Marketing and sustainability experts

Lisa Geason-Bauer is a classically trained rural and environmental sociologist, who grew up on a multi-generational Wisconsin dairy farm working side-by-side with her family. Lisa’s love of the natural world, ecology, and sustainable farm management practices led her to Michigan State University for graduate school, where she was one of the first sociologists to hold the C.S. Mott Sustainable Agriculture Fellowship. She worked on a multidisciplinary team, with scientists from across the the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) station, on projects tied to the adoption of sustainable farm management practices.

Ms. Geason-Bauer founded Wisconsin’s first triple bottom line managed sustainability consulting, environmental communications and ethical marketing firm (Evolution Marketing) in 2007. As a sustainability practitioner and storyteller Lisa has led the implementation of sustainability strategies and corporate social responsibility programs, projects within the responsible business, government and the non-profit sectors for over a decade.

Practical and pragmatic in her leadership style, Lisa excels at building consensus between diverse stakeholder groups and moving a project, action, or initiative forward. Lisa excels at communicating effectively about systems thinking, holistic sustainability and working in an intersectional space using tools from various disciplines and fields of study in order to solve societies' most pressing social and environmental problems. She is a frequent conference speaker, guest lecturer and subject of media interviews. She currently serves as the Chair of B Local Wisconsin, and she is the Vice Chair of the Waukesha-Ozaukee-Washington County Workforce Development Board.

Over the last fourteen years, Lisa has become a sought after advisor, trusted strategic thinker, and award-winning marketer to more than ten nonprofit leaders and their respective organizations in the green building, renewable energy, energy conservation, and sustainability (local food systems, behavior change, employee engagement, etc.) sectors.

Leah Steinberg, a Wisconsin native and graduate from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, is the visionary founder of Steinberg Sustainability Solutions. With an unwavering passion for the environment, Leah’s career path was driven by the desire to make a meaningful impact on our world.

Leah's journey began as a Marketing Associate at Evolution Marketing, LLC, where she expertly assisted small businesses and nonprofit organizations with strategic marketing and communications, impact reporting, social media planning and engagement, and community outreach. However, Leah's commitment to sustainability led her to seek out new ways to merge her passion for sustainability with the business world.

In July 2018, Leah founded Steinberg Sustainability Solutions with a resolute mission: to bridge the gap between sustainability and business practices. In an era where society is increasingly conscious of the climate crisis, Leah understands the importance of equipping businesses with the necessary framework and resources to drive systematic change within their communities.

Jeffrey is the Founder and Executive Director of Enharmonic Encounters LLC, a small, Black-owned business that builds bridges toward a more unified world through sustainability translation and consulting. As a former Business Sustainability Analyst at B Lab Global, in tandem with his current sustainability research as a GRI Certified Sustainability Professional, Jeffrey's expertise covers the entire B Certification review process. Also specializing in translation from Arabic into English and currently certified by the American Translators Association for Portuguese into English, Jeffrey ensures that impact is communicated to English-speaking stakeholders effectively.

Melina Marcus is President and Founder of MM Consulting Services. She is an entrepreneur at heart having co-founded Rebel Green as one of Wisconsin’s first, mission-based, environmentally responsible consumer packaged goods (CPG brands). A Women-Owned business and Certified B Corporation™, they have brought to market plant-powered household cleaners, USDA Certified organic laundry detergents, and the first carbon-neutral, bamboo household paper products of its kind. As the Co-founder and the firm’s Communications Strategist, Melina has been responsible for the co-development of their eco-chic and environmentally responsible brand, and their creative messaging from social media to media outreach to the product shelves.

As Co-founder and Principal, Melina also performed sales within the company working on national and regional retailer accounts for more than a decade. Rebel Green products are distributed in approximately 6,000 retailers nationwide and in the UK and Canada.

Ms. Marcus is passionate about the environment, human health, and using business as a force for good in the world, as such she is actively involved in the National Natural Products Climate Collaborative, and has participated in the Ceres Lead on Climate 2020 Day, where she spoke with Members of Congress regarding the need to create public policies around decarbonization. As a member of We’re Still In, Rebel Green amplifies its work for a regenerative and equitable society and its pursuit of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Ms. Marcus worked as a journalist for over a decade, and she is a proud graduate of the Boston University College of Communications. Currently, Melina serves in the volunteer capacity of Communications Chair for B Local WI.

Stephanie’s creative experience began 16 years ago as an editor-in-chief for a magazine and later building personal websites and content through food and travel blogging at SK Parfait. She soon offered services to other companies, developing marketing and branding skills to help promote a product or service while working full-time for corporations in the paper and automotive industries in Wisconsin and later IT and food industries in Colorado. She continued to gain skills in customer success and brand management with food product and home improvement companies in the Midwest, working alongside individuals from all walks of life and creating content for many types of media. This work included branding, logo and graphic design, social media management, email marketing, blog, and content writing, sustainability consulting, and video copywriting and directing. In 2018, she was also responsible for background research, coordination of information, and vetting a solar energy project for her fortune 500 employer.

Naturally drawn to the sustainability space and growing up in a home surrounded by family-owned farmland in a reforestation program in Wisconsin, she wanted to create a platform to highlight all of the individuals and companies that bring awareness to wellness, sustainability, and the environment. She created the company Purevant Living to provide creative services within sustainability and wellness through interviews, podcasting, articles, and design. She has facilitated many community wellness workshops and cooking classes, published several recipes and children’s books, and created and designed the Women Who Kayak organization to promote community and preservation of our waterways. Most recently she launched the Person & Planet podcast and paired magazine, and is publishing a C2C certified children's book and paired cookbook on healthy and sustainable living. Stephanie aligned her business in a manner prioritizing community outreach, giving, environmental stewardship, and the Sustainable Development goals, showcased in Purevant Living’s 2020 Impact & Carbon Footprint Report. She currently serves as an Advisory Board member for the Wisconsin Sustainable Business Council.