How Will the Events of 2020 Impact How You Approach Your Board Service?
“I feel NAEM’s mission and purpose rings true for even more professionals and companies during this time. My board service will be shaped by the dynamics of the pandemic.”
— Mike Miller, President, NAEM Board of Directors
“Of course, I do not know what is in store as we move into 2021; however, after seeing the stress and strain that everyone bore (isolation, stress, frustration, uncertainty, financial difficulties including reductions-in-force) and all of the incredible adaptations (laughter, Zoom usage by the elderly, care and kindness from neighbors and healthcare providers, family dinners, distanced exercise clubs...), I have learned that what we do matters. Where we choose to devote our previous time is important. Consideration of others is crucial. How often we laugh — and dance, pray, sing, check on friends and families or employees — is important to my wellbeing, to others and to our society. So I have a new view on life. Work on what is important: Family, friends, community (including NAEM). I accepted the Board position, with a strong determination to ‘Be Involved’ and to give NAEM my time, attention and support.”
— Anne Monine, 1st Vice President, NAEM Board of Directors
“I would have preferred the in-person meetings, but we are certainly all accustomed to web-based communication. I think 2020 will benefit NAEM in the long run. Some of these changes were necessary to address limitation on company travel and budgets as well as time.”
— Nicole Wilkinson, 2nd Vice President, NAEM Board of Directors
“Two main areas that I think will be important themes from 2020 and beyond are how to adapt and how to truly listen with an open mind. The impacts of the pandemic have forced organizations to quickly change how they operate. NAEM has done a great job of shifting to a virtual format, but it will take work and creativity to ensure the organization can remain successful in whatever the ‘new normal’ is. Listening with an open mind goes hand-in-hand with this success. We must keep asking ourselves: Are we being inclusive and considering diversity? What is our role as an organization (and professionals) in changing systemic issues? It will be a challenge, but I know that the NAEM board, staff and members are an incredible group of people that will continue to make the organization a role model for EHS, sustainability and corporate responsibility.”
— Fawn Bergen, Treasurer, NAEM Board of Directors
“The Board’s engagement with and support of the NAEM leadership team is more important than ever. Faced with a challenging financial year ahead, we will need to be in lockstep to ensure the organization is sustainable for the future. We have a strong foundation upon which to build and I'm excited to see where we will go next. 2020 also taught me how important it is to stay connected and that's going to be really important for the Board.”
— Sandy Nessing, Past President, NAEM Board of Directors
“All membership organizations are facing extra challenges now. The Board must approach everything with an open mind and look at how other organizations are operating.”
— John Guttman, General Counsel, NAEM Board of Directors
“The magnitude of COVID hit many of us by surprise. There has been a great deal of conflicting and incomplete information about how to respond, how to operate, and how to transition back to a new normal. Handling these types of pressures productively has been and will continue to be a priority of mine. As a newly-elected member of the board, I am committed to bringing my learnings from 2020 to the position this includes being a decisive and adaptable leader. As a Board member, it will be important for me and the rest of the Board to quickly process available information, make the appropriate tradeoffs and rapidly determine what matters most to the organization and our key stakeholders.”
— Deborah Briggs, Director-at-Large, NAEM Board of Directors
“When the pandemic started, one of our senior leaders said something along the lines of ‘give me your ideas, no matter how off-the-wall they are.’ At the time, it was unthinkable to just pack up our desks, monitors, chairs, and all, and take them home for an undetermined period of time. Our IT teams got us up and running remotely in a smooth transition because of that ‘off-the-wall’ idea. This whole experience has really shown me that we must think out of the box. It's something we've all said a lot, but 2020 pushed us to act on that cliché. When the status quo will not suffice, you must navigate differently. I’m really looking forward to what ‘off-the-wall’ ideas may be the next normal and supporting NAEM through it all.”
— Katie Chrisler, Director-at-Large, NAEM Board of Directors
“2020 was a year that highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of our society, our systems and our professions. We’ve seen the dedication and courage of health care providers and essential workers, and we’ve seen the innovation and brilliant response from scientists as they discovered, developed and delivered therapeutics and vaccines. We’ve also seen the disproportionate impact on frontline communities, communities of color, communities of poverty...those communities have had disproportionately high case rates and death rates, and are least able to work from home, isolate, and absorb the burden of crushing medical costs due to hospitalization. This year has reinforced my belief that our work on environmental sustainability must focus on just solutions that include and address the challenges and equities for communities that have not been allowed at the table during planning even though the highest risk exposure is in their communities. Frequently, the most impacted communities are the ones that had the least to do with creating climate change and have the least ability to adapt to growing risks. This also means that we need to work in our profession to attract, recruit and retain a much more diverse group of professionals. Without new voices and new views, we will not be able to design and implement effective climate adaptation measures, and I will work to bring new and diverse voices into NAEM.”
— James Goudreau, Director-at-Large, NAEM Board of Directors
Drena Howard
“The events of 2020 will impact my approach to Board service in two ways. One, it will help me to keep the virtual experience in the forefront of my ideas for NAEM from e-learnings, virtual events and platforms that can be leveraged. Two, it is critical that the EHS&S profession does not overlook the importance of diversity, and I want to find more ways to showcase and elevate diverse voices in the profession.”
— Drena Howard, Director-at-Large, NAEM Board of Directors
“If nothing else, 2020 has taught me that we must be adaptable both personally and professionally in order to be resilient. Given this new paradigm, I think NAEM has done an excellent job transitioning programing from in-person to virtual. We have proven that we can successfully deliver quality programing in a virtual format. I was able to get my entire EHS team to attend both the OpEx Conference and EHS&S Management Forum in 2020. In the past, I was only able to get 1 or 2 team members to join me. I believe that NAEM delivered on its mission to help me build the EHS bench strength at LDI through these professional development opportunities. Thus, my approach to my service on the board is to take a step back and examine how do everything and determine the target audience for each conference to ensure the programming is tailored to the audience.”
— Marc Juaire, Director-at-Large, NAEM Board of Directors
“COVID-19 has affected all of our lives, and it has never been more important for EHS professionals to have access to timely and accurate information as we’ve adapted to managing — and often leading our organizations’ response to — a global pandemic. NAEM can continue to provide a forum in which peers come together to have candid conversations that help us all rise to this shared challenge.”
— Kelvin Sanborn, Director-at-Large, NAEM Board of Directors
“This global pandemic has reminded me in a profound way that EHS&S is really about people and focusing on what is truly important. There is always more work than can be completed and more opportunities than available resources. The key is focusing on what will make the biggest difference and what can be done in a sustainable way, including appropriate work/life balance. Keeping this in mind will help me in my work as a Board member.”
— David Williams, Director-at-Large, NAEM Board of Directors
“We will forever be impacted by 2020 in several ways. Meeting the challenges of operating and providing services in last year’s business climate reminded me of the importance of being flexible, innovative and customer-centric. We focused on our members’ needs, and in doing so, NAEM staff found new ways to support our EHS&S management community through online discussion sessions and virtual programming. While transitioning to online learning was part of the Association’s long-term strategy, we were propelled into this in 2020. And lastly, I’m even more committed to the mission of NAEM. Last year EHS&S professionals thoroughly demonstrated the vital role they play in managing policies, processes and systems within their organizations to ensure the health & safety of fellow employees and externally to improve the health of our planet.”
— Carol Singer Neuvelt, Executive Director, NAEM