Lilian Judy wraps up her first season with her Plastics & Beyond podcast by reflecting on her journey in understanding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI); discussing her experiences and those of others with diverse backgrounds in engineering; and expressing her hopes for improvements as younger generations who have higher expectations for DEI enter the engineering workforce.

Lilian Judy is the host of the Plastics & Beyond podcast, an applications engineer, and founder of the Women In Engineering Mentorship Organization (WEMO).

This podcast is sponsored by SPE-Inspiring Plastics Professionals.

On this episode of the Plastics & Beyond Podcast, Lilian Judy hosts Lynzie Nebel, Upstream Quote Engineer at Cytiva, co-host of the PlastChicks podcast and VP Member Engagement of the SPE-Inspiring Plastics Professionals Executive Board. They discuss the challenges women face in plastics engineering, the role of mentorship, their career journeys, diversity and the value of networking and connections in career development.

This podcast is sponsored by SPE-Inspiring Plastics Professionals.

On this episode of the Plastics & Beyond Podcast, Lilian Judy hosts Evan Morton, Programs and Sustainability Coordinator, SPE Foundation, live at ANTEC® 2022. They discuss their journey in STEM, bringing research opportunities to students of diverse backgrounds to help form their future, the importance of introducing students to STEM and plastics engineering opportunities in middle and high schools, the challenges that students with diverse backgrounds face in pursuing STEM careers and the vital role that it plays for students to see people like themselves in scientific careers. They also consider the expectations that are placed upon them by their communities as successful professionals to give back to their community.

Find out more about the SPE Foundation.

This podcast is sponsored by SPE-Inspiring Plastics Professionals.

On this episode of the Plastics & Beyond Podcast, Lilian Judy hosts Jon Ratzlaff, Technical Services Manager, Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LP, live at ANTEC® 2022. They discuss millennials in the plastics job market, finding a job that fits your personality, approaches to diverse hiring with a broad view of diversity, the challenges of finding diverse candidates for job openings, the benefits of diversity, and Chevron Phillips' approach to diversity.

Jon is a past president of SPE-Inspiring Plastics Professionals.

This podcast is sponsored by SPE-Inspiring Plastics Professionals.

On this episode of the Plastics & Beyond Podcast, Lilian Judy hosts Lloyd Martin, Senior VP of Manufacturing and IT, CKS Packaging, live at ANTEC® 2022. They discuss the Second Chance Program, where they provide careers in the plastics industry for people who come from homeless, rehabilitation facility or prison backgrounds; the need to consider the re-entry and re-integration processes; the importance of mentoring; support for paths in career building; working in a Christian-valued organization; and how a business can start their own Second Chance Program.

This podcast is sponsored by SPE-Inspiring Plastics Professionals.

On this episode of the Plastics & Beyond Podcast, Lilian Judy hosts James Emmett, Owner, James Emmett & Company, live at ANTEC® 2022. They discuss building disability inclusion into a company's labor and diversity strategies, James' journey living with disabilities and being a parent and advocate for disabilities, challenges in employment for those with physical vs. hidden disabilities, and benefits of hiring people with disabilities.

This podcast is sponsored by SPE-Inspiring Plastics Professionals.

Welcome to the debut episode of the Plastics & Beyond Podcast, sponsored by SPE-Inspiring Plastics Professionals.

Host Lilian Judy explores the effects of having DEI conversations in the plastics industry with two special guests: Patrick Farrey, CEO of SPE and Eve Vitale, Chief Executive of the SPE Foundation.

They discuss why SPE is embarking on a DEI journey, share some personal experiences and explore some challenges they may face. 

Stay tuned for monthly episodes and follow on social media, instagram @plasticsandbeyondpodcast