John Tobin-de la Puente is a Professor of Practice at the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management in the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business. He is also Director of the CEMS international MBA program as well as the Director of the Grand Challenges at Dyson program. Professor Tobin is an ecologist and attorney with over two decades of private sector experience, having worked in the international finance industry for much of his career. Following a decade of corporate legal practice in the area of emerging markets finance, while actively providing counsel on environmental conservation matters on a pro bono basis, Professor Tobin turned his full attention towards the growing area of corporate sustainability, becoming Managing Director and Global Head of Sustainability at Credit Suisse. In this position, he pioneered a variety of initiatives and policies aimed at setting the finance industry on a more sustainable course. In 2016, Professor Tobin transitioned into a faculty position at Cornell University, where he teaches corporate sustainability, environmental and social risk management, impact investing, environmental finance, and related topics to undergraduates and graduate students in business and public affairs. His research focuses on the use of financial tools to generate positive outcomes in the areas of sustainable development and biodiversity conservation. In addition, Professor Tobin actively engages with industry and civil society to develop financial solutions to sustainability problems, including as co-founder of the Coalition for Private Investment in Conservation (CPIC). Professor Tobin has extensive leadership and governance experience in not-for-profit entities at the board level, particularly in the areas of environment, science, and education.
Generating Profit in the Era of SustainabilityCornell Course
Course Overview
In this course, you will explore how values-informed purchasing and investment decisions, along with generational shifts in investment and consumption patterns, create opportunities for companies that adapt to trends in sustainability. You will also examine ways in which regulatory changes, growing scrutiny, and increased pressure by civil society create growing markets for products and services that have fewer impacts on people and the planet than conventional products and services. Building on this base, you will identify how investment decisions can influence societal outcomes and how private, return-seeking capital can improve social and environmental outcomes by fostering more sustainable business activities. By the end of the course, you will be prepared to propose sound sustainability initiatives or new sustainable business ventures that you believe represent real opportunities for a company like yours to increase its profitability.
You are required to have completed the following courses or have equivalent experience before taking this course:
- Evaluating a Corporate Sustainability Strategy
- Sustainability Risk Management
Key Course Takeaways
- Identify business opportunities in sustainability
- Explore strategies businesses use to shift from being part of the sustainability problem to being part of the sustainability solution
- Propose ways your business can increase profitability through sustainable opportunities

How It Works
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Who Should Enroll
- Managers and executives
- Corporate responsibility professionals
- Public and investor relations professionals
- Legal professionals
- Philanthropists
- Entrepreneurs
- Communications experts
- Community activists