President of the Recyclers Coalition of Illinois (RCI), a group of small- and medium-sized recycling businesses located in Illinois that are interested in having a voice for legislative initiatives that may impact our industry.

I am proud to serve as President for g2 revolution, a specialty recycler headquartered in Illinois with unique nationwide recycling services. We figure out how to recycle retail products such as household cleaners, cosmetics, over-the-counter medicines and electronic items, whether pre- or post-consumer, whether recalled, damaged or returned to stores. In some cases, we also work with original equipment manufacturers to recycle bulk amounts of products from industrial locations and to develop direct-from-consumer product return and recycling systems. We operate as collectors and processors of materials for reuse or recycling, and we are also a manufacturer of recycled goods, making new branded recycled products from items we receive from customers. I have spent 30 years in the environmental industry building and managing teams that focus on compliance with environmental regulations within commercial settings. I have worked with executives and operators, legislative leaders and lawyers, financial and risk managers, experts and consultants, service firms and suppliers, agency inspectors and directors, advocates and employees. I started out in the corporate world, moved over into consulting and eventually took on this role on the service provider side. I also ensure that our company remains committed to the principle of assisting charitable organizations in the communities where we operate, including promoting environmental conservation as well as tackling social causes such as hunger and homelessness, supporting women and children through difficult circumstances and providing employment opportunities for disabled individuals.

I improved and oversaw activities relating to company compliance with federal, state and local environmental, health and safety regulations, as well as DOT/PHMSA, IT/data integrity and other regulated aspects of operation. I developed protocols and procedures to handle new compliance challenges as the company grew, including handling state-specific and corporate client recycling reporting efforts. This was accomplished while continuing my role as business development leader.

I provided leadership in the marketing and sales role for g2 revolution, a recycling service provider and green product manufacturer dedicated to environmental sustainability and recycling innovation for the retail, banking, medical, light industrial, restaurant, and commercial office sectors. g2 can provide recycling containers, single stream recycling, customized programs, corporate data tracking and employee training materials. We cost-effectively handle regulated materials such as universal waste batteries and fluorescent/neon lights, as well as aerosol cans and electronic waste. g2 can also break down and recycle fixtures such as counters/desks, sales displays and signage. Finally, we manufacturer and sell a variety of cost-effective floor, counter and other industrial cleaners from recycled chemical products.

I assisted clients with corporate environmental, health and safety issues on a national basis, including compliance, recycling and waste minimization and disposal, remediation, general sustainability and other projects. I also performed senior reviews of technical plan documents, marketing to new clients and managing site due diligence assessments. My clients included retail, insurance, equipment rental and other types of companies.

I supported national retail, food and equipment rental clients regarding environmental, health and safety issues, including writing and presenting project proposals, developing and improving policies and procedures, performing site audits and personnel training, coordinating subcontractors, reviewing regulations and managing project budgets. I performed electronic waste audits at Illinois recycling locations after passage of the state's first electronics waste law. I was also the regional lead for a significant client hazardous materials shipping initiative, leading a team of over 20 personnel working in several states. I advised clients during enforcement actions and assisted with developing responses to agency notices of violation. I also provided sales support to win and then project managed major client program involving light, sign and flag pole structural engineering reviews for over 600 client locations.

I was responsible for development and implementation of all corporate environmental programs after the Sears and Kmart merger, including waste disposal and recycling, asbestos, indoor air quality, underground contamination remediation, stormwater, wastewater, spill plans, compliance reporting, chemical information, storage and many other issues for all facility formats - retail stores, auto centers, warehouses, service centers, etc. My team integrated Kmart operations into environmental programs during the merger (adding over 1,000 stores to 3,000 existing stores and other locations), addressed major enforcement actions, implemented new hazardous materials and hazardous waste handling procedures, and created and rolled out new computer-based environmental awareness training coded specifically for hundreds of different job classifications to 300,000 employees.

I screened and tracked legislative progress of approximately 1,000 bills annually during state legislative sessions for Northeast and Southeast regions of the US and in Puerto Rico, working with lobbyists to suggest appropriate changes to bill language. I was involved in development and implementation of first legislated extended producer responsibility (EPR) laws for electronic waste in Maine and California, as well as thermostat recycling in Maine. I coordinated with state retail associations and internal legal department to assess potential operational impacts and other business risks. I lobbied directly or managed lobbyist efforts on legislative initiatives and bills. Subject matter included environmental issues, credit cards, unions, fair pay, store development/"big box," sales tax holidays, privacy, pharmacy, food sales, taxation and many other areas that could impact business.

I helped to develop first internal corporate environmental status report for senior executive review, including providing key environmental spending information and providing the first general reporting on sustainability, such as our existing EPR programs for car lead-acid batteries, tires and other products.I oversaw a number of environmental programs, including underground storage tanks/remediation, compliance permitting and reporting and environmental maintenance projects, including developing goals, performing reviews, approving initiatives, coordinating with internal and external stakeholders and minimizing or removing obstacles to success. I supported all Sears, Roebuck and Co. store and support facility locations across the nation (about 3,000 locations). I managed a team of half a dozen employees and contractors to achieve yearly project work goals.

I was the senior technical lead for underground storage tanks, drywells and oil-water separator systems. I managed and approved all associated designs, removals and replacements, as well as any associated contamination cleanups. I also updated our finance department regarding estimated remediation liabilities. Furthermore, I negotiated with regulatory agencies to achieve site closures and provided environmental support for major property-related transactions and legal actions.

I researched facility histories and pulled blueprints (some dating to the late 1800s) to find underground storage tanks, review plumbing outfalls and determine other building-related construction for hundreds of stores and support facilities. I coordinated with remediation consultants to remove heating oil and other underground tanks to comply with federal 1998 upgrade deadline and several state-specific requirements. I began contamination assessments at dozens of locations, reviewed tank fee assessments from states and worked with legal and real estate departments to verify responsibility for leased locations.