annual GreenBiz forums as well as the VERGE and Circularity conferences produced by his company, and is principal author of the annual “State of Green Business” report.

For 30 years, Joel has been a well-respected voice on business, sustainability and clean technology. As a writer, speaker, and entrepreneur on corporate sustainability practices, he has helped a wide range of companies align environmental goals with business strategy.

Before VERGE, Makower co-founded Clean Edge Inc., a research firm devoted to clean energy technology, and acts as a senior consultant to GreenOrder, a sustainability strategy firm. In addition, he has consulted for many Fortune 500 companies such as Gap, General Motors, Hewlett Packard, and Procter and Gamble.

A former nationally syndicated columnist, Joel is author or co-author of more than a dozen books, including The New Grand Strategy: Restoring America’s Prosperity, Security and Sustainability in the 21st Century, (St. Martin’s Press, 2016), about a business plan for America, born at the Pentagon, that embeds sustainability as a strategic national imperative.

Previous books include "Strategies for the Green Economy" (2008), "Beyond the Bottom Line" (1994) and "The E-Factor" (1992), two of the earliest framing books on corporate environmental responsibility and corporate social responsibility, respectively.

The Associated Press has called Joel "The guru of green business practices." In 2012, he was awarded the Hutchens Medal by the American Society for Quality, which cited “his ability to tell compelling stories that both inform and inspire business leaders toward profitable action.” In 2014 he was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the International Institute of Sustainability Professionals.

Joel frequently keynotes corporate events, business associations, and regional business and economic development events, is a sought-after moderator and host of sustainability events, and is frequently quoted in major news media, including Fortune, Forbes, the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, USA Today, Time, and public radio’s “Marketplace.”

Joel advises several startups and chairs the board of the nonprofit youth entrepreneurship organization United Roots.