Sustainable Horizons

From Myplas to Waste To Energy and Electrification to NETZRO, Season 2 has been full of ups and downs and side to sides. Taylor and Logan take you through a ‘Where Are They Now?’ episode for each episode of the last season as well as a little teaser for what’s to come. Thanks for tuning in and growing with us! We’ll be back soon with more for you soon. Hosted by Taylor Karasch and Logan Wikstrom P...

Whether you live in the deep south and need more shade or live in the boonies of Minnesota aching to stay warm, insulation is likely going to be the answer to your problems. Where to start? There are many options beyond fiberglass or stuffing your walls full of old newspapers and Logan & Taylor are here to explore them and what they can do for your home to your skyscraper.  -Cloud9 Insulation:...

Smokey summers were not common growing up, but it seems like they happen every year now! Taylor and Logan hail from Minnesota where this trend has grown each summer, stacking air quality alerts one after another. Why does this phenomenon repeat and how did it start? How are people responding to the hazy skies and tangible indication of a changing local to international climate? Canada's 2023 F...

As much as hospitals save lives and maintain patient care, they have a long history of being wasteful. From Bluewrap to plastic packaging to gloves and bedding, the healthcare system was not necessarily built on a foundation of sustainability, but a focus on human health. What would it look like if we thought of environmental health and human health as deeply intertwined? Logan and Taylor explore...

Did you know that cruises suck? We find out why they do in this episode as Logan and Taylor talk about the less commonly known pollution and waste caused by cruise lines all around the world. It’s not all doom and gloom, as there are companies that are working to change the cruise and shipping industry for the common good - and forever.  Times Article: https://time.com/6285915/cruise-industry-clim...

Jon Schroeder is a Sustainability Consultant with MnTap and has worked with the EPA as well as NETZRO (check out Episode 18) on countless projects involving sustainability and upcycling. In this week’s episode, Jon shares his extensive experience with working towards the position he is in today as well as what projects he has enjoyed being a part of and what he thinks of our sustainable path relat...

The world of politics reaches deep into many parts of our daily lives and the transfer of power can bring about lots of change of all kinds. In this episode, Taylor and Logan compare and contrast the last few presidents and how their actions have altered the course of the work towards a more sustainable future. Hosted by Taylor Karasch and Logan Wikstrom Produced by Nolan Sawyer Watts Nolan instag...

Have you ever heard of "hedonistic sustainability"? Maybe many of us can relate to this idea that Logan and Taylor explore, relating to everyday life and on a larger scale. Is it up to us individuals to go forth bearing the burden of a sustainable future or do we share the responsibility with corporations and the conglomerates of the world? In this episode, we learn how we fit into this...

In this week's episode, Sustainable Horizons is joined by Sue Marshall, CEO & President of NETZRO, a company focused on providing technology, sustainable process and heathy up-cycled ingredients on a massive scale. She fields questions about why up-cycling is important, how it works, and who some of their biggest clients are, sharing about the changes that still have yet to happen in the i...

The world is moving in the direction everything being electric, but is electrification all beneficial? This week we take a look into how we make our electronic devices and how that process helps or hurts us, as well as how other parts of the world are working to offset negative effects of producing electric cars, smartphones, and more. Hosted by Taylor Karasch and Logan Wikstrom Produced by Nolan...

This week, Taylor and Logan talk about the 1.5 degrees Celsius threshold and why it matters to everyone on Earth! Who it effects, who can make changes to slow our global warming journey, and how we know a change is occurring. From The Paris Agreement and the current El Niño to Minnesota Snowfall records and the Greenland ice sheets, this episode is all about global warming. Hosted by Taylor Karasc...

Explore the finer details of an industry with many facets and much intrigue: plastic film! Taylor and Logan explore the common applications and challenges with this material as well as the mysterious closure of Myplas USA, a plastic injection molding services company in Minnesota. Hosted by Taylor Karasch and Logan Wikstrom Produced by Nolan Sawyer Watts --- Support this podcast: https://podcaster...

We're back for Season 2! Focusing on Waste To Energy and the combustion side of this process, hosts Taylor and Logan tackle the evolution of how this method came to be so widely used, as well as the pros and cons. From the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center in Minnesota to the slopes of Copenhill in Sweden, they discuss a wide variety of applications of this process in the present day. You'll...

Happy Holidays and end of 2023! Taylor and Logan wrap up Season 1 with their most special guest, their producer, Nolan Sawyer Watts. They take a look back on their conversations around compostable plastic packaging, jobs in sustainability, and forestry to give updates on the quarter. They also discuss what's to come in Season 2! PS Logan's audio was a little off this time due to some techn...

Meet our expert on forestry: Paul Johnson. He is the Senior Director of Urban and Community Forestry at Sustainable Forestry Initiative also known as SFI and has been recognized as a True Professional of Arboriculture by ISA and received the Leah MacSwords Current Achievement Award for Communications from NASF. He has been a state urban and community forestry program leader, radio talk show host,...

Forestry is complicated. Are we facing rampant deforestation? Are paper/wood products bad? Are they good? In this episode, Taylor and Logan answer all of these questions as well as provide some insight into how you can find these answers for yourself.

Meet our expert on jobs in sustainability: Kristy Drutman aka BrownGirlGreen. Kristy is a public speaker, consultant, media producer, and environmental educator passionate about working at the intersections between media, diversity, and environmentalism. Not to mention the founder of the Green Jobs Board. In this episode we talk about what went into creating one of the most popular sources for gre...

Want to get a little personal? In this episode Taylor and Logan dive into each others' stories about what led them to studying Sustainable Systems Management at the University of Minnesota, what that experience for them was like, and how a sustainability major both helped and hindered them in their early careers and today.

Meet our plastic packaging expert: Misha Medvedev. Misha is a graduate of Williams College with a major in Economics, he is the Co-Founder of Earth Brands, and was recently listed on Forbes 30 under 30. In this episode we explore the growth of one of the county's largest and fastest growing compostable cups companies as well as discuss some interesting insight into the future of the compostabl...

Did you know the reason Coca Cola switched to plastic bottles rather than glass, was to be better for the environment? How is that possible?? In this episode, we dive into the very factual reasons for this change as well as the plastic fallout that has precipitated from this movement. It's not all doom and gloom though. We also explain the efficacies of plastic recycling and compost, and we ex...

Meet our hemp expert: Charles Levine. Charles is the Founder and CEO of Hemp Acres, and, for the past seven years, Charles has immersed himself in the world of hemp; learning about hemp’s history, nutritional properties, and sustainable nature. He’s learned how to grow it, how to process it, and its innumerable applications. He is one of the first licensed hemp growers and the first licensed hemp...

Hemp. Marijuana. They're the same? They're different? They're a miracle??? You've definitely heard of them but there is certainly a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding when it comes to these multifaceted plants. In this episode, we breakdown hemp piece by piece. We dive into the long and storied history of hemp, define the differences between hemp and marijuana, explain the...

Meet our marine conservation expert: Carissa Cabrera. Carissa is a Marine Biologist & Conservationist, CEO of The Conservationist Collective, Social Media Influencer, Podcaster, Author, Photographer, and a Policy Advocate. Many of you may know her as CarissaAndClimate on TikTok and Instagram. In this episode we talk about all things marine biology and conservation, social media and communicati...

The ocean makes up 70% of our earth's surface containing 50-80% of all life on this planet; yet, when it comes to climate change, we seem to ignore it. If you have ever heard of topics such as ocean acidification, climate change and changing weather patterns, and ocean plastic pollution and wondered how they truly work to impact our environment, this episode is for you. Taylor and Logan not on...

Meet our sustainability in sports expert: Brad Vogel. He has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Sports Management from the University of Minnesota and a Masters Degree in Sustainability Management from the University of Wisconsin-Stout. In this episode he discusses how his education and mentors got him started working on a green team with the Minnesota Twins, all the way to a new and exciting role wi...