Program

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All sessions listed below are in Pacific Time (PT). View the Schedule summary here.

Tuesday, July 27th, 2021

9:30am to 10:00am

Opening Networking and Forum

Networking

10:00am to 10:05am

Welcome to VERGE Net Zero

Keynote

10:10am to 10:15am

The State of Net Zero

Keynote

We need every company, city, region and nation to transition to net-zero emissions in a way that delivers real climate impacts. Is that happening?

10:15am to 10:20am

Inside San Francisco's Journey to Net Zero

Keynote

An exclusive look at the green spaces, all-electric buildings, low-carbon transport and innovative startups powering the city's transition.

10:20am to 10:25am

Big Little Talks

Keynote

Game-changing ideas from big thinkers in a very short amount of time: just one minute each.

10:25am to 10:35am

How Microsoft Is Changing the Corporate Agenda on Carbon

Keynote

From its carbon removal fund to its commitment to repay carbon debt, Microsoft is reshaping how companies think about net zero.

10:35am to 10:50am

The "Unstoppable Youth" Behind the New Climate Activism

Keynote

The founders of Zero Hour are demanding that executives and elected officials act to safeguard a livable future for our planet.

11:00am to 11:45am

Reduce 101: What You Need to Know to Electrify Everything

Breakout

Experts in buildings, fleets and industrial processes explain the opportunities and challenges in the electrification revolution.

How Investors Evaluate Net-Zero Commitments

Breakout

Investors and consultants explain the metrics and values they use to evaluate corporate climate commitments.

The Market Leaders Shaping the Net-Zero Transition

Breakout

Leaders pioneering ambitious initiatives in emissions, corporate collaboration and other areas share their strategies.

11:45am to 12:15pm

Edison Energy Insights: Live Demo + Q&A

Booth Session

Edison Energy Forum Booth

Optimize your energy journey by leveraging our Digital Platform – Edison Energy Insights. Our client-centric technology puts you at the heart of your data, creating transparency and driving insights across your global portfolio. Coupling industry-leading market intelligence and an advisory approach with data trends and analytics, the Insights Platform empowers you to better manage today, and proactively shape their future energy decisions. Join us for an interactive walkthrough, where we'll take a peek underneath the hood and provide a look inside the Platform; demonstrating how you can manage market data, RFPs, offer evaluations, contract settlements, and more, all in one place.

Networking and Forum

Networking

12:15pm to 1:00pm

Measurement 101: What You Need to Know to Quantify Emissions

Breakout

How to navigate the alphabet soup of reporting — from CDP and SASB to GRI and TCFD — to quantify and disclose your organization's emissions.

Building the Right Renewables Strategy for Your Business

Breakout

The latest thinking in renewable and low-carbon energy to help you navigate the sector's opportunities and challenges.

Solutions Showcase: Build Your Company's Reductions Roadmap

Breakout

Leading service providers explain how they can help your organization carry out a carbon audit and build a roadmap to net zero.

1:00pm to 1:30pm

Networking and Forum

Networking

Achieve Net Zero Faster: Climate Action With Today Solutions

Booth Session

Neste Booth

Neste has committed to helping customers reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by at least 20 million tons annually by 2030. This goal, called a Carbon Handprint, continues to push Neste to pioneer new and lower carbon solutions - like growing the circular economy. Neste’s renewable products helped customers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions globally by 10 million tons just in 2020 alone. For example, Neste and the City of Oakland created a circular economy that turns locally sourced used cooking oil into renewable diesel to power the city's fleet, keeping 3,375 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions out of the atmosphere each year. Neste also worked with McDonald’s to prove the circular economy works in the private sector. The combination of effective climate goals, like a clear carbon handprint, and today solutions, like renewable fuels and the circular economy, can enable any company to transform its business model and thrive in a low carbon future.

1:30pm to 2:15pm

Using Supply Chain Partnerships to Cut Scope 3 Emissions

Breakout

How companies are integrating supplier relationships with climate strategy to drive down emissions.

Restructure Your Business to Reach Net Zero

Breakout

Case studies from companies that have changed culture and operations in pursuit of net-zero goals.

Offsets 101: What You Need to Know to Buy Carbon Offsets

Breakout

Demystifying the market for carbon credits so you can do due diligence before making a purchase.

2:15pm to 3:00pm

Ask an Expert: Companies and Cities Partner to Hit Net Zero

Ask An Expert

Quiz sustainability leaders on how your company can collaborate with cities to reduce emissions and draw down carbon in urban environments.

Ask an Expert: Nature-Based Solutions and Net-Zero

Ask An Expert

How can companies responsibly maximize the multiple benefits of nature-based solutions as part of a net-zero strategy?

Ask an Expert: Neutral, Net-Zero, Negative...What?!

Ask An Expert

Disentangle the confusing language and components of climate goals to improve your organization's climate strategy.

Ask an Expert: Inside Facebook's Net-Zero Strategy

Ask An Expert

Facebook's sustainability strategy manager takes your questions on the company's plan to reach net zero by 2030.

Wednesday, July 28th, 2021

9:30am to 10:00am

Opening Networking and Forum

Networking

10:00am to 10:02am

Day 2 Welcome

Keynote

10:02am to 10:10am

Can America Reach Net-Zero Emissions?

Keynote

Almost every part of our economy must change if we're to reach net zero. What will that look like and how can your organization contribute?

10:05am to 10:10am

How Green Beaches Could Power Drawdown

Keynote

Meet the early-stage company trialing a radical carbon removal technology on a Caribbean beach.

10:15am to 10:25am

Netflix, Nature and Net Zero

Keynote

The world's most popular streaming service is cutting film production emissions and investing in nature to reach net zero by 2022.

10:25am to 10:30am

Big Little Talks

Keynote

Game-changing ideas from big thinkers in a very short amount of time: just one minute each.

10:30am to 10:40am

Why the Net Zero Transition Must be a Just Transition

Keynote

What will a just transition look like in practice? And how can you organization help make it happen?

10:40am to 10:50am

A New Innovation Challenge for Carbon Finance

Keynote

In collaboration with Salesforce, the World Economic Forum’s NCS Alliance and 1t.org launch the first UpLink Carbon Finance Challenge.

10:50am

The Leaders of 2050 Have a Message for You

Keynote

The leaders of the companies and cities of 2050 are in elementary school today. We asked them how they feel about the future.

11:00am to 11:45am

What does it Mean to be Net Zero in the Financial Sector?

Breakout

Investors, lenders and climate policy experts discuss how the financial sector can achieve net-zero lending and investment portfolios.

The State of the Market for Carbon Removal in 2021

Breakout

Carbon removal will be integral to many net-zero strategies. What types of credits are available now? Which are right for your organization?

The Game-Changing Impact of Tracking Supply Chain Emissions

Breakout

Leaders from two transformative initiatives explain how new supply-chain tracking systems will impact strategies to reduce emissions.

11:45am to 12:15pm

Networking and Forum

Networking

Join Reformation and Allbirds to Talk Climate, Regenerative Ag & Fashion

Booth Session

Native Forum Booth

Join Reformation, Allbirds and Native to talk climate action, regenerative supply sheds and fashion.

12:15pm to 1:00pm

These Cities Are Leading the Net-Zero Transformation

Breakout

Lightning talks from cities and corporate partners rethinking mobility, waste and other sectors in the bid to reach net-zero emissions.

How to Build the Carbon Removal Market We Need

Breakout

How collaboration between companies, non-profits and policymakers can create an affordable and equitable supply of carbon removal credits.

The Next-Gen Tech Accelerating the Transition to Net Zero

Breakout

Meet the startups behind the technologies set to emerge as enablers of the net-zero transition.

1:00pm to 1:30pm

Networking and Forum

Networking

A Guide to Affordable, Zero Carbon Hydrogen

Booth Session

Bloom Energy Forum Booth

The world needs abundant renewable energy. Conventional energy sources release emissions, and existing renewables can’t supply the power we need on their own. At Bloom Energy, we’re answering this complex challenge using the world’s simplest molecule: hydrogen. Hydrogen is the clear answer for our changing energy needs. See why solid oxide technology is the most effective way to produce hydrogen and how Bloom Energy is leading decarbonization efforts across industries.

1:30pm to 2:15pm

Solutions Showcase: Find the Right Offset for Your Business

Breakout

Offset providers walk you through their catalogues of high-quality credits, ranging from nature-based solutions to permanent carbon removal.

Can Oil, Gas and Other Carbon-Intensive Sectors Reach Net Zero?

Breakout

What's the path for oil, steel, cement and heavy transport? What role should offsets, asset sales and other mechanisms play in that process?

Native Net Zero: Integrating Emissions Goals into Products

Breakout

Companies explain how they have integrated emissions reductions strategies into products and business models.

2:15pm to 3:00pm

Ask an Expert: Understanding Scope 3 and What Comes Next

Ask An Expert

How can companies set ambitious decarbonization targets for suppliers and partner to achieve them?

Ask an Expert: Net-Zero Programs and a Just Transition

Ask An Expert

Quiz an expert on how net-zero strategies can contribute to a transition that's equitable, just and inclusive.

Ask an Expert: How Can the U.S. Reach Net Zero Emissions?

Ask An Expert

Net Zero America lead author Eric Larson takes questions on how organizations of all types can contribute to the net-zero transition.