The participants of the Forum included representatives of the National ESG Alliance, Shenzhen Mangrove Wetlands Conservation Foundation (MCF), Society of Entrepreneurs and Ecology (Beijing, China), the government of the Irkutsk Region, heads of the relevant visions of the companies who are leaders in sustainable transformation, such as Sber, Russian Railways, RUSAL, Polyus, Delo Group, Segezha Group and several others. The Forum was co-organized by the gold mining company Polyus and the National ESG Alliance.
During the Forum, the experts discussed the issues of promoting the sustainable development agenda in the regions and assessing social investment of companies in the territories where they are operating. The participants also shared their experience in developing programs to preserve the environment and biodiversity; discussed the requirements for personnel in terms of their knowledge and skills related to sustainable development, as well as the potential of universities for training such specialists.
Students from the Irkutsk National Research University (IRNITU) took an active part in the Forum activities. Within the youth track, a business game "A City You Want to Live In" was organized. The students learned more about the current ESG agenda and gave them an opportunity to test themselves at constructing a city that meets the sustainable development.
