Keynotes That Change the Questions Leaders Ask
For more than forty years I’ve been asking one question:
Why has business sustainability produced so much activity—and yet so little transformation?
That question has taken me from research laboratories to boardrooms, from corporate sustainability to global consulting, and from working alongside William McDonough and Dr. Michael Braungart to developing the Belief Architecture™ framework described in Our Common Future—Now.
Every keynote builds on that journey.
My goal isn’t simply to inspire an audience.
It’s to leave them looking at their business differently than when they arrived.
The Difference
Most sustainability presentations focus on trends.
Mine focuses on decisions.
The organizations that thrive over the coming decades won’t necessarily be those with the biggest sustainability departments or the most comprehensive ESG reports.
They will be the organizations that learn to redesign the assumptions governing every major decision.
That is the conversation I bring to conferences, executive forums and boardrooms.
Popular Keynotes
Why Sustainability Reached Its Ceiling
After forty years of effort, why has business sustainability improved performance while failing to change the overall trajectory?
Based on Our Common Future—Now.
Design Like Nature™
What four billion years of natural design teaches us about creating businesses that generate value without degrading the systems that sustain them.
Beyond the Sustainability Ceiling™
The next generation of business leadership requires more than better reporting.
It requires a different way of thinking.
Perfectly Wrong
Artificial Intelligence is rapidly becoming every executive’s advisor.
But what happens when AI faithfully reproduces yesterday’s sustainability assumptions?
Based on the forthcoming book Perfectly Wrong.
Building Businesses That Strengthen Life
Moving beyond “doing less harm” toward organizations designed to increase the conditions that allow both business and life to flourish.
Every Presentation Is Tailored
No two audiences are alike.
Every keynote is adapted to the industry, conference theme, leadership challenges and strategic priorities of the organization inviting me.
Whether speaking to executive teams, boards, sustainability professionals or business leaders, the objective remains the same:
Deliver ideas that continue influencing decisions long after the event ends.
Typical Audiences
- Business Leaders
- CEOs
- Executive Teams
- Boards
- Sustainability Professionals
- Circular Economy Practitioners
- Industry Associations
- Government Leaders
- Universities
Speaker Background
Kenneth Alston is an author, international keynote speaker and executive advisor.
His career includes twenty years with SC Johnson, seventeen years working alongside William McDonough and Dr. Michael Braungart, and advising organizations across North America, Europe and South America.
He is the author of Our Common Future—Now, co-author of Real Circularity, author of Perfectly Wrong, and creator of the Belief Architecture™, Tactical Tetrahedron™, Design Like Nature™, Belief Gap Map™, Full-Spectrum Abundance and Vitacide Risk™ frameworks.
Event Formats
Available for:
- Conference Keynotes
- Executive Retreats
- Leadership Summits
- Board Briefings
- Fireside Conversations
- Panel Discussions
- Podcast Interviews
- Virtual Events
Bring Ken to Your Event
Every conference hopes to leave its audience thinking differently.
Let’s create that conversation together.