Businesses Putting Their Waste to Work

Event Details:
When: September 21, 2022 4:30 pm – September 21, 2022 7:00 pm
Location: The Alchemist, 100 Cottage Club Rd, Stowe, VT 05672

Cost To Attend:
Nonmembers – $25
VBSR Members – Free

Registration is open

Event hosted by: Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility & The Alchemist

Join VBSR, The Alchemist, and Vermont business experts and innovators as we explore “Businesses Putting Their Waste to Work” as a part of the VBSR People.Planet.Prosperity. Speaker Series. This in-person event will combine a panel discussion on unique solutions to waste management and their impact on the environment with networking hosted by The Alchemist in Stowe. Built specifically with a commitment to clean water and pollution prevention, The Alchemist Brewery facility is truly a symbol of what is possible when businesses plan for the impact of their waste.

According to The World Bank:

  • The world generates 2.01 billion tonnes of municipal solid waste annually, with at least 33 percent not managed in an environmentally safe manner.
  • It is estimated that 1.6 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent greenhouse gas emissions were generated from solid waste treatment and disposal in 2016, or 5 percent of global emissions.
  • Global waste generation is expected to increase by over 70% by 2050.

So what can we do? Waste is an inevitable by-product of business and it is often costly and harmful to the environment. Join us on September 21st to hear about Vermont businesses doing their part to put their waste to work!

Our panel includes:

  • Moderator: Erika Dunyak (she/her) | Adjunct Faculty at Vermont Law & Graduate School |LL.M Agricultural and Food Law, University of Arkansas School of Law | JD, Case Western Reserve University School of Law, 2017 | BA, University of Dayton, 2014
  • Joel Hartman (he/him) | Operations Manager, The Alchemist
  • Harrison Kahn (he/him) | VP Marketing, Caledonia Spirits, Distiller of Barr Hill Gin
  • Eliza Leeper (she/her) | Mission & Customer Manager, Vermont Creamery
  • Marina McCoy (she/her) | Founder, Waste Free Earth
  • Kelsey McWilliams (she/her) | Circular Systems Lead, wasted*

We will have plenty of time for networking and connecting with one another before and after the panel in the beautiful indoor/outdoor space at The Alchemist. There will be a cash bar, free non-alcoholic beverage options, and delicious food from Stowe favorites Piecasso and The Bistro at 10 Acres.

An optional tour of the brewery’s wastewater system will be led after the panel concludes by Alchemist’s Wastewater Manager, Steve Miller.

This event is family-friendly and caretakers of any kind are welcome to attend with your dependents. You can expect plenty of open space outdoors for kids to run around, play corn hole, and enjoy snacks that appeal to all ages! Please make note of any accommodation requests when you register.

Free parking is available on site.

All members of New Hampshire Businesses for Social Responsibility are welcome to attend for free.

 

Meet Our Speakers

Joel Hartman (he/him) | Operations Manager, The Alchemist

Joel has worked at The Alchemist for 18 years, starting in February of 2004 as a bartender at the original Pub. Over the years, his role has evolved into overseeing operations at both the Waterbury and Stowe breweries. As Operations Manager, one of Joel’s passions has been working on various sustainability projects the Alchemist has implemented over the past 5 years. These include streamlining processes to reduce water use and implementing various multi-stream recycling programs, including a pilot program with the brewery’s malt supplier to create a recycling stream for poly bags. Additionally, Joel has worked on developing a program of side-streaming their high strength waste with Grow Compost, implemented the brewery’s new carbon capture system, and most recently, worked to update their packaging systems to adopt a new plant based can-topper for 4-packs to further reduce our reliance on plastic.

Harrison Kahn (he/him) | VP Marketing, Caledonia Spirits, Distiller of Barr Hill Gin

Harrison (Harry) Kahn serves as head of marketing for Barr Hill Gin, a distillery dedicated to reconnecting cocktail culture to agriculture. Harry has also held leadership roles at Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Magic Hat Brewing Company, Cord Blood Registry and National Geographic Student Expeditions, where he established new product lines in China, India, and Latin America. Harry is a graduate of Middlebury College, where he studied Chinese, and the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, where he earned an MBA. Harry is the proud spouse of Elisabeth Kahn, the 2020 Vermont Teacher of the Year, and father of two elementary school age children, Iris and Asher.

Marina McCoy (she/her) | Waste Free Earth

Marina McCoy is a Zero Waste & Recycling Expert and Founder/CEO of Waste Free Earth. Waste Free Earth is on a mission to reinvent how society produces and consumes waste through education, engagement, and empowerment. They are changing the current business culture to one that prioritizes zero waste systems over single-use landfill items. Personally, Marina has been living zero waste for the past seven years and loves sharing her enthusiasm for waste reduction with anyone willing to learn. In 2021, Marina also became the owner of the Restock Shop, which is a 90’s themed low waste refill shop. In 2022, she brought her breadth of experience to her role as Community Manager & Partnerships at Hula Lakeside, a technology-driven co-working campus, business accelerator, and venture capital fund focused on elevating Vermont-based-start-ups and entrepreneurs.

Kelsey McWilliams (she/her) | Circular Systems Lead, wasted*

Kelsey McWilliams has been working in and around toilets for the past 7 years, fueled by a desire to bring innovation, design, sustainability, and dignity to a forgotten place – the bathroom. Having implemented circular sanitation systems on three continents, Kelsey is committed to creating local ecosystems that value the recycling of human waste. Kelsey runs her own consultancy, Point of Shift, designing beautiful, circular sanitation systems. Additionally, she is the Circular Systems Lead at a Vermont-based startup called wasted*. wasted* is reimagining the portable bathroom experience to make it cleaner, more comfortable, and better for the planet. wasted*, unlike traditional portable toilet companies, is a circular sanitation ecosystem collecting human waste and converting it into valuable fertilizer.

Eliza Leeper (she/her) | Mission & Customer Manager, Vermont Creamery

Eliza Leeper is Vermont Creamery’s Mission & Customer Manager. A member of the VC Leadership Team, she is involved in all facets of the business operations.  She oversees the company’s sustainable business strategy, B Corp certification, and community initiatives. In addition, she manages customer logistics and works closely with the Vermont Creamery sales team to deliver on growth through new business development. She is a member of the VBSR Education & Events Committee as well as the Organizing Team for the VBSR B Corp Impact Circle.  Eliza lives in Montpelier with her husband and two daughters, and enjoys outdoor adventures, gardening and live music.

Meet Our Moderator

Erika Dunyak (she/her) | Adjunct Faculty at Vermont Law & Graduate School |LL.M Agricultural and Food Law, University of Arkansas School of Law | JD, Case Western Reserve University School of Law, 2017 | BA, University of Dayton, 2014

Erika Dunyak is an experienced food and agricultural policy attorney and advocate. Currently, Erika works with the team at Jason Wiener, p.c., a public benefit law firm working predominantly with cooperative clients. Erika provides transactional and general corporate law support to a range of cooperative clients including urban farms and restaurants, among others. In the summer of 2020, she completed a two-year fellowship with the Harvard Law School Food Law and Policy Clinic (FLPC). While at FLPC, Erika directed a range of projects including the Farm Bill Law Enterprise, food waste reduction policy advocacy, and food insecurity mitigation. In her last months at FLPC, Erika led the team’s SNAP advocacy in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to joining the team at FLPC, Erika earned her LL.M. in Agricultural and Food Law from the University of Arkansas School of Law. She earned her B.A. from the University of Dayton in 2014 and J.D. from Case Western Reserve University School of Law in 2017.

COVID-19 Guidance

You will be asked for proof of vaccination at the check-in table. If you are not able to provide proof of vaccination, you will be asked to wear a mask for the entirety of the event.

Acceptable forms of proof include:

  • CDC COVID-19 Vaccination card
  • A copy of your vaccination record (digital or paper)

Please stay home if you are exhibiting any symptoms related to COVID-19 as outlined by the VT Department of Health.

  • Fever (100.4 °F or higher)
  • Cough
  • Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
  • Chills
  • Fatigue
  • Muscle or body aches
  • Headache
  • Sore throat
  • New loss of taste or smell
  • Congestion or runny nose
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Diarrhea​

Not everyone with COVID-19 has a fever. Even mild symptoms (like a headache or dry cough) could be signs of COVID-19. Symptoms may start 2 to 14 days after exposure to the virus. People with COVID-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported – ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness.

Although it is not required, we encourage you to test negative on a COVID-19 test before attending this event. The CDC recommends that you test as close to the event as possible. Learn more about COVID-19 testing here.

Thank you to our sponsors!

Questions? Please reach out to VBSR Education & Events Manager, Molly Barfuss, mollyb@vbsr.org.

Interested in sponsoring this event? Contact Toby Aronson, at tobya@vbsr.org, for more information.