The mission of Sustain-NW is to promote and advance sustainable
practices in the Pacific Northwest through education, leadership
and connection.
As a sustainability consultant, Jill Sughrue brings 27 years of
casualty risk management experience to the corporate
sustainability arena, assisting both public and private
entities. Among other projects in 2007, she worked
with Clark County and their partnering organizations on
the 2007 Southwest Washington Sustainability
Conference and Trade Show, and with Earth Advantage,
Inc. on the development and delivery of their S.T.A.R.
certification program (Sustainability Training for
Accredited Real Estate Professionals) for identifying
and understanding the importance of 'green home'
features. In 2008, she continues to facilitate the
EA S.T.A.R.
workshops, and is working with the City of Vancouver
on the
2008 SW Washington
Sustainability Conference and Trade Show scheduled for July
10-12 and on development of the City's sustainability
policy and metrics.
Jill has conducted workshops on sustainability as it
relates to risk management, purchasing, education, and
climate change, and is an adjunct instructor at Clark
College in Vancouver and a member of the
International Society of Sustainability Professionals
(ISSP).
She is one of 1,000 presenters with
The Climate Project trained by Nobel-laureate and
former Vice President Al Gore. In April 2007, she
co-hosted the STEP IT UP Global Warming rally at Esther
Short Park in Vancouver as part of the National Day of
Climate Action.
As the insurance director for Portland General
Electric Company (PGE) from 1990 to 2005, she was responsible
for the management of property and casualty risk associated with
the operation of the investor owned utility with over 2,800
employees. Prior to joining PGE, Jill was an account executive
for six years with Alexander & Alexander, Inc., international
insurance broker, with clients ranging from the City of Portland
to NERCO, Inc., PacifiCorp’s mining subsidiary.
In the course of her career in risk management, which started in 1978
at the corporate headquarters of Evans Products Company in
Portland, Jill has managed numerous projects, including:
- Successful negotiation of multi-million dollar property insurance claim settlements.
- Preparation and reconciliation of annual operating budgets over $10 million.
- Analysis of the corporate cost allocation mechanism leading to new procedures.
- Orchestration of high-profile industry forums between insurers and clients.
- Chair of an industry conference, which netted record proceeds for the professional association.
Professionally and in the community, Jill has demonstrated her leadership and communication abilities as:
- Facilitator of experiential leadership workshops at PGE.
- Certified trainer of personal safety and self-defense skills
with the
WomenStrength program.
- President, Oregon Chapter of the Risk and
Insurance Management Society (RIMS).
- Mentor to high school students at St. Mary’s Academy
and RIMS national chapters.
- Speaker at risk management venues, including RIMS, Edison Electric
Institute, U.S. Council on Energy Awareness and the American Society of Safety Engineers.
Jill earned her Associate in Risk Management (ARM) from the American Institute of Chartered Property and Casualty
Underwriters and was an ARM 54 instructor. Her philosophy of life-long learning commenced at Oregon State
University in 1973 and continues to this day via workshops and coursework at local and regional
universities and numerous professional venues.
An involved participant in the community, in spring 2007 Jill
founded a monthly networking forum for local businesses,
educators, individuals and government representatives to
celebrate and accelerate sustainable practices in Clark
County. An active volunteer mentor and presenter with the
Northwest Earth Institute,
she also assisted in development of NWEI's discussion
guide on Global Warming: Changing CO2urse
and revision of their Voluntary Simplicity
course guide. As a member of and coach with the
Oregon Natural Step Network,
Jill is passionate about sustainability, which she considers the only long-term, viable solution to the
increasing risk and associated hazards of global warming.
An endorser
of The Earth Charter,
she encourages everyone to become familiar with this
inspiring global initiative.
