If you live in the U.S., chances are you have a lot of stuff. Or at least you want to have a lot of stuff. As the MIT Press Reader notes in their brief history of consumer culture 'consumption is now frequently seen as our principal role in the world.'

We've been trained in a way to want more stuff, and that stuff takes a lot of resources to make, to ship, and then at the end of its life, to dispose of. And as sustainability becomes an increasingly important conversation for our collective future, how are brands looking at these problems? How do we account for all this waste and energy that we're consuming?

Can a company make consumer goods like clothes and electronics more sustainable without sacrificing their bottom line?

Today, we're tackling just about the biggest entrepreneurial problem there is in consumer goods - Sustainability.

We'll hear from two Babson College alumni and entrepreneurial leaders who are at the forefront of reimagining processes and their businesses and pointing us to a more sustainable future. And perhaps also a more thoughtful approach to consumerism.

And we'll speak with a renowned Babson accounting scholar who will help us understand how integrating sustainability practices into your balance sheet can not only create tangible value, but intangible value for your brand as well.

• Uddhav Bagrodia ‘21, Co-Founder and President of Wastewear
• Brigitte Wudernitz Muehlmann, PhD., MST, Professor in the Division of Accounting and Law at Babson College
• Samuel D. Herec MBA ‘25, VP of Product and Sustainability at TIvoli Audio

Sources:

Intro Segment:

Higgs, K. (2021, January 11). A Brief History of Consumer Culture. The MIT

Press Reader. Retrieved April 2, 2025, from

https://thereader.mitpress.mit.edu/a-brief-history-of-consumer-culture/

Uddhav’s Segment:

https://www.wastewear.com/

1. Ruiz, A. (2024, March 18). 47 Official Sustainable Fashion Statistics.

TheRoundup.org. Retrieved April 2, 2025, from

https://theroundup.org/sustainable-fashion-statistics/

2. Yorke, S. (2024, November 12). What is Sustainable Fashion? Oxfam.org.

Retrieved April 2, 2025, from

https://www.oxfam.org.uk/oxfam-in-action/oxfam-blog/7-facts-about-sustai

nable-fashion/

1. (2025, March 30). Environmental Sustainability in the Fashion Industry.

GenevaEnvironmentNetwork.org. Retrieved April 9, 2025, from

https://www.genevaenvironmentnetwork.org/resources/updates/sustainabl

e-fashion/

1. Circle Economy (n.d.). The Circularity Gap Report - Textiles.

Circularity-Gap.World. https://www.circularity-gap.world/textiles

5. California State Legislature (2024, September 30). SB-707 Responsible

Textile Recovery Act of 2024. California Legislative Information. Retrieved

April 24, 2025, from

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=2023202

40SB707#:~:text=This%20bill%20would%20enact%20a,producer%20resp

onsibility%20organization%20or%20PRO.

Professor Muelhmann’s Segment:

The five entrepreneurial practices are from the book “Teaching Entrepreneurship: A

Practice-Based Approach” by Heidi Neck, Candy Brush and Patty Greene.

https://www.amazon.com/Teaching-Entrepreneurship-Practice-Based-Heidi-Neck/dp/178

2540695

Sam’s Segment:

https://tivoliaudio.com/

Evers, J. (2025, April 23). The Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

NationalGeographic.org. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from

https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/great-pacific-garbage-patch/

Credits:

Paul DeWolf, Executive Producer

Madeline Poirier, Writer, Producer, and Host

Billy Wirasnik, Audio Recording, Design, and Mix

Epidemic Sound, Music and SFX