Earth+30

For the past day or so I have been trying to find a way to adequately introduce you to my current guest, Saleem Ali, but words have escaped me. To say that he is a distinguished academic would be gross understatement. Likewise, to classify him as a combination academic and politician or sorts, is also inadequate. I could take much of what is in Wikipedia, which starts off thus, “Saleem Ali is a Phttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistani_American (akistani American) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian (Australian) academic who is the Blue and Gold Distinguished Professor of Energy and the Environment at the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Delaware (University of Delaware) and also directs the university's Minerals, Materials and Society program….” and re-write it in some way, but that does not seem fair. However, I do strongly urge you to read his full entry https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saleem_Ali_(academic) (here). I suppose my point is that his accomplishments are wide ranging, very impactful and exceedingly respected. We serve together on an environmentally oriented non-profit Board, which I co-chair. Since meeting him virtually about 18 months ago, I have been struck by his calm insights and clarity of thought around complex, and demanding issues. Our preparatory conversation opened my eyes to approaches and solutions I had not previously considered. I knew I wanted to share my “discovery” with those of you who listen to my podcasts. I think that you shall find his ideas more that a little captivating and great food for thought.

Onaje Jackson is a leader in the “green” technology, sustainability, and sustainable development and design movements and his company, Sustainable Systems and Design International (SSDI), has been a leading performer in earth-friendly infrastructure and facility design for the past 30 yrs. SSDI has particularly earned recognition as a major leader in solar electric-PV system design and application, being responsible for ground-breaking net-metering and building integrated projects. SSDI has completed successful renewable energy/”green” technology, sustainable development and sustainability proects throughout the Americas including, among numerous others;

• The World Bank; Guyana, South America: Planning, engineering, and installation of solar and wind powered water delivery systems in the Rupununi Interior District.

• The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority and the Virgin Islands Energy Office; Design, engineering, and installation of pilot Net Metered PV power supply systems, the 1st utility sponsored net metered PV systems in the Caribbean.

• The Nature Conservancy: Sustainable Development and technology master planning and project implementation for The Nature Conservancy Conservation Center, at the historic 60 acre Estate Little Princesse, St. Croix, USVI.

Before founding SSDI in 1993, Jackson was a Technical Advisor to the Government of the USVI, supporting the formation of solar and conservation programs for the V.I. Energy Office and Directing the VI Coastal Zone Management Program. Between 1981-89, Jackson served as an Applied Research Associate for two top architectural engineering firms in the New York City area focusing on energy conservation in buildings, building integrated solar technologies, and applied materials research. In 1979-80, Jackson completed an internship at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and designed a demonstration project using renewable energy technologies in rural areas for the Government of Jamaica, West Indies.

Mr. Jackson has served multiple terms on the US National Boards of Directors of the American Solar Energy Society, the Caribbean Solar Energy Society, the US Green Building Council - LEED Program - Caribbean Chapter, and the Yale African American Cultural Center, and has lectured extensively in the US and the Caribbean on renewable energy and sustainable development.

For the past day or so I have been trying to find a way to adequately introduce you to my current guest, Saleem Ali, but words have escaped me. To say that he is a distinguished academic would be gross understatement. Likewise, to classify him as a combination academic and politician or sorts, is also inadequate. I could take much of what is in Wikipedia, which starts off thus, “Saleem Ali is a Pakistani American Australian academic who is the Blue and Gold Distinguished Professor of Energy and the Environment at the University of Delaware and also directs the university's Minerals, Materials and Society program….” and re-write it in some way, but that does not seem fair. However, I do strongly urge you to read his full entry here. I suppose my point is that his accomplishments are wide ranging, very impactful and exceedingly respected. We serve together on an environmentally oriented non-profit Board, which I co-chair. Since meeting him virtually about 18 months ago, I have been struck by his calm insights and clarity of thought around complex, and demanding issues. Our preparatory conversation opened my eyes to approaches and solutions I had not previously considered. I knew I wanted to share my “discovery” with those of you who listen to my podcasts. I think that you shall find his ideas more that a little captivating and great food for thought.

Hiring….There are so many approaches to hiring, right? And what does hiring have to do with the future of the planet. Well, I would contend you want the right person in the job you can provide maximum impact and value to build better companies and organizations for our world. We are inundated with statistics and methods advising us on the best, effective method to engage in hiring. Do you rely on personality assessments? Do you have your potential employee take multiple cognitive and social tests? Do you put them through an interview with tricky problems to see how they react to stress? Do you LQ, IQ, EQ? Or, do you just go with your gut, like Malcolm Gladwell? Maybe there is a better way. Mike Brady, was CEO of Greyston Inc. and launched The Greyston Center for Open Hiring advocates a decidedly different approach, one which you may want to consider. Join me in my conversation with Mike as we talk about the nature of his business and approach to hiring the best person for the job.

A little more about Mike: Mike Brady is an experienced chief executive, business advisor and entrepreneur specializing in using regenerative business practices to unlock value for businesses and communities. His passion for social entrepreneurism and the use of business to solve social issues are fundamental to his work. Most recently, Mike was the President and CEO of Greyston Inc., one of North America’s largest and oldest social enterprises. During his tenure, he achieved record growth by overhauling operations at Greyston’s 23,000 sq. ft. commercial bakery and tapping into global development opportunities with Ben and Jerry’s and Unilever. His TED Talk titled "https://www.ted.com/talks/mike_brady_and_dion_drew_why_we_hire_unemployable_people (Why We Hire Unemployable People)" established the vision that led to launching the Greyston Center for Open Hiring in 2018 and to his selection to the inaugural global list of the Top 100 Meaningful Business Leaders in 2019. In 2020, Mike was selected as a member of the Council of Criminal Justice.

Mike is a frequent speaker on the topic of the future of work and creating opportunities for people excluded from the workforce. Mike earned an M.B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School. He grew up in Rochester, New York and now lives outside of New York City with his wife and two sons.

My guest for today's podcast is Susan Masino, a professor of neuroscience at Trinity College, who stresses the link between healthy brain metabolism and nature. I don't think there are many of us who would deny that joy that one feels by taking a walk in the woods. However, Susan explains to us how and why we need that type of experience to maintain our health and sanity. Forests are not something to be exploited for purely commercial gain. Forests, and nature preserves are a necessary component of a healthy society, and planet.

Welcome to Part 3 of 3 of my conversation with Keith Merron where we look at the strategy to solve the problems we described in our two previous episodes.

Keith Merron is the founder and Managing Partner of Leadership Pathways, an organizational consulting and leadership development firm dedicated to helping organizations and leaders achieve bold visions, and realize sustainable, impactful goals for tomorrow’s world. With a PhD from Harvard, Keith has spent 35 years working with small and large organizations in the private, non-profit and government arenas to achieve better outcomes. He told me that he stopped counting after he reached 400 clients. Keith wrote 5 books and numerous articles on human and organizational development. He has led hundreds of workshops and seminars for leaders. In a nutshell, Keith is an expert on Leadership and organizational behavior.

With the challenges we face today, and the failure of our current of leaders, we need to chart a better path, one that is resolving problems thinking about the greater good, and working to be inclusive rather than its opposite. I think that you will find that Keith offers us an approach that will ultimately create better organizations from top to bottom. I hope you enjoy our conversation.

Learn more at his website here: https://www.leadership-pathways.com/ (https://www.leadership-pathways.com/)

Welcome to Part 2 of 3 of my conversation with Keith Merron where we explore the deeper reasons why we face the problems we do in our modern world.

Keith Merron is the founder and Managing Partner of Leadership Pathways, an organizational consulting and leadership development firm dedicated to helping organizations and leaders achieve bold visions, and realize sustainable, impactful goals for tomorrow’s world. With a PhD from Harvard, Keith has spent 35 years working with small and large organizations in the private, non-profit and government arenas to achieve better outcomes. He told me that he stopped counting after he reached 400 clients. Keith wrote 5 books and numerous articles on human and organizational development. He has led hundreds of workshops and seminars for leaders. In a nutshell, Keith is an expert on Leadership and organizational behavior.

With the challenges we face today, and the failure of our current of leaders, we need to chart a better path, one that is resolving problems thinking about the greater good, and working to be inclusive rather than its opposite. I think that you will find that Keith offers us an approach that will ultimately create better organizations from top to bottom. I hope you enjoy our conversation.

Learn more at his website here: https://www.leadership-pathways.com/ (https://www.leadership-pathways.com/)

Keith Merron is the founder and Managing Partner of Leadership Pathways, an organizational consulting and leadership development firm dedicated to helping organizations and leaders achieve bold visions, and realize sustainable, impactful goals for tomorrow's world. With a PhD from Harvard, Keith has spent 35 years working with small and large organizations in the private, non-profit and government arenas to achieve better outcomes. He told me that he stopped counting after he reached 400 clients. Keith wrote 5 books and numerous articles on human and organizational development. He has led hundreds of workshops and seminars for leaders. In a nutshell, Keith is an expert on Leadership and organizational behavior.

With the challenges we face today, and the failure of our current of leaders, we need to chart a better path, one that is resolving problems thinking about the greater good, and working to be inclusive rather than its opposite. I think that you will find that Keith offers us an approach that will ultimately create better organizations from top to bottom. I hope you enjoy our conversation.

Learn more at his website here: https://www.leadership-pathways.com/ (https://www.leadership-pathways.com/)

Michael Mulcahy is the Chief Executive and the Founder of Ascalon; and is the inventor of the company’s innovative technology. After graduation from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a degree in Materials Engineering, Mr. Mulcahy began his professional career with the US Navy as an aircraft carrier pilot line officer. Upon leaving the US Navy after twenty-two years as a Captain, he held Executive positions at Tyco and United Technologies. Building on these experiences, he formed Ascalon to focus on non-toxic, environmentally sustainable technologies that promote human health and well-being.

The origins that guided the idea and creation for Ascalon’s base technology began in the Navy by attempting to solve the challenges to deliver a non-toxic liquid that is universally effective as a decontaminant to mitigate chemical and biological weapon toxins. From that experience, it became clear that there were much larger applications for disinfectants, sanitizers, and cleaning products in substantial and diverse markets that were collectively underserved by inferior performance using toxic, hazardous, and polluting products.

Michael’s research led to the invention and development of a series of products made entirely from botanically-derived and food grade components that out perform all disinfectant products available today. The core of this technology product is distinguished by its unique capability to remove biofilm. By removing the biofilm, the remaining harmful microorganisms are either removed or destroyed in the process.

The target markets served by Ascalon’s technology are: healthcare, food processing, hospitality, institutional hygiene, hospitality, athletics and fitness, schools and universities, health and wellness industry, and consumer products. The aggregated annual sales volume for these market segments exceeds $25 billion globally; $14 billion in US markets. Ascalon’s product portfolio consists of multipurpose cleaning products, hospital grade disinfectants, sterilizers for surfaces and surgical instruments, and wound care applications. Future prototype products now in development include skin healing and rejuvenating applications for healthcare and beauty products market segments.

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Michael Moynihan is a data wrestler. He has worked in the internet and data world for roughly 30 years. While in the Clinton White House, he focused on issues related to data security and privacy in the first days of the internet. Today, he is CEO of a company that developed a crowd sourced productivity application called Boonan, that helps uses make better decisions to achieve their goals.

As a friend, Michael and I have had numerous conversations about the complicated inter-dependency between individuals and the corporations that are providing all the enticing services on the Internet. I thought that he would make a wonderful podcast guest who could help all of us better understand the myriad layers and complexity of our data infused world. Please join my conversation with Michael.