As the federal government rolls back environmental programs and policies at a head-spinning pace, businesses are largely on their own to maintain momentum in fighting the climate crisis.
At the Fast Company Grill at SXSW earlier this month, Gene Eidelman, cofounder of Azure Printed Homes; Kate McLeod, cofounder and formulator at Kate McLeod; and Nicole Richards, CEO of Allonnia took the stage to discuss how they are tackling the environmental crisis through their own companies despite challenges at the federal level.For Richards, whose company focuses on cleaning up “forever” chemicals (PFAS), one of the prime issues is the lack of circularity in regulations. For example, the Environmental Protection Agency regulates the amount of PFAS in drinking water. But the Food and Drug Administration’s PFAS regulations only extend to packaging and processing equipment. So for a product like soda that’s primarily composed of water, there’s not enough oversight in the level of PFAFS in the actual product.
She also expressed concern over the lack of funding for companies in this space. “That’s the real worry,” she said. “Over the next four years, are we going to slow down innovation to a halt if we don’t have the right government support?”
Eidelman echoed Richards in calling for an overhaul in federal regulations pertaining to sustainability. Eidelman’s company builds 3D-printed homes from recycled materials for residential use or in disaster relief. So for him, he sees ample room for innovation within the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. “FEMA’s been buying the same trailers for every disaster and spends more money to ship it to Maui than to manufacture things on site,” Eidelman said. “There are a couple departments that are just not doing the job. Less of doing the same thing is going to be a good thing.”
McLeod called on companies to reframe how they think about sustainability—if not for the environment itself, then as a way to stand out from competitors. At her eponymous company, McLeod creates body care items in plastic-free packaging that has resonated with consumers.
“I’m just really tired of these companies saying, oh, we’ll offset our plastic usage this way. Just don’t [use plastic in the first place],” she said. “It’s a little bit harder, but you know what? It’s going to make you so much cooler because you’ll be different.”
Watch the full panel below:
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