Vice President, Sustainability, Levi Strauss & Co.
Michael Kobori has led sustainability at Levi Strauss & Co. since 2001. Under his tenure, the company has been a pioneer, reducing the environmental impact of its products through its Levi’s® Waste<Less™ and Water<Less™ collections, Dockers’® WellThread collection, Care for Our Planet program, and leadership on the Better Cotton Initiative.
In addition, the company has gone beyond labor compliance by publicly disclosing its manufacturing supplier locations, leading the industry in banning sandblasting, and partnering with NGOs and key suppliers to support programs that improve workers’ lives.
Based on its sustainability work, Levi Strauss & Co. was recently named one of the most innovative companies in the world by FastCompany magazine, which also named Mr. Kobori one of its 1000 Most Creative People in Business.
Prior to joining Levi Strauss & Co., Michael served as Vice President at BSR and before that spent nearly a decade at The Asia Foundation, supporting human rights and economic development in Bangladesh, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Michael is a lecturer on sustainability at the Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley.
