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GC3 Safer Chemistry Training Presenters

The following are biographies of our webinar presenters, listed in alphabetical order. Click on the webinar title to be taken to the speaker's webinar.

Howard Williams photo

Howard Williams

SVP Sustainability, New Ventures & Acquisitions, Construction Specialties, Inc.
Webinar: Advancing Sustainability Through the Supply Chain - Effective Communication and Transparency

Howard previously directed the Interiors Division of Construction Specialties, Inc.  The Division received the 2003 Pennsylvania Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence. Howard is an active member of BizNGO for Safer Chemicals and Sustainable Materials, led the Division’s Chemicals Policy implementation, MBDC Cradle-to-Cradle Certification, environmental education, and carbon sequestration initiatives. He led the Acrovyn Business Unit’s transition to Non-PVC products.  The Division received the US EPA’s Mid-Atlantic Region 2011 Award for Environmental Excellence. Howard has testified before the US Senate and House supporting chemical policy reform. He participated in UN Chemicals in Products meetings in Geneva, Belgrade, and Boston.  He serves on the Certification Standards Board of the Cradle to Cradle Product Innovation Institute.  He is LEED AP certified. Howard initiated the C/S Transparency labeling program.  His work in the area of material health led to the C/S cameo in the documentary, The Human Experiment.

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Andrea Schmidt

Senior Staff Program/Project Manager Product Sustainability, Seagate Technology
Webinar: Advancing Sustainability Through the Supply Chain - Effective Communication and Transparency

Annie Schmidt, a Senior Staff Program/Project Manager for Product Sustainability at Seagate Technology, joined the Seagate Sustainability team in 2013.  At Seagate, Annie develops and implements product impact reduction strategy.  This includes chemical risk mitigation to facilitate Seagate's business resiliency, profitability and sustainability, and initiatives to further supplier full product and process chemical and material disclosure.

Annie earned a Graduate Certificate in Global Sustainability from UCLA, a Master of Science in Metallurgy and Materials Science, and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering, both from the University of Minnesota.

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Todd Copeland

Environmental Responsibility Manager, Patagonia
Webinar: Advancing Sustainability Through the Supply Chain - Effective Communication and Transparency

Todd is the Environmental Responsibility Manager for Patagonia’s global supply chain. He oversees Patagonia’s Chemical and Environmental Impacts Program which covers facility-level environmental impacts and chemicals management, as well as restricted substances and preferred chemistry for Patagonia suppliers. Todd has a Bachelor of Science degree in Polymer and Textile Chemistry from the College of Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology. His work experience includes 5 years in automotive materials development at Honda R&D Americas and 10 years at Patagonia in areas of environmental strategy, materials development, green chemistry, and sustainable manufacturing in the supply chain.

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Carol Perkins

Industry Leader, Industrial & Household Care, Eastman Chemical Company

Webinar: Innovating with Intent: Science & Sustainability at Eastman

Carol Perkins is Industry Leader, Industrial and Household Care, at Eastman Chemical, a global specialty chemical company that produces a broad range of advanced materials, additives and functional products, specialty chemicals, and fibers that are found in products people use every day.  She has over 20 years of experience in the chemical industry, working with diverse markets including cleaners, air care, personal care, and building & construction.  She has spent the last five years focused on sustainable solvent development at Eastman, working with brand owners and manufacturers to develop the insights needed to bring safer solvents to the market.  Carol holds a bachelor degree from the University of Virginia and an MBA from Jacksonville University.

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Mark Pavlin

Senior Technical Associate, Eastman Chemical Company

Webinar: Innovating with Intent: Science & Sustainability at Eastman

Mark Pavlin, PhD, joined Eastman Chemical Company in 2008 and is currently a Senior Technical Associate for the Adhesives and Plasticizers Business. He has over 37 years of research and product development experience. Since joining Eastman, Dr. Pavlin’s work has involved exploration of new opportunities in various markets, including tackifiers, solvents, coalescent agents, plasticizers, anti-oxidants and formulation ingredients for personal care products.

Prior to joining Eastman, Mark worked for Arizona Chemical, the chemical products subsidiary of International Paper Company, and for Union Camp Corporation. He contributed technically to and managed an R&D group working on new process and product developments in pine chemicals technology for applications in jet inks, printing inks, adhesives, fragrances, and personal care additives.

Mark received a BS degree in Chemistry from Lehigh University in 1973 and a PhD degree in Organic Chemistry from the University of Illinois in 1977. Mark is inventor or co-inventor on over 40 issued US patents.

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David Kossor

Associate Toxicologist, Eastman Chemical Company

Webinar: Innovating with Intent: Science & Sustainability at Eastman

David Kossor, PhD, RPh, DABT, PMP, joined Eastman Chemical Company in 2011 as an Associate Toxicologist.  Prior to joining Eastman, Dr. Kossor held numerous positions in the pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical, nutraceutical, and petrochemical industries for over 35 years.

David received a BS degree in Pharmacy in 1979 from Rutgers University College of Pharmacy and an MS degree in 1983 from the University of Medicine & Dentistry of New Jersey-Rutgers University Joint Graduate Program in Toxicology.  In 1991, he received a doctorate degree in Pharmacology and Toxicology from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science, and completed a 3-year postdoctoral fellowship in investigative toxicology at SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.  David has been a Registered Pharmacist in New Jersey since 1980, a Diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology since 1995, and a Project Management Professional since 2013.

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Teresa McGrath

Environmental Regulatory Toxicologist, Valspar
Webinar: Careers in Green Chemistry

Teresa represents Valspar, a global paints and coatings manufacturer headquartered in Minneapolis, MN.  She manages Valspar’s Chemical Management Program, focusing on hazards reduction and transparency. She also assists each business unit in meeting their specific sustainability and green chemistry goals. Before working for Valspar, Teresa was a Senior Managing Toxicologist at NSF International’s Green Chemistry Programs which included: Chemical product formulation reviews for the EPA’s Design for the Environment Safer Labeling Program, CleanGredients™ reviews, risk assessments, inventory analysis, Sustainable Product Certifications, Eco-Efficiency Analysis and GreenScreen® Certified Assessments. She also spent two years at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the design for the Environment (DfE) Branch of the Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT). Teresa earned her Masters in Research in Clean Chemical Technology from the University of York, England and B.A. in Biology from Hamline University in St. Paul, MN. 

 

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Cal Baier-Anderson

Toxicologist, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Webinar: Toxicology and Why You Should Care

Cal Baier-Anderson, Ph.D., is a toxicologist with the US Environmental Protection Agency, Design for the Environment (DfE) Branch. DfE works in partnership with stakeholders from industry, environmental groups, and academia to reduce risks to public health and the environment through the use of inherently safer chemicals. In this capacity she conducts hazard and alternatives assessments to identify safer chemicals to promote informed substitution. Prior to this position, she served as a health scientist with the Environmental Defense Fund and a part-time Assistant Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. Cal earned a Ph.D. in Toxicology in 1999 from the University of Maryland, Baltimore, after which she served as a technical advisor to communities living adjacent to hazardous waste sites through EPA-funded community assistance programs. Additional work experience includes risk assessment and risk communication consulting.

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Ann Blake

Principal and Founder, Environmental & Public Health Consulting
Webinar: Introduction to Life Cycle and Alternatives Assessment

Ann Blake is an independent consultant working with governments, occupational health, and public health and environmental advocates to find viable alternatives to toxic chemicals in manufacturing and consumer products. Dr. Blake’s work covers toxics reduction strategies from product content screening and environmentally preferable purchasing to drafting local, national and international legislation and chemical policies. Dr. Blake has a B.A. from Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, and a Ph.D. in molecular genetics and neural development from the University of Oregon.

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Kristi Budzinski

Green Chemistry/BioPharma Program Manager, Genentech
Webinar: In Pursuit of Green Chemistry - Perspectives on Careers in Industry

Kristi Budzinski joined Genentech's Environment, Health, and Safety department as the first Green BioPharma Program Manager in 2011. In this role, she develops and manages projects to minimize the environmental impact of Genentech's scientific, engineering, and manufacturing activities. Kristi serves as a Roche/Genentech representative on the ACS GCI Pharmaceutical Roundtable and leads the biopharma focus group, where she is collaborating on the development of a metric that will quantify the environmental impact of manufacturing a biologic drug.

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Irene Erdelmeier

Organic and Medicinal Green Chemist, Co-founder of Tetrahedron, France
Webinar: Careers in Green Chemistry

Irene co-founded the French start-up Tetrahedron with Jean-Claude Yadan and Marc Moutet in 2003, with the goal to bring safe and innovative products to the healthcare market. As Director of Chemistry, she introduced new reactions and technologies for the development of more sustainable chemical processes, with a special interest in tools to identify hotspots and to measure the real impact of improvements in the spirit of green chemistry.

By training an organic chemist and engineer with a Post-Doc in chemical toxicology, Irene led in former positions R&D projects within a French biotech company focused on Free Radical Biology and at L’Oreal, acted as Director of Chemistry of Oxis SA and co-founded a CRO in Medicinal Chemistry.

 

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Jon Smieja

Environmental Chemist, Global Sustainability, Steelcase
Webinar: Careers in Green Chemistry

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.

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Steve Davies

Director of Public Affairs and Communications, NatureWorks
Webinar: Building Market Share for Green Products

Steve Davies leads marketing & public affairs globally for NatureWorks LLC, a company formed with the mission of bringing to market a broad family of naturally advanced, renewably sourced materials. He is responsible for the company’s cradle-to-cradle strategy, including feedstocks sourcing and strategy and product recovery strategies, and for managing the company’s industry and stakeholder relations, external communications and media relations. Previously as NatureWorks’ global marketing director, Steve was responsible for market development with Ingeo plastics. When not wearing a NatureWorks hat, Davies has twice served (2011, 2014) as Industry Chair of the SPI’s (Society of the Plastics Industry’s) Bioplastics Council, a group formed in 2009 with the mission of promoting the development of bioplastics as an integral part of the plastics industry. Steve has also served as co-chair of the Washington based BIO’s (Biotechnology Industry Organization’s) biobased products working group 2011-2013.

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Matthew Eckelman

Assistant Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Northeastern University
Webinar: Introduction to Green Engineering

Dr. Matthew Eckelman is the CTO of Sustainability A to Z, LLC and an Assistant Professor at Northeastern University in Boston in Civil and Environmental Engineering. His research broadly examines the sustainability of novel materials and technologies at industrial scales, covering nanomaterials and nano-enabled devices, biofuels and bio-based chemicals, high-tech metals and alloys, energy efficiency technologies, and green buildings. Prior to this, Dr. Eckelman worked with the Massachusetts State Executive Office of Environmental Affairs and Design that Matters, a non-profit product design company, and was a Peace Corps science instructor in southern Nepal for several years. He holds a doctorate in chemical and environmental engineering from Yale University.

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Tom Etheridge

Program Manager of LCA and CF, Hewlett-Packard
Webinar: Introduction to Life Cycle and Alternatives Assessment

Tom has worked in various aspects of printing at Hewlett-Packard since 1994. For the last few years his research has focused on life cycle assessments (LCA) and carbon footprint (CF) analyses of HP’s printing and imaging systems and he is currently the company’s worldwide LCA and CF program manager. Tom received his PhD in chemistry from the University of Chicago (1993) and has held visiting scholar appointments at MIT and Rice University.

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Charlie Forslund

Principal in Material Innovation Exploration, Steelcase
Webinar: Building Market Share for Green Products

Charlie is a lifelong innovator who loves the challenge of engineering and design. One year after joining Steelcase product engineering, Charlie moved to begin a 24 year career in Research & Development. Focusing initially on Material and Process technology and later Electro Mechanical Solutions, Charlie created new intellectual property in various Seating, Furniture Systems, and Interface Platforms. In 2009, Charlie refocused his energy to lead a start-up activity in Procurement scouting Advanced Materials and Innovation for Steelcase brands & product categories. Charlie enjoys being part of both the discovery and implementation of new innovation. Charlie has a Bachelor of Science degree in Interior Design from Western Michigan University, holds 25 utility patents and has led the implementation of collaborative work with leading institutions like IBM & MIT.

Larry Garcia

Senior Environmental Analyst, Seattle City Light
Webinar: Training and Incentivizing Merchants to Purchase Sustainable Products

As a Senior Environmental Analyst at Seattle City Light, Mr. Garcia coordinates the Chemical Approval and Alternatives Assessment, Green Purchasing, Recycling, Pollution Prevention and Integrated Pest Management Programs. Prior to joining Seattle City Light, Larry was a Principal and Hazardous Materials Specialist at Prezant Associates, a Northwest industrial hygiene firm and an Environmental Scientist for the U.S. EPA Technical Assistance Team. His experience includes hazardous waste site remediation, indoor air quality investigations, research chemistry and regulatory compliance inspections. His degree in Biology and Environmental Science from Rice was an incredibly helpful start.

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Steven Gilbert

Director, Institute of Neurotoxicology and Neurological Disorders
Webinar: Toxicology and Why You Should Care

Steven G. Gilbert, Ph.D., DABT, Director and Founder of the Institute of Neurotoxicology and Neurological Disorders (INND), has a Ph.D. in toxicology and is a Diplomat of American Board of Toxicology. He is an Affiliate Professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, University of Washington. Dr. Gilbert’s research has focused on neurobehavioral effects of low-level exposure to lead and mercury on the developing nervous system. His book, A Small Dose of Toxicology- The Health Effects of Common Chemicals was published in 2004 and the 2nd edition is available for free as an E-book (www.asmalldoseof.org) by Healthy World Press. The book was recently translated and published in Chinese (www.chinesesmalldose.org). He started the wiki based web site Toxipedia (www.toxipedia.org) which includes a suite of sites that put scientific information in the context of history, society, and culture (sgilbert@innd.org).

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Robert Giraud

Principal Consultant in Environmental Engineering, DuPont Company
Webinar: The Role of Policy in Green Chemistry Research and Adoption

Based in DuPont's Chemical Technology group, Robert Giraud advises Company business segments on the assessment and optimization of existing and new chemical processes and products from an environmental and sustainability perspective. Since co-authoring DuPont's corporate Waste Minimization Guidance Manual in 1987, he has worked with business, R&D, and manufacturing staff across the Company to craft integrated technical solutions for meeting evolving environmental needs largely using what has come to be known as Green Chemistry and Engineering. Robert has led or served on interdisciplinary teams whose work has been recognized with one R&D 100 award (R&D Magazine), two USEPA National Partnership for Environmental Priorities Achievement Awards, three DuPont Engineering Excellence awards, one DuPont Sustainable Growth Excellence Award, and one DuPont Environmental Excellence Award. An active participant in Green Chemistry and Commerce Council (GC3) project teams, he has served on various U.S. EPA technical advisory groups, represented DuPont on the ACS Green Chemistry Institute Chemical Manufacturers Roundtable, and volunteered in a community-based conservation program to preserve the Delaware Estuary. His publications and conference presentations span a range of environmental chemistry and engineering topics. Robert graduated magna cum laude from Tulane University with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering and also earned a master’s degree in chemical engineering from Tulane.

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Nigel Greene

Associate Research Fellow, Compound Safety Prediction Group, Pfizer
Webinar: Integrating Toxicity Information into Chemical Design

Nigel Greene, Ph.D., is an Associate Research Fellow with Pfizer Global Research Company specializing in compound safety prediction. His specific duties include establishing and managing a group of Ph.D. level scientists using computational modeling and analysis to help predict the safety profile of early discovery programs and aid in chemical series and compound selection prior to first in vivo studies using chemical properties and in vitro assay profiles. Dr. Greene’s other activities include the mining of internal and public databases of gene expression data to explore biological mechanisms of toxicity and aid in the development of new in vitro assays for safety profiling by conducting in vitro experiments to try to confirm the computational hypotheses derived from these transcriptional databases. Dr. Nigel Greene holds a Ph.D. in Organometallic Chemistry; his thesis entitled “Organophosphorus Transition Metal Chemistry” was received from the University of Leeds (1994) and a B.S. in Chemistry and Computational Science from the University of Leeds (1991).

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Lauren Heine

Interim Executive Director, Northwest Green Chemistry
Webinar: Chemical Hazard Assessment - Informing Decisions for Safer Chemicals, Materials, and Products

Through her work with Northwest Green Chemistry and beyond, Dr. Lauren Heine enhances human and environmental health by applying the principles and practices of green chemistry, green engineering and multi-stakeholder collaboration leading to systemic changes and innovation in business, products and processes. She co-authored and led the development of GreenScreen for Safer Chemicals, a method for comparative chemical hazard assessment currently used by a growing number of large manufacturers of products ranging from chemicals to electronics, apparel and footwear. As an author for the university textbook, Introduction to Environmental Engineering 3rd ed., she integrated sustainability and green design concepts. For the OECD, she drafted the report Policy Principles for Sustainable Materials Management. Lauren served on the California Green Ribbon Science Panel and worked closely with the USEPA Design for the Environment Program (DfE) and stakeholders to develop the DfE Criteria for the Safer Choice Program and Criteria for Alternatives Assessment. She served as technical advisor for the Interstate Chemicals Clearinghouse Alternatives Assessment Guide. She co-chaired the buyers tool development subcommittee for Wal-Mart’s Chemical Intensive Products Network. From 2003-2007, she created and led the development CleanGredients™, a web-based information platform for identifying greener chemicals in partnership with DfE. Lauren co-founded the Zero Waste Alliance in Portland, OR. Prior to that, Lauren was a Fellow with the American Association for the Advancement of Science in the Green Chemistry Program at the US EPA and taught Organic Chemistry labs at Bowdoin College. Lauren publishes and speaks frequently on green chemistry metrics, alternatives assessment and science-based multi-stakeholder processes. Lauren earned her doctorate in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Duke University.

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Helen Holder

Corporate Material Selection Manager, Hewlett-Packard
Webinar: The Value of Green Chemistry

Helen Holder, M.S., is the corporate material selection manager at Hewlett-Packard Co. (HP), where she evaluates and qualifies materials for use in products. She has introduced environmental and human health criteria to complement traditional functional, safety, and reliability requirements for materials selection, and uses the tenets of green chemistry to make product materials selection decisions daily. Helen received her Bachelor of Science degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and received her Master of Science degree from the University of California, Berkeley, where she was an HP resident fellow.

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Rob Kaplan

Director of Product Sustainability, Walmart
Webinar: Training and Incentivizing Merchants to Purchase Sustainable Products

As a Director of Product Sustainability for Walmart Stores Inc., Rob Kaplan drives product and supply chain innovation by integrating sustainability and business strategy. He leads sustainability strategy and implementation for the Consumables and Health & Wellness businesses, including categories such as personal care, household chemicals, and over-the-counter. In addition, he is responsible for customer engagement, packaging, and The Closed Loop Fund. Rob previously led cross-functional efforts to eliminate 20 million metric tons of greenhouse gas from the supply chain. Prior to joining Walmart, Rob helped lead corporate responsibility and brand strategy for Brown-Forman Corporation, producer and marketer of spirits brands such as Jack Daniel’s. He developed marketing strategies to engage consumers, improve social and environmental performance, and advance business objectives. Rob received his MBA from the Haas School where he studied marketing, corporate responsibility, and social entrepreneurship. Prior to graduate school, Rob was State Communications Director for Fight Crime: Invest in Kids California and a political consultant for M&R Strategic Services in Washington, DC. Rob received his undergraduate degree in political communication from the George Washington University where he learned that perception is reality.

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Jakub Kostal

Chief Scientific Officer, Sustainability A to Z
Webinar: Integrating Toxicity Information into Chemical Design

Dr. Jakub Kostal, Chief Scientific Officer at Sustainability A to Z, has a broad background in computational chemistry and its applications to problems in physical-organic chemistry, biochemistry, green chemistry and toxicology. His research expertise spans computational modeling of organic and enzymatic reactions in condensed phases, computer-aided drug discovery, de novo enzymatic design and the development of novel methods for toxicity prediction and safer chemical design. His past appointments include Director of Designing Safer Chemicals Program at the Yale Center for Green Chemistry and Green Engineering and Guest Researcher at the Laboratory of Computational Biology, National Institutes of Health. Dr. Kostal has authored a number of publications on the topics of computational chemistry and toxicology, as well as co-authored a chapter in Designing Safer Chemicals, Handbook of Green Chemistry Series. Dr. Kostal holds B.A. from Middlebury College (Chemistry, Arabic) and a Ph.D. from Yale University (Computational and Physical Chemistry).

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Drummond Lawson

Environmental Chemist, Arc'teryx
Webinar: In Pursuit of Green Chemistry - Perspectives on Careers in Industry

Drummond Lawson is the director of advanced materials development at Arc’teryx, an outdoor apparel brand based in Vancouver, British Columbia. Drummond is an environmental chemist by training and has spent the past decade using materials research in a range of product innovation applications. Drummond is the former director of greenskeeping at method products and prides himself on his daily use of both soap and apparel.

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Martin J. Mulvihill

Executive Director, Berkeley Center for Green Chemistry
Webinar: Integrating Toxicity Information into Chemical Design

Marty Mulvihill, Ph.D., is the executive director of the University of California Berkeley Center for Green Chemistry, where he has helped integrate green chemistry concepts into the undergraduate and graduate curriculum at UC Berkeley. In his research positions in the School of Public Health and in Civil and Environmental Engineering, Dr. Mulvihill designs safer chemicals and nanoscale materials that can help with pollution remediation and environmental sensing. He received his Ph.D. from University of California, Berkeley in 2009, then performed postdoctoral research under Taleb Mokari and Jiamin Wan at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, where he characterized the stability and fate of nanoparticles in soils and groundwater.

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Thaddeus Owen

Chief Engineer in Sustainability, Herman Miller
Webinar: Introduction to Life Cycle and Alternatives Assessment

Thaddeus is Herman Miller’s Chief Sustainability Engineer and life cycle assessment leader. Since 2007, Thaddeus has helped lead sustainable product design as part of Herman Miller’s Sustainability team and has participated in drafting numerous national and international sustainability standards including ANSI/BIFMA e3 Furniture Sustainability Standard, WRI GHG Product Life Cycle Accounting and Reporting Standard, WRI GHG Scope 3 Standard, and the Product Category Rule Guidance. Thaddeus is passionate about creating safe and healthy products.

Thaddeus spent the first part of his career developing manufacturing processes for the pharmaceutical industry. He holds a BS in Chemical Engineering from Clarkson University, and an MS in Holistic Nutrition.

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Jason Pearson

President & CEO, Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council
Webinar: Training and Incentivizing Merchants to Purchase Sustainable Products

Jason Pearson is President & CEO of the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council, a non-profit organization that supports and recognizes purchasing leadership that accelerates the transition to a prosperous and sustainable future. The Council convened a diverse membership to create a shared program for guiding, measuring, and recognizing leadership in sustainable purchasing. Jason is an experienced non-profit executive, strategist, and facilitator who has led the creation of several successful initiatives related to innovation and sustainability. As President & CEO of GreenBlue he grew multi-stakeholder sustainability initiatives in a number of sectors, including the Sustainable Packaging Coalition for packaging and CleanGredients for chemical products. His consultancy, TRUTHstudio, provides strategy, visualization, and facilitation support to organizations working in the public interest. Jason has held previous positions in government, non-profit, foundation, and private sectors. He earned undergraduate and graduate degrees with highest honors from Princeton University.

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Cory Robertson

Environmental Chemist, Hewlett-Packard
Webinar: In Pursuit of Green Chemistry - Perspectives on Careers in Industry

Cory is an environmental chemist at Hewlett-Packard where he applies the principles of green chemistry to evaluate and select alternatives to restricted substances. Cory uses tools such as the GreenScreen™ for Safer Chemicals and life cycle assessment to promote continuous improvement in the environmental and human health attributes of materials used in HP’s supply chain. Prior to his current position Cory worked as an analytical chemist in HP’s material science lab for 10 years. Cory holds a Bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Boise State University and a Master’s degree in environmental policy and management from the University of Denver.

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Rob Roy

Lead Toxicology Specialist, 3M Medical Department
Webinar: Toxicology and Why You Should Care

Dr. Roy holds both an M.S. and Ph.D. in environmental health (toxicology) from the University of Minnesota. He is board-certified in toxicology. He is currently a Lead Toxicology Specialist in the 3M Medical Department where he provides toxicology support to the 3M Consumer Health Care and Skin and Wound Care Divisions, is Chair of the 3M Exposure Guideline (OEL) Committee, and leads 3M’s efforts in the development of DN(M)ELs for REACH registrations. Dr. Roy is an Adjunct Assistant Professor (Environmental Health Sciences and Toxicology Graduate Program) at the University of Minnesota, a member of the TERA/OARS WEEL(TM) Committee, a member of the Board of Directors of the American Board of Toxicology, and is a past-president of the Northland Chapter of the Society of Toxicology.

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Julie Schoenung

Professor and Vice-Chair of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, University of California Davis
Webinar: Introduction to Green Engineering

Julie Schoenung, Ph.D., is a Professor and Vice-Chair of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science at the University of California Davis, where her research group synthesizes, characterizes, and models new materials for ballistic, transportation, and energy applications. She is involved in the UC Davis green engineering initiative and Green Materials Lead Campus program, and is interested in green chemistry and engineering education at all levels. Dr. Schoenung earned her Ph.D. in materials engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1987, and a B.S. in ceramic engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1983. In 2009, she was selected to be on California’s Green Ribbon Science Panel for safer consumer products.

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Andy Shafer

Executive VP of Sales and Market Development, Elevance Renewable Sciences
Webinar: The Value of Green Chemistry

Currently EVP, Sales and Marketing at Elevance Renewable Sciences, Inc., Andy Shafer has more than 30 years of experience in specialty chemicals and plastics, building businesses and leading global multifunctional teams, and is responsible for managing a portfolio of business opportunities focused on developing industrial products from modified vegetable oils. An original executive in Cargill-Dow (now NatureWorks, LLC), Andy was a commercial director, responsible for establishing the packaging and fibers businesses and the company’s initial customer base in Asia. During his career, Andy has served as a key strategic commercial and business manager for Fortune 50 businesses, built and managed organizations from their inception, and led multifunctional teams to achieve high performance and outstanding results. 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.

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Joel Tickner

Director, Green Chemistry & Commerce Council
Webinar: The Role of Policy in Green Chemistry Research and Adoption

Dr. Joel Tickner is Associate Professor in the Department of Community Health and Sustainability at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, where he directs the Chemicals Policy and Science Initiative of the Lowell Center for Sustainable Production. He also directs the Green Chemistry and Commerce Council, a network of more than 90 companies and other organizations dedicated to accelerating the adoption of green chemistry across supply chains and sectors.

Joel is a leading expert on chemicals regulation, regulatory science, and application of 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. Joel served on the EPA’s National Pollution Prevention and Toxics Advisory Committee, as well as National Academy of Sciences panels around alternatives assessment and safer chemistry. He also directs the undergraduate environmental health program at the University of Massachusetts Lowell.

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Saskia van Gendt

Captain Planet, Method
Webinar: Building Market Share for Green Products

Saskia van Gendt is Captain Planet for Method, the green soap company based in San Francisco. At Method, Saskia works on greenskeeping for North America, focusing on improving the company's packaging, green building, ingredients, and supply chain. She also manages the company's carbon footprint and certifications with Cradle to Cradle and B Corp. Previously, Saskia worked at the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency's Pacific Southwest office for 6 years, where she led projects in greener packaging, design for deconstruction, and material sustainability.

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John Warner

President and CTO, Warner Babcock Institute for Green Chemistry
Webinar: Green Chemistry: Benign by Design

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.

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Margaret Whittaker

Managing Director and Chief Toxicologist, ToxServices, LLC
Webinar: Chemical Hazard Assessment - Informing Decisions for Safer Chemicals, Materials, and Products

Dr. Whittaker is the Managing Director and Chief Toxicologist of ToxServices LLC. She manages ToxServices projects for the United States EPA's Safer Choice Program, Clean Production Action’s GreenScreen for Safer Chemicals, and Cradle to Cradle Certified Program. As project manager and technical lead, Dr. Whittaker has contributed to and/or managed the development of hundreds of human health risk assessments, chemical hazard assessments, exposure assessments, as well as hundreds of product-specific toxicology evaluations. Dr. Whittaker is one of the pioneers in the field of Chemicals Alternatives Assessments, and is a key contributor to advancing this methodology around the world to inform chemical selection and promote hazard reduction. Dr. Whittaker is a Diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology who earned a Ph.D. in Toxicology from The University of Maryland, Baltimore and an M.P.H. in Environmental Health from The University of Michigan. Dr. Whittaker is a U.K./EuroTox Registered Toxicologist, as well as a Chartered Biologist and Fellow of the U.K. Society of Biology.

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Tse-Sung Wu

Program Manager in Environment, Health, and Safety, Genentech
Webinar: The Value of Green Chemistry

Tse-Sung Wu launched the Green BioPharma Program at Genentech, while at its Environment, Health, and Safety department for more than ten years, in which he managed hazardous waste operations, chemical inventory, and supported Genentech's research laboratories. He currently manages the $30M capital projects portfolio that is tasked with maintaining and enhancing Genentech's biopharmaceutical production facility. Prior to Genentech, he was associate director of the Consortium for Environmentally Conscious Design and Manufacture at the University of California, Berkeley. He has also been a part of Apple's Environmental Technologies and Strategies group and has consulted for the electronics and sports apparel industry on green design. Dr. Wu received his Ph.D. in Engineering and Public Policy and Civil and Environmental Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University in 1996.

Julie Zimmerman photo

Julie Zimmerman

Associate Professor of Chemical & Environmental Engineering, Forestry & Environmental Studies, Yale University
Webinar: Introduction to Green Engineering

Dr. Julie Beth Zimmerman is the Donna L. Dubinsky Associate Professor of Environmental Engineering at Yale University, jointly appointed to the Chemical & Environmental Engineering Department of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. She is the Associate Director for Research at the Yale Center for Green Chemistry & Green Engineering. Dr. Zimmerman previously served as an Engineer and program coordinator in the Office of Research and Development at the United States Environmental Protection Agency, where she managed sustainability research grants and created EPA's P3 (People, Prosperity, and the Planet) Award program. She received a joint Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in Environmental Engineering and Natural Resource Policy.