In this episode, I speak with Janet Greenwood of TT Environmental.

Janet has been working for many years in chemicals safety and regulatory compliance, and runs a community of regulatory professionals (the Chemical Regulations Self Help Group) here in the UK, and a regular newsletter (Chemicals Coffee Time) with over 4000 subscribers across the globe.

Janet therefore brings an important perspective from regulatory professionals and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) working 'on the ground' to address regulatory compliance within the chemicals industry.

Our conversation covers:

• Janet's background and the origins of her community and newsletter
• Chemicals Coffee Time - during lockdown and beyond
• Janet's journey to becoming an environmental consultant
• Environmental permits, sustainability and ISO 14001
• Top-down procedures vs individual vigilance
• Safety Data Sheets (SDS), CLP labels, and the need to keep the end user in the focus
• Dealing with the deluge of regulatory changes in the EU and UK
• The impact of new substances of very high concern (SVHCs)
• Reflections on the evolution and broader impacts of REACH
• The shifting chemicals marketplace and shared responsibility
• Views on environmental challenges, and the concept of stewardship

TT Environmental Consultancy Yorkshire | EP, IPPC, REACH, COMAH, ADMS & Environmental modeling

The Chemical Regulations Self Help Group – Peer support for REACH, CLP and other chemical regulations

Sign up to Chemicals Coffee Time weekly - Chemicals Coffee Time

Chemicals Coffee Time Monthly newsletter - LinkedIn

Visit my website for more content and insights www.embarkchemical.com

In this episode I speak with Professor Thomas Hartung.

Prof Hartung is Doerenkamp-Zbinden Chair of Evidence-based Toxicology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and Professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology at the University of Konstanz. He also holds positions as Director of the Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT) and Field Chief Editor of the academic journal Frontiers in AI, and was the 2025 recipient of the prestigious Peter Singer Prize.

We have a fascinating discussion about the breathtaking developments in AI and animal-free toxicology, and what this means for areas like drug development, chemical regulation, public health, animal testing, research ethics, the exposome, and the future of our society.

Our conversation covers:

• New Approach Methodologies (NAMs): the new automobile?
• Technological advances in microphysiological systems (MPS) and artificial intelligence (AI)
• The problems with animal models
• Challenges with validation and regulatory acceptance of NAMs
• The importance of education for uptake of NAMs
• Recent developments on US animal testing policy
• What is happening in the EU? Differences between regions and regulatory systems
• How AI is transforming research, and using it in day-to-day work
• Implications of AI for quality of scientific publications and risk of bias
• The Human Exposome Project: what is it, and how can AI help deliver it?
• Environmental persistence, the exposome, and the public discourse on chemicals

NAMazing: Déjà Vu at the lab bench - Why animal-free science is the new automobile - ScienceDirect

NIH stops funding new projects which focus only on animal testing | Cruelty Free International

The turning point: April 2025 marks historic shift in US animal testing policy | ALTEX - Alternatives to animal experimentation

REACH out-numbered! The future of REACH and animal numbers | ALTEX - Alternatives to animal experimentation

A systematic analysis of read-across adaptations in testing proposal evaluations by the European Chemicals Agency | ALTEX - Alternatives to animal experimentation

Guidance for Good In Vitro Reporting Standards (GIVReSt) – A draft for stakeholder discussion and background documentation | ALTEX - Alternatives to animal experimentation

Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2024 | World Economic Forum

Assessing risk of bias in toxicological studies in the era of artificial intelligence | Archives of Toxicology

Is regulatory science ready for artificial intelligence? | npj Digital Medicine

How AI can deliver the Human Exposome Project | Nature Medicine

Stockholm Declaration on Chemistry for the Future

Visit my website for more content and insights www.embarkchemical.com

In this episode I speak with Dr. Blanca Serrano Ramón, Secretary General of the European Centre for Ecotoxicology and Toxicology of Chemicals (ECETOC).

ECETOC is a scientific organisation that brings together experts from industry, academia and regulatory bodies to tackle challenges and deliver solutions for chemical safety.

Through its range of task forces, events and coordination activities, ECETOC is working across the full spectrum of chemical hazard and risk assessment topics, including endocrine disruption, new approach methodologies (NAMs), biodiversity, microplastics, persistence, and mobility (to name a few). They also develop and maintain a number of advanced risk assessment tools.

Our conversation covers

• What is ECETOC? What do they do?
• Why it's important to have dialogue between industry, academia and regulatory bodies
• Face-to-face vs online interactions
• Blanca’s background and journey to ECETOC
• Reflections on working at ECETOC
• ECETOC’s work on polymers
• The need to improve awareness and education in regulatory science
• Risk perception, trust in science, and science communication
• Two years on: the debate on conflicts of interest
• ECETOC associate membership

Home - ECETOC

ECETOC Workshop Report Highlights Advances and Challenges in Biodegradation Testing Guidelines - ECETOC

ECETOC task force proposes three-tiered approach to targeted information requirements for polymers - ECETOC

Visit my website for more content and insights www.embarkchemical.com