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Cynthia Wang

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Cynthia supports BSR’s human rights and supply chain work in Asia. Her project experience spans multiple social topics and industries, including financial services, extractives, and information and communications technology. She also supports the cross-industry Human Rights Working Group.

Prior to joining BSR, Cynthia worked as a legal trainee at the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights, where she conducted legal research and analysis to assist with legal complaints against transnational corporations. She also participated in a research project on corporate civil liability at the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights. Additionally, Cynthia previously interned at UN Women China, where she provided support on communications and project management for work related to domestic violence and CSR development in China.

Cynthia holds an M.A. in Human Rights from the University of Vienna and a B.A. in Law from National Taiwan University. 

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Jacob Park

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Jacob leads BSR’s Sustainable Futures Lab, a new practice using strategic foresight techniques to help businesses engage with emerging issues that are reshaping the global landscape.

Before joining BSR, Jacob was the lead futurist in the New York office of Forum for the Future, where he used scenario planning and other futures techniques to develop sustainability strategy and drive innovation for leading businesses, foundations, and multistakeholder groups. Prior to that he worked at Adaptive Edge, a boutique strategic foresight consultancy, on collaborative scenario planning. Jacob began his career doing human rights research and advocacy at Human Rights First and the Center for Economic and Social Rights. He speaks English and French.

Jacob holds an M.B.A. in Sustainability from Presidio Graduate School and a B.A. in History from the University of Chicago. 

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Lisa Staxäng

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Lisa leads business partnerships for RISE, an initiative to support collaborative industry action at scale to advance gender equality in global garment, footwear, and home textiles supply chains. RISE’s mission is to empower women workers, embed gender equality in business practices, and catalyze systems change. 

Prior to joining BSR, Lisa worked as a lawyer in Brussels and Stockholm, advising clients on corporate sustainability, compliance, and corporate governance. She has also worked as a law clerk at Stockholm District Court and served as a board member and rule-of-law trial observer for the Swedish Section of the International Commission of Jurists. 

Lisa holds a Master’s Degree in International Development Practice from Sciences Po, Paris, and an LLM from Uppsala University. A Swedish native, Lisa also speaks English, French, and German.

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Bob McFarlin

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Bob McFarlin is president of Robert McFarlin Consulting LLC, providing organizations with counsel and services in the areas of federal and state government affairs, stakeholder and community relations, corporate communications, and crisis management. McFarlin has 35 years of public affairs experience in Minnesota, serving in private- and public-sector management positions.

Prior to contract consulting, McFarlin was vice president of public and government affairs for Twin Metals Minnesota, where he continues to serve on the state and federal government affairs team and as principal company spokesperson. McFarlin also served as vice president in the corporate, community, and public affairs practice in the Minneapolis-St. Paul office of Weber Shandwick, and served 14 years in public service in a variety of senior management positions at the Minnesota Department of Transportation, including as acting commissioner in 2008.

A Minnesota native, McFarlin is a graduate of the University of Minnesota with a Bachelor’s degree in business administration and a Master’s degree in speech communication.

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Theresa Loar

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Theresa Loar has been working at the nexus of business, human rights, and diplomacy for more than 30 years with leadership positions across corporations, NGOs, and the U.S. government.

Most recently, she was senior vice president for global corporate affairs at CH2M, a Fortune 500 engineering consulting firm. In this capacity, she initiated and led a global response to modern slavery issues raised in CH2M infrastructure programs in the Middle East. She built a team to embed preventive measures in management systems and engaged with governments, clients, NGOs, and industry peers to forge effective alliances to prevent slavery in supply chains.

During the Clinton Administration, Loar worked in the White House and the U.S. Department of State to promote and protect women’s human rights under the leadership of First Lady Hillary Clinton and Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. She co-led a presidential task force to develop policy to combat human trafficking and introduced the Prevention, Protection, and Prosecution framework into testimony before the U.S. Congress. She was also the founding president of the Vital Voices Global Partnership, founded by Hillary Clinton to invest in women to improve the world. As a foreign service officer, Loar served in diplomatic assignments overseas and in Washington, D.C. She is a member of the board of directors of the Women’s Foreign Policy Group and RAD-AID International, a trustee of the Social Mobility Foundation in London, and a member of the Vital Voices D.C. Council. 

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Eileen Gallagher

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With nearly 20 years of experience, Eileen works with multinational companies to address climate change. She specializes in improving business strategy to consider how climate change and its solutions affect society, the environment, and the economy. 

Eileen directs BSR’s advisory and grant-funded work where climate intersects with human rights and equity, inclusion, and justice. She also supports companies with climate risk and scenario analysis, emissions reduction targets, and net-zero roadmaps. ​Eileen is BSR’s climate lead in the Asia-Pacific region, where she analyzed how climate change affects vulnerable nations, its people, and global supply chains. ​

Prior to joining BSR in 2017, Eileen served as a sustainability consultant, supporting companies on sustainability strategy development, strategic stakeholder engagement, and environmental management. While working at a public policy organization, she gained experience in international development, climate policy analysis, and effective communications. ​

Eileen holds a Master of Environmental Management from Duke University and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Connecticut. ​

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Harry Chau

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As part of BSR’s Finance team, Harry is responsible for accounts payable and expense analysis. He focuses on continuous system implementations and process improvements.

Before joining BSR, Harry worked in accounting at a green energy consulting company that utilizes unique software to help lower energy costs for businesses and institutions. There, he oversaw accounts payable, time and expenses, cash receipts, cash disbursements, and general ledger.

Harry holds a B.A. in Economics from the University of California, Davis.

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Kate E. Brandt

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Kate Brandt leads sustainability across Google’s worldwide operations, products, and supply chain. In this role, Kate coordinates with Google’s data centers, real estate, supply chain, and product teams to ensure the company is capitalizing on opportunities to strategically advance sustainability and circular economy.

Previously, Kate served as the United States' first Federal Chief Sustainability Officer. In this capacity, she was responsible for promoting sustainability across Federal Government operations, including 360,000 buildings, 650,000 vehicles, and US$445 billion annually in purchased goods and services.

Prior to the White House, Kate held several senior roles in U.S. Federal Government, including senior advisor at the Department of Energy, director for energy and environment in the White House Office of Presidential Personnel, and energy advisor to the Secretary of the Navy.

Kate is the recipient of the Distinguished Public Service Award, the highest award the U.S. Navy can give to a civilian, for her work helping the Navy go green. Outside Magazine also named her, in honor of the magazine’s 40-year anniversary, as one of 40 women who have made the biggest impacts on our world.

Kate serves on the boards of BSR, the Institute at Brown for Environment and Society, the Roosevelt Institute, Planet Forward, Stanford International Affairs Network, NSF Committee for Environmental Research and Education, and the Corporate Eco Forum.

Kate received a Master's degree in International Relations from the University of Cambridge, where she was a Gates Cambridge Scholar. She graduated with honors from Brown University.

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Nina Husson-Tanseri

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As Office Coordinator, Nina provides administrative support for our Paris and Copenhagen offices. She undertakes several day-to-day office tasks, including providing human resources, expense processing, and IT support.

Prior to joining BSR, Nina worked as an event coordinator assistant for a company specializing in event management and public relations consulting. She worked closely with the management team in charge of seminar organization and managed booking and invoicing.

Nina holds a two-year Diploma of Higher Education in Executive Assistant Studies.

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Susan Mac Cormac

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Susan Mac Cormac is a partner of global law firm Morrison & Foerster, serving as co-chair of the energy and clean technology groups.

Mac Cormac’s work focuses on advising innovative, forward-thinking sustainable and renewable energy companies and investors on corporate structure, equity and debt financings, mergers, acquisitions, asset purchases and sales, reorganizations, and joint ventures. She advises corporations on the intersection of fiduciary duties and environmental sustainability as well as disclosure around ESG. She has particular expertise on ensuring energy, sustainability, and other investments have positive impact through use of new corporate forms, hybrids, alternative debt and equity instruments, and disclosure.

In 2015, the Financial Times named Mac Cormac the “Most Innovative North American Lawyer” for her work championing impact investing and social enterprise legal innovation. She was named one of California Lawyer’s Attorneys of the Year in 2016 and in 2012, received the 2016 National Public Service Award from the American Bar Association’s Business Law Section for her innovative pro bono services to nonprofits, and has been recognized on several leadership lists, including the Daily Journal’s Top Female Lawyers for 2016, 2012, and 2011 and Top 100 Lawyers for 2012. She was a founding board member of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board, is a member of the Ceres President’s Council and the Board of Earth Genome Project, and is an advising board member of the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy’s Strategic Investor Initiative. She is also professor of social enterprise law at UC Berkeley School of Law.

Mac Cormac holds a B.A. from Williams College and received her J.D. and LL.M. degrees from Duke University School of Law.