2025 BLD Bay Area
Tuesday, October 21, 2025
9:00 am — 7:30 pm
Chabot Space & Science Center, Oakland
BLD (B Corp Leadership Development) Conference is a full-day event led by dedicated B Local community volunteers with over 20 educational sessions. It’s designed to strengthen the local B Corp movement through networking, collaboration, and sharing best practices that drive business success and positive impact. The Bay Area is home to the world’s largest concentration of Certified B Corporations, with over 200 companies from Fort Bragg to Fresno. By connecting B Corps and their teams, we build a more powerful movement to use business as a force for good.
This event is for the vibrant community of 200+ attendees from the San Francisco Bay Area B Corp ecosystem — including employees, CEOs, founders, directors, aspiring and pending B Corps, nonprofit partners, and academics. And YOU!
Just B.
Our theme for BLD this year is Just B.
In a world that often demands more than we have to give, where sustainability leaders are stretched thin and authenticity can feel like a risk — Just B is your invitation to exhale.
Join us at this year’s BLD Bay Area conference to reconnect with what matters most: purpose, people, and the permission to show up fully as yourself. Whether you’re deep in the weeds of climate action, navigating the evolving B Corp standards, or working to build a more inclusive economy — this is your space to Just B.
Be inspired by educational sessions on collective action, decarbonization, and the path beyond certification. Be grounded by workshops focused on wellness, healing, and resilience. Be supported by a community that understands the weight you carry and celebrates the fire that fuels you.
Together, we’ll learn, laugh, and lean into the work — but we’ll also rest, reset, and remind each other why we started.
Take the breath you’ve been holding. You’ve found your people. You can Just B.
Call for…
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Speakers
We're excited to open the call for speakers for BLD, where thought leaders, innovators, and industry experts come together to share insights, spark discussions, and inspire action. If you have a bold idea, compelling story, or practical expertise, we invite you to submit your proposal and help shape the conversation at this year's event.
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Sponsors
Join us as a sponsor for BLD and connect with a dynamic community of leaders, changemakers, and innovators driving impact. Your partnership helps power inspiring content, meaningful connections, and a platform for bold ideas that shape the future.
BLD
FAQs
This is a living section where common questions and answers will get added as we go. So, check back periodically for new information.
Got a question that you don’t see an answer to here, email us at BLocalBayArea@gmail.com.
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Certified B Corp companies, employees of B Corps, students over 21 with a valid student ID, or anyone strongly aligned with the impact/purpose of the B Corp mission and community—can attend.
Non-B Corp certified professional services firms are discouraged from attending. Any non-B Corp certified professional services firms who believe they have a unique circumstance for attending BLD, please contact us at BLocalBayArea@gmail.com.
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This year’s 2025 BLD tickets grant access to our signature regional conference, including workshops, keynotes, lunch, networking, a planetarium show and telescope viewing.
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Organizations that are certified B Corps or have a strong impact/purpose alignment with the B Corp mission and community. Exclusive sponsorships are held for certified B Corps only.
Non-B Corp certified professional services firms are discouraged from becoming sponsors. Any non-B Corp certified professional services firms who believe they have a unique circumstance for becoming a sponsor, please contact us at BLocalBayArea@gmail.com.
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Organizations that are certified B Corps or have a strong impact/purpose alignment with the B Corp mission and community.
Non-B Corp certified professional services firms are discouraged from becoming members. Any non-B Corp certified professional services firms who believe they have a unique circumstance for becoming a member, please contact us at BLocalBayArea@gmail.com.
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Not currently, but we're open to conversations about equitable access.
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First and foremost, stay away from ANYTHING near the airport or showing they are on Hegenburger. Not safe. We would recommend staying downtown or waterfront.
Downtown Recommendations: These are also near BART, so if you want to adventure into SF, it’s really quick and easy.
Moxy Oakland Uptown *Fantastic cocktails
Waterfront Recommendations: For folks who like the water more than downtown atmosphere, these are for you.
Courtyard by Marriott Oakland Downtown
Right on Jack London Square, you can easily take the free “B” Downtown Shuttle to get to the downtown Oakland or BART. Taking the shuttle is safer than walking.Executive Inn & Suites This is the only one we’d recommend on the Oakland Embarcadero, the others are not so nice. Couple tasty restaurants nearby and cute waterfront park to walk. Not so good for public transit.
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Parking at Chabot Space & Science Center is free and ample!
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Yes, the venue technically has WiFi. But let’s just say it’s more of a “slow-fi” situation. You’ll be able to text and take calls just fine—but if you were hoping to binge-watch cat videos or live-tweet every moment, you might find yourself bonding more with the loading screen than your followers.
So we invite you to plug into something a little more powerful: each other. Connect with a new friend. Spark a conversation. Hug a tree (they’ve got great bandwidth).
Remember: the most meaningful connections don’t require a password.
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No. This event is 21 and over.
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Yes!
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Yes! There are gendered and non-gendered bathrooms available.
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This FAQ section is a living thing. If you have a question that is not here, let us know. We will add it because others may have the same question!
Email us a BLocalBayArea@gmail.com