What we learned at HubWeek 2019

Rep. Katherine Clark had an unlikely first partner in Congress: Mitch McConnell.

As vice chairperson of the House Democratic Caucus, Rep. Katherine Clark has become one of the main voices of her party’s message. But her first achievement in Congress came with a hand from the other side of the aisle: Sen. Mitch McConnell. “We were an unlikely couple,” Clark said Tuesday in an interview with HubWeek founder Linda Henry. (Full disclosure: Henry is also the managing director of Boston Globe Media Partners.) Shortly after she was elected to Congress, the Melrose Democrat’s first bill sought to standardize best practices when it came to the growing issue of treating babies exposed to opioids. McConnell, the Republican majority leader and a formidable obstruction to the Democratic agenda, was the Senate cosponsor of the bill. And with his help, it passed the House and Senate and was signed into law by President Barack Obama in 2015. “The opioid crisis doesn’t care,” Clark said. “Red state, blue state, it is an equal opportunity killer.” — Nik DeCosta-Klipa

It’s not about a T-shirt slogan; it’s about being part of the change.

Esther Wallace founded Boston-based Playa Society Sportswear to celebrate and empower female athletes. Her brand’s most popular design declares “FEMALE ATHLETE: Judged by achievements not by gender,” and it’s powerful — it resonates with personal experience and demands equality at the same time. But her talk went beyond the story of her iconic T-shirt and encouraging women to participate in sports. Wallace, a former Division I basketball player, said she wants to change the narrative surrounding gender bias in sports. “Girls cannot become what they cannot see,” she said, and that message stressed how important representation is for women in any professional setting, whether it be on the court, in the field, or in a business meeting. — Deyscha Smith

A nighttime view of HubWeek set up in the Seaport.

An Endeavor executive wants society to rethink how it sees the Miss Universe pageant.

Corporate America is difficult for women, and it’s even more difficult for women of color, according to Bozoma Saint John, chief marketing officer for Endeavor, in a conversation with Harvard Business Review editor Amy Bernstein. She also spoke of recent conversations about the Miss Universe pageant, which the company owns. “I’m really bothered about the fact that we think about these women as bimbos in bikinis,” she said. “If we think of them that way, and we’re judging them, what does that say about the rest of us? How are we looked at when we walk out in public?” Saint John added that most of the contestants are scholars working on graduate degrees, and that there are a handful of women on Capitol Hill who were part of Miss Universe. “Why can’t we have a woman here that comes through that organization? Of course we can,” she said. — Arianna MacNeill

Cannabis businesses have an opportunity to do more than sell pot.

How should small cannabis businesses give back to their communities? Local entrepreneurs have a crucial role to play in shaping their industry, particularly when it comes to consumer education, experts said during a panel focused on the issue. The power these businesses yield in teaching the public about marijuana — from different strains and quantities to personal benefits — and in removing stigma around the drug, should not be underestimated, they said. “You can build health. You can build wealth and ownership in your community simply by existing in it,” said Kim Napoli, an attorney who serves on Massachusetts’ Cannabis Advisory Board, among several other roles. Businesses could invest, either through donations or other support, in local education, public housing, and health and wellness — areas damaged in communities disproportionately impacted by the War on Drugs, Napoli said. — Christopher Gavin

An audience member wore a colorful jacket as they listened to a talk.

‘Sober Curious’ built a community by ditching restrictive labels.

Ruby Warrington is not an alcoholic, but nearly 10 years ago, she didn’t like how she drank to de-stress. “Anyone should be able to question their drinking,” she said. It’s surprisingly hard to do when alcohol is among the most addictive substances in the world and a default activity in our social lives. Last year, Warrington authored “Sober Curious” and has helped fuel the movement to openly examine our own relationship with alcohol. What makes it so popular? There are no rules, but a shared desire to take preventative actions and escape societal expectations without a strict label. “Conventional addiction programs don’t invite others on the drinking spectrum,” she said. — Emily Turner

A nonprofit is churning out new talent — and foodstuffs — around the city.