If you work in a lab, one small habit can save a surprising amount of energy: Shut the sash.

Architect Jacob Werner explains why airflow, safety, and infrastructure choices are some of the biggest (hidden) climate levers.

This episode is part of Any Job Can Be a Climate Job — a podcast exploring how people bring climate impact into everyday work, even in roles that aren’t labeled “climate.”

👉 Subscribe and leave a comment — I’d love to hear what resonates.

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Research labs are where some of the most important work in the world happens: curing disease, developing renewable energy, and building the future of science.

They’re also some of the most energy- and resource-intensive buildings we have. Not because people are careless, but because labs are designed to optimize for safety, airflow, and precision.

In this episode, I talk with Jacob Werner, an architect at Ellenzweig who designs science labs for colleges and universities, about why labs function more like machines than offices — and why that makes design such a powerful climate lever.

Jacob explains how decisions about airflow, temperature control, filtration, and safety systems quietly shape energy use for decades — and how good design can make the sustainable choice the easiest choice, without relying on constant heroics from the people inside the building.

Listen for:

• Why labs use so much energy (and what “stable experimental conditions” requires)
• What designers can “bake in” so sustainable behavior is easier (fume hood sashes, recycling access, efficient HVAC)
• How sustainability sticks best when it’s treated as good design, not an add-on
• Practical lab actions that matter: Shut the Sash, lights, and equipment power-down norms
• Why climate action often starts far upstream, in systems most of us never see

About Jacob

Jacob Werner is an architect with Ellenzweig in Boston. Ellenzweig designs science labs primarily for colleges and universities. Jacob also co-chairs the AIA 2030 Commitment, a program supporting architects in tracking and reporting progress toward lower-carbon buildings.

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• American Institute of Architects (AIA) 2030 Commitment
• International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories (I2SL) Resource Hub
• I2SL – Smart Labs Toolkit (practical guidance)
• ⁠Ellenzweig – Jacob / team page⁠
• Sustainability at Harvard Labs

• Jacob on LinkedIn

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00:00 — Cold open: reduce → electrify → renewables

00:00:32 — Intro: why lab design matters

00:01:53 — Who Jacob is + what he designs (Ellenzweig, AIA 2030)

00:02:35 — What is AIA / AIA 2030?

00:03:00 — How Jacob got into architecture and lab design

00:06:25 — How you start designing a lab (vision + flexibility)

00:07:54 — Why labs are so energy- and resource-intensive

00:10:29 — What designers can build in vs what occupants control

00:11:19 — Six Sigma + workflow convenience (waste + behavior design)

00:11:37 — Persuading clients: make sustainability “part of the package”

00:13:33 — Biggest lesson: climate action isn’t all-or-nothing

00:15:00 — Project story: designing for ocean/climate research (URI)

00:17:29 — Renovation + reuse + embodied carbon

00:19:09 — Low-hanging fruit for lab occupants (Shut the Sash, lights, equipment)

00:20:54 — Where to learn more (AIA + I2SL resources)

00:21:28 — What green labs may look like in 10–20 years

00:25:20 — Closing thoughts: everyone can contribute

00:26:23 — Reflection: the biggest wins come from changing systems

Disclaimer: This episode is for informational purposes only. Views are the guest’s own, and nothing here should be taken as professional advice.

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🎧 Listen to the podcast

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✨ Work with me

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🎙 Any Job Can Be a Climate Job is produced and hosted by Louisa Henry Edited by ⁠Alex Leff⁠Original music by ⁠Run Riot Run Logo design by Cassidy Frost

What does it really take to make sustainability stick?

Pam Greenley shares how she brought the Green Labs concept back to MIT, and adapted it to a culture driven by metrics, incentives, and competition. By designing contests around resource savings and innovation, she helped turn an idea into everyday practice without forcing behavior change.

This episode is for anyone working inside complex, high-performance organizations who wants to make sustainability normal, practical, and durable.

🎙 Any Job Can Be a Climate Job is produced and hosted by ⁠Louisa Henry⁠. Edited by ⁠Alex Leff⁠. Original music by ⁠Run Riot Run⁠. Logo design by ⁠Cassidy Frost⁠.

Newsletter: https://anyjobcanbeaclimatejob.substack.com/

Coaching: https://www.kidoki.com/

Teddy Salgado, a Senior Manager of Continuous Improvement at Boston Children's Hospital, loved the idea of using his education to help combat climate change. He had the opportunity to help a brewery in Thailand cut waste with the help of the process improvement methodology, Six Sigma.

Disappointed in the lack of manufacturing opportunities to take the same climate action in Boston, he joined Boston Children’s Hospital to help with process improvement. Soon after, he saw an opportunity to connect those efficiencies with the company’s sustainability strategy. Teddy became a Six Sigma coach, helping employees across the company spot opportunities, and implement change.

In this interview, Teddy talks through case studies, and gives us tools to help spot waste and take action in our own workplaces. You’ll leave with tips, ideas, and proof that the triple bottom line can (and does) exist: People, Planet, Profit.

About Teddy: Teddy Salgado is a Senior Manager of Continuous Improvement at Boston Children's Hospital. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and his Master of Business Administration from the Duke University Fuqua School of Business. In addition to healthcare, Teddy has professional experience in education and sustainability. His current focus is partnering with the operating rooms on improvement initiatives, and he serves on the leadership committee for the hospital's sustainability focused employee affinity group. In his personal time, Teddy enjoys playing ultimate frisbee, biking, and hiking with his wife and retired racing greyhound. Mentions:

• Lean Six Sigma
• “8 wastes” DOWNTIME framework - Defects, Overproduction, Waiting, Non-utilized talent, Transportation, Inventory, Motion, Extra process
• 5S Methodology - Sort, Set in order, Shine, Standardize, Sustain
• Visual management - using pictures instead of text
• Triple Bottom Line - People, Planet, Profit
• Boston Children’s Hospital - Sustainability

Credits:🎙 Any Job Can Be a Climate Job is produced and hosted by Louisa Henry. Edited by Alex Leff. Original music by Run Riot Run. Logo design by Cassidy Frost. Subscribe for more episodes on how real people are driving climate impact through their everyday work. Found wherever you get your podcasts. anyjobcanbeaclimatejob.com

For many inhaled anesthetic gases, very little is metabolized. So a lot of what’s delivered ends up getting exhausted/vented out (for staff safety), and not processed. They go up and out into the atmosphere.

In the third episode of the Greener Hospitals, Healthier Futures series, I sat down with Dr. Prabhakar Devavaram, Director of Environmental Sustainability in the Division of Peri-operative Anesthesia and a pediatric anesthesiologist at Boston Children’s Hospital. He’s also the site principal investigator for Project SPRUCE, a multicenter trial to reduce anesthetic greenhouse gas emissions. 

Prabhakar’s cared about this topic for some time, and shares not only how Boston Children’s Hospital is going about reducing their anesthetic climate impact, but also dives into what these gases are, the various types, and how they’re used. 

Did you know that nitrous oxide (laughing gas) can linger in the atmosphere for ~114 years! And very little is metabolized at all. Nitrous oxide is especially relevant in pediatrics, where it’s often used to help kids feel comfortable during mask induction, before adding other agents. 

Prabhakar teaches us how anesthesiologists can reduce their climate impact by using non-inhaled alternatives when possible, low-flow options, checking for leaks, and how to make smarter decisions in patient care. He also shares a surprising systems fix: a big chunk of nitrous emissions can happen before it ever reaches the patient. It’s lost through central piping and leaks. Switching to point-of-use cylinders (and tightening the system) can dramatically reduce waste.

In this episode you’ll learn: 

• Understand the main anesthetic gases and their climate impact

• Learn practical levers (alternatives, low-flow, leak reduction)

• See how hospitals operationalize change (systems & workflow)

• Discover how data and feedback loops shift clinician behavior

Mentions: 

• Project SPRUCE 

• Joint Commission “Reducing the Environmental Impact of Anesthetic Gases” + Seattle Children’s Project SPRUCE reference 

• ASA Environmental Sustainability: “Environmental Impact of Inhaled Anesthetics” (clear, clinician-friendly guidance) 

• Association of Anaesthetists “Guide to green anaesthesia”

• Practice Greenhealth anesthetic gas how-to toolkit (PDF) 

• Health Sector Climate Pledge (waste anesthetic gases explicitly called out) 

• Ether Dome background (Mass General Museum page) 
  

Hospital operating rooms are an impressive dance of teamwork and timing. At Boston Children's Hospital, when the operating team wraps up, the cleaning team enters, each with specific assignments to clean and prep the room for the next surgery. On top of that, the team is always on the lookout for ways to reduce the environmental impact.

We start today's episode with a conversation with Kristine Rodman, mother of a patient at Boston Children's Hospital. It was incredibly emotional to sit down and hear her story. It was a stark reminder of the stakes behind each operational decision.

Julian Inferrera is the Operating Room Flow Manager at Boston Children’s Hospital, where he integrates sustainability into one of the most resource-intensive areas of healthcare. By focusing on waste streams, partnering with colleagues, and using data to reshape daily workflows, he works to demonstrate that sustainability initiatives can be integrated into clinical practice.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• The invisible systems, decisions, and people behind each surgery
• Why ORs are one of the most resource-intensive spaces in the hospital
• An inside look into the operating room
• What OR waste streams look like, and his team's ideas to reduce them
• How Julian and his team take inspiration from NASCAR pit crews
• Why bottom's-up movements can be more effective than top-down mandates
• Why noticing, asking questions, and starting small matters

🎧 Listen now and start spotting climate wins in your own workplace.

Credits:🎙 Any Job Can Be a Climate Job is produced and hosted by Louisa Henry. Edited by Alex Leff. Original music by Run Riot Run. Logo design by Cassidy Frost. Image attribution: vecteezy.com.

Mentions: Surgery waste art exhibit

👉 Subscribe for more episodes on how real people are driving climate impact through their everyday work.

Found here, Substack, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Hospital labs aren’t where most people look for climate solutions. But Chuck Blanchette did — and found more than anyone expected.

As Manager of Research Facilities at Boston Children’s Hospital, Chuck oversees 200+ labs and more than 800 freezers. When he joined the Freezer Challenge, it sparked a transformation: turning routine lab maintenance into a nationally recognized climate program that’s slashed energy use, reduced plastic waste, and changed how researchers work.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• How Chuck helped Boston Children’s become a model for sustainable labs

• What most people get wrong about climate work in hospitals

• How storytelling and competition sparked behavior change across 50+ labs

• Why fume hoods, defrost kits, and cheese farms all matter more than you think

🎧 Listen now and start spotting climate wins in your own workplace — no matter your job title.

Guest Bio:

Chuck Blanchette is the Manager of Research Facilities at Boston Children’s Hospital. He leads their award-winning Green Labs Program, co-chairs the E.A.R.T.H. sustainability group, and was honored as the Phil Wirdzek Emerging Leader in Healthcare. Under his leadership, BCH has become a national leader in lab energy reduction, reuse systems, and sustainable research operations.

He’s also a dad of two — and everything he builds is grounded in a deep commitment to leaving behind a livable planet for the next generation.

📬 Connect with Chuck → LinkedIn

Photos + Substack Story:Check out freezer photos, defrost kits, and behind-the-scenes images from this episode on Substack.

Referenced Organizations & Resources:

• My Green Lab - A nonprofit promoting sustainability in science, and the origin of tools like the Freezer Challenge and SWOOP stickers.

• International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories (I2SL) - A nonprofit organization dedicated to sustainable lab design, operation, and use. Chuck is actively involved with I2SL and was recognized by them as an emerging leader.

• The Freezer Challenge - Hosted by My Green Lab and I2SL. An international competition that encourages labs to optimize cold storage for energy efficiency.

• AstraZeneca SWOOP Case Study - “Creating a culture of sustainability across labs”

Credits: 🎙 Any Job Can Be a Climate Job is produced and hosted by Louisa Henry. Original music by Run Riot Run. Logo design by Cassidy Frost. 

Subscribe for more episodes on how real people are driving climate impact through their everyday work.

Marissa Pitchford didn’t plan to lead climate strategy. She started behind the scenes as an executive assistant at a global cybersecurity company — managing calendars, planning events, and supporting leadership. But she began to notice: her company could be doing more.

In this episode, Marissa shares how she turned that quiet awareness into a full-scale sustainability and corporate responsibility program at ESET North America. We talk about how to gain influence without a title, how to embed sustainability into everyday decisions, and what it really takes to lead change from the inside out.

Whether you're in operations, admin, HR, or tech — this is an inspiring reminder that any job can be a climate job.

⏱️ Chapter Markers:

00:00 Introduction and Background

01:15 ESET: Company Overview and Role Evolution

02:06 Sustainability Journey Begins

05:31 Transforming Philanthropy into Corporate Social Responsibility

07:33 Doing a Materiality Assessment

08:35 Building a Strategic Framework for Sustainability

11:28 Aligning to Company Values

13:10 Navigating Change & Resistance

15:10 Building the Case for Sustainability

18:41 Landfill Neutral Guarantee

21:04 Empowering Sustainable Choices in Business

23:07 Starting Sustainable Actions in the Workplace

25:23 The Role of ESG in Corporate Strategy

26:54 Navigating Diversity and Inclusion in Changing Times

30:58 Measuring Impact and Progress in Sustainability

33:19 Strategies for Achieving Net Zero by 2050

37:47 Innovative Approaches to Vendor and Travel Management

41:15 Personal Growth and the Journey to Sustainability

45:00 Wrap Up & Thank You

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• Learn more about ESET’s sustainability efforts: eset.com/about/environment

• Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship: ccc.bc.edu

• How to do your own double materiality assessment: opinionx.co/blog

• Zero Waste Chef — Anne-Marie Bonneau

• Connect with Marissa on LinkedIn

How one animated video helped Springfield pass clean-energy policy—and what it teaches us about moving people and systems.

• Guests: Kathryn Taccone (Open Pixel Studios) and Samantha Hamilton (Public Health Institute of Western Mass).
• Host: Louisa Henry

If you'd like to support the show, please follow, like, and share.

Reach out and join the conversation on Subtack.

Links mentioned in the show:

• LiveWell Springfield
• Community Choice Energy
• Public Health Institute of Western MA
• OpenPixel Studios
• Check out the Animation Video on YouTube
• Local News article about City Council Approval
• Looking to learn from people who have made the switch into climate-specific careers? Check out Climate Swings Podcast.

A compost bin. A bold question. A re-written conference agenda. This special Earth Day episode brings back two past guests—Charlie Sellars and Gabe Dover—and introduces Shruti Chander, showing how small, surprising workplace actions can launch big climate impact.

🎙 New here? Check out our earlier one-on-one conversations with Charlie and Gabe after this episode for a deeper dive into their journeys.

In this episode:

🎯 Chapters:

0:00 Intro

4:30 Start Small (Shruti)

11:20 Ask the Question (Gabe)

18:40 Make the Business Case (Charlie)

24:00 Build Culture & Ripples

31:10 Q&A: Land a role, start where you are

🔗 Show Notes:

• Climate Action Resource Library (CARL)

🎤 Know someone turning their job into climate action? I want to hear from you: [email protected]

What if you could turn your existing career into a climate job — no matter what your title says?

In this inspiring conversation, Charlie Sellars, a sustainability leader at Microsoft and author of What We Can Do, shares how he embedded climate action into his work at Gartner and later at Microsoft.

He reveals how personal branding, customer focus, and small strategic actions helped him drive big change inside global companies — and how you can do it too.

🌎 Key topics:

Mentioned: Gartner: Making An Impact With Sustainability: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQFzFwx1sYE 

➡️ Read Charlie’s book: https://www.charliesellars.com/

➡️ Connect with Charlie: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlessellars/