BRUSSELS, Belgium--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Joseph E. Stiglitz, Nobel Laureate in Economics, today delivers the keynote speech at the Alcoa Foundation's Advancing Sustainability Conference, a gathering of leaders in the sustainability and conservation movement.

The Brussels conference will mark the launch of the Alcoa Foundation Global Conservation and Sustainability Network - a platform for future collaboration and more informed decision making on sustainability issues by industry, governments, and communities around the world.

In his keynote speech, Joseph Stiglitz, University Professor at Columbia University, the widely-noted author on globalization, called for leadership action on sustainability and climate change by the developed world's governments.

"Our future well-being depends on taking actions now for conservation and environmental sustainability. If we lack the leadership from the top, then we must have leadership from below," said Professor Stiglitz.

Alain Belda, Chairman and CEO of Alcoa, Inc., highlighted the need for concerted action and broad accountability: "To be true catalysts for change, we must work on all fronts across all sections of society. The Alcoa Foundation's Global Network will bring together many of the world's best minds from academia, government, NGOs and industry to find new paths toward sustainability. Simply put, our commitment is to work for step change through innovation and concerted action."

The Alcoa Foundation Global Conservation & Sustainability Program is funding research into sustainability. This Network will provide the means to accelerate the diffusion and application of cross-disciplinary research outcomes.

From Australia to Zambia, dozens of Alcoa Foundation fellows are currently conducting research and tackling issues that have local impact and global implications. The program's combination of pure and applied research and unique interdisciplinary structure means that these researchers and practitioners are providing responses that provide decision makers in governments and business with usable information they can apply to meet specific sustainability and conservation challenges.

The Alcoa Foundation's Advancing Sustainability Conference is centered on four critical themes:

Alcoa Inc.

Alcoa Inc.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) is the world's leading producer and manager of primary aluminum, fabricated aluminum and alumina facilities, and is active in all major aspects of the industry. Alcoa serves the aerospace, automotive, packaging, building and construction, commercial transportation and industrial markets, bringing design, engineering, production and other capabilities of Alcoa's businesses to customers. In addition to aluminum products and components, Alcoa also markets consumer brands including Reynolds Wrap® foils and plastic wraps, Alcoa® wheels, and Baco® household wraps. Among its other businesses are closures, fastening systems, precision castings, and electrical distribution systems for cars and trucks. The company has 129,000 employees in 44 countries and has been named one of the top most sustainable corporations in the world at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. More information can be found at www.alcoa.com

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