22 | INNOVISION MAGAZINE SUSTAINABILITY SUMMIT The first Sustainability Summit was held on Friday, Oct. 7, where featured speakers discussed the environmental impacts of corporate and local businesses and the sustainable measures they are taking to move towards a waste-free future. “The Sustainability Summit had two purposes,” said Dr. Gary Chao, Department Chair for Business Administration. “I wanted students to see how companies perform their sustainability projects and see the impact of those projects in communities.” Keynote Speaker Christopher Farley, vice president of Waste Management’s (WM) Greater Mid-Atlantic region, spoke to students and faculty about WM’s initiatives to reduce waste. Farley discussed the sustainability market, describing how the most sustainable solutions are often the most expensive. He talked about WM’s investment in technology to repurpose landfill gas into energy. In some WM landfills, there are drills that suck up methane, a gas byproduct of waste decomposition, to go through a turbine, which creates electricity. Alternatively, the collected methane can be converted into a fuel source for its waste collection trucks, helping to reduce the carbon footprint for WM. Farley also talked about where waste goes once it is collected by WM. He described the process from when recyclables get picked up by a WM truck to when it makes its way to a WM facility. In some facilities, plastic can be recycled into yarn, which can be used to make clothing. Aluminum is a metal that can be reused indefinitely to make new bottles. Recycled paper can be remade into more paper-based products. The first panel discussion included representatives from Penske, East Penn Manufacturing Company, and B. Braun Medical. Speakers discussed how each company has taken initiatives to reduce and reuse waste produced by their locations. The second panel had community members from the Maxatawny Planning Committee, Kutztown Environmental Advisory Committee representatives, and Berks Gas Truth. These panelists discussed local environmental challenges and successes. ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP Moving forward, leaving no footprint
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