Waste World

In this episode of the Waste World Podcast, Gage Edwards chats with Christy Hurlburt, Senior Director at Viably, about the challenges and opportunities facing the waste and sustainability industries. With experience spanning climate technology, the circular economy, food waste diversion, and resource recovery, Hurlburt discussed what it takes to move sustainability initiatives beyond ambitious goals and into practical, scalable sol...

On this episode of the Waste World Podcast, Gage Edwards speaks with David Lawes, CEO of Interchange 360, about the role of product stewardship and collection system design in improving recycling and recovery. Lawes explained why the way materials are collected can have a major impact on participation, contamination, and recovery rates, particularly for specialized products such as lubricants and petroleum-based automotive products...

On this episode of the Waste World podcast, Gage Edwards talks with Emily Darchuk, founder and CEO of Wheyward Spirit and a 2026 Waste360 40 Under 40 award winner. Darchuk discusses her entrepreneurial journey, the inspiration behind building a business around upcycled whey, and the challenges of bringing an unconventional circular economy concept to the consumer market.

Through Wheyward Spirit, Darchuk is demonstrating how an overl...

On this episode of the Waste World Podcast, Gage Edwards chats with Dr. Brenna Ellison, director of the Center for Food Conservation and Waste Reduction, about what research can tell us about why food waste happens at home and how families can make meaningful changes. Ellison discussed some of the behaviors and decisions that contribute to wasted food, from shopping and meal planning to food storage and managing leftovers, while al...

On this episode of the Waste World podcast, Waste360's Gage Edwards talks with Hassan Murad, CEO and Co-Founder of Intuitive AI, a 2026 Waste360 Top 40 Under 40 honoree, and recipient of the Waste360 Innovator Award. Murad discusses his journey into the waste and recycling industry, the development of Oscar Sort, Intuitive AI's AI-powered recycling assistant, and how technology can improve disposal decisions, reduce contamination, ...

Acquisitions have become a powerful growth tool across the waste industry, but a deal is about far more than adding another company to a portfolio. Behind every transaction are questions about strategy, integration, employees, customers, and what the combined organization can accomplish that the two companies could not do separately.

On this episode of the Waste World podcast, HP Nanda, CEO of Arcwood Environmental, chats with Gage ...

 In this episode of the Waste World podcast, Gage Edwards chats with Cameron Douglas, Lead Product Manager at AMP and a 2026 Waste360 40 Under 40 award winner. Douglas discusses his career journey, AMP's role in advancing large-scale recycling infrastructure projects, the evolving relationship between technology and recycling operations, and why collaboration between technology providers, municipalities, and facility operators...

Our latest Waste World podcast spotlights Carolina Lobel, director of reuse at Closed Loop Partners' Center for the Circular Economy and one of our 2026 Waste360 40 Under 40 honorees.

Carolina shares why she believes the circular economy is reaching an inflection point. We talk about her journey from consumer goods to helping launch Loop at TerraCycle, and how she's leading reuse initiatives today. Along the way, we explore consumer...

In this episode of the Waste World Podcast, Gage Edwards chats with Victoria Taylor, CEO of Probe Industries, about why odor management is becoming an increasingly important priority for waste and recycling operations. Taylor discussed how persistent odors can affect more than just neighboring communities, explaining that air quality also plays a role in employee well-being, operational performance, and regulatory compliance as fac...

In this episode of the Waste World Podcast, Gage Edwards chats with Kevin Kelly, CEO of Emerald Packaging, about the rollout of California's SB 54 and the challenges businesses are encountering as the state's Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) program moves from legislation to implementation. 

Kelly discussed the law's intent to reduce packaging waste while shifting responsibility to producers, but explained how complex rep...

In this episode of the Waste World Podcast, Gage Edwards sits down with Todd Ellis, Vice President of Services and Solutions at The Battery Network, to discuss one of the fastest-growing challenges facing the waste and recycling industry: battery collection and recycling. Ellis explains why consumers often struggle to understand where batteries should be disposed of and how that confusion contributes to contamination, safety concer...

In this episode of the Waste World Podcast, Gage Edwards recaps his experience attending the Waste Leadership Summit and highlights some of the biggest conversations shaping the waste and recycling industry. From interviews, panel discussions, and other events at the show, he explores recurring themes that surfaced throughout the summit, including artificial intelligence, safety culture, PFAS management, and the growing challenge o...

In this episode of the Waste World Podcast, Gage Edwards sits down with Dave Riordan, chief customer officer at Lytx, and Ryan Brandos, senior director of strategic accounts, to discuss how AI, video analytics and connected technologies are reshaping fleet operations in the waste industry.

Riordan and Brandos discuss emerging uses for AI-powered video systems, including service verification, contamination monitoring, pedestrian dete...

In this episode of the Waste World Podcast, Gage Edwards chats with J.T. Marburger, CEO of Circular Solutions, about the importance of recycling verification and how better data can help improve transparency across the industry. 

The podcast centers on the company's deployment of its Circular OS™ platform at the Indianapolis 500, where Circular Solutions tracked beverage containers from collection through downstream processing ...

On this episode of the Waste World podcast, Gage Edwards is joined by Liz Bothwell, Head of Content at Waste360 and founder of the 40 Under 40 program, for a conversation reflecting on a decade of recognizing the waste and recycling industry’s rising stars. Together, they discuss how the awards program has evolved over the years, the changing face of leadership across the industry, and the impact the recognition has had on pa...

This episode of the Waste World Podcast features a session from WasteExpo 2025, moderated by Gage Edwards. The session “Cleaner Streets, Smarter Routes: How AI is Shaping Waste Collection” explored how municipalities, fleet operators, and technology providers are applying AI to route optimization, maintenance, contamination detection, and curbside collection. 

Panelists included Craig Vanderhyde of Entangles, Kelly ...

On this week’s episode of the Waste World podcast, Gage Edwards breaks down key takeaways from the 2026 ReMA conference. This year’s discussions highlighted how industry is navigating increasing complexity, from operational safety risks to evolving regulatory frameworks and the growing role of advanced technologies. But one question remained: how can the industry scale effectively while managing new and emerging challen...

In this episode of the Waste World Podcast, Gage Edwards spoke with Alexis Wells Carpenter, Chief Innovation Officer at AxNano, about how PFAS are impacting the industry and what it will take to address them. Carpenter highlights how AxNano is focused on moving beyond traditional containment methods by developing technologies that can fully destroy PFAS, particularly through on-site, point-source treatment.

In this episode, Carpente...

Bank mergers are usually covered in terms of size, speed and regulatory approval. Yet sometimes the most important part is what they mean for the industries those banks serve.

That’s what makes this conversation with Joe Ursuy, Executive Vice President, National Businesses for Energy, Renewables, and Waste, so valuable.

Following Fifth Third’s acquisition of Comerica, Ursuy finds himself leading an expanded platform at a ...