Adam is responsible for the off-the-shelf market reports business and leads the delivery on many custom market consultancy projects every year.
These projects are built upon robust and consistent secondary data and sense checked through discussions with market and technical experts. Adam spends a lot of time identifying and assessing potential sources of data, and incorporating these sources into a credible forward-looking view of the market.
Adam is experienced in project management, directing market research and working with clients to deliver high-value strategic studies and analysis. During his time at Smithers he has published or delivered hundreds of market studies, reports, technical books and single-client projects across a range of industries.
To assist with this research, Adam has developed a global network of experts, consultants and researchers who contribute to many projects every year.
Adam is a member of the Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals.
He is based in Leatherhead, UK and has been with Smithers for 20 years.
Lauren is responsible for corporate development at Plastic Energy with a focus on North America. She brings a strong background from the chemical industry and a track record of success in building teams and delivering collaborative solutions. Her core responsibilities include defining the company’s strategy and developing partnerships across the value chain that result in circular projects for plastic waste. Prior to joining Plastic Energy, Lauren worked at Hach as a global business unit manager and for more than 10 years at the Dow Chemical Company in the US and Europe. She received her MBA from IMD in Switzerland and her BS in Mechanical Engineering from Penn State University in the USA.
Ron is the Product Marketing Manager for HP’s Digital Pre Print corrugated packaging business and is directly involved with managing HP’s growing customer base (Corrugated Converters). Ron has engineering and computer science degrees and an Executive MBA from university of Michigan. He is very passionate about Sustainability and how digital printing technology can significantly reduce the environmental impact in Packaging. Ron lives in San Diego California and has been with HP for over 30 years.
Kyle Strenski is a Director of Global Business Development at UPM Raflatac. His focus is understanding the packaging challenges brands face: sustainability, circular economy, and cost pressure. He works closely with the business, R&D, and the sustainability team to provide pressure sensitive label solutions that not only meet brands’ current needs, but also those of the future.
Kyle has a Bachelor of Science in Material Science and Engineering from Pennsylvania State University. In addition, he has a green belt in Six Sigma from Villanova University, Certified Packaging Professional from I.O.P.P., and is a committee member on both Olefins and PET technical committees in the Association of Plastic Recyclers.
David Allaway is a senior policy analyst at the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality’s Materials Management Program. Since 1989, he has helped hundreds of businesses and communities across North America to reduce the environmental impacts of materials and wastes. At Oregon, David has led efforts to develop and update the nation’s first sub-national consumption-based greenhouse gas emissions inventory, served as an invited science advisor to Wal-Mart’s Packaging Sustainable Value Network, and served as an advisor to Paul Hawken’s Project Drawdown and the New York Times bestseller Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming. His current work is focused on the design and implementation of several next-generation policies and programs as Oregon transitions from end-of-life “waste management” to holistic, full life cycle sustainable materials management. David has a B.A. in physics from Carleton College, Minnesota and is the recipient of awards from the US EPA, the Association of Oregon Recyclers, and the American Center for Life Cycle Assessment.
Joe Dages helps clients successfully navigate the complex US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory requirements that apply to food, food additives, and food contact materials. He advises companies on all aspects of the premarket review requirements and pathways to market for these materials, as well as post-market compliance, Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), labeling, marketing, risk, and litigation avoidance issues. In addition, he provides advice to clients seeking to establish the compliance of their products in other jurisdictions, including Canada, the European Union, and South America.
Joe's practice is increasingly focused on the regulation of biopolymers and other sustainable packaging materials used in contact with food. He also helps companies that manufacture materials used in the production of animal food and feed in bringing their products to market.
Prior to and during law school, Joe worked in government relations and international affairs for a leading trade association representing the food, beverage, and consumer product industry. He leverages this background to assist trade association clients address challenging policy and legal issues. He has authored numerous amicus briefs on behalf of trade association clients.
Having earned his degree in Polymer Chemistry at the University of Missouri-Rolla, Brad Rodgers is a veteran of the plastics and packaging industry, who has dedicated over 30 years to its innovation and improvement.
Brad spent the first 13 years of his career working for major polyolefin manufacturers in Texas (CP Chem) and Delaware (Montell), where he developed polymers for use in numerous packaging applications. He then spent 18 years as the Research & Development Director of Foods Packaging Discovery and Sustainability for PepsiCo where his responsibilities included the development of the next generation of packaging materials with a better overall impact on the environment (notably the SunChips Compostable package).
After an early retirement from PepsiCo earlier this year, Brad started his own business where he consults with industry leaders on ways to improve packaging and its environmental footprint. He currently holds 16 patents for various packaging applications and has written/co-authored several papers and published many articles about food packaging.
Jeff has over 37 years of experience in packaging design and development. Prior to joining Sonoco, Jeff was employed for 14 years with Viskase Corporation, a manufacturer of specialty films and casings for the meat and dairy industry. Jeff joined Sonoco Products Company in 1996 as Technology Manager for the newly formed Flexible Packaging Division. In his current role, he is responsible for the global technology efforts across Sonoco’s Consumer Packaging businesses including flexible, rigid paper & closures and rigid plastic packaging. In addition to Product and Process Development, Jeff’s responsibilities include Open Innovation, Product Safety, Sustainable Packaging Design and IP Management. He chairs Sonoco’s Corporate Technology Council and serves on its Sustainability Council. Jeff also serves on the advisory board of the Sonoco Institute and chairs the advisory board of Sonoco FRESH, both at Clemson University. He holds 45 U.S. patents related to packaging.
o Arpit works as a Sustainability Strategist in Accenture, leading the agenda at Accenture of Sustainable & Circular Packaging. In the past few years, he has worked with CXO-level clients on ideating and scaling circular economy-enabled business models across sectors and geographies, with focus on sustainable packaging models across the value chain. He is an engineer and an MBA, and was a German Chancellor Fellow 2019-2020.
Speaker bio coming soon!
Cali Reed is the Senior Sustainability Specialist at PreZero US, a California-based recycling solutions provider for hard-to-recycle materials. Cali manages the post-consumer recycled (PCR) content certifications for plastics and works alongside the Commodity Sales team to build circularity-focused partnerships with brands, retailers, and brokers. As a major part of the business development strategy, Cali also works to uncover future expansion opportunities for PZUS by identifying untapped markets for innovations in the recycling sector.
Cali holds a B.A. in Political Science and a certificate in Environmental Studies certificate from the University of Hawaii. She’s also a certified TRUE Zero Waste Advisor through the USGBC and is a bonafide zero waste expert.
Julia Attwood leads the Advanced Materials team at Bloomberg NEF. She writes about the emerging materials and manufacturing technologies helping to decarbonize industry. Prior to this, she was BNEF's expert in lithium-ion battery technologies, costs and supply chain. Before joining BNEF, Julia developed educational materials on energy generation systems and researched advanced polymer composites. Julia holds a PhD in Materials Engineering from the University of Cambridge.
Suzanne is the voice and the vision of Shelton Group. Drawing on her extensive experience in energy and the environment – and 25+ years in the marketing and advertising industry – Suzanne provides high-level strategic insights for our clients and guidance for our research and creative departments. She regularly speaks at conferences around the country, including Sustainable Brands, Fortune Brainstorm E and the International Builders’ Show, and serves as a guest columnist for publications like Fast Company, Green Builder and GreenBiz.com.
Dan Felton is Executive Director of AMERIPEN – the American Institute for Packaging and the Environment. He is a well-known policy and trade association leader who has worked within the bottled water, credit card, healthcare and information management industries. He is particularly passionate about environmental, sustainability and packaging issues and has engaged extensively in those areas at the state and federal levels. He has chaired committees and led task forces for several national trade associations and has served on the board of the State Government Affairs Council (SGAC) where he is a graduate of the their nationally recognized professional certificate programs. A former professional actor and musician, he has run the finances and served on the board of a nationally recognized theatre education non-profit. He has also been involved with the Commission on Presidential Debates since 2000 in support of their quad-annual presidential and vice presidential debates. A graduate of Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota, Dan lives in the Washington DC area.
Betsy Dorn is one of three Principals at Circular Matters LLC, a consulting firm specializing in sustainable materials management and circular economy solutions for packaging, paper, and selected other materials. For over 30 years, Betsy has been assisting public and private sector clients develop plans, evaluate policies and operations, and launch new programs. In recent years, Betsy’s work has focused on the end-of-life management of packaging materials, packaging policy analysis and recycling market development. Prior to becoming a consultant, Betsy managed Mecklenburg County (Charlotte), N.C.’s Recycling Division for 6 years.
Betsy has an undergraduate degree in Biology and a Master of Science in Public Health degree in Environmental Sciences and Engineering. When not working you may find Betsy running, paddle boarding or mountain bike riding in her south Florida surroundings.
Thais Vojvodic is part of the New Plastic Economy initiative team at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, which aims to bring together key players from around the world to rethink and redesign the future of plastic. With extensive experience in the private sector in Latin America, Thais joined the Foundation in May 2020 and is responsible for the development of Plastics Pacts in several different countries, including the US Plastics Pact.
Prior to founding Loopline, Anna gained 15+ years of experience in the fashion/retail industry and over a decade of experience in sustainability — working at global corporations, high-end avant garde shops, and launching her own eco-conscious fashion brand. She soon realized the need for a mindset change in the fashion/retail industry. She went on to evolve the “waste less” strategy used in her own brand by partnering with a start-up fashion technology company focused on retail recycling where she journeyed with them to win the H&M Global Change award in Stockholm, Sweden. She went on to create circular products/packaging, launching with Twitter, and continued to build products for global companies under her new company, Loopline. Recently, Loopline was selected as a featured innovation for STANFORD REBUILD 2020 (innovations in global solutions related to re-building after COVID-19 pandemic).
Breanna Herbert is ORBIS’ Sustainability Lead. In her role, she educates and communicates how ORBIS helps companies support the 3Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle and how simple packaging changes can significantly impact the circular economy. Breanna is passionate about sustainability and forged the way for ORBIS’ Ocean in Mind initiative. This program includes recovering coastline plastic waste and repurposing into supply chain packaging, like reusable pallets and containers. At ORBIS, she is in the product management team and supports the industrial reusable bulk packaging product line, including new product development, vehicle launch readiness and customer projects.
