EP11 Billion-dollar flooring company Interface innovates carbon-negative products to keep in pace with customers - Erin Meezan Chief Sustainability Officer

We invited innovators who fully embrace circularity by helping solve issues surrounding waste and making it valuable as a profitable business. by upcycling and leveraging for waste streams as components of the regenerative supply chain in order to eliminate products made with plastic.  On an all-female panel, we discuss the opportunities in the value of waste with the co-founder of NewGenSurgical Kim Chase and co-founder of Nutshell Coolers Tamara Mekler,  founder of Fermenstation and co-founder of waste*d Taylor Zehren.

We speak with the co-founder of Solid Carbon Products about how the desire to protect their son going into the Iraq war inspired the late Dallas B. Noyes to figure out a better armor to protect their son turns into a project that will benefit humanity by making specialty reinforcing carbons using carbon dioxide as the carbon source.

We speak with Erin Meezan to hear a story of transformation. Agility to meet customer demands marked a turning point for commercial flooring company Interface in the 1990s.  Today, decades of research and commitment to sustainability have led systemic changes in carpets and flooring.  https://www.interface.com/US/en-US/homepage   https://www.aquafil.com/

In this episode, Brian and Yoshi discuss with Vic the positive externality of ranching sea urchins to feed not only an increasing appetite for uni at fine restaurants globally but also restore barren sea floors back into a vibrant kelp forest.  A new type of company and community is emerging. Zebras Unite.Org fosters a more inclusive, equitable, and ethical environment for early-stage businesses, catalyzing community, capital, and culture for people building businesses that are better for the world. https://www.urchinomics.com/ https://www.zebrasunite.org/

Direct Air Capture is a technology able to remove CO2 directly from the air for sequestration or to be used for carbon-neutral fuels. Since 2009 Carbon Engineering has been pioneering this technology and inventing new solutions to transform the carbon into carbon-neutral fuel (Air to Fuel). In this episode, Marcello interviews Amy Ruddock, VP for Europe at Carbon Engineering to unpack the role of this technology as a contributor to a CO2-balanced economy. https://carbonengineering.com/our-technology/ 

In this episode, Vic and Nao speak with Seiichiro Takayama and IR communication officer Ami Kano at Kotobuki Medical speak with Nao and Vic about plant-based surgical training products and their journey from a small traditional company. Links: KOTOBUKI Medical sustainability [https://kotobukimedical.com/en/sustainability.html](https://kotobukimedical.com/en/sustainability.html) KOTOBUKI GIKEN (machi-koba) [https://www.tech-kg.co.jp/kg_profile.html](https://www.tech-kg.co.jp/kg_profile.html) Most recent fundraising: 80 million JPY in Series A funding from the Gunma Biomedical Innovation Fund and the Shinkin Wings Fund  [https://kotobukimedical.com/news_en/2021/06/03/announcement-of-third-party-allocation-of-shares/](https://kotobukimedical.com/news_en/2021/06/03/announcement-of-third-party-allocation-of-shares/) Crowdfunding campaign site raised 89.3million JPY from 591 individual investors [https://fundinno.com/projects/70](https://fundinno.com/projects/70) What is machi-koba? [https://tokyofabhub.com/beginners-guide-tokyo-clusters/](https://tokyofabhub.com/beginners-guide-tokyo-clusters/) What is konnyaku? [https://www.umami-insider.com/konnyaku-traditional-japanese-delicacy/]

In this episode, Vic and Nao speak with Seiichiro Takayama and IR communication officer Ami Kano at Kotobuki Medical speak with Nao and Vic about plant-based surgical training products and their journey from a small traditional company. Links: KOTOBUKI Medical sustainability [https://kotobukimedical.com/en/sustainability.html](https://kotobukimedical.com/en/sustainability.html) KOTOBUKI GIKEN (machi-koba) [https://www.tech-kg.co.jp/kg_profile.html](https://www.tech-kg.co.jp/kg_profile.html) Most recent fundraising: 80 million JPY in Series A funding from the Gunma Biomedical Innovation Fund and the Shinkin Wings Fund  [https://kotobukimedical.com/news_en/2021/06/03/announcement-of-third-party-allocation-of-shares/](https://kotobukimedical.com/news_en/2021/06/03/announcement-of-third-party-allocation-of-shares/) Crowdfunding campaign site raised 89.3million JPY from 591 individual investors [https://fundinno.com/projects/70](https://fundinno.com/projects/70) What is machi-koba? [https://tokyofabhub.com/beginners-guide-tokyo-clusters/](https://tokyofabhub.com/beginners-guide-tokyo-clusters/) What is konnyaku? [https://www.umami-insider.com/konnyaku-traditional-japanese-delicacy/]

Refurbed is the marketplace for refurbished electronics in Europe. This episode is an interview with founders and CEO Kilian Kaminski about the current state of electronics sustainability, the “right to repair movement” and the future of refurbished products as a way to reduce consumption and waste. Speaker: Kilian Kaminski, Founder & CEO. Forbes 30 under 30.

In this episode, Dr. Vic Woo speaks with Kim Luedee-Chase, co-founder and vice president of marketing and business development, at NewGen Surgical. NewGenSurgical was started with the vision to design a quality single-use medical device with sustainable materials, revolutionizing the operating room (OR).  We learn about life's squiggle lines to success and finding the light through dark tunnels during COVID when surgeries were drastically reduced. NewGenSurgical https://newgensurgical.com/ Impact calculator: https://newgensurgical.com/scbi/ Gary Cohen https://practicegreenhealth.org/

Marcello and Victoria interview Loop’s Head of Communication, Eric Rosen, unpacking today’s waste crisis and how Loop’s reusable packages system is solving the problem at the root cause. Hear from Eric how this spin-off project from recycling giant Terracycle will change the way we buy and dispose of everyday consumer goods.