About
West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum promotes business practices that advance climate leadership, social justice and the creation of a circular economy.
Through our membership program, we are Michigan’s leading organization for beyond-compliance sustainability practitioners, serving its most recognizable brands, largest employers and most innovative entrepreneurs, advocates and educators, as well as the public sector. Through our campaigns and advocacy, we serve partners and diverse stakeholders as a boundary organization committed to the development of practices, policies and partnerships that improve community resilience and equity.
Launched in 1994 as West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum, the Forum also does business as Michigan Sustainable Business Forum and operates statewide and regional programs that provide education, sustainable business resources and opportunities for collaboration and civic engagement to businesses and institutions. WMSBF is based in Grand Rapids with offices in Muskegon and Kalamazoo. It is a 501c3 non-profit organization.
Support Sustainability Leaders
The Forums are articulating a modern theory of change based on a guiding belief that Michigan businesses and institutions can and will be part of solutions to the great issues of our time. Members are supported by events, digital media, special campaigns, research initiatives, resource development, staff experts and a rotating portfolio of committees, task forces and round tables organized around strategic interests. Through these programs, we create value for businesses, institutions and their employees and students.
Strategic Goals
Michigan businesses and institutions increase their participation in the sustainability movement.
Supported by regional and statewide networks that facilitate collective leadership through a mutually beneficial flow of information, expertise, and resources.
Sustainable business centers social and environmental justice.
Providing a mechanism for businesses and institutions to dismantle and support alternatives to white supremacy.
Michigan businesses and institutions collaborate to create a circular economy and eliminate net greenhouse gas emissions in their local communities and industries.
Contributing to a future where GHGs in the atmosphere are declining and Michigan is a center of expertise for sustainable business.
Our History
In 1994, West Michigan professionals began exploring how addressing the negative impacts of certain business practices could not only protect the natural environment and human health, but provide economic value back to the organization. Emboldened by a culture that prioritizes natural resources and well-being of employees and community, a small group of businesses formed the charter membership of West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum as a program of West Michigan Environmental Action Council.
The Forum has since served as an introduction to sustainability for hundreds of organizations and thousands of professionals, hosting the most popular event program in the Midwest and a rotating portfolio of working groups focused on key issues. We now know that the work of our organization and its members will be judged by how we can impact the generational issues today defining our strategic objectives: climate change, racial and economic equity, and the need to develop a circular economy in our state.
Meet Our Staff
Daniel Schoonmaker
Executive Director
Rose Spickler
Director of Statewide Engagement
Carrie Veldman
Membership Manager
Dominique D. Edwards
Benton Harbor Justice40 Project Manager
Bill Stough
Sustainable Business Advisor
Hanna De La Vega Sánchez
Sustainability Associate (Spanish-Speaking)
Jack Schinderle
Senior Sustainability Consultant
Jason Story
Senior Sustainability Consultant
Brittany Andreadis
Project Coordinator
Meet Our Board
Helpful Information
Our 2023 Strategic Plan is focused on these core objectives:
- Develop a statewide network of sustainability practitioners.
- Mobilize sustainable business to advance social and environmental justice.
- Support the creation of a circular and low-carbon economy.
Financial Info
EIN Number: 26-3787387
2022 Form 990 Disclosure
2021 Form 990 Disclosure
Bylaws and Policies
WMSBF Scholarship and Discount Program
West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum recognizes that cost may be a barrier to entry for individuals and organizations to participate in our events and programs. Although fees and costs are necessary to ensure that our work is financially sustainable, we have created a means to ensure that our efforts are accessible and inclusive.
- Discount and trade membership: We will make discounted and trade memberships available to partner organizations with a financial need. We will also make trade memberships available to members of select association peers.
- Membership pricing: Our luncheons are priced at cost for members, whose support funds the planning and execution of events. Non-members are charged a higher price to account for the true cost of the program. By offering discounted and trade memberships, we are able to reduce the non-member cost and make participation affordable for all.
- Volunteer opportunities are available for every event and can provide individuals an option to attend at no cost.
- Non-member programs: Working groups and programs funded through grants are typically open to stakeholders regardless of membership status.
- Sponsored events: Sponsors and partners occasionally underwrite the cost of participation for their partners and members.
- Student memberships are free to students at member colleges and only $25 for students from non-member colleges.
We do not operate an application-based scholarship program or collect money for this purpose. If you are interested in volunteering or other opportunities please contact Carrie Veldman, Membership Manager at cveldman@wmsbf.org.