This is the series finale. Across five episodes, the Circular Supply Chain Coalition series has built the system around circular supply chains: coalition architecture, trusted networks, buyer-operator alignment, enabling policy. Episode 5 asks who owns the infrastructure, who has agency, and who benefits when reverse supply chains are built.

Deirdre White is CEO of Pyxera Global with nearly 40 years in supply chain development and social impact, from oil and gas localization on Sakhalin Island in the Russian Far East to the Jiva program, a 10-year partnership with the John Deere Foundation in rural Rajasthan that transformed agricultural livelihoods, girls' education, and community governance. Deirdre frames community ownership as the opposite of extraction: local people building and retaining the assets that should be theirs.

Nancy Charaya leads circular economy work at Pyxera Global India, with a decade of experience across tire, textile, plastics, and critical minerals value chains. Nancy built the Pride Cooperative in Guwahati, Assam, a female-led waste worker collective organizing 160 informal workers into a cooperative with collective bargaining power and shared governance. India has 4 to 5 million waste workers, up to 80 percent women working informally with zero agency. The cooperative model gives them a seat at the table.

John Holm, SVP of Partnership Development at Pyxera Global, moderates and connects the five-episode arc, framing community ownership as the "Trojan horse" for circular supply chains at scale.

Chapter Markers:

0:00 Introduction: from enabling policy to community ownership

1:05 John Holm: community benefit as the missing layer in circular supply chains

2:03 Deirdre White: 40 years of supply chain localization, from Sakhalin to CSCC

5:41 Jiva: 10 years with John Deere in rural Rajasthan

7:08 Why the changes held two years after the program ended

7:54 "Fall in love with the problem, not the solution"

8:25 India's waste sector: 4-5 million workers, 90% informal, 60-80% women

9:27 Pride Cooperative: 160 waste workers, collective bargaining, government access

10:26 The smart dustbin story: waste worker knowledge vs. high-tech design

11:21 Cooperatives in the global north: Land O'Lakes and hidden scale

12:37 Community-owned business: keeping equity local in reverse supply chains

14:44 Building trust: 36 person-weeks of listening in three villages

16:11 Pride as a female-led cooperative: agency and collective voice

17:15 Lightning round: misconceptions, capabilities, optimism

19:34 Series close: the complete blueprint for a circular economy

Key Topics:

Community ownership, cooperatives, circular supply chains, reverse logistics, waste workers, informal economy, critical minerals, cooperative governance, Pyxera Global, CSCC, Pride Cooperative, Guwahati, MSMEs, female-led enterprise, global south innovation

Connect and Learn More:

Circular Supply Chain Coalition: circularsupplychain.org

Pyxera Global: pyxeraglobal.org

John Holm: jholm@pyxeraglobal.org

Deirdre White: linkedin.com/in/deirdre-white

Nancy Charaya: linkedin.com/in/nancycharaya

Sheri Hinish (Supply Chain Queen): supplychainqueen.com

Please subscribe and follow

Circular supply chains do not scale on corporate pilots alone. They require enabling policy: state-level incentives, workforce alignment, environmental regulation, capital pathways, and cross-border investment structures that make reuse-based business models viable. This is episode four of a five-part series with Pyxera Global and the Circular Supply Chain Coalition, exploring what the enabling environment looks like when policy moves from aspiration to implementation.

Secretary James Kenney leads the New Mexico Environment Department, where he has built one of the most ambitious state-level circular economy strategies in the US. Under Governor Lujan Grisham, New Mexico offers free education from pre-K through university and trade school, universal child care, a 50-year water action plan backed by $400 million in annual investment, and PFAS legislation that listed discarded PFAS as hazardous waste with a consumer-facing label accessible to every New Mexican. The department created economic development positions whose only metric is jobs created and net income generated.

Manuel Carmona Yebra is Deputy Head for Global Issues and Innovation at the EU Delegation to the United States. He has led EU-US circular economy engagement at the state level, engaging governors including Governor Wes Moore (Maryland), Governor Hobbs (Arizona), and Governor Lujan Grisham (New Mexico). His work has revealed that circular economy is bipartisan because it addresses economic development, environmental protection, employment, and supply chain security simultaneously.

John Holm, SVP of Partnership Development at Pyxera Global and CSCC representative, frames the enabling environment strategy and explains why the coalition focuses on governor-level alignment rather than federal solutions. Together they unpack why states are laboratories for policy that scales and why the EU Circular Economy Act is expected to require 25% of critical minerals supply from recycling.

Chapters:
0:00 Introduction: the enabling environment
1:00 John Holm: enabling environment in practice
1:33 Security economy framing
2:38 Why CSCC focuses on states and governors
3:42 Secretary Kenney: New Mexico's model
4:45 Free education, child care, workforce transition
5:46 50-year water action plan
6:19 Waste to marketplace: critical minerals
7:48 PFAS legislation and the consumer label
9:25 Consumer access to information about PFAS
10:08 Secretary Kenney on trade association lawsuits
11:12 EU Circular Economy Act and competitiveness
12:26 25% of EU critical minerals from recycling
13:04 EU-US state engagement
14:18 Why the EU engages US states directly
15:04 Circular economy as bipartisan
17:48 Replicability and interstate symbiosis
19:55 Sovereign supply chains, Mexico border corridor
21:01 How to engage

Topics: Circular economy policy, PFAS, EU Circular Economy Act, critical minerals, economic development, workforce transition, bipartisan policy, reverse supply chain

Connect:
New Mexico Environment Department: env.nm.gov
Manuel Carmona Yebra: linkedin.com/in/manolo
CSCC: circularsupplychain.org
Pyxera Global: pyxeraglobal.org
John Holm: jholm@pyxeraglobal.org
Supply Chain Queen: supplychainqueen.com

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and wherever you listen.

This is episode three of a five-part series produced in partnership with Pyxera Global and the Circular Supply Chain Coalition. Recovering a material is only the beginning. For circular supply chains to scale, operators must understand what buyers can qualify and use, while buyers must create credible demand signals and procurement pathways for secondary materials. This episode covers the matchmaking layer: how the CSCC connects reverse supply chain operators with industrial buyers.

Ryan Melsert is the co-founder and CTO of American Battery Technology Company (ABTC), which operates a battery recycling facility selling approximately one thousand tons per month of critical minerals back into the market. Ryan's career spans Tesla (where he helped design and build the first gigafactory) and the company is now BASF's exclusive battery recycling partner for all of North America. Rafael Vasquez Lombardo leads sustainability strategy and customer solutions at Cummins, a 100+ year industrial manufacturer with global remanufacturing operations. Anita Schwartz returns as CSCC co-founder.

Together they unpack what it takes to move from collecting battery feedstock to producing materials that industrial buyers can evaluate, qualify, and integrate into established supply chains. Rafael outlines the performance-cost-trust triangle that governs sourcing decisions at scale, and Ryan explains why the qualification process will never get shorter (consumers demand zero tolerance for component failure). They close with a lightning round where Rafael delivers the episode's defining line: stop talking about circular sourcing, this is just sourcing.

Chapter Markers:

0:05 Introduction: buyer-operator matchmaking in reverse supply chains

1:19 Meet Anita Schwartz (CSCC co-founder)

2:06 Meet Ryan Melsert (ABTC): Tesla, gigafactory, battery recycling

3:47 Meet Rafael Vasquez Lombardo (Cummins): engineering to circular economy strategy

6:33 From convening to active matchmaking: what changes

7:50 Operator perspective: from feedstock to buyer-ready supply

9:10 BASF partnership: becoming their exclusive North American battery recycling partner

10:51 Buyer perspective from Cummins: performance, cost, trust

15:04 After the introduction: what happens day-to-day

16:59 Data exchanges, audits, and the high-trust environment

17:33 Validation steps from pilot to production

20:07 Lightning round: what to stop, what data matters, optimism

Key Topics:

Reverse supply chain, buyer-operator matchmaking, battery recycling, critical minerals, Cummins, ABTC, BASF, circular procurement, secondary materials, supply chain qualification, remanufacturing, performance specs, supply chain trust, CSCC, Pyxera Global

Connect and Learn More:

American Battery Technology Company: americanbatterytechnology.com

Cummins: cummins.com

CSCC: circularsupplychain.org

Pyxera Global: pyxeraglobal.org

Sheri Hinish: supplychainqueen.com

“We all agree...someone needs to do something about ocean plastic. This is the something, you are the someone.” David Katz, CEO of Plastic Bank.

Today is World Oceans Day, observed by United Nations member states to bring discussions, policies, and people impacted by ocean and coastal degradation worldwide.

In Episode 58, Sheri Hinish (SupplyChainQueen) chats with Plastic Bank CEO and Founder, David Katz, who describes himself as a creator in world who wants to make an impact improving the quality of life for others, connected to the ocean, poverty, and improving marine life. David's company is empowering the regenerative society turning plastic into gold by revolutionizing the world’s recycling systems to create a regenerative, inclusive, and circular plastic economy POWERED by supply chains. Clients include Henkel, SC Johnson, and Aldi to name a few...

The Plastic Bank builds ethical recycling ecosystems in coastal communities, and reprocesses the materials for reintroduction into the global manufacturing supply chain. Collectors receive a premium for the materials they collect to better help them provide basic family necessities such as groceries, school tuition, and health insurance.Collected material is reborn as Social Plastic® which is reintegrated into products and packaging. This creates a closed-loop supply chain while helping those who collect it.

Plastic Bank is creating a new monetary standard in new school banking systems. Using a proprietary blockchain platform secures the entire transaction and provides real-time data visualization: allowing for transparency, traceability, and rapid scalability.

In this episode, David challenges the concept of "the plastics problem" and says it's an "us problem". Describing the short-sightedness of convenience, he is on a mission to change the paradigm so people view the material differently in a world where everyone is part of the solution, not pollution.

We explore secondary plastics, the social impact and need for a regenerative economy, how supply chains make it happen, and the creation of new standards and economies enabled just by thinking about materials differently, where waste is resource, We unpack ocean health and some stats around plastics. Also how we must urgently turn off the tap of virgin plastics.

In closing David urges us to think about "what if it was profitable to have more love in the world and be stewards of the oceans, the people and marine life"? What an inspirational story to share on World Oceans Day,

To learn more about David, visit https://plasticbank.com/

To learn more about the podcast, visit SupplyChainQueen.com

Episode 15 is a provocative and timely topic for supply chain and STEM professionals around the world. As we enter conference season coupled with the transition to virtual events due to COVID19, the on-going persistence of all-male panels must stop. It’s time to cancel the MANEL! As eloquently described by Dr. Francis Collins, the diversity of bright and talented minds has come a long way and our public engagements need to catch up. Breaking up the subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) bias that is preventing women and other groups underrepresented in science from achieving their rightful place in scientific leadership must begin at the top. Creating new norms is a tough and challenging process. We hope this a helpful step to bring awareness to the MANEL and encouraging others to embrace diversity and inclusiveness at events and conferences.

In this episode, you’ll hear why MANELS must STOP, why a level playing field with gender diversity is necessary, why being inclusive isn’t just about “inviting a women on a panel” or better yet “having a women moderate or interview the panel”. We describe changes in the supply chain workforce and population of recent graduates. Ageism and challenging traditional norms is a contentious task, but necessary to shift the status quo. Our hearts are in the right place during this difficult discussion. Women and members of underrepresented communities should also have an opportunity for speaking slots at high-level supply chain, STEM, and academic events and conferences. We urge you to take the panel pledge and draw the line by calling out actors who may unknowingly (or knowingly) participate in this stale and divisive tradition.

To learn more about the MANEL pledge, visit: https://www.owen.org/pledge/

Find us, connect, and explore at https://www.supplychainrevolution.com/

In an exclusive Earth Day Special, Jim Massey lays out the case for why all progress in sustainability depends on trust - the basis of successful selves, teams, and systems. Sustainability is the path to prosperity for humanity and businesses alike. Every April 22nd, stakeholders of all backgrounds come together to advance sustainability and climate action in commemoration of Earth Day.

Companies who’ve developed strong Environment Social Governance (ESG) standards are seeing better profitability, stronger financial performance, and happier employees. But this transformation isn’t just about transforming our economies, operating models, and supply chains, it is about transforming lives by putting people and trust at the heart of decisions we anchor in sustainable development.

When Can, Care, and Do come together, something interesting happens: trust is formed. Across regions, cultures, and languages, trust is a common currency - the connective tissue that makes all positive action possible. In an exclusive Earth Day Special, Jim Massey lays out the case for why all progress in sustainability depends on trust - the basis of successful selves, teams, and systems. In a time when many are rapidly losing trust in our institutions – whether in government, society, or finance – it’s more critical than ever that leaders cultivate their ability to build trust.

Episode 76 is the 3rd Earth Month feature celebrating provocative themes and people in sustainability, supply chain innovation, and circularity. Jim Massey is a Chief Sustainability Officer, Global ESG Expert, and former VP of ESG Sustainability, Ethics, and Compliance at AstraZeneca.

In our chat, Jim unpacks wisdom from Trust in Action, including:

* where will leaders have the greatest impact

* what is the “breakthrough” proven trust model for sparking action

* how can folks listening drive positive change in their organization

* what are some of the actionable repeatable approaches for working with teams to tackle today's toughest problems

* what words of wisdom can you give others leading or have the ambition to lead in sustainability?

This year, we rally behind the Earth Day theme “Invest In Our Planet”, which highlights the importance of dedicating our time, resources, and energy to solving climate change and other environmental + social issues. Our world needs transformation. Solving the environmental crisis calls for bold, creative, and innovative solutions and leadership. This will require action at all levels, from business and investment to city and national government. Investing in our planet is necessary to protect it and the best way to pave a path towards a prosperous future. When we Invest In Our Planet together, we are supporting healthy, happy, and thriving communities worldwide.

To learn more about Jim Massey and Trust in Action, visit https://www.jimmassey.co/

Dr. Garry Copper, neuroscientist turned sustainability technologist and circularity advocate had a pivotal moment - that our field is one-noted and we need to build a reuse bridge to capture value left in materials to transition to a sustainable world, a fly-wheel of wealth for communities who have been left out in the linear economy. Led by curiosity and studying how people remember and forget, he stumbled on CE, and his life was changed forever. He is the CEO of a Chicago-based technology start-up Rheaply that helps manage material flows and the life cycle of assets in the circular economy through reuse, realizing the 4.5 trillion dollar opportunity.

I met Garry a few months back at a Green Biz event and had chills after hearing him evangelize how the "circular economy can only be realized when it’s real for everyone, and everyone can participate. Materials flow everywhere.” I was blown away as he described his purpose "to make his story not remarkable,” empowering more people and particularly women of color to participate and not just be a passive stakeholder in making our communities sustainable. Rheaply is a part of Circular-City Chicago in tri-sector partnerships including local non-profit community champions. We pull on the threads of digital divide and food sovereignty, and hydroponic farming in Chicago too.

The future is bright. In Episode 45, he explores his journey as someone who wants to make an impact, and a black man in an almost exclusively white environment for most of his career. His dream for Rheaply is to operationalizing a net-zero waste strategy and help businesses be efficient in a COVID world by reducing holding and carrying costs, capturing material value and leveraging spend avoidance. However, we diverge and in a provocative discussion to explore the business case “let’s keep our marketplace on Earth” (not to be missed)!

As we unpack the business model emergency for circularity, the big question emerged…has COVID accelerated or decelerated climate and sustainability transition? We talk about recent weather disruptions and fires in California, and the burning question is “can you do business when folks can’t go outside?” The Earth is the business case. It’s not climate change, it’s a climate emergency. We also talk about doing the right thing particularly when it comes to social responsibility in forced child labor and the black lives matter movement. Do either of these pressing social issues really “need” a business case or is this a space to step up and be good stewards in business?

One of Rheaply’s key partners is SAP and Rheaply is currently in the SAP.iO Foundry. Big shout out to John Licata at SAP.iO. Garry explores his journey as a start up founder with lessons earned for other technologists. Also shout out to John Holm, a friend of Supply Chain Revolution from Pyxera Global, and a Circular Cities-Chicago advocate. Also, shout out to Harold Chapman for all the work you do to feed and teach the students in Chicago that there is sustainable way to live, eat, and learn.

To learn more about Dr. Garry Cooper, visit https://rheaply.com/ or https://www.linkedin.com/in/garrycooperphd/

To learn more about the Supply Chain Revolution, visit supplychainqueen.com or supplychainrevolution.com

We’re in the midst of a significant transformation regarding the way we produce products thanks to the digitization of manufacturing and the convergence of tech. This transition represents a change in global supply chains, the fourth revolution that has occurred in manufacturing. Quality, harmonization across processes, leveraging data for insights in industry 4.0, all still hinge on an enterprise's ability to elegantly incorporate technology, humans, and the original ground truth of what's happening real-time. How do you revolutionize vision and inspection with a big data platform for visual data? How do you manage it and let it permeate in the cloud stratosphere, then push it out to manufacturers?

Meet Cogniac.

In Episode 55, Sheri Hinish (Supply Chain Queen) chats with Chuck Myers, CEO of Cogniac and serial innovator with an accomplished career in defense, automotive, telco, and scaling start ups to successful companies.

Chuck shares the key to his success, diverse teams. No surprise here folks. He shares hard earned lessons about leading and selling successful companies, where he describes, "its better to be lucky, than good. I've had a lot of doubles. You have to be a bit paranoid, hire good people, be a loyal person and put people in the right job and treat them right."

Industry 4.0 leaves many questioning how do humans fit into AI/ML, big data, and automation. 'Human in the loop' makes Cogniac different because it is essentially building AI for AI, including the quality SME. Chuck explains an example of Cogniac in railroad, where it visualizes for inspection about 22M trains wheels a month, 30,000 miles of track in near real time. AI makes a determination of high probability and elevates to the 'human in the loop' with immediate intervention. In this example, critical decisions by the human are value add and elevated in the enterprise. This union illustrates the marriage of AI in the future of work across global supply chains and Industry 4.0.

To learn more about Cogniac, visit https://cogniac.co/

To connect and explore the Supply Chain Revolution, visit supplychainqueen.com