Eric Nelson

EVP Sales and Business Development
Aquafil

Eric has more than 30 years of experience in the carpet, flooring, and fibers industries in a variety of areas including product development, sales, marketing, business development, sustainability, recycling technology and public policy. He currently is Executive Vice President for Aquafil Carpet Recycling based in San Diego. For the past 16 years, he has been focused on growing the carpet recycling industry in the U.S., and for the past 12 years he has been closely involved with California AB2398 and the California Carpet Stewardship Program that it created. Eric was one of the chief authors of the original stewardship plan written in 2011 when the program was launched. Also, he’s been a contributor to the evolution and implementation of the plan over the past decade as a manufacturer, a processor and a collector of post-consumer carpet. Along the way he served on the Board of Directors of CARE (Carpet America Recovery Effort), the Stewardship Planning Committee (Chair) the California Carpet Advisory Committee and the California Carpet Council (Chair). Eric graduated from the Georgia Institute of Technology (Industrial Engineering) in 1991.

Michael Orbank

Sustainability Manager, Northeast
STO Building Group

Michael Orbank is a construction sustainability professional, working currently as the Sustainability Manager for the Northeast at STO Building Group. While typically assisting project teams with green building certifications, Michael’s professional passion revolves around the reduction of construction and demolition waste as well as the promotion of deconstruction and material reuse. Working with all construction stakeholders, Michael believes a zero-waste future for construction is possible through multi-disciplinary collaboration and jobsite innovation. Michael is a founding member of the Carbon Leadership Forum (CLF) Boston, where he currently chairs the reuse working group and leads efforts in New England to advance circularity in the built environment.

Rachel Palopoli

Director of Circular Economy
Tarkett North America

As the Director of Circular Economy, Rachel manages Tarkett’s Restart® program for take back and recycling. She is responsible for setting strategic goals and milestones to meet customer needs, address legislative changes, and achieve corporate targets for recycling. Rachel has over 20 years of recycling experience within the built environment and earned her Bachelor of Business Administration degree at Hofstra University. Prior to joining Tarkett, Rachel held leadership roles with Planet Recycling and Aquafil where she led both organizations to strategically grow their recycling programs.

Rachel resides in Scottsdale, Arizona, with her husband and three children.

Ren DeCherney, NCIDQ, LEED AP ID+C, IIDA

Lead, Built Environment, North America and Australasia
Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute

Ren is a licensed interior designer who helps designers and manufacturers translate their sustainability pledges into reality. Prior to joining the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, she worked in Portland as a designer, taking her firm PVC-free - the first firm in Portland to make such a commitment. She was the Director of Industry Transparency at Source, a digital materials platform, where she integrated sustainability filters into the platform. She then worked at the International Living Future Institute, overseeing the Declare and Living Product Challenge programs working with both designers and manufacturers to implement sustainability strategy into everyday practices.

Benjamin Holsinger, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP BD+C

Global Director of Resilience, Product Development
Gensler

As Global Design Resilience Leader of Gensler’s Product Development practice, Benjamin provides guidance on sustainable qualities for our design teams and partner manufacturers – with a focus on reducing products’ impact on the environment and humans. He provides clients with strategic advice on how to position their brand to bring resilience to the forefront of their conversations, product development, and front-facing image.

Benjamin also works as a senior sustainability strategist, consulting with both project teams and clients to help them meet their sustainability goals. As a wellbeing strategist, he co-created Gensler’s point of view on wellbeing in the workplace, WorkWell™. Benjamin is focused on helping clients reach their future sustainability, resilience, and wellbeing goals, collaborating alongside Gensler’s Cities Climate Challenge goals for 2030.

Dr. John McKeon

Chief Executive Officer
Allergy Standards Ltd.

John is a medical entrepreneur and currently the CEO of Allergy Standards Ltd (ASL), an international standards and certification body, a company he founded while working as an Emergency Room doctor.  As founder he has led the development of an international intellectual property portfolio of patents and trademark applications and negotiated complex licensing agreements with multinationals such as P&G and 3M.

John is qualified as a doctor from Trinity College Dublin, is a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, and also holds his United States Medical Licensing exams.  He maintains a keen interest in clinical medicine and has had several publications in medical journals.  After medicine John graduated first in his class from the Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT) Business Incubator Program, graduating with distinction from the DIT business school with a post graduate diploma in International Selling, and won the Docklands Innovation Park lead entrepreneur award.

Kay Sargent

Director, Global Workplace Practice
HOK

Kay is a director of HOK’s global WorkPlace practice. With a passion for using design to transform how and where people work, she spends her days (and many nights) working with clients on workplace strategy and design. Based in Washington, D.C., Kay leads project teams that solve clients’ business and organizational challenges related to real estate business process, strategic planning, workplace strategy and change management. She collaborates with organizations ranging from tech startups to Fortune 500 companies to optimize their real estate portfolios and create the most innovative work experiences.

Sarah Oppenhuizen

Director of Interiors
HOK San Francisco Studio

As director of interiors for HOK’s San Francisco studio, Sarah guides design teams and clients through all phases of project delivery. Her career includes design and management for complex domestic and international projects, including corporate workplaces, science and technology facilities, medical centers, government facilities and airports.

Sarah’s client-focused approach prioritizes step-by-step communication and feedback to ensure that projects exceed expectations and are delivered within budgets and deadlines.

Dr. Traci Callandrillo

Assistant VP of Campus Life
American University

Dr. Traci Callandrillo joined the American University team in 2007, and prior to her role as Assistant Vice President of Campus Life, she served as the Executive Director of the Counseling Center. Dr. Callandrillo has been engaged in a variety of national initiatives focused on mental health. She was a founding member of the Higher Education Mental Health Alliance (HEMHA) and a past Vice President of Professional Practice for the Society of Counseling Psychology.