American multinational technology corporation, Microsoft has named Melanie Nakagawa as its Chief Sustainability Officer.
Melanie will join the firm in January. This was announced by Brad Smith, Vice Chair and President of Microsoft.
Sharing the news, he wrote, “I’m delighted to share the news that Melanie Nakagawa will join Microsoft in January as our new Chief Sustainability Officer. Reporting directly to me as a Corporate Vice President, Melanie will partner with teams across Microsoft and take on the leadership role for our company-wide environmental sustainability work.
“Melanie brings to Microsoft almost two decades of environmental sustainability experience at the nexus of policy, business and technology, which will be vital as we continue our sustainability journey. She most recently served as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Climate and Energy on the National Security Council at the White House, one of several roles she has held in the U.S. government. At the White House, Melanie played a leadership role on international and domestic climate initiatives, as well as energy issues that included the international energy response to the war in Ukraine.”
This built on Melanie’s prior work, including as the director of the climate strategy for a climate tech-focused private equity firm working with growth-stage companies in North America, Europe, and Asia. She also brings experience in the nonprofit and academic sectors on environmental and energy policy and regulatory issues.
Melanie joins Microsoft at a critical time as January will mark the third anniversary of its ambitious climate goals to be carbon negative by 2030 and remove its historical carbon emissions by 2050.
