My name is Sophie Whitfield. I enjoy spending time outdoors, solving problems, and collaborating with others. I was fortunate enough to travel and camp outdoors as a child, which fueled my love for nature and the environment. I want to the opportunity to have these personal values support and guide my career in business. As a positive, creative, and passionate third year student, I am confident that the Ivey Sustainability Certificate can grant me this opportunity and give me the power to make change. 

What is your personal definition of sustainability? 

Primarily, sustainability is the ability to maintain a process over a long period of time. To businesses, it means conducting operations without the use of depleting and harmful resources. To me, sustainability means being part of a solution that supports future generations on our planet. The use of sustainable resources is the solution to end a vicious cycle of wildlife destruction, harmful carbon emissions and pollution. Destruction and reformation of this cycle, driven by profit and ignorance, requires innovation, passion, and uniting under a common goal. 

What role do you see sustainability playing in your professional career?

In my professional career, I see sustainability not only as a passion but a responsibility to future generations. I pursued business to equip myself with the capabilities to solve problems through innovation. As I continue to become more knowledgeable in business operations, profitability, and shareholder value theory, it is clear to me which is most detrimental to our future- sustainability. The intersection of a business background, a passion for sustainability, and the knowledge that this certificate would grant me provides me with the tools I need to address the problem effectively.  

As a vegetarian who also strictly supports sustainable clothing production, I’m specifically passionate about advocating for sustainable retail and food production. In my career, I want to approach these problems from both ends. I hope to educate companies on the importance of choosing people over profit, while also finding innovative solutions that close the gap between them.    

In order to have the greatest impact, I also hope to pursue a career in consulting, where I can merge my creative and innovative mind with my passion and knowledge of sustainability. This would allow me to advise on a range of business operations and reach a larger audience. 

What sustainability projects have you been engaged in?

After a lifetime of supporting and advocating for sustainable retail practices, I finally took action and started a sustainable business during Covid. I began upcycling clothing from my local thrift store, providing alterations and customization to appeal to larger audiences and change consumer perceptions of second-hand clothing. I used my platform to educate customers on how they were helping the environment with their purchases, and how other industry leaders were not. This project, while giving me great experience, also illustrated some of the direct problems tied to sustainability for businesses, profit and scalability. As I continued to compete against local retailers that used bulk orders of fabric rather than from limited sustainably sources, my order capacity was lower, my prices were higher, and my margins were smaller. This problem, on a much larger scale, represents the problem at the heart of sustainable practices for businesses. Experiencing this firsthand inspired me to solve these problems for other businesses as I would have done for own. My passion is also supported by my involvement in Ivey SIC, Western Wildlife Conservation Society, and my time spent volunteering at Habitat for Humanity, where I helped advertise their sustainable home-goods store. 

Please list any sustainability-related interests you want to explore during the certificate. 

• Sustainability in retail 
• Innovative solutions 
• Green Chip Investing