Sustainable Business Practices Specialization

Combining academic and hands-on learning components, the sustainable business practices specialization positions MBA graduates for a leadership role in business sustainability.

With programming created by the Center for Sustainable Business Practices, students receive a well-rounded education at the intersection of sustainability and business. Through coursework, conferences, study tours, consulting projects, and conversations with sustainability practitioners, Oregon MBA graduates leave the program with robust knowledge of business sustainability, well-prepared to work in sustainability roles.

The Oregon MBA
mbainfo@uoregon.edu
541-346-3306
Lillis 145

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What You'll Learn

  • Gain a holistic perspective of the sustainable business landscape, including sustainability reporting frameworks and an understanding of how legislation affects business decisions.
  • Assess the life cycle of products through supply chains and other factors to determine a product's effectiveness and reusability.
  • Evaluate the environmental impacts of industrial production, including processes and resource use that create industrial ecologies.
  • Explore immerging tactics—like decarbonization technologies, organization change, and clean energy financing—that help businesses make the transition into more sustainable organizations.

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Victoria Delon
"One of the most impactful courses I took was Sustainable Business Development. It taught me the different meanings of sustainability as it pertains to the state of our planet and its interconnectedness to business. The course gave me the skills necessary to communicate the importance of sustainability in a language that resonnates with traditional businesses. I learned about the variety of tools that will help me build sustainability strategies that make space for the diversity of stakeholders' interests, all while holding them accountable for the impact they have on our planet."
—Victoria Delon, MBA ’23

Where You'll Go

  • Network with industry practitioners and learn sustainable strategies from leading organizations during yearly trips to San Francisco and Seattle.
  • Grab your passport and journey to Europe, where you'll delve into globalization trends and sustainability measures impacting international business.
  • Work with the Center for Sustainable Business Practices to host educational and immersive events rooted in sustainable business, including the Summit for Sustainable Organizations.
  • Gain access to key sustainability opportunities like GreenBiz conferences, industry visits in Portland, and cross-campus activations through the UO chapter of Net Impact.

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Adam Snyder
"The study tour to San Francisco provided exposure to companies taking real steps to implement sustainability and corporate governance efforts into their operations. It was a transformative experience that gave us a firsthand look at how businesses can thrive while prioritizing sustainability."
—Adam Snyder, MBA and MS in Finance Class of 2024

Who You'll Meet

In a weekly seminar, connect with alumni and groundbreaking leaders in the airline, consumer goods, and apparel industries, among others. Alumni from the program have found full-time roles with big companies across a variety of industries, including:

  • Columbia
  • Amazon
  • Nike
  • PayPal
  • CBRE
  • CDP
  • Allstate

Others have found homes with sustainability consulting firms, working with multiple clients at once on projects to increase green measures.

Explore Connections

MBA students talk amongst themselves as they take notes outside of a greenhouse
"During our study tour to Europe, we met the former chief technology officer of ING bank. He told us, 'To be a great leader of the organization, you need to allow yourself to be vulnerable, but that does not mean you are weak. It means you have the courage to lay down your guard and genuinely allow yourself to interact with the team or the employees.' The program gave us the skills to deal with technical issues, but the organization is about people. I will keep this in mind and practice throughout my career and my life."
—Herman Yue, MBA ’23

What You'll Do

Take a hands-on approach to achieve change right here, right now. Work with a real client on solving their pressing business problems through a strategic planning project during your last two terms. During the summer between first and second year, students also find internships focused on sustainability-rooted projects for leading companies like CBRE and Nike.

The experience gained through these opportunities is valuable and helps graduates land influential roles across various industries. The number of sustainability-focused roles are continuing to increase, with graduates landing positions in such roles as:

  • Sustainability consulting
  • Sustainability management
  • Sustainability analyzation and reporting

Discover Careers

Rachel Cohen
"I am a senior strategy and planning analyst on the customer solutions team at Portland General Electric, Oregon's largest electric utility. My team builds and implements emerging business models to help customers meet their energy and sustainability goals and benefit the electric grid. It is an exciting time to work for a 130-year old company that is reimagining its business model as well as in the energy industry more broadly, which is experiencing game-changing innovation and opportunity through policies like the Inflation Reduction Act."
—Rachel Cohen, MBA ’20, Senior Strategy and Planning Analyst, Portland General Electric