Speaker bio coming soon.
Chelsey leads sustainability as part of Etsy's Impact and Sustainability group, where she's helping the company achieve its Net Zero goal by decreasing Scope 3 emissions from packaging materials and engaging in environmental advocacy to enable systems change. She also supports product sustainability and climate risk and resilience. Chelsey previously led sustainability at Nordstrom, where she developed the company's goals and strategy for circularity in apparel and beauty, created and launched the award-winning BEAUTYCYCLE partnership with TerraCycle, and developed the company's first clothing take-back program. She holds a Master of International Business degree from the Fletcher School at Tufts University.
Jenny is the Vice President of Sustainability at Trivium Packaging and a seasoned global leader with experience from big brands like Shell and Avery Dennison. As a Dutch national, sustainability is in her DNA and her true passion. She believes sustainability is no longer a choice, but an imperative for the success of any company. At Trivium she is committed to positively impacting the lives of millions of people through the company’s sustainable and circular product offerings.
Mike is Lead for Circular Economy at Google where he is responsible for leading the organization to eliminate waste and pollution, keep products and materials in use, and drive the development and use of safer chemistry and healthy materials across their operations, products, and supply chains and enable others to do the same. While at Google, Mike also led the product sustainability and environmental compliance team in their consumer hardware division.
Prior to Google, Mike led safer chemistry and biocompatibility initiatives at Apple and product sustainability for Haworth Inc, a global contract office furniture manufacturer. Mike has worked in the green building and product design space for 15 years including with renowned green architect Bill McDonough.
Mike holds a BS in Chemistry from Villanova University. In addition to serving on the board of directors for the Healthy Building Network, he also serves on advisory boards for several organizations including the Green Science Policy Institute, ChemForward, and Materiom.org. Mike previously served as a sustainability advisor to the Department of Homeland Security and National Institute of Building Sciences.
Citeo is the company in charge of the Extended Producer Responsibility schemes for household packaging and for graphic & printed paper in France, working with 20 000 packers and fillers, 900 local municipalities and 300 recyclers. The annual turnover is around 850 M€ per year for both activity.
He joined the public policy affairs department of Citeo in 2018, after experiences in the high administration and advisory firm for the public sector. He works very closely with all the actors of the packaging value chain in particular on the Circular Economy Package, the european plastics strategy, the circular plastic alliance, the national pacts on plastic packaging, the new circular economy action plan within the European green deal and EPR projects around the world.
He’s also lecturer on circular economy and european affairs for the university of Paris and ESSEC - international business school.
He graduated from the University Paris Dauphine (Master in Law and Regulatory Markets) and from the College of Europe (LL.M in EU law).
From corporate to government and nonprofit sustainability initiatives, Sarah has spent her career collaborating for good. As the Vice President of Circular Ventures for The Recycling Partnership, Sarah specializes in building action-oriented collaborations to accelerate the circular economy which has included launching the Circular Economy Accelerator, U.S. Plastics Pact, Pathway to Circularity, and more with her stellar team and partners. Having spent time leading sustainable packaging initiatives at Coca-Cola as well as managing sustainability initiatives for Georgia’s Department of Natural Resources, Sarah understands the power of public-private collaboration and is passionate about maximizing partnerships for positive change.
Since 2015, Ned Tomasevic has been CEO of Reusability, a leading provider of sustainable supply chain solutions, shepherding the company from a service largely focused on the live goods industry to a partner for companies across the manufacturing spectrum. For nearly two decades, Ned's career has spanned the worlds of banking, consulting, and private equity, including a number of entrepreneurial ventures.
An avid outdoorsman, Ned witnessed firsthand the ecological impact human-generated waste has on the natural landscape — something that deeply impacted him and sparked his interest in sustainability. Waiting on the sideline was not an option, so he sought to combine the skills he gained in his corporate life with his desire to help the environment, which led him to his work with Reusability.
He reshaped the company with a new mission of eliminating disposable packaging waste and bringing cost savings to companies in the process. Together, he believes, we can create a meaningful impact that lasts for generations.
Carlos graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering from the Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City. He worked in industry before moving to the United Kingdom, to do his Ph.D at the University of Cambridge. During his doctoral research and subsequently as a Post-Doctoral Research Associate, he developed the basis of the Enval process to recycle plastic aluminium laminate pouches, sachets, tubes, etc.
As a result, Carlos founded Enval where he is CEO. The Company now has a commercial plant recycling laminates in the UK and is in the process of installing further units in other locations. Enval has also started to develop recycling processes for other materials, creating a link between the packaging world and the waste handling sector.
Andrea began her career working in labs, first as a research assistant with the Institute for Genomic Research and then with Children’s National Medical Center in Washington DC. Her undergraduate degree is in Biology from University of Mary Washington, Fredericksburg, Virginia. After attending law school at George Washington University, she was an attorney for many years with Emord & Associates PC in the Washington, D.C. area, representing clients regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration (and related agencies). After leaving private practice, Andrea was Legal Counsel with Celltex Therapeutics, a ground-breaking stem cell company in Houston, TX. Next, Andrea was Regulatory Director, Associate General Counsel with Innophos, Inc, a manufacturing company supplying ingredients to the food, dietary supplement, pharmaceutical and technical industries around the globe. Currently Andrea is Food Law Counsel with Campbell Soup Company working primarily with its Quality, Regulatory, R&D, and Marketing teams on some of the most iconic brands in the United States.
Bio coming soon!
Shannon Pinc is the Circular Economy Specialist for NatureWorks, a global biopolymer supplier. Her interest in managing natural resources led her to complete a bachelor’s degree in Biology from St. Catherine’s University and a master’s degree in Bioproducts & Biosystems Engineering from the University of Minnesota. Her primary role is to partner with stakeholders across the entire value chain to move to a more circular system of managing products made with NatureWorks biopolymers.
Kris Kaar is a senior consultant at Resource Recycling Systems (RRS) with 30 years of experience in research, planning, communication, and program management in solid waste and recycling programs. For the past 10 years, Kaar has worked with the Carton Council and developed an expertise in adding cartons to existing recycling programs and expanding access to recycling for cartons. to RRS, her career included public and private sector consulting, municipal client support at an independent material recovery facility, and direct municipal experience implementing a composting program, managing the city’s waste and recycling collection contact, and developing the first permanent household hazardous waste collection drop-off site in Illinois.
Hanko Kiessner is executive chairman and founder of Packsize International LLC, a privately held On Demand Packaging® manufacturing and technology company he founded in the United States in 2002. Kiessner and his global leadership team have grown Packsize into an award-winning supply chain and sustainable packaging industry leader with operations in North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. With longstanding ties to the corrugated industry, Kiessner identified the importance of achieving sustainable operations early on and established a goal of creating Smarter Packaging for a Healthy Planet®. Also a co-founder of LeadersforCleanAir.org, Kiessner is a strong advocate for the reduction, re-use, and recycling of packaging materials and places great importance on building sustainability into every aspect of his company’s operations.
Bio coming soon!
Sara Axelrod currently leads sustainability initiatives in North and Central America for Ball Packaging, where she is focused on creating and promoting a commercial and regulatory environment in which the company can support its customers’ sustainability goals, drive efforts around real recycling and the circular economy at scale, and ultimately utilize its market position to create systemic change. She previously led marketing and innovation for the sustainability team at Land O’Lakes Inc. and was a founding member of the Food & Agriculture team at the Glover Park Group, a leading public affairs firm in Washington, D.C. She holds an MBA from The University of Texas at Austin and a Bachelor of Arts from The George Washington University.
Bio coming soon!
David Simnick is the Managing Partner of Impact Driven Brands, parent company of the mission-driven personal care brand, Soapbox, and the delicious condiment company, Bushwick Kitchen.
Soapbox’s mission is to empower consumers to change the world through everyday, quality purchases. Soapbox sells a full range of personal care products each with a mission to provide soap to those in need with every purchase. Soapbox is sold in Meijer, on Amazon, Rite Aid, Sally Beauty, Walgreens, Wegmans, Giant, Grove.co, Boxed.com, Winn-Dixie, Stop & Shops, H-E-B and many other stores across the United States and beyond.
Bushwick Kitchen handmakes delicious sauces, honeys, and srirachas in small-batches in Bushwick, New York. Their award-winning products can be found in retailers across the country, such as Walmart, Sur La Table, Food52, Niemen Marcus, and Amazon. During limited engagements, select Bushwick Kitchen items donate all of their proceeds to charitable causes proving that giving back can be delicious.
David has worked or consulted for USAID, the U.S. Army, Michelle Rhee, U.S. Senate, and also was a Teach for America (TFA) educator in Northern Philadelphia. As an Eagle Scout, David loves the outdoors, volunteering, and working with budding entrepreneurs. He received his undergraduate degree from American University in 3 years and then dropped out of a masters program at The University of Pennsylvania to start Soapbox.
Bio coming soon!
A serial entrepreneur with business acumen in corporate development across several industries, Doug has proved to be a visionary and a real inspiration to many. During his time elected as a Member of Legislative Assembly for the Canadian Province of British Columbia he contributed to many roles including Deputy Speaker, Parliamentary Secretary to the Premier and Co-Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee of the U.S. Council of State Governments West. He has also served on the Provincial Treasury Board and the Legislative Review Committee and was Chair of the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services, and Deputy Chair of the Select Standing Committee for Public Accounts. As a politician, he drove projects that promote sustainability most notably completing the Evergreen rapid transit line to the community he served after years of delay.
A dynamic leader, Doug’s professional pursuits extend beyond politics. He has built and financed numerous companies, including a world-renowned design firm that developed and led the master planning of the Sochi 2014 Olympics, as well as several other large projects around the world. After decades of running successful companies across diverse industries, Doug founded Evanesce with a mission to challenge the global popularity of plastics and polystyrene. He is a passionate advocate of sustainability and the circular economy; and is purposefully focussed in providing responsible solutions to the industry and consumers.
Mark Beamesderfer, Packaging Services Director, Metsӓ Board, Americas, has over 24 years of experience in design, prepress, print, and converting. Starting out in books, directories, and STM journals, his career moved him to Singapore and China in 2004 where he transitioned over to packaging and has started up green field packaging operations prior to joining Metsӓ Board in 2011 in its Shanghai, China location. There, Mark started up Metsӓ Board’s global packaging design service. He relocated back to the USA in 2015 where he is currently expanding the company’s design capabilities in its Norwalk, CT. office.
Billy Rice leads ALPLA Inc.’s sustainability efforts across 16 plants in North America. With focus on reducing scope 1-3 emissions, his efforts align with the company’s global pledge to increase sustainable practices and influence customer decisions for the more conscious buyer. His implementation of strategy includes innovative operational processes, cultivating company culture while increasing value for stakeholders and advocating for honest change within the packaging industry. He previously led the strategy and implementation of sustainability programs in collaboration with key stakeholders for Pembina Pipeline Corporation and serves as an advisory board member for generating awareness and promoting equity and inclusion for indigenous communities.
Billy is a GRI Certified Sustainability Professional and holds a Bachelor of Science in Education from the University of Georgia along with Master’s degrees in Public Administration from the University of Georgia and Development Practice from Emory University.
Speaker bio coming soon.
Speaker bio coming soon.
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.
Nathan Pajka, Sustainability Specialist, Metsӓ Board, Americas, works in tandem with the Product Safety and Sustainability team in Finland to provide a range of sustainability services to the Americas and serves as Metsä Board’s sustainability expert in the region. Based in the Norwalk, CT, office, he is responsible for providing sustainability data, information and education to help clients reduce the environmental impact of their packaging. Before joining Metsӓ, he worked for one of the largest healthcare companies in Massachusetts as well as serving as a sustainability ambassador for one of the largest utilities in New England. Nathan holds an MBA in Sustainability and Social Change and an MS in Environmental Science and Policy from Clark University, Worcester, MA.
Tamsin Ettefagh has 33 years of experience in the areas of recycling and plastics recycling; from implementing a recycling collection program, to running the recycling operations for a MRF, to purchasing raw materials for plastic recycling companies, to selling recycled resins for plastic recycling companies. She has consulted for agencies, banks, potential plastic manufacturers on market conditions, types of supply and how to evolve and diversify markets for recycled resins. Ms. Ettefagh is currently working as Strategy and Sustainability Officer for Purecycle Technologies
Speaker bio coming soon.
Bio coming soon!
Speaker bio coming soon.
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.
Scott Byrne serves as the Assistant Director of Global Sustainability at Sonoco, a global packaging solutions leader, committed to improving the lives of customers, teammates and communities. With his extensive background in all aspects of environmental management and sustainability, Byrne helps ensure Sonoco is on the cutting edge of sustainability initiatives.
As the Vice President of the American Institute for Packaging and the Environment (AMERIPEN) Board of Directors, Byrne works to further the organization’s goal of leading the packaging industry through advocacy based on science. Prior to joining Sonoco, Byrne was the Market Sustainability Manager for the US and Canada at Tetra Pak, where he was responsible for the implementation of sustainability programs and driving positive stakeholder engagement as the Director of Government Affairs at the Carton Council of North America, a recycling-focused industry group.
Byrne holds a master’s degree in environmental management and sustainability from the Stuart School of Business, Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, as well as a Juris Doctor from the Chicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute of Technology. He is a member of the Florida Bar. Byrne received his bachelor’s degree in business economics and public policy from Indiana University, Kelley School of Business, in Bloomington, Indiana. When not working, Scott enjoys exploring the outdoors with his wife and son and their two miniature schnauzers.
