2016 GC3 Innovators Roundtable

GARY COHEN

President, Health Care Without Harm and Practice Greenhealth

Gary Cohen has been a pioneer in the environmental health movement for thirty years. Cohen is Co-Founder and President of Health Care Without Harm and Practice Greenhealth. He was also instrumental in bringing together the NGOs and hospital systems that formed the Healthier Hospitals Initiative. All three were created to transform the health care sector to be environmentally sustainable and serve as anchor institutions to support environmental health in their communities. Cohen was Executive Director of the Environmental Health Fund for many years. He has helped build coalitions and networks globally to address the environmental health impacts related to toxic chemical exposure and climate change. Cohen is a member of the International Advisory Board of the Sambhavna Clinic in Bhopal, India, which has been working for over 25 years to heal people affected by the Bhopal gas tragedy and to fight for environmental cleanup in Bhopal. He is also on the Boards of the American Sustainable Business Council, Health Leads and Coming Clean. He has received numerous recognitions for his achievements, including: The MacArthur Foundation’s Fellows Award (2015), the White House’s Champion of Change Award for Public Health and Climate Change (2013), the Huffington Post’s Game Changer Award for Health (2012), the Frank Hatch Award for Enlightened Public Service (2007), and the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship (2006).

JOHN REPLOGLE

President and CEO, Seventh Generation

Like the company he leads, John Replogle has a mission, to help people live healthier lives on a healthier planet. Replogle took the reins of the green-cleaning pioneer in March, 2011. Under his leadership, the company continues to extend the boundaries of corporate consciousness. In 2011, Seventh Generation was acknowledged as the #1 green company in America.

Replogle previously spent five years at Burt's Bees as Chief Executive Officer and President. He is credited with leading the company's deepened commitment to human and environmental well-being through the development of a business model called The Greater Good, embracing the triple bottom line of people, planet, and profit. Prior experience includes leadership roles at Unilever, Guinness and BCG. John is a graduate of Dartmouth College and Harvard Business School.

An advocate of creative corporate social responsibility, Replogle has been recognized with the 2012 Global Green Millennium Award for Corporate Environmental Citizenship and the 2011 United Nations Leader of Change award. A proponent of education and humanitarian causes, Replogle has served on the Boards of Habitat for Humanity, Terracycle, Ravenscroft and Dartmouth College. He was also a Director with the Sealy Corporation and is currently a Director of Cree. He and his wife Kristin have four daughters and live in Raleigh, NC.

ALYSSA B. SCHUREN

Commissioner, Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation

Alyssa B. Schuren was appointed Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation by Governor Shumlin in August 2015. Immediately prior to assuming the role of Commissioner, Schuren served as the Department’s Deputy Commissioner. In that role, she spearheaded Department operations across all program areas, including air, waste and water, drove business process improvements, and advanced the implementation of Vermont’s Universal Recycling law.

Before joining Vermont State Government, Schuren was Development Director for Environment America, a national non-profit. Her work included strategic planning; developing, managing and expanding programs to support a multi-million dollar budget; improving recruitment and retention of staff; and increasing the efficiency of internal operations. Prior to her work with Environment America, Schuren was Executive Director of Toxics Action Center, a New-England-based non-profit that helps to build the capacity of community and neighborhood groups facing difficult environmental challenges. She has a B.A. from the University of Colorado, Boulder, in environmental studies, with a minor in political science. She lives in Montpelier with her husband and son.

JOHN WARNER

President and CTO, Warner Babcock Institute for Green Chemistry

John is the recipient of the 2014 Perkin Medal, widely acknowledged as the highest honor in American Industrial Chemistry. He received his B.S. in Chemistry from UMass Boston, and his Ph.D. in Chemistry from Princeton University. After working at the Polaroid Corporation for nearly a decade, he served as tenured full professor at UMass Boston and Lowell (Chemistry and Plastics Engineering). In 2007 he founded the Warner Babcock Institute for Green Chemistry, LLC (a research organization developing green chemistry technologies) where he serves as President and Chief Technology Officer, and Beyond Benign (a non-profit dedicated to sustainability and green chemistry education). He is one of the founders of the field of green chemistry, co-authoring the defining text Green Chemistry: Theory and Practice with Paul Anastas. He has published over 200 patents, papers and books. Warner received The 2004 Presidential Award for Excellence in Science Mentoring, the American Institute of Chemistry's Northeast Division's Distinguished Chemist of the Year for 2002 and the Council of Science Society President’s 2008 Leadership award. Warner was named by ICIS as one of the most influential people impacting the global chemical industries. In 2011 he was elected a Fellow of the American Chemical Society and named one of “25 Visionaries Changing the World” by Utne Reader.

MONICA BECKER

Co-Director and Innovation Project Lead, Green Chemistry & Commerce Council 
Principal, Monica Becker & Associates Sustainability Consultants

Monica co-leads and manages the GC3 as well as leading the GC3 Innovation Group, including the Collaborative Innovation Project on Preservatives. Monica is also the Principal of Monica Becker & Associates Sustainability Consultants, a multi-disciplinary provider of sustainability solutions for businesses, trade associations, universities, governments and NGOs, with a particular focus on chemicals. Prior to starting MB & Associates, Monica held management positions at the Rochester Institute of Technology’s Golisano Institute for Sustainability, the Massachusetts Toxics Use Reduction and Tellus Institutes, and Eka Chemicals (now AkzoNobel). Monica has masters’ degrees in Civil & Environmental Engineering and Technology & Policy from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering from the College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

NICK BROWN

CEO, Nikwax

Born in 1954, Nick Brown was brought up in Kent and was introduced to trekking in the Peaks with his father, through the YHA, from the age of ten. Nick walked in Scotland every year and being dissatisfied with the waterproofing products available, he created his own recipe for preserving his boots. It was important to make them waterproof without softening them and losing their essential supportive features. Nick's wax (hence the name Nikwax) was the beginning of a remarkable success story.

In 1977 Nikwax was first produced by Nick, aged 22, in a North London flat with a tea urn, a primus stove, a jug, and materials from the local hardware store. These first commercial products were sold to the outdoor trade by Nick, driving around in a second-hand Morris 1000 van and via Inter Rail into Europe, before moving production to a workshop in Clerkenwell, London. In no time Nick was selling the product to 8 countries! The product was so effective that it set the standard for a new breed of aftercare products under the Nikwax brand.

Now based in Wadhurst, East Sussex, the company employs 187 people across the UK, Poland, Germany and the US, and has an annual turnover of £10 million, with products distributed to 50 countries.

SALLY EDWARDS

Sc.D Senior Research Associate, Lowell Center for Sustainable Production

Dr. Sally Edwards is a senior research associate at the Lowell Center for Sustainable Production. She directs the Sustainable Products Initiative, which promotes the development of safer and greener products through engaging stakeholders, conducting research, and providing information that can spark innovative solutions. Sally facilitates the GC3’s Retailer Leadership Council, whose mission is to promote safer chemicals, materials and products across retail supply chains. She is a founder of the Chemical Footprint Project, which is designed to transform global chemical use by measuring and disclosing data on business progress to safer chemicals. Sally has over 25 years of experience in environmental health, including 14 years at the US EPA in Massachusetts and Alaska. She is an adjunct professor at the University of Massachusetts Lowell and provides consulting services to businesses and organizations. Sally holds a MS in Environmental Health Science from Harvard University and a BA in Human Biology from Stanford University. She completed her doctorate in Work Environment at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Her book, Beyond Child’s Play: Sustainable Product Design in the Global Doll‐Making Industry was published in 2009.

PAUL ELLIS

Environmental Regulation Manager, Kingfisher PLc

Paul has a vast and varied experience within the Retail Industry, in food, general merchandise and DIY , progressing through the business into his current role in Kingfisher Plc, parent company to brands , B&Q, Castorama, Brico Depot and Screwfix. He is passionate about chemistry, although does not hold any formal qualifications, but has educated himself in the 8 years as a REACh expert in Europe.

Paul is the chair of the EDRA – European DiY Retailers Association product compliance committee and recently nominated to sit on the ECHA expert group for products, following the recent ECJ ruling. His focus is creating a business case for change, because Paul believes that finding ways to reduce the financial burden by collaborating at a local and global level, delivers the benefits of greener chemistry applications in a sustainable way. He likes to keep fit, 2nd Degree Black belt in Ju-Jitsu and devoted family man.

STEVE FRENCH

Managing Partner, NMI (Natural Marketing Institute)

Steven French is Managing Partner and Co-Owner at NMI (Natural Marketing Institute), a leading strategic marketing consultancy specializing in sustainability. For the past 20 years at NMI, Mr. French works with many global Fortune 500 corporations, government agencies, start-up companies, associations, and various organizations across a wide range of industries to identify, validate and monitor marketplace opportunities. He has pioneered a range of NMI consumer research databases including the LOHAS Consumer Trends Database® - a quantitative sustainability consumer research tracking study conducted annually since 2002, including over 20 countries. This proprietary NMI tool analyzes consumer trends, attitudes, behaviors, product usage patterns, psychographics, and demographics within the sustainability marketplace. He also focuses his efforts on trend identification and innovation within health and sustainability.

Mr. French works internationally across a range of industries related to sustainability. He has published over 100 research reports, articles, and a is contributor to worldwide media, including Fox TV, NBC News, Time Magazine, The New York Times, International Herald Tribune, Forbes, and many others. As a recognized industry expert, Mr. French’s expertise is also utilized on a regular basis by many trade publications and over 30 business journals, among others. Steve is a regular speaker and keynote at many international industry events and conferences.

KEN GEISER

Professor Emeritus, Work Environment and past Distinquished University Professor, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Kenneth Geiser is a Professor Emeritus of Work Environment and past Distinquished University Professor at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Dr. Geiser served as a founding Co-Director of the Lowell Center for Sustainable Production and as Director of the Massachusetts Toxics Use Reduction Institute from its founding in 1990 to 2003. His research and writing focus on cleaner production, toxic chemicals management, international chemicals policy, safer technologies, and green chemistry and, in 2001, he completed a book, Materials Matter: Towards a Sustainable Materials Policy published by MIT Press.

As a recognized expert on environmental and occupational health policy, he has served on various advisory committees for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the United Nations Environment Program and the governing boards of several environmental organizations, including Coming Clean, Healthy Building Network, Clean Production Action, Story of Stuff, the Environmental Health Strategy Center and the International POPs Elimination Network. Recently, he co-authored the Global Chemicals Outlook and a “Chemicals in Products Project” for the United Nations, served as a Senior Fellow with the U.S. Green Building Council, and published a new book, Chemicals without Harm: Policies for a Sustainable World also available from MIT Press.

JUDITH GIORDAN

Managing Director, ecosVC

PETRA GREINER

Head of Department, German Environment Agency, Dessau

Petra Greiner studied chemistry at the university of Dortmund, started her scientific career in 1980 at Dortmund University where she received her PhD in physical chemistry in 1984. She joined the German Environment Agency, UBA, in 1985 as scientist in the working area of environmental exposure assessment of chemicals, focussing on the development and improvement of environmental fate models, exposure scenarios and degradation pathways of chemicals. From 1989 to 1991 she worked as national expert at the Commission of the European Communities in the chemicals division of DG Environment, where she contributed to the EU wide approach on environmental risk assessment of chemicals. In her further career at UBA she was involved in environmental assessment of products e.g. ecolabelling of detergents, life cycle assessment, sustainable chemistry and all topics of environmental risk assessment of chemicals in different regulatory context e.g. pesticides, pharmaceuticals and Chemicals under REACh. She is head of the department “International chemicals management, pesticides” in UBA’s chemical safety division, and is national coordinator of the OECD testguideline Programme for 15 years now. Main working areas accompagnying the departments’ responsibilities within the respective regulations are sustainable use of pesticides and sustainable chemistry on a regional and international level.

ASHLEY HALL

Senior Manager, Walmart Stores Inc.

Ashley C. Hall is Senior Manager of Sustainability for Walmart Stores Inc. In her role, Ashley manages sustainability projects across the Consumables and Health & Wellness business, which includes categories such as personal care, household chemical, and over-the-counter. She oversees Walmart’s Sustainable Chemistry Policy, working to increase ingredient transparency in products and drive innovation. In addition, Ashley works across Walmart’s merchandising business on packaging and recycling initiatives.

Prior to joining Walmart, Ashley owned her own small business, providing personalized consulting services to help companies find solutions for recycling and recovering plastic packaging. Ms. Hall has served as the Director of Packaging and Secretariat for the Global Declaration for Solutions on Marine Litter on behalf of the American Chemistry Council, and has participated in several industry working groups, including the Association of Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers, AMERIPEN and PAC NEXT. Ms. Hall’s environmental career started with consulting for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at ICF International in Washington, D.C.

STEVE HANSEN

General Manager, The Solberg Company

As the former Vice President of Global Engineering, Mr. Hansen is the company’s current General Manager. As a degreed chemist, Steven entered the fire protection industry at the manufacturer’s level in 1972.

Over the decades of service, Steven has held various positions including Environmental Safety and Health Laboratory Supervisor, Manager of Agents Development, and Technology Coordinator responsible for the evaluation and development of new fire protection technologies. Steven also became Manager of International Special Products and reported to the company President as part of an acquisitions team. In this position, Steven was responsible for technical assessments of potential acquisitions, which lead to him overseeing the successful integration of those acquisitions into the business unit. Before joining Amerex, Steven successfully filled the position of Marketing Manager, Engineered Systems and Foam Products.

Steven has served on numerous national and international committees including the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) committees on Hazardous Chemicals, Clean Agent Systems and the International Standards Organization (ISO) technical committees on Firefighting Foam, Gaseous Agents and Fire Extinguishers. Steven is also a past member of the Fire Fighting Foam Coalition (FFFC).

EUNICE HEATH

Global Director, Sustainable Products Marketing & Strategy, The Dow Chemical Company

Eunice Heath is the Global Director for Sustainable Products Marketing and Strategy for The Dow Chemical Company. Eunice is responsible for driving the integration of sustainability in business and market strategies within Dow. She leads Dow’s participation in The Sustainability Consortium and manages a sustainability challenge award program for Dow at 18 strategic universities.

MICHELE JALBERT

Chief Operating Officer, re:chem

As Chief Operating Officer of re:chem, Michele Jalbert brings proven crosssector capabilities with experience at Fortune 500 companies, government, associations, non-profits and start-ups. She is a seasoned lobbyist with over a decade of Hill experience and is Founder of the Effective Advocates Collaborative, offering a fresh approach to government affairs with nimble, networked advocates providing lobbying, grant-writing and access to other federal funding opportunities.

Previously, Michele built an extensive career in a variety of business roles in large corporations, including Liberty Mutual and Polaroid. On the Hill, as Congressman Delahunt's Washington Director, she managed operations, spearheaded appropriations and led strategic policy initiatives. More recently, she served as Chief of Staff and General Counsel for the New England Council, the nation's oldest regional business association. She crafted winning strategies and lobbied on diverse issues for major and emerging sectors, from technology and advanced manufacturing, to education, healthcare and financial services. Michele is an attorney and a trained mediator (these are not mutually exclusive!)

JIM JONES

Assistant Administrator, EPA's Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention

President Obama nominated Jim Jones to be the Assistant Administrator for EPA's Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP) in January 2012. Jim was confirmed by the U.S. Senate August 1, 2013. He is responsible for managing the office which implements the nation’s pesticide, toxic chemical, and pollution prevention laws. The office has an annual budget of over $234 million and more than 1,100 employees.

Jim’s career with EPA spans more than 28 years. He has an M.A. from the University of California at Santa Barbara and a B.A. from the University of Maryland, both in Economics.

JACK LINARD

Head, Regulatory Affairs Personal Care NA, Unilever Research and Development

Dr. Jack Linard obtained his Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry at Northwestern University, after receiving his B.S. in Chemistry from Davidson College, Davidson, North Carolina. He has worked for Unilever for over 30 years in a variety of assignments, primarily in laundry and personal care R&D.

Jack’s current responsibility is to head up Unilever’s Personal Care Regulatory Affairs team for North America. In this capacity he leads Unilever’s advocacy efforts on new and proposed regulations so that current and future innovations meet regulatory requirements.

During his tenure at Unilever he also overseen Unilever’s “Over the Counter” drug programs, technical compliance activities, and the management of external issues impacting Unilever on both a North American and global scale. In addition, he has been an active participant in Wal-Mart’s Chemical Sustainability program since its inception in October 2005. He has also been representing Unilever’s interests in responding to green chemistry and chemical management initiatives in various states and in the U.S. Congress.

In his role Jack is also active in several trade associations, serving as the chair of the Grocery Manufacturers Association’s newly formed Personal Care and Household Products Committee and representing Unilever on the Personal Care Products Council (PCPC) Scientific and Regulatory Affairs Executive [newly appointed vice-chair] and Communications Committees. He also represented downstream users during his tenure with American Chemistry Council’s Responsible Care Advisory Committee from 2010 to 2011.

AVTAR MATHARU

Senior Lecturer and Deputy Director, Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence (GCCE)

Dr Avtar Singh Matharu, BSc, PhD, CChem, FRSC, is Senior Lecturer and Deputy Director of the Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence (GCCE). The GCCE is an internationally-leading academic facility for the provision of excellence in green and sustainable chemical technologies, processes and products.

He oversees a team of nearly 90 researchers spread across four technology platforms: renewable materials; clean synthesis and platform molecules; microwave processing, and; alternative solvents all focussed on developing green and sustainable industrial process and technologies. As Deputy Director he has forged national and international collaborations both with academia and industry. Last year, Professor Clark and Matharu set up a Global Green Chemistry Centres (G2C2) network which extends our research collaborations to India, Brazil, Australia, South Africa, Europe, Mexico, USA, Canada, S Korea and China. As Scientific Lead for Renewable Materials Technology Platform, has managed several major projects totalling £10M+ funded from UK and European initiatives, and direct industrial support.

He has enabled the GCCE to be winner of the Rushlight Award for advanced technologies for recycling of liquid crystals (2008), winner of the Green Gown Award for Research and Development (2013) and, winner of the S-Lab Award for Laboratory Based Teaching and Learning(2014) in recognitionfor training graduate and senior undergraduate students from all over the world and from a variety of backgrounds in practicing sustainability in modern chemistry laboratories.

ROGER MCFADDEN

Chief Science and Sustianability Office, Replenish
President, McFadden and Associates, LLC

Roger is currently Chief Science and Sustainability Officer for Replenish and President at McFadden and Associates, a consulting firm focused on green science, sustainability and supply chain. He is a green chemistry and science leader recognized for collaboration, creative thinking and innovative design; Respected industry professional with strong networks in business, academia, government and NGO community; Skilled in consensus building through common and pre-competitive collaboration; Roger is a trusted advisor and subject matter expert to merchandising, marketing, design and sales teams; He applies science and sustainability to help organizations and customers solve problems and/or meet their sustainability or safer products objectives while creating shared value for company, customer and community.

Prior to joining Replenish and founding McFadden and Associates, Roger was Vice President and Senior Scientist for Staples. Prior to joining Staples, he was the Chief Science Officer for Corporate Express and before that, Director of Product Development at Coastwide Laboratories in Portland, Oregon. Earlier in his career, Roger worked as a consulting chemist and product engineer for several chemical product manufacturing companies in both the U.S. and Canada.

NITESH MEHTA

Co-Founder & Director, Green ChemisTree Foundation, India

Nitesh Mehta holds a master’s degree in chemical engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, IIT-Bombay. He received his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from University of Pune.

His expertise is in process development, scale-up and technology implementation at commercial scales. He also has expertise in setting up recycle loops in plant i.e. recycle of effluent streams back in the process for unit processes like Reduction, Nitration, Diazotization-Hydrolysis, etc.

His professional experience includes implementing more than 500 commercial batches with Newreka Reduction Technology, in more than 25 different products. He has guided more than 2000 laboratory experiments for bench scale development of Green Chemistry based process technologies for more than 75 different molecules. Currently, his key accountability involves marketing Newreka’s knowledge-based Green Chemistry technologies in Indian & International markets.

Newreka was felicitated by the “Green Chemistry Network Center Award” for commercialization of Green Chemistry based technology, where the mother liquor obtained from the process was recycled 75 times back in the process.

He is also Co-Founder & Director of Green ChemisTree Foundation, which is a registered Not-For-Profit Organization, working towards expanding awareness about Green Chemistry amongst all stakeholders of chemical industry through various initiatives.

RAMASWAMY NAGARAJAN

Associate Professor of Plastics Engineering, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Ramaswamy Nagarajan is an associate professor of Plastics Engineering at the University of Massachusetts, Lowell and has a science and engineering background with bachelor degrees in chemistry and rubber technology and a doctoral degree in polymer science from the University Massachusetts Lowell. His research interest is in the development of “greener”/sustainable routes to advanced functional materials (polymers, additives and surfactants). His research also includes understanding the mechanistic aspects of enzyme catalysis, developing novel eco-friendly biomimetic catalysts. Working at the interface of science and engineering his research group has been involved in translating fundamental research into engineering applications for advancing technology in new and emerging areas. He is the Co-editor of Journal of Renewable Materials, has published 52 papers in peer-reviewed journals and holds 14 patents. He is also the Co-director of HEROES (Harnessing Emerging Research Opportunities to Empower Soldiers) – a joint research and development initiative of University of Massachusetts and U.S Army.

JOHN ORTIZ

Director, Product Stewardship, HP Inc.

John Ortiz leads the product stewardship organization for HP Inc., a $50B annual business. Ortiz’s organization drives environmental design of computer and printer hardware products, ink and toner supplies, and paper products to minimize the impact of HP products throughout the product lifecycle. Ortiz is currently championing circular economy thinking in the Print and PC business. Recently his team has completed two closed-loop recycled polypropylene projects in over 40% of HP’s inkjet cartridges, equal to approximately 5,000 tons of recycled resin annually. With the completion of this latest project, HP now uses recycled plastic in more than 75% of its ink cartridge products. Several other active projects are underway to incorporate recycled plastic into hardware printer products. Ortiz’s team also focuses on product energy reduction and recently marked a milestone of driving an 88% energy reduction across HP’s consumer printer products over the past 5 years.

Ortiz lives in Corvallis, OR and enjoys hiking and biking in the Pacific Northwest.

AMY PERLMUTTER

Principal, Perlmutter Associates

Amy Perlmutter is an independent consultant whose practice includes strategy, stakeholder engagement, communications, and facilitation to build the green economy. Prior to consulting, Amy was the founding director of the Chelsea Center for Recycling and Economic Development, working with businesses, researchers, and government to increase the use of recycled materials in manufacturing processes in Massachusetts. She has served as the Director of Recycling for the City of San Francisco.

ARLAN PETERS

Head of Sustainability, Novozymes North America

Arlan Peters is the Head of Sustainability for Novozymes North America where he develops Novoyzmes’ regional sustainability initiatives, builds organizational capacity around Novozymes’ sustainability platform, manages Novozymes’ corporate citizenship programs, and engages with external stakeholders on issues relating to life-cycle impacts of biotechnology.

He represents Novozymes in the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, as well as the Sustainability Consortium where he served as co-chair for the Sustainability Consortium’s Corporate Advisory Council.

DENISE PETERSEN

Global Sustainability Manager, Care Chemicals Division, BASF

Denise Petersen is the Global Sustainability Manager for the Care Chemicals Division at BASF, the largest chemical company in the world and one of the world’s leading suppliers in the Home and Personal Care industries. She leads a global team that is focused on advancing sustainability across the division. Denise has a degree in Sociology and an MBA.

ANDY SCHAFER

Strategist & Business Builder, Shafer's Innovation and Business Building Services

A founder of 2 leading bio-material companies with a long track record establishing compelling value propositions, creating growth from disruptive innovations, building corporate and product brands, and establishing and leading business strategies, commercial capabilities and teams, Andy is now helping large and emerging companies build their businesses and innovate.

His background as an executive at Elevance Renewable Sciences, Inc. and with NatureWorks, LLC, Cargill, Inc. and The Dow Chemical Company gives him a unique understanding of the dynamics required for success at both start-up and Fortune 50 multi-national companies.

Andy has a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from the University of Notre Dame with an MBA from the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management.

PAULA SCHAPER

President & CEO, WestWordVision

Paula Schaper is a social scientist, publicist and community builder who develops authentic brands, epic stories and strategic direction for human collectives. Through her company, WestWordVision, she has helped universities, municipalities, regions, for profit and non profit entities interpret their relevance and position themselves in the market based on historical context and facets of unique identity. Her Genis Factor® method focuses on building business, brands and relationships by leveraging the untapped assets of human collectives-their intelligence, personality and energy.

JON SMIEJA

Environmental Chemist, Global Sustainability, Steelcase

Jon received his Bachelors of Science degree in chemistry from the University of St. Thomas (St. Paul, MN) in 2005 and his Ph.D. in Inorganic chemistry from the University of California – San Diego in 2012. His graduate research involved developing molecules for the electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide and water to liquid fuels. Through this research, Jon published ten original research papers and one review article.

Jon started at Steelcase in January of 2013 as a member of the Materials Chemistry team within the Global Environmental Sustainability group where he served as the Environmental Chemist until February 2016 when he transitioned to a role as a Leader of Sustainable Design & Development. His role at Steelcase involves collecting materials chemistry data from suppliers, evaluating that data against human and environmental health criteria, working with suppliers to eliminate chemicals of concern, working on material innovation projects, leading North American Sustainable Design & Development, and communicating with customers in order to provide transparency about Steelcase’s products.

JOEL TICKNER

Director, Chemicals Policy & Science Initiative, Lowell Center for Sustainable Production, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Dr. Joel Tickner is Associate Professor in the Department of Community Health and Sustainability at the University of Massachusetts Lowell where he also directs the Chemicals Policy and Science Initiative at the Lowell Center for Sustainable Production. He is a leading expert on chemicals regulation, regulatory science, and application of the alternatives assessment in science and policy. He has served as an advisor and researcher for several government agencies, international agencies, non-profit environmental groups companies, and trade unions both in the U.S. and abroad during the past businesses years. He served on the EPA’s National Pollution Prevention and Toxics Advisory Committee as well as the National Academy of Sciences Panel on the Future of Science at the Environmental Protection Agency. He also directs the undergraduate environmental health BS program at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. He holds a Masters of Science degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Montana and a Doctor of Science Degree from the Department of Work Environment at University of Massachusetts Lowell and for three years was an Environmental Protection Agency STAR Fellow.

SASKIA VAN BERGEN

Green Chemistry Scientist, Washington State Department of Ecology

Saskia started working for Ecology in 2013 as a Green Chemistry Scientist where her main focus has been to help establish a technically strong and vibrant green chemistry program in Washington State. She is also serving as the Project Lead for the Advancing Green Chemistry Education Project as part of the Green Chemistry in Commerce Council and the Washington state member for the Toxics in Packaging Clearinghouse.

Previously, after working at Madis Botanicals and the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, Saskia worked as the research organic chemist at East Bay Municipal Utility District. There she researched regulated and unregulated contaminants in drinking water, wastewater and San Francisco Bay sediments and served on the Emerging Contaminant Workgroup for the Regional Monitoring Program for Water Quality in the San Francisco Estuary. She also worked at Green River Community College where she developed and implemented ways to incorporate the principles of green chemistry into the chemistry department.

Saskia has a B.A. in Chemistry from Vassar College and a M.S in Agricultural and Environmental Chemistry from the University of California, Davis.

MARTIN WOLF

Director, Sustainability & Authenticity, Seventh Generation

Mr. Wolf is responsible for ensuring the design of sustainable products at Seventh Generation, Inc., a manufacturer and distributor of ecological household and personal care products. He is also responsible for creating a more sustainable business model, and for creating more sustainable systems of commerce.

Mr. Wolf brings over 40 years of experience in industrial and environmental chemistry to his work, starting with environmental fate and metabolism studies for agricultural chemicals, followed by studies of the occurrence of hazardous chemicals in the environment, conducting life cycle studies of product systems, and designing more sustainable household cleaning products.

Working at Seventh Generation, Mr. Wolf has developed frameworks for environmental product design, helped educate his coworkers, customers, and consumers about the environmental impacts of consumer products and the industries that produce them, successfully lobbied for passage of phosphate bans in a number of states, helped develop standards for voluntary ingredient disclosure, and brought change to the cleaning products industry through more sustainable product designs.

Mr. Wolf holds an M.A. in Chemistry from Yeshiva University (New York) and a B.S. in Chemistry from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (Massachusetts).