DURHAM, N.C. – Former DuPont chairman and chief executive officer Charles O. Holliday Jr. will present a free public lecture, “What is Sustainable Growth? How Do We Achieve It?,” at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 16, at Duke University.

Holliday’s talk will be in room 2231 of the French Family Science Center. A reception will follow. The event is sponsored by Duke’s Corporate Sustainability Initiative.

Holliday was chief executive officer of DuPont from Feb. 1, 1998 until his retirement on Jan. 31, 2009. Under his leadership, DuPont made sustainable growth a core mission, increasing shareholder and societal value while decreasing its environmental footprint.

He co-authored the book, Walking the Talk, which details the business case for sustainable development and corporate responsibility.

He is chairman of the U.S. Council on Competitiveness and past chairman of the Business Roundtable’s Task Force for Environment, Technology and Economy, and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.

Holliday serves on the board of directors of the World Wildlife Fund, the National Geographic Education Foundation, the United Nations Global Compact, and the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions at Duke. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering.

The Corporate Sustainability Initiative is a joint venture of Duke’s Nicholas School of the Environment, Fuqua School of Business and Nicholas Institute. Its mission is to bring together scholars, students, stakeholders and practitioners from Duke and beyond to create the next generation of sustainable enterprises and business leaders.

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