Diamond Sponsor
Mike Doyle
With 20 years in the waste and recycling industry, Mike Doyle brings deep operational and leadership experience from across the United States. Starting his career in Washington state, he has worked in WA, OR, NV, ID, NY, SC, MA, and RI. Mike was recently selected to become Vice President of the New England Division of Waste Connections, where he now oversees hauling and post collection operations throughout Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Keynote Speaker
Keefe Harrison
Keefe Harrison is a trailblazer in the world of recycling and circular economy — and was just named one of Forbes’ Top 50 Global Sustainability Leaders! As founder and CEO of The Recycling Partnership, she’s led a national movement that’s delivered over half a billion dollars in impact and captured more than a billion pounds of recyclables. From tagging sea turtles in Costa Rica to testifying before Congress, Keefe brings passion, grit, and a whole lot of heart to the fight for a cleaner planet.
Keefe enjoys traveling, gardening, cooking, and spending time outdoors with her family. She lives in Providence, Rhode Island with her husband, children, and rescue dogs.
Session 1: Advancing EPR in Massachusetts
Moderator: Gretchen Carey
Gretchen Carey is a 15-year veteran of the waste world, focusing on sustainability and education. She spent 7 years as the President of MassRecycle, the statewide non-profit organization dedicated to waste reduction and held this volunteer role while also working as the Sustainability Manager for New England for Republic Services for almost a decade. Gretchen is a frequent figure in the media, has guest-lectured at ten New England colleges and universities, and has co-hosted over 50 podcast episodes on the MassRecycle Podcast. She co-founded GreenLabs Recycling, the hyperlocal company for recycling clean laboratory plastic in the Greater Boston area. In late 2025, Gretchen started her own consulting business, G.Carey Sustainability, educating on state regulatory waste ban compliance and offering guidance towards Zero Waste. She is a LEED Green Associate and TRUE Zero Waste Advisor.
Scott Cassel
Scott Cassel has over 40 years of experience addressing waste management issues in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. In 2000, he founded the Product Stewardship Institute, (www.productstewardship.us) a policy expert and consulting nonprofit that pioneered product stewardship in the United States and has helped enact 146 extended producer responsibility (EPR) laws across 21 product categories in 34 states — the bedrock of the circular economy. Prior to founding PSI, Scott served seven years as the director of waste policy and planning for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, where he developed and implemented solid and hazardous waste management policies and programs. As PSI’s CEO, he developed the widely acclaimed facilitation process that the organization uses for stakeholder engagement and consensus-building — a process that resulted in the nation’s first industry-run, government-mandated paint stewardship program. In 2022, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) appointed Scott to its Marine Debris Foundation board of directors, where he works on policy, infrastructure development, and innovative technologies to clean up and prevent pollution of our waterways and ocean.
John Beling
John Beling serves as the Deputy Commissioner for Policy and Planning for MassDEP. Prior to that role, he served as the Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation. He spent most of his career as an environmental lawyer working for state and federal government.
Waneta Trabert
Waneta Trabert is the Director of Sustainable Materials Management for the City of Newton, a suburb of Boston, where she leads citywide materials management strategy and operations serving 35,000 households, with a focus on aligning municipal systems with long-term environmental and fiscal goals.
Waneta serves on the board of MassRecycle and is chair of the Massachusetts Product Stewardship Council, advancing extended producer responsibility (EPR) policy in Massachusetts. With 15 years of experience in materials management, she has worked on electronics EPR compliance and packaging waste through roles at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the Product Stewardship Institute. Earlier in her career, she managed hazardous waste at McMurdo Station, Antarctica.
Session 2a: Operational Excellence for Municipalities and Businesses
Moderator: Janice Paré
Janice Paré is a Solid Waste Management professional with environment-related work experience at the local, state, and federal levels. She has been with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection for over 10 years. working with the Solid Waste Reduction Branch of the Bureau of and Air and Waste. She currently manages the municipal education and outreach programs for the branch, including RecycleSmartMA.org, and is part of the team implementing MassDEP’s Reduce and Reuse Action Plan. Over the years, Janice has worked on a variety of programs including enforcing the waste bans, improving the quality of single-stream recycling, home composting, and reuse. She has found her calling helping to spread the good word about waste reduction and is always happy to answer questions about recycling and waste reduction.
Alec Cooley
Alec Cooley has worked in the recycling field for over three decades, most recently as a senior advisor with the recycling and waste bin manufacturer, Busch Systems. He began his career managing recycling and waste reduction programs for Cal Poly Humboldt University in Northern California for a decade. Alec went on to work for the National Recycling Coalition as a program manager for three years before joining the national office of Keep America Beautiful as director of recycling programs in 2009. During his nine years at KAB, Alec oversaw various grant programs and behavior-related research and engagement initiatives. Since joining Busch Systems in 2018, Alec has advised the company on product development, and produces a popular webinar series and other best practices content for professional recycling and waste reduction audiences.
Alec is a certified TRUE Advisor, and has previously served on the board of directors for the National Recycling Coalition, the Carolina Recycling Association and the California Resource Recovery Association. He lives near Charleston, South Carolina.
Mikey Pasciuto
Mikey Pasciuto currently serves as the Chief Sustainability Officer at Scrapp, a start-up dedicated to creating data-driven sustainable waste programs. Through Scrapp, Mikey specializes in product and packaging recyclability globally, zero-waste programs, and all things sustainable packaging. He recently had the privilege to present to his Majesty the King at COP28, as part of Scotland’s delegation, about sustainable materials management. Mikey also serves as the President of Collaborative Solid Waste Strategies (CSWS), a local non-profit dedicated to promoting sustainable waste management in New Hampshire. Mikey was born and raised in Massachusetts and graduated from the University of New Hampshire in 2021 with a dual degree in Mechanical Engineering and Sustainability. His professional interests include renewable energy, recycling, and sustainable systems. Whenever Mikey isn’t working, you can catch him gardening, composting, or spending time with his animals.
Jessica Caban
Jessica Caban is the Assistant Project Manager of Recycling & Waste Enforcement for the City of New Bedford. She leads community education and outreach on waste reduction and compliance, while supporting enforcement efforts that strengthen recycling and waste programs across residential, commercial, and industrial properties citywide.
Jessica also serves as the Vice President of MassRecycle.
Session 2b: Circularity in Action: Replicable Reuse and Event Recycling Strategies
Moderator: Judy Vallecillo
With over 10 years in the textile industry, Judy began her career working with non-profits before expanding into broader roles. She has spent the past three years with CMRK, Inc., bringing experience, curiosity, and a steady sense of humor to everything she does—because good work and good laughs aren’t mutually exclusive.
Heather Billings
Heather Billings, Senior Waste Reduction Consultant, brings more than two decades of experience in the waste and recycling field to her role at CET. With a background in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA in Sustainability, Heather pairs technical acumen with a deep commitment to practical climate solutions.
Courtney Forrester
Courtney Forrester is the Waste Reduction and Compliance Lead at Harvard University, overseeing programs to ensure compliance with waste regulations and spearheading initiatives for zero waste stewardship. With over two decades of experience, she brings expertise in waste reduction from her work within local governments. In addition, Courtney serves on the Board of Directors for the College and University Recycling Coalition (CURC). Courtney is also Chair of the Sustainability Committee for the Head Of The Charles Regatta in Cambridge, MA. Courtney holds an MS in Environmental Education from Antioch University and a BS in Environmental Science from the University of Delaware.
Weston Dripps
Wes is the current Director of Sustainability at Amherst College. Prior coming to Amherst in 2022 he was a professor of Earth, Environmental, and Sustainability Sciences for twenty years at Furman University and UMass Boston. Wes has a master’s degree in Geology from Dartmouth College, and a PhD in Geology and Geophysics from the University of Wisconsin. At Amherst, Wes has been building out the sustainability office’s faculty, staff, and student programs and working to integrate sustainability across the college’s curriculum, co-curriculum, and operations.
Session 3: Turning Wasted Food into Opportunity: Lessons and Takeaways in Food Recovery
Moderator: John Fischer
John Fischer is Deputy Division Director for Solid Waste Materials Management at the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP). In this position, he oversees MassDEP’s development and implementation of the Solid Waste Master Plan, including MassDEP’s regulatory, permitting, compliance and grant and assistance programs to manage solid waste and advance waste reduction, recycling, and composting in Massachusetts. He has been with MassDEP since 1998. John holds a Bachelor’s degree in Human Ecology from Connecticut College and a Master’s in City Planning, focusing on Environmental Policy and Planning, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Elizabeth Bone
Liz has served as the Recycling Coordinator for East Longmeadow since 2017, where she manages the town’s recycling and waste reduction programs and coordinates initiatives across municipal departments. In 2022, she launched a composting program serving the town’s five schools and Senior Center. She also secured a MassDEP grant to implement reusable serviceware and shared tables in schools to reduce food waste, helping divert more than 186,000 pounds of food waste over the past four years.
Debra Darby
Debra Darby is a Client Manager at Tetra Tech with over 18 years of experience in organics management and sustainable materials planning. She leads the Organics Management Initiative for Tetra Tech’s Solid Waste East region, where she focuses on composting and anaerobic digestion systems. As a Certified Composting Professional through the U.S. Composting Council, Debra offers deep technical expertise in feedstock analysis, permitting, and program design, helping clients develop effective and sustainable solutions.
Mikayla Lydon
Mikayla Lydon is the Senior Communications Manager at Massachusetts-based food recovery organization Spoonfuls. With a background in digital marketing and communications strategy, Mikayla leads campaigns that transform analytics into actionable strategies for impact. She spearheaded Spoonfuls’ first digital marketing report, built integrated content campaigns across social, email, and web platforms, and developed data-informed approaches that have boosted reach and strengthened supporter relationships. Her approach blends creativity with analytics, ensuring communications not only tell compelling stories but also advance organizational goals.