Sustainability as Fabric — and Why Smart Managers Will Capitalize First
Like most leading thinkers about the intersection of sustainability and business, Richard Locke got here
from somewhere else. Trained as a political scientist, he became known early on for expertise in supply
chain labor practices, and for advocating that social and economic concerns be integrated into curriculum and research. Now, as the Alvin J, Siteman Professor of Entrepreneurship at the MIT Sloan School of Management and a Professor in the political science department at MIT, Locke's interdisciplinary cast of mind is evident in all the work he does especially his exploration of sustainability. He has helped spearhead the development of MIT Sloan's Laboratory for Sustainable Business (S-Lab), which, notably, not only investigates sustainable-management issues in the classroom but puts students inside companies that are grappling with sustainability challenges on every front. Locke's own current research focuses on improving labor and environmental standards in global supply chains. As a result of his research on Nike and its efforts to improve working conditions among its suppliers, Locke was awarded the Faculty Pioneer Award from the Aspen Institute's Business and Society Program.