Future success is defined by how we communicate and collaborate today.
Effective collaboration begins with joint awareness and understanding of societal challenges — and the opportunities and resources to meet those challenges.
The Ohio State University Office of Corporate Relations has designed a new event series to provide corporate partners with thought-provoking, research-based insights on how to connect, leverage and engage with university expertise and assets.
September 26, 2023
Sustainability was the theme for our inaugural event. Distinguished speakers discussed how we collaborate with companies, workforce training, the importance of climate-change plans, and risk and resilience modeling for businesses.
Featured Speakers
Josh Knights, Director of Partnerships, The Ohio State University Sustainability Institute
Christian Blanco, PhD, Assistant Professor of Operations and Business Analytics, Max M. Fisher College of Business
Sara Johnson, PhD Student, Department of Geography
Featured Speakers
Josh Knights
Director of Partnerships, The Ohio State University Sustainability Institute
Josh develops partnerships between Ohio State and major stakeholders, including businesses, government agencies, and local communities to help solve global sustainability challenges. He works with colleagues across the university to leverage Ohio State’s core strengths in research, teaching, and using campus as a living laboratory in the fields of sustainable energy, circular economy, ecosystem health, smart and resilient communities, and sustainable resources. Josh believes in the power of collaboration to solve complex challenges facing society.
Prior to joining Ohio State in 2018, Josh held leadership positions at The Nature Conservancy, including Executive Director of the Ohio program and Director of Corporate Partnerships. During 17 years with the nonprofit, Josh helped raise public and private resources for conservation, strengthened relationships with the business and agricultural sectors, and led an expansion into clean energy policy. Early in his career, Josh worked on international trade policy in Washington, D.C., at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the law firm White & Case. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in international relations from The Johns Hopkins University.
Josh lives in Columbus, Ohio, with his wife Lara and two children, Will and Maya. In his spare time, he enjoys backpacking and kayaking.
Christian Blanco, PhD
Assistant Professor of Operations and Business Analytics, Max M. Fisher College of Business
Christian Blanco is an assistant professor of operations management at the Fisher College of Business. After receiving his Ph.D. from the UCLA Anderson School of Management as a National Science Foundation Fellow, he joined Ohio State's Operations and Business Analytics department. Christian is a member of the Sustainability Institute and the Institute for Materials Research at Ohio State.
His research has been published in Manufacturing and Service Operations Management, Production and Operations Management, Risk Analysis, and Energy Policy. Christian is interested in corporate carbon targets, climate risk and resilience, and creating business solutions to environmental problems. His research has been featured in the Network for Business Sustainability, a community of more than 190 sustainability research centers in business schools worldwide. Christian has worked and collaborated with various private and public entities, including PG&E, DSW, OhioHealth, Greif, the CDP, NRC, NETL, and the FDA. Christian has also done research in the area of pharmaceutical manufacturing and the generic drug review process.
He is part of the Greater Columbus Rowing Association and enjoys recreational rowing in the Scioto River.
