Keynote Speakers
Paul Ekins
Professor of Resources & Environmental Policy
UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources, University College London (UK)
Paul Ekins has a Ph.D. in economics from the University of London and is Professor of Resources and Environmental Policy at the UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources, University College London. From 2005-10 was Chairman of the UK’s National Industrial Symbiosis Programme (NISP), the country’s most effective initiative at promoting resource efficiency in industry. He was also co-author of the National Government chapter of the UK Chief Scientific Advisor’s 2017 report From Waste to Resource Productivity: Evidence and Case Studies. In 2011 he was appointed Vice-Chairman of the DG Environment Commissioner’s High-Level Economists Expert Group on Resource Efficiency, and in 2012 a member of the European Commission’s European Resource Efficiency Platform. In 2013 he was appointed to UNEP’s International Resource Panel (IRP), for whom he was lead author of a major report on resource efficiency at the request of the German Government at the G7 Summit in 2015, and a contributor to the IRP’s 2020 report on Mineral Resource Governance. He is now Deputy Chair of the UK Government’s Circular Economy Taskforce. He was one of two Co-Chairs of UNEP’s sixth Global Environment Outlook (GEO-6), published in March 2019. His most recent of 14 books is Stopping Climate Change: Policies for Real Zero (Routledge, 2024). In 1994 Paul Ekins received UNEP’s Global 500 Award ‘for outstanding environmental achievement’ and in 2015 an OBE for services to environmental policy.
Nancy Bocken
Professor in Sustainable Business
Maastricht Sustainability Institute, Maastricht University (Netherlands)
Nancy Bocken is Professor in Sustainable Business & Circular Economy at Maastricht University, the Netherlands. Nancy has coordinated (inter)national research projects with a focus on business as the driver for sustainability transitions. Her research investigates sustainable business models, business experiments, circular economy, sufficiency, regeneration, and closing the ‘idea-action’ gap for sustainability through novel tools and methods. She leads Circular X, a €1.5m research program funded by the ERC, about experimentation with circular business models. Nancy is also Fellow at Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, scientific advisory to the Global Circularity Protocol for Business, and supervisory board member of Circle Economy. She co-founded her own circular business called HOMIE. She holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge. Previously, she worked for University of Cambridge, Lund University, and TU Delft, and was visiting fellow at Yale University, LUT Finland and Aalborg University. Currently she is also visiting professor at NHH Norway. Before, she was a board member of the Philips Foundation and worked for DHL, ING, and Accenture.
John Shegerian
CEO
ERI
Critical Minerals Panel
John Shegerian serves as co-founder, Chairman and CEO of ERI, the largest material resource recovery, ITAD and electronics recycling company in the US. He also co-founded RecycleNation, the #1 ranked search engine and responsible recycling database for consumers. He is the host of the Impact Podcast, a Webby Award- winning sustainability discussion program.
Billy Frank
Vice President Sales & Marketing
Caterpillar Remanufacturing Division
Billy Frank drives the commercial execution of Caterpillar’s Remanufacturing Division as Vice President of Sales and Marketing, spearheading global services growth in partnership with all segments and channel partners. His organization delivers innovative aftermarket solutions that optimize total cost of ownership for customers. A seasoned professional with 20+ years of experience, Billy has led transformations in commercial operations, sales, distribution, and marketing. He serves on the Board of Directors for CEFCU and has previously held director roles with 10G, Tri County Urban League, and the Peoria Zoological Society. Billy consistently cultivates a high-performance culture that deliver sustainable results. Billy is married with 2 adult children and based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
Heinz Schandl, PhD
Senior Science Leader
Commonwealth Scientific & Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) (Australia)
Prof Heinz Schandl holds a PhD in Sociology and an MA in Social and Economic Sciences. As a senior science leader at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) in Canberra, he serves as the director of CSIRO’s Circular Economy Initiative. In this capacity, he coordinates research endeavours on the circular economy. Beyond his primary role at CSIRO, he is an adjunct professor at the Graduate School of Environmental Studies at Nagoya University in Japan. His affiliations extend to global platforms: he is a member of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) International Resource Panel, an expert member of the UNCRD Regional 3R and Circular Economy Forum for Asia and the Pacific, and a past president of the International Society of Industrial Ecology. At the core of his research are themes like social theory, industrial metabolism, and environmental and sustainability policy. This expertise underpins his commitment to promoting evidence-based policies focused on resource efficiency, waste minimisation, greenhouse gas abatement, and the principles of the circular economy.
Danielle Holly
Executive Lead, North America
Ellen MacArthur Foundation
Danielle is a senior social sector executive who has spent her career scaling mission-oriented organizations and programs. Currently, as Lead, North America at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Danielle is focused on expanding circularity in the US and Canada. Danielle had prior roles at the Aspen Institute’s Business & Society Program and was the CEO of Common Impact for more than a decade. She is a frequent writer and speaker on the topics of entrepreneurship, corporate social innovation and leadership development. She’s a contributing writer to the Stanford Social Innovation Review, Forbes and Nonprofit Quarterly.
Nabil Nasr
CEO
The REMADE Institute
Dr. Nabil Nasr is the founding Chief Executive Officer of the REMADE Institute, where he oversees everything from node-level research roadmap development to corporate engagement of the Institute’s largest industrial partners. Dr. Nasr also serves as the Director of the Golisano Institute for Sustainability and an Associate Provost for Academic Affairs at the Rochester Institute of Technology. Throughout his career, Dr. Nasr has worked in the fields of sustainable manufacturing, remanufacturing, clean production, and sustainable product development for over 25 years, and is considered an international leader in research and development efforts in those disciplines. Dr. Nasr has served as an expert delegate for the U.S. government in several international forums, including the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), the United Nations, the World Trade Organization (WTO), and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Dr. Nasr is also a member of the International Resource Panel (IRP) of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Dr. Nasr’s significant expertise in sustainable manufacturing leadership continues with his latest endeavor, the REMADE Institute. Dr. Nasr holds a BS in Industrial Engineering from Helwan University (Egypt), an MEng in Manufacturing Engineering from the Pennsylvania State University, and both an MS and PhD in Industrial & Systems Engineering from Rutgers University.
Sean Jones
Ellen MacArthur Foundation
Sean Jones
Director of Circular Technology
Ellen MacArthur Foundation
Sean Jones is a sustainability transformation leader with over 25 years of experience driving enterprise-wide circularity and zero-carbon initiatives across the technology, chemical, and manufacturing sectors. His career is defined by a unique ability to bridge the gap between complex digital technology and measurable environmental impact.
Prior to joining the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Sean served as the Chief Sustainability Officer at Microsoft Germany, where he pioneered the development of sustainability ecosystems and successfully built a $100M sustainability business by integrating ESG outcomes into mainstream digital operations. As the Director of Circular Technology at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, he focuses on accelerating the transition to a circular economy in North America by scaling innovative technologies, circular business models, and critical mineral recovery.
John Holm
Senior Vice President, Partnership Development
Pyxera Global
John is the Senior Vice President of Partnership Development at Pyxera Global, where he spearheads the organization’s inclusive circular economy strategy, designing and executing inclusive circular cities, material reverse logistics hubs, corporate advisory services, and zero (plastic) waste community programming. He’s responsible for the organization’s circular-economy thought leadership content and is a frequent speaker on the circular-economy conference circuit. In his current role, John also serves as an ambassador for the Ocean Plastic Leadership Network.
Before joining Pyxera Global, John spent most of his career pioneering new international markets for global brands, leading the market entry of the Subway chain in Hungary and the Hungarian book chain Libri’s expansion into Romania. John also advised Starbucks and IKEA on their respective market entries in Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans, respectively.
In the academic space, John is visiting faculty for the Bard Sustainability MBA program, lecturing on Circular Value Chain Management. John has also developed and taught the Shared Value Action Learning project for Maastricht School of Management’s Romania, Azerbaijan, and Maastricht campuses, respectively. John received his MBA from Central European University.
Jeffrey Pacuska
Lead - Office of Future Technology Transition
US Army DEVCOM-Soldier Center
Mr. Pacuska leads the Office of Future Technologies Transition at the US Army Combat Capabilities Development Command – Soldier Center (DEVCOM-SC, Natick MA), and as the DOD Program Manager for the Revolutionary Fibers and Textiles Manufacturing Innovation Institute supporting the Undersecretary of War for Research and Engineering (OUSD R&E) Manufacturing Technology (ManTech) Directorate. He previously worked as a DEVCOM Portfolio Manager, and as an Assistant Product Manager within the US Army PEO-SOLDIER. In those roles Mr. Pacuska has been responsible for the development and fielding of new capabilities in the areas of environmental protection, water purification, wearable technologies, and CBRN defense. He is an expert in all aspects of Program Management and Systems Engineering. Mr. Pacuska received a B.S. in Biochemistry from Tufts University, an M.S. in Materials System Engineering Management from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), and is certified as a Project Management Professional (PMP).
Chris Saldaña
Deputy Assistant Secretary
Office of Critical Minerals & Energy Innovation
Christopher Saldaña is the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Office of Critical Minerals, Materials, and Manufacturing in the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation (CMEI). In this role, he leads CMEI’s critical minerals programs, advancing innovation and commercialization across critical minerals supply chains, from extraction and processing to manufactured products.
Prior to January 2026, Saldaña served as Director of the Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office, where he oversaw strategy, management, and execution to advance innovative materials and manufacturing technologies for the energy industrial base. Saldaña also serves as the co-chair of the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Critical Minerals Subcommittee which drives interagency coordination in multiple areas relevant to critical minerals and materials supply chains.
Saldaña has extensive experience in research and development and commercialization across academic, industry and government laboratories. Saldaña joined DOE from Georgia Tech’s George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, where he served as the Ring Family Professor of Mechanical Engineering. Previously he has held affiliations or positions with M4 Sciences Corporation, Pennsylvania State University, U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, the Indian Institute of Science, Technische Universität Dortmund, Autodesk, and Sandia National Laboratories.
Saldaña has been recognized with several major awards for his commercialization and innovation contributions, including an NSF CAREER award, the Golden Helix Innovation Award, the Robert J. Hocken SME Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineer award and an R&D100 Technology Award. He holds 3 U.S. patents and has authored approximately 200 refereed technical publications in the area of advanced materials and manufacturing technologies. Saldaña received his B.S. degree from Virginia Tech, and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Purdue University.
Sean Jones
Director of Circular Technology
Ellen MacArthur Foundation
Plenary Speakers
Jonquil Hackenberg
CEO
Ellen MacArthur Foundation
Throughout her career, Jonquil Hackenberg has been a driving force in helping businesses adopt practices that align long-term growth with positive environmental and societal impact. Her leadership has been instrumental in guiding global organisations and startups to rethink how they design, produce, and manage resources in a way that reduces waste and regenerates natural systems.
Jonquil has led large teams driving productivity and boosting retention whilst also using links with prestigious organisations to deepen their capabilities and broaden their perspectives. She is passionate about developing people and believes creating inclusive, fun, and engaging environments is key to success.
Jonquil is a Trustee of the Design Council and of the Glasgow Science Centre and was recently a member of the Futures Council for Sustainable Development Goal Investment at the World Economic Forum.
She holds an Executive MBA from Stanford University, US and an MBA (Renewable Energy) from Beuth University in Berlin, Germany. She also holds a BA (Hons) in Modern Languages from the Universities of Birmingham, UK and Universita Cattolica Milano, Italy.
Panelists
Sarika Bajaj
CEO
Refiberd
Fashion & Textiles Panel
Sarika is the co-founder and CEO of Refiberd, a start-up that uses AI and computer vision to sort textiles for resale and recycling applications. Refiberd’s first AI model uses hyperspectral data to accurately predict the material composition of textiles within 2% of actual composition, which serves as a critical unlock for the textile recycling industry. The second and newest AI model automatically detects brand, garment type, and quality to determine if a specific garment is resellable and what channel would be best for resale. Prior to Refiberd, Sarika pursued textile research at Carnegie Mellon, where she completed her undergraduate degree and masters degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering, as well as worked at Intel and SRI International.
Raymond Randall
Sr. Manager of Textile Recycling
WM
Fashion & Textiles Panel
Raymond is the Sr. Manager of Textile Recycling at WM, and is responsible for strategy, integration, and supply chain engagements that will ultimately help shift the textile industry towards greater circularity. With over twenty-five years of solid waste and recycling experience, he has provided a wide range of services to a diverse set of clients including Fortune 100 companies, NGOs and non-profit organizations, as well as city, county and state government agencies. Raymond graduated from Geneva College with a BS in Business Administration and a BS in Management Science. He earned a MBA from University of Florida.
Jennifer Lake
CEO
Goodwill of the Finger Lakes
Fashion & Textiles Panel
Jennifer Lake, is an advocate of community development, sustainability and social impact. As President and CEO of Goodwill of the Finger Lakes (GFL), Jen leads a nonprofit social enterprise with influence spanning 20 counties across New York including mission-driven programs: 211/LIFE LINE/988, Goodwill Vision Enterprises, Goodwill Learning Academy, among other services.
With an annual budget exceeding $60 million and a team of 800+ employees, Jen strategically advances GFL’s mission: elevating people, community and planet for a good today and better tomorrow. Goodwill is where your stuff starts new lives. Last year GFL kept 27.6 million pounds of useful items in circulation and their community programs impacted 171,000+ people throughout New York. Jen chairs Goodwill International’s Circularity CEO Committee and leads the Northeast Circularity Hub, a collective of eleven independent Goodwill’s aggregating materials for remanufacturing, recycling and providing Reverse Logistics, Re-Use and Resale opportunities to Brands and retail partners.
Jen believes that companies have a responsibility not only to generate profits but to create positive societal change. Nationally, she is part of the Vision Serve Alliance Board, the New York State Employment Resources for the Blind, a member of the New York State Association for Reduction, Reuse and Recycling and Co-Chair for their Textile Advocacy Subcommittee.
Before GFL, Jen held positions at the Lauder Co., Warner Bros., and Spherion, gaining valuable experience in public and private sectors. This understanding of business operations and a deep empathy for social issues, has shaped her leadership philosophy. She has her M.S. in Organizational Learning and Human Resource Development and B. A. in Political Science from St. John Fisher University.
Jen lives in Rochester, New York with her husband, daughter, and cat.
Matthew Allen
Head of North American Business Development
Reju
Fashion & Textiles Panel
Matthew Allen is Head of Business Development in North America at Reju. Matt has helped to introduce and establish Reju as a key player in the textile-to-textile regeneration space.
As Head of Business Development in North America, he’s been pivotal in working to developing some of our upstream Reju partnerships, which includes our collaboration with Goodwill Industries International and WM and is now introducing Reju to brands to develop long-term future partnerships for Reju Polyester.
Matt came to Reju after a 20+ year career at Timberland where he held a variety of sales management roles including VP of US Wholesale. His long career in the apparel and footwear industry was where he generated his passion for sustainability and became aware about industry-specific issues like over production. He’s spent the last three decades working with some of the biggest brands – and will continue doing so to help build a new, circular system for our textiles that doesn’t rely on the current linear system.
Jonathan Dordick
Vice President, Strategic Alliances and Translation
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Academic Research Panel
Jonathan S. Dordick is Institute Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), with a joint appointment in the Department of Biological Sciences. He also serves as Vice President for Strategic Alliances and Translation. He received his B.A. degree in Biochemistry and Chemistry from Brandeis University and his Ph.D. in Biochemical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
At RPI, he has served as the Vice President for Research, founding Co-Director of the Rensselaer-Mount Sinai Center for Engineering and Precision Medicine located in New York City, Director of the Center for Biotechnology & Interdisciplinary Studies, and Department Chair. Prior to joining RPI, he was Professor of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering at the University of Iowa, where he also served as the founding Associate Director of the Center for Biocatalysis and Bioprocessing. He has served the biochemical engineering community as a previous chairman of the Biotechnology Division of the American Chemical Society and as an Editor of Biotechnology & Bioengineering.
Dr. Dordick has made foundational contributions to protein science and enzyme technology, biomanufacturing of therapeutic proteins and nucleic acids, and drug discovery. He pioneered the field of molecular bioprocessing, which combines biocatalytic molecular diversity and in vitro metabolic pathway engineering with high-throughput and high-content microfluidic- and microarray-based tools to generate biologically active compounds, and greatly expanded a fundamental understanding of enzymatic catalysis in abiotic environments critical for chemical and pharmaceutical processing. He has developed new biomanufacturing routes to therapeutic protein, nucleic acid, and polysaccharide production, and has used biomolecular discovery and engineering to address clinical translation in areas of infectious and neurological diseases, anticoagulant therapy, and highly sensitive point-of-care biosensors based on CRISPR technology.
Dr. Dordick has received numerous awards and honors, including election to the National Academy of Engineering and National Academy of Inventors, and receipt of numerous society awards, including the ACS Daniel IC Wang Award for Excellence in Biochemical Engineering, the James E. Bailey Award of the Society of Biological Engineering, Amgen Award in Biochemical and Molecular Engineering, AIChE Food, Pharmaceutical and Bioengineering Award, ACS-BIOT Marvin J. Johnson Award, ACS-BIOT Elmer Gaden Award, and International Enzyme Engineering Award. He is Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Chemical Society and the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineers. He has also been awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Lisbon.
Dr. Dordick has cofounded several companies, including EnzyMed, Solidus Biosciences, Redpin Therapeutics, SynAppBio, and Lavaage, Inc. He has also served on multiple White House-sponsored panels and committees in biomanufacturing. Dr. Dordick has published over 460 papers and is an inventor/co-inventor on over 50 patents and patent applications.
Dr. Luna Lu
Director of Partnerships
Purdue University
Academic Research Panel
Prof. Lu is a fellow of National Academy of Inventors, the Royal Society of Arts and Science. Dr. Lu has extensive research expertise in concrete and cementitious materials. Her research program integrates civil engineering, electrical engineering, and materials science disciplines with three main topic areas: 1) IoT sensors and data analytics for infrastructure monitoring; 2) high performance, low carbon civil engineering materials; and 3) thermoelectric and piezoelectric devices for energy harvesting. She has authored over 150 peer-reviewed publications, 2 books, 6 book chapters, and over 15 patents and provisional patents. She has won many prestigious scientific awards, including the 2014 National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Award, 2019 Purdue Faculty Scholar, 2020 Vebleo Scientist Award, 2021 ASCE Gamechanger, 2022 ASCE Alfred Noble Prize, and 2024 Edison Award etc. She has also been recognized as the most impactful faculty at Purdue University in 2021, 2022, and 2023.
Lu is also a founder and CEO of Wavelogix, a venture-backed high-growth company in commercializing IoT sensors for infrastructure testing and monitoring.
Michael Oakes
Executive VP for Research & Economic Development
Case Western Reserve University
Academic Research Panel
Michael Oakes serves as the Executive Vice President for Research and Economic Development and the Veale Professor of Technology Transfer and Commercialization at Case Western Reserve University, where he manages a $642 million research portfolio. Under his leadership, CWRU has become the fastest-growing research enterprise in the AAU, fueled by strategic investments in neuro-technology and the development of the $300 million Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building. Oakes has significantly expanded the university’s innovation ecosystem by establishing the Corporate Engagement Center and a dedicated startup incubator, while spearheading the $475 million NEO-SMART partnership to cement Northeast Ohio as a national leader in manufacturing and AI innovation.
Chris York
VP of Business Development
Mint Innovation
Critical Minerals Panel
Chris York is a seasoned professional with more than 15 years of experience in the electronics recycling industry. He has worked with leading organizations, including URT, Sims, MRM, evTerra, and Redwood, and currently serves as Vice President of Business Development at Mint Innovation. Chris has played a key role in building electronics collection infrastructure and partnerships across states with extended producer responsibility (EPR) legislation, while also advising OEM clients, such as Apple, Samsung, Microsoft, Vizio, HP, Ricoh, and Amazon, on EPR policies and compliance strategies.
Ben Kincaid
CEO
ReElement Technologies Africa
Critical Minerals Panel
Ben Kincaid is CEO of ReElement Technologies Africa, a division of ReElement Technologies, based in Fishers, Indiana. Ben draws upon many years of leadership experience as a U.S. diplomat with worldwide assignments, including in Africa, and as a business executive leading strategies and partnerships in the private sector. Joining ReElement in 2023, Ben’s goal is to work with African partners to deliver minerals processing that drives industrial and economic development in Africa while securing minerals supply chains vital for American reindustrialization.
Ben earned a B.A. from Virginia Military Institute in International Studies and Political Science, and a M.A. from Georgetown University in Latin American studies.
ReElement is a leader in refining rare earths and critical minerals for defense, commercial and advanced technologies applications. It serves various industries requiring these products for specialized magnets and batteries, including national defense manufacturing, aerospace, information technology, transportation, energy, and consumer electronics. ReElement is the only economical refining solution that exists today that offers modular, scalable, adaptable, and deployable refining processes that use both recycled end-of-life products and raw mineral feedstocks.
Mark Newton
Head of Corporate Sustainability
Samsung Electronics North America
Critical Minerals Panel
Mark Newton is head of Corporate Sustainability at Samsung Electronics in North America, where he leads operational sustainability strategy and governance for one of the world’s largest electronics manufacturers in its largest global market. Mark’s specialty is cross-functional stakeholder engagement and corporate strategy with a focus on risk management and product and business process innovation. Mark has led corporate social responsibility, ESG, and sustainability for some of the world’s most respected companies, including Motorola, Apple, Dell, and VF Outdoor brands, including Timberland, Vans, and The North Face, achieving top rankings for sustainability and environmental performance. Mark holds a Doctorate and Master of Science in Chemistry from the University of Texas and a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Chemistry from the University of New Hampshire. He has served on numerous advisory boards and panels, including the National Academy of Sciences, the SC Johnson Foundation, the World Resources Institute, Clean Production Action, and E-Stewards, and he is a director of the Smallholder Farmers Alliance, an agroforestry social enterprise operating in Haiti