Accelerating the Bioinnovation through renewable building blocks, smart manufacturing, and sustainability certifications
Given the surge in corporate climate commitments, material and product manufacturers are leaving no stone unturned to meet the industry’s evolving needs and customers’ sustainability concerns.
The recent advances in fermentation, machine learning, and artificial intelligence are propelling the biomanufacturing revolution to offer a unique value proposition built on intrinsic economic, performance, and environmental advantages. McKinsey Global Institute research has found that as much as 60% of the physical inputs to the global economy could be produced or replaced using biological means. Moreover, the use of biology in manufacturing materials, chemicals, and energy could lead to $200 to $300 billions in the global market growth in the next 10 to 20 years. However, industry-wide standardization and alignment around product labeling and certifications are paramount in providing clarity and transparency on the ecological and social footprint of biomaterials that will allow companies to unlock their enormous potential impact.
Join Dr. Gayatri Keskar for a conversation with Michael Savarie, Sustainability Program Manager – Circularity & Textiles at UL Solutions; Neil Assur, Co-founder and Chief Business Officer at Birch Biosciences; and Adrienne McKee, Director, Platform Partnerships at Checkerspot, Inc., as they discuss how the next generation of renewable building blocks like algae and enzymes, use of artificial intelligence in manufacturing, and product safety certifications can help the industry consciously design the beginning and end of life of everyday products without compromising the performance or convenience.
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About our guest speakers
Adrienne McKee, PhD
Director, Platform Partnerships
Checkerspot
As the Director of Platform Partnerships at Checkerspot, Adrienne bridges technology and business to develop products and markets using biomanufactured raw materials. From footwear to fashion to industrial applications, she works with brands, designers, R&D, manufacturing, and futures teams to create formulations, materials, and products that leave more fossil fuels in the ground.
Checkerspot designs materials at the molecular level, providing product designers and manufacturers with renewable materials to build products for a post-petroleum future.
Michael Savarie is the Sustainability Program Manager for Circularity and Textiles at UL Solutions, where he manages the Environmental Claim Validation (ECV), and the Textile Exchange programs. Michael has a background in sustainability in the apparel and textile industry, helping to successfully launch an apparel and material innovation brand, and later developing and leading the sustainability strategy for a textile manufacturer and dying company. Having spoken on stages across North America, Michaels talks have focused on sustainable materials, apparel and textile sustainability, and material innovation.
Neil Assur is the co-founder and Chief Business Officer at Birch Biosciences. Prior to Birch, Neil spent 5+ years at McKinsey & Company, where he was a leader in the Digital practice and the Sustainability practice. Neil also served as the solution leader for Watchtower, a McKinsey SaaS risk management solution. Neil holds an MBA from the Wharton School and degrees in Chemistry and Mathematics from the University of Pennsylvania.
Daniela Blanco obtained her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from New York University (2020) and is the co-founder and CEO of Sunthetics. Her vision is to build a more sustainable chemical industry. At Sunthetics, she develops ground-breaking machine-learning platforms that enable the development of new chemicals, materials, and processes up to 15 times faster, significantly reducing waste and emissions.
About our host
Dr. Gayatri Keskar, VP of Research for Material ConneXion, earned her Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from Clemson University. She leads our team of material specialists and scientists to provide clients with out-of-the-box and eco-conscious solutions. Through her work, Dr. Keskar identifies strategic opportunities and provides cross-industry insights to global brands, arming them with best practices from ideation to production.
