Business for Good Podcast

Right now, roughly 40% of global emissions come from the built environment. Most of those emissions are hidden deep within the materials themselves, in the concrete, steel, and plastics that are mined or extracted from underground at enormous energy costs. What if that model could be reversed entirely? In this episode of Business For Good, Paul Shapiro sits down with Allison Dring, CEO of Made of Air, to explore how waste biomass can be converted into carbon-storing building materials through a process called pyrolysis. Instead of mining resources from underground, the company uses sawdust and wood waste that would otherwise go to landfill, bakes it in a high-temperature, low-oxygen oven, and produces biochar, a stable form of elemental carbon that locks atmospheric CO2 away for roughly a thousand years. The conversation covers why the built environment is such a massive source of emissions, how biochar-based cladding panels can replace steel, cement fiber board, and fossil-based plastics at competitive prices, and why the real bottleneck is not the technology but industry adoption. Things You Will Learn: Why roughly 40% of global emissions come from the built environment, with about half of that embedded in the materials themselves. How pyrolysis converts waste biomass into biochar that locks carbon out of the atmosphere for approximately a thousand years. Why no building on earth today has achieved a fully carbon-negative life cycle, and what it would take to change that. How Made of Air's cladding panels replace steel, cement fiber board, and fossil-based plastics with carbon-negative alternatives. Why the company is targeting price parity with conventional building materials by the end of 2027 without any green premium. Tools & Frameworks Covered: Biochar Through Pyrolysis: A process of baking waste biomass in a high-temperature, low-oxygen oven that converts stored CO₂ into stable elemental carbon, creating a material that does not re-release carbon for roughly a thousand years. Above-Ground vs. Below-Ground Resources: A framework for rethinking where building materials come from, shifting from mined and fossil-extracted resources to biomass waste streams that already exist in agriculture and forestry. Embodied Carbon Compliance: A long-term planning approach where real estate developers evaluate building materials based on 30 to 50 year regulatory trajectories rather than current requirements alone. #BusinessForGood #FutureOfFood #AlternativeProtein #SustainableBusiness

What if the things you believe are best for the environment are actually making it worse? In this episode of Business For Good, Paul Shapiro sits down with Hannah Ritchie, data scientist at Our World in Data and author of Not the End of the World and Clearing the Air, to challenge some of the most widely held assumptions in sustainability. Hannah explains why locally produced food rarely has a meaningfully lower carbon footprint than imported alternatives, why organic farming often demands more land to produce the same amount of food, and why nuclear energy is one of the safest and most land-efficient power sources available. She walks through the data behind each of these claims and explains how well-intentioned environmental orthodoxies can actually slow progress toward the outcomes they aim to achieve. Things You Will Learn: Why buying local food does not significantly reduce your carbon footprint compared to choosing lower-impact foods from anywhere in the world. How the carbon footprint of keeping a dog compares to the average American's total annual emissions. Why nuclear energy has caused far fewer deaths per unit of electricity than fossil fuels over its entire history. Why cement production and air conditioning represent some of the most neglected opportunities for climate innovation. Tools & Frameworks Covered: Food Miles vs. Production Emissions: A data-driven framework showing that transportation accounts for roughly five percent of total food system emissions, while on-farm production and land use change dominate the footprint of most foods. Land Sparing vs. Land Sharing: Two competing approaches to balancing agricultural production with biodiversity conservation, where intensive farming on less land is weighed against lower-intensity farming spread across more land. Per-Unit Safety Comparison for Energy: A method of evaluating energy sources by calculating deaths per unit of electricity generated, which consistently shows nuclear and renewables are far safer than fossil fuels. #BusinessForGood #FutureOfFood #AlternativeProtein #SustainableBusiness

Episode Summary: What if the next great venture opportunity isn't in AI or fintech but in protecting nature itself? In this episode of Business For Good, Paul Shapiro sits down with Tom Quigley, Co-founder of Superorganism, one of the first venture funds built entirely around biodiversity protection. With a freshly closed $26 million fund, Tom explains why over half of global GDP depends on healthy ecosystems, and why the degradation of those systems creates massive risk exposure for industries and supply chains worldwide. The conversation covers how biodiversity investing differs from climate tech, why cattle is among the most destructive forces for tropical ecosystems, and where venture-backed startups can intervene across areas like AI-powered wildlife monitoring, bird-safe glass, forest microbiome restoration, and silvopasture transitions. Things You Will Learn: Why over 55% of global GDP is moderately or heavily dependent on intact natural ecosystems. How biodiversity investing differs from climate tech and why it opens up categories like invasive species, bird-safe infrastructure, and soil restoration. Why cattle ranching is one of the most significant drivers of tropical biodiversity loss, hitting multiple vectors from deforestation to methane to runoff. How AI-powered camera systems are helping wind farm operators monitor and reduce bird strikes while defending against political opposition. Why bird-safe glass could prevent up to one to two billion bird deaths per year in the US alone, and what makes it an investable category. Tools & Frameworks Covered: Biodiversity Venture Thesis: A three-pillar investment framework targeting companies that disrupt industries driving biodiversity loss, operate at the overlap of climate and nature, or build enabling deep technologies for conservation. Dynamic Curtailment for Wind Farms: AI-powered camera systems that identify bird species near turbines and trigger slowdowns or shutdowns in real time to reduce strikes while maintaining energy output. Forest Microbiome Restoration: A soil treatment approach modeled on human gut microbiome transplants that restores mycorrhizal fungal networks in degraded lands to dramatically increase timber yield and ecosystem health. Silvopasture Transition: A land management strategy that integrates trees into cattle pastures, providing alternative revenue through forestry, native biodiversity plantings, and improved livestock performance through reduced heat stress. #BusinessForGood #FutureOfFood #AlternativeProtein #SustainableBusiness

Episode Summary: What if the most abundant protein on Earth has been hiding in plain sight inside green leaves? In this episode of Business For Good, Paul Shapiro sits down with Ross Milne, CEO of Leaft Foods, to explore how a new approach to food production could unlock massive amounts of high-quality protein directly from plants. Instead of feeding crops to animals or waiting for plants to produce seeds, Ross explains how his team isolates Rubisco, a highly digestible protein found in every green leaf, through mechanical fractionation processes that separate proteins, fiber, and carbohydrates. The conversation explores why Alfalfa is uniquely suited for this system, how Rubisco compares nutritionally to whey and egg proteins, and why leaf-based protein could become a fourth pillar of global protein production alongside meat, dairy, and seed proteins. Things You Will Learn: Why Rubisco is the most abundant protein on Earth, and why humans rarely consume it directly. How isolating protein from green leaves could dramatically increase food system efficiency. Why Alfalfa is a powerful crop for scalable protein production. How Rubisco compares nutritionally with whey, eggs, and plant proteins. Why leaf-based protein could become a fourth pillar of global protein production. Tools & Frameworks Covered: Leaf Protein Extraction: A mechanical fractionation process that opens plant cells and isolates protein, fiber, and carbohydrates for different food applications. Rubisco Protein: A highly abundant plant protein involved in photosynthesis that offers strong amino acid profiles and high digestibility for human nutrition. Systems Thinking for Food Production: Reframing the food system by removing unnecessary conversion steps (like feeding plants to animals) and extracting nutrients directly from plants. #BusinessForGood #FutureOfFood #AlternativeProtein #SustainableBusiness

Episode Summary What if the global food system isn't "broken" in the way sustainability debates usually claim, and treating it that way leads to worse decisions? Paul Shapiro sits down with Jan Dutkiewicz and Gabriel Rosenberg, authors of Feed the People, to unpack how industrial scale and trade created unprecedented food abundance, why "eat local" and small-farm nostalgia collapses at 8 billion people, and what practical policy levers can improve outcomes without fantasy. They explore a clear framework, more food, less feed, no fuel, why animal agriculture remains an inefficient use of land and protein, and how public policy can reshape meat demand by changing incentives instead of accepting forecasts as fate. You'll leave with sharper systems thinking, grounded tradeoffs, and a clearer view of what scalable food system decarbonization can actually look like. Things You Will Learn How to evaluate food system claims using systems logic instead of slogans. Why meat demand rises, and how policy can bend the curve without moralizing. What "more food, less feed, no fuel" implies for land use, emissions, and investment priorities. Tools & Frameworks Covered More food, less feed, no fuel. Prioritizes crops for human food over animal feed and biofuels. Incentives over narratives. Shows how policy choices shape production, prices, and demand. Democratic hedonism. Meets people where they are, then reduces harm at scale. #BusinessForGood #SustainableBusiness #FutureOfFood #AlternativeProtein #FoodSystemDecarbonization

Episode Summary A rice field does not look like the starting point for a scalable building materials company until you understand the economics behind it. In this episode of Business For Good, Paul Shapiro sits down with Chris Guimond, Founder and CEO of Modern Mill, to explore how discarded rice hulls are being transformed into ACRE, a wood like siding, decking, and trim product designed to replace old growth lumber. Chris explains why deforestation is a supply and demand problem, how Modern Mill cracked the manufacturing and adoption challenges that derail most composites, and what it takes to raise significant capital to build real infrastructure in the United States. The conversation covers circular economy manufacturing, competing with billion dollar incumbents, and why climate solutions scale only when they outperform existing systems on cost, durability, and ease of use. Things You Will Learn Why most sustainable materials fail at adoption and how to avoid that trap How supply chain location determines whether upcycling works economically What it takes to scale a hard tech manufacturing business in a legacy industry Tools and Frameworks Covered Supply chain proximity strategy to control logistics costs and reliability Adoption first product design for builders and contractors Capacity planning to scale manufacturing without breaking trust Episode Timestamps 05:10 – Why rice hulls present a hidden opportunity in building materials 08:56 – Cracking the code on turning agricultural waste into scalable products 13:20 – Why most composites fail to replace wood 25:20 – How logistics and location shape upcycling economics 35:10 – Scaling capacity before demand fully arrives #BusinessForGood #SustainableBusiness #CircularEconomy #ClimateSolutions #FutureOfFood

If you've ever checked the ingredients on a baked good, you know how ubiquitous eggs are. They bind, they lift, they emulsify, they hold moisture — they're simply the structural engineers of cookies, cakes, and muffins everywhere. But they're also volatile: prices spike, supply chains break, and for anyone with an egg allergy or who's avoiding eggs for animal welfare or environmental reasons, eggs aren't exactly a welcome ingredient to find on the ingredient deck. Enter Hadar Ekhoiz Razmovich, CEO and co-founder of Meala FoodTech, an Israeli startup that's figured out how to make peas do what eggs and hydrocolloids do, and has consequently raised several million dollars in venture capital so far. Meala's breakthrough lies in taking simple pea protein and using advanced biotechnology to unlock its hidden abilities — creating a single-ingredient powder that they say can whip, bind, and gel just like an egg in baked goods and alternative meat. No multi-ingredient formulations, no methylcellulose, no animal inputs — just plants doing some biochemical magic. In this episode, Hadar shares how her background in R&D led her to tackle one of food science's toughest challenges: replacing eggs and hydrocolloids without sacrificing texture, taste, or cost. We talk about how Meala's technology works, what it takes to convince industrial bakeries to swap eggs for peas, and why she believes clean-label ingredients like this are the future of food. Hadar is not just rethinking what we eat, she and her team are rebuilding the food system from scratch, one cookie, cake, and croissant at a time. Discussed in this episode Meals is backed by The Kitchen Food Tech Hub, DSM's venture arm, Milk & Honey Ventures, Lasenor, and EIT. Our past episode with Milk & Honey Ventures' Beni Nofech. More on Meala's egg replacer, GroundBaker, is here. You can see two pending patent applications of Meala's here and here. Get to know Hadar Ekhoiz Razmovich Hadar Ekhoiz Razmovich brings over 12 years of leadership experience in the global food industry, with a strong focus on driving innovation and R&D across traditional food sectors. Throughout her career, she has led complex, multidisciplinary projects from early concept development to full commercial launch, consistently bridging technological capabilities with real market needs. In 2021, she founded Meala FoodTech with a mission to transform the food industry. Under her leadership, Meala is pioneering clean-label functional protein that deliver superior texture, bite, and mouthfeel—without compromise and without undesirable additives. Her work empowers food manufacturers to create simpler, more natural, and better-tasting products, setting a new benchmark for next-generation of food. Hadar is widely recognized for her strategic vision, deep industry insight, and ability to translate scientific innovation into scalable commercial solutions.

What if one solution to fashion's waste problem is literally growing on our own heads? Every day, salons around the world toss out millions of pounds of freshly cut human hair — a clean, protein-rich, renewable resource that mostly ends up in landfills or incinerators. But what if that so-called waste could become the next sustainable textile? My guest on this episode, Zsofia Kollar, is the founder and CEO of Human Material Loop, a Netherlands-based startup turning salon hair waste into a high-performance fibre that behaves like wool — but with 43 times lower CO₂ emissions, 20 times less water use, and none of the animal cruelty or plastics. Their branded fiber, called Adara, is already being spun into things like carpets, curtains, and acoustic panels — and it's made from something we all grow ourselves. In this conversation, Zsofia and I talk about how she got the idea to build an entire materials company out of human hair, how her technology works, why hair is such a strong and versatile material, the "ick" factor of human-derived fibres, and how she's scaling her model so that salons and HML benefit alike. If you think using human hair in textiles sounds strange, stick around — because by the end of this episode, you might just want a carpet made from your own cut-offs. I'll let Zsofia make the case. Discussed in this episode Washington Post coverage of Human Material Loop's work. Vogue and CNN have covered their work, too. Zoroastrians sometimes practice sky burial on a Tower of Silence, in which vultures are allowed to consume a recently deceased human. Our past episode on human composting with Recompose. Get to Know Zsofia Kollar Zsofia Kollar is a forward-thinking entrepreneur passionate about sustainable innovation. Science and design are crucial in the company's development. After her experience running an independent design studio, Zsofia was driven to reimagine waste management, focusing particularly on hair waste. Her goal is to foster collaboration and innovation for a more sustainable future. Human Material Loop demonstrates that sustainability and economic growth can coexist. Zsofia's dedication extends beyond her CEO role—she's also a published author and university lecturer, inspiring others in design and sustainability. Her vision entails holistic sustainability, where science, design, and collaboration reshape waste management and drive innovation.

If you've ever changed a diaper, you might've wondered what happens to it after it goes in the trash. The answer, unfortunately, is that it'll sit in a landfill for hundreds of years—certainly longer than the baby who briefly wore it will live. In fact, every diaper you wore when you were a baby is still sitting around, at best in a landfill, or perhaps even in the ocean. And did you know the average American baby goes through 6,000 diapers before learning to use a toilet? But what if fungi could change that? In this episode, I sit down with serial entrepreneur Miki Agrawal, the founder of Thinx (yes, the period underwear company), Tushy (yes, the bidet company), and now HIRO Technologies—a company using plastic-eating fungi to help disposable diapers return to the earth. Miki, who some have dubbed the "Queen of pee, poop, and periods," (I think they should shorten it to the "Queen of Secretions") shares how an opportune moment with her toddler and a children's book about fungi inspired her to launch HIRO. Her company's first product—HIRO Diapers—uses a packet of dormant, culinary-grade fungi that awaken when exposed to moisture and begin breaking down the diaper's plastic components, dramatically reducing its landfill lifespan from centuries to under a year, after which it simply becomes dirt. We talk about everything from the science of fungal degradation to the challenges of biotech entrepreneurship, from raising millions for an unconventional idea to why she believes reconnecting with nature is the ultimate form of innovation. Whether you're a parent, a sustainability enthusiast, or just fascinated by the intersection of biology and business, this conversation will make you rethink what "waste" really means. Discussed in this episode It was the children's book Pacha's Pajamas that implanted the idea in Miki's mind about plastic-eating fungi. You can buy HIRO Diapers here. You can see HIRO's original kickstarter, including video pitch, here. Miki recommends checking out the UN Millenium Goals for ideas of companies to create. Reuters discusses HIRO's launch and technology. Miki also started Thinkx (period underwear) and Tushy (bidets). More about Miki Agrawal Miki Agrawal is the creative force behind acclaimed social enterprises TUSHY (the modern bidet brand), THINX (period-proof underwear), and WILD (NYC's first gluten-free pizza concept), collectively valued at over $250 million. Miki is the author of best-selling books "DO COOL SH*T" and "DISRUPT-HER". Her latest company HIRO is a revolutionary nature-based start-up harnessing ancient technology - fungi - to help solve the global plastic crisis. Their first product is a baby diaper that returns to the earth with the help of friendly fungi. (They chose diapers to launch with because they're the #1 household plastic waste item that takes 400+ years to decompose in a landfill - and each baby uses ~6,000 diapers in their lifetime. Wild, right?) HIRO Diapers starts returning to the earth with the help of fungi - and they're soft, safe, high-performing and ready to change the game. Recognized as one of Fast Company's "Most Creative People," a "Young Global Leader" by the World Economic Forum, and named one of INC's "Most Impressive Women Entrepreneurs," Miki brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the stage as a keynote speaker. Her authentic talks have been validated by audiences at MindValley, EO, and Capitalism.com, who have voted for her as the #1 best speaker among hundreds of speakers.

When you think about climate change solutions, your mind might go to renewable energy, electric vehicles, or eating less meat. These are all of course important. But even if we stopped all emissions today, we'd still have too much CO2 in the atmosphere and would need to pull a lot of our emissions out of it. That's the bold mission of Aircapture, a California-based company pioneering modular direct air capture technology. On this episode, I speak with Matt Atwood, Aircapture's founder and CEO, about how his company is not only working to reduce atmospheric CO₂, but also profitably supplying it to industries that rely on the gas today—like beverage makers, greenhouses, and more. Instead of relying on fossil fuel byproducts or ethanol fermentation for their CO₂, companies can now get a cleaner, more reliable, and often cheaper supply directly from the air. Matt explains how Aircapture's approach differs from traditional large-scale carbon capture projects by focusing on on-site, modular units that can be shipped in a container and installed within weeks. These systems already commercially operate in the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, giving customers local CO₂ while shrinking supply chain emissions. We dig into the economics of direct air capture, the climate math of whether it truly reduces atmospheric carbon, and the criticisms that it could provide a "moral license" to keep burning fossil fuels. Matt also shares how Aircapture recently raised a $50 million Series A—during a tough climate tech funding market—and what gives investors confidence that their model will scale where others have stumbled. If you've ever wondered whether pulling CO₂ out of thin air is realistic—or just hype—this conversation will give you a fascinating inside look. Discussed in this episode Our past episode with Make Sunsets about sulfur dioxide injections into the atmosphere. We've done other episodes on geoengineering, for example on olivine spreading (Vesta and Eion), sulfur dioxide injections (Make Sunsets), direct carbon capture (Global Thermostat). Al Gore's skepticism about direct air capture. Matt recommends reading Ministry for the Future. Paul recommends Dan Carlin's The End is Always Near. Matt reflects on his earlier work with Algae Systems and why he thinks wastewater treatment improvements are so important. Paul suggests tackling wastewater treatment with Neurospora species, as discussed here, here, here, and elsewhere. Get to Know Matt Atwood Matt is a technologist, chemist, entrepreneur and pioneer in the DAC space. He has over 20 years experience in renewable and climate technology development and over a decade of experience with DAC and CO2 utilization technologies. Matt developed the world's first energy-positive wastewater treatment platform as Founder & CEO of Algae Systems. He has built and commercialized technologies in CO2, water, AgTech, waste treatment, and biofuels.

It's rare that we contemplate where all the plastic we throw out goes, but rest assured that nearly none of it is being recycled. Simply put, it's usually cheaper to make new plastic than to recycle old plastic, even the plastic you put in the recycling bin. Because it takes plastic centuries to break down, this means for each one of us you could build a mountain of plastic from all the packaging we use over the course of our lives. But what if plastic didn't have to take centuries to break down, and could actually biodegrade in a matter of days or weeks? That's exactly the vision Luna Yu is bringing to life as founder and CEO of Genecis Bioindustries, a biotech company using fermentation to transform food waste into high-performance, truly compostable bioplastics. In this episode, Luna joins us—at 1 a.m. her time from a manufacturing run in China—to share the story behind Genecis, from her early days as a teenage entrepreneur in Canada to raising $17 million for her startup in the climate tech world. Luna walks us through how Genecis engineers microbes to turn low-cost industrial waste streams like glycerol into PHA, a biodegradable plastic alternative that's already being used in consumer products like Mad Tea and Mad Coffee. We discuss why Genecis is taking a direct-to-consumer approach, how they're preparing to launch in Sprouts nationwide, and what it will take to make sustainable plastics cost-competitive with petroleum-based ones. We also dive into Luna's big bets on the future—including cell-free biology, the promise of enzyme-only production systems, and her vision for a world where the most convenient option is also the most sustainable. If you're curious about the intersection of synthetic biology, circular economy, and product design—or you just want to hear from someone reshaping the future of plastic—this episode is for you. Discussed in this episode You can learn more about Genecis' technology by reading their patents and patent applications here. Luna is very inspired by Isomorphic Labs. Genecis is backed by Amazon and is a graduate of the Y Combinator accelerator. CJ Biomaterials manufactures PHA via fermentation. Plastic has only been around since the 1950s but we believe it lasts for centuries. How do we know? Researchers simulate environmental exposure in labs by increasing UV radiation, temperature, moisture, and mechanical stress to accelerate plastic breakdown. They analyze how the polymer chains degrade and extrapolate those results to estimate natural-world decay timelines. Get to Know Luna Yu Luna Yu is the CEO of Genecis Bioindustries. She completed her Bachelors and Masters in Environmental Science at the age of 21 at the University of Toronto. During her Undergrad, Luna co-founded, grew and exited from two profitable software startups. The exciting advancements in fields of synthetic biology, bioinformatics, and machine learning led her to infuse her passion and experience together. This created Genecis, where biotechnology enables the conversion of food waste into high value materials.

What if we could grow nutritious, sustainable protein—not in months or weeks—but in just one day? This episode's guest is doing just that. Rather than going big with animal agriculture, MicroHarvest is going small with microbial agriculture. A huge number of animals are used to feed both our pets and the animals we raise for food. Kate Bekers, the CEO and co-founder of MicroHarvest, is seeking to change that. She's running a fast-rising European biotech startup using fermentation to produce high-quality protein from microbes—in just 24 hours. Based in Hamburg and Lisbon, MicroHarvest is on a mission to reshape how the world thinks about protein production. Rather than growing plants or animals, they grow single-cell microbes in bioreactors, yielding a high-protein, micronutrient-rich ingredient that can be used in everything from animal feed and pet food to, eventually, human food. With 10 million euros raised and hopefully a new 30 million euro round on the horizon, their process is fast, efficient, and radically resource-light—requiring far less land, water, and energy than traditional agriculture. Already able to produce one ton of their product per day, MicroHarvest is proving that microbial protein isn't just a lab experiment—it's a scalable, real-world solution. In this episode, Kate shares what it takes to bring biotech innovation to market, and why she believes protein production should be faster, cleaner, and closer to the consumer. We talk about the company's entry into pet food and aquaculture, and what the future holds for sustainable protein made from the tiniest organisms on Earth. If you're curious about the future of food, circular economies, or how to build a business that's good for animals and the planet, this conversation is for you.

What if we could turn the mountains of food waste we generate every day into high-value chemicals that replace fossil fuels and palm oil—two of the most environmentally destructive inputs in our economy? That's exactly what this episode's guest is doing. Marc den Hartog is the CEO of ChainCraft, a Dutch biotechnology company using fermentation to convert agricultural waste into medium-chain fatty acids—essential building blocks for everything from fats for foods to lubricants to bioplastics and fragrances. Founded as a spin-off from Wageningen University, ChainCraft is pioneering open-culture fermentation process that offers a scalable, circular alternative to petroleum-based chemicals. And they're not just operating at the lab bench—in addition to having raised 40 million euros in investment so far, the company already has a pilot facility in Amsterdam producing 2,000 tons of fatty acids per year, with plans for a full-scale industrial plant underway. Marc joined ChainCraft after a distinguished career in the chemical industry, including senior roles at Corbion and other global players. Now, he's applying that experience to scale a cleantech company aiming to rewire one of the dirtiest parts of our supply chains—chemical production—into a model of sustainability. In this conversation, Marc and I talk about how ChainCraft's technology works, why food waste is a goldmine of untapped value and what it will take for his team to go from demo plant to commercial scale. If you care about the future of sustainable industry, the circular economy, or just finding smarter ways to deal with the waste we already produce, you're going to love this episode.