Helping people and organizations thrive by unlocking their best work.
Thriving starts with clarity.
Every transformation begins with a clear vision and the courage to act. From global sustainability movements to scaling businesses, I’ve seen that clarity unlocks flow, focus, and impact. When leaders align around what matters most, people and organizations thrive.
Movements that matter.
I’ve spent the last two decades helping shape the modern circular economy movement — from advising the United Nations and World Economic Forum to leading Upstream and now serving as CEO of CLYNK. My focus has always been the same: advancing ideas that scale, building coalitions that last, and creating systems where people and the planet can thrive.
Scaling what works.
As CEO of CLYNK, I’ve led teams through rapid growth, market expansion, and deep partnerships with retailers and brands. Scaling isn’t just about size — it’s about building the systems, culture, and focus that allow people and businesses to thrive. My work has centered on turning big ideas into measurable impact, balancing innovation with execution.
Building what’s next.
Innovation doesn’t stop with what’s been achieved. I’m now focused on helping leaders harness AI, design operating systems that unlock flow, and create organizations where people can do their best work. The goal is simple: build systems that thrive — for teams, for businesses, and for the future we all share.
I’m a 20+ year environmental solutioneer and recognized thought leader in the circular economy space in the United States and globally. I’m passionate about collaborating to solve big problems - especially around ideating and catalyzing better systems and norms to help the planet and its inhabitants thrive. I’ve had the opportunity to work with incredible leaders to help launch four sustainability movements: 1. safer chemicals in products and packaging; 2. extended producer responsibility (where producers pay to take back their products or packaging for reuse or recycling); 3. plastic pollution reduction; and 4. reusable packaging as a transformative solution to waste.
Over the first 10 years of my career, I served as a strategist, lobbyist, organizer and communications lead for various environmental, social and political causes, coalitions and campaigns - culminating in my tenure as Legislative Director for the Natural Resources Council of Maine.
But I found my dream job in 2011 when I joined Upstream - a national non-profit sparking innovative solutions to plastic pollution and our current throw-away culture. I took over as CEO in 2015, and now I primarily work as a thought leader, business development / brand strategist, executive leader, vision / culture steward, fundraiser and relationship cultivator.
I’ve had the good fortune to work within and for the climate, environmental health, product stewardship, plastic pollution and zero waste movements. I helped found the global Break Free from Plastic Movement, the Cradle2 Coalition and the Make It Take It Campaign. And I helped establish and advance the Electronics Takeback Coalition, the Multi-State Mercury Campaign, and Safer Chemicals and Healthy Families Coalition where I worked on dozens of successful legislative policy campaigns.
In the last several years, I’ve advised the United Nations Environment Program, World Economic Forum, and Urban Sustainability Directors Network on their plastic pollution and circularity strategies and written for the Guardian, GreenBiz, and Sustainable Brands among other publications. My work has been featured in the Economist, the Washington Post, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, National Public Radio, and several documentary films.
As a fundraiser, I’ve helped raise more than $11 million dollars over the last 10 years and directed Upstream’s resources to creating an outsized impact for an organization our size.
One of my talents is being able to take complex ideas and break them down into accessible, inspiring stories for policymakers, business leaders, and everyday solutioneers to grasp and move forward.
I spend my free time with my family in midcoast Maine, where I’m mostly found in the ocean surfing, in the mountains snowboarding, or chasing kids around a basketball court as “Coach Matt.” I look forward to connecting and creating with you.
Career highlights
2022 - Co-ideated and developed the National Bottle Bill Dialogue Series - to help beverage brands, packaging companies and service providers align around policy provisions for new state and federal bottle bills.
2022 - Ideated and co-developed the Reuse Refill Action Forum - to help more than 160 participants from consumer brands, retail and reuse services - ideate, accelerate and scale reuse and circular strategies and infrastructure.
2022 - Authored the New Reuse Economy Report, which creates a blueprint for new infrastructure to enable reusable packaging systems at scale.
2022 - Advised and consulted with the World Economic Forum in developing their interactive Reuse Portal, which is an open collaboration platform providing users to guidance, tools and networks to take action and drive momentum for reuse solutions.
2021 - Ideated and co-developed the National Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging Dialogue Series to help more than 60 leading consumer brands, retailers and government officials align around EPR policy provisions. This helped pave the way for new laws to pass in Colorado and California.
2021 - Ideated and supported the development of the National Reuse Awards - aka “The Reusies” to celebrate the innovators, entrepreneurs and activists creating the new reuse economy.
2021 - Co-authored the Reuse Wins Report and Reuse Wins at Events Report showing how reuse beats single-use every time - for the environment, for business and for investors.
2020 - Supported the development of the National Reuse Network and Government Reuse Forum - networks with more than 1,000 members combined working on scaling reuse and circular strategies.
2020 - Co-developed and launched campaign to promote the safety of reuse during pandemics, which led to local governments, grocers and retailers across the US reinstating reusable bags, and prevented city governments from issuing “disposables-only” mandates for dining.
2019 - Created the strategy and supported the development of City Reuse Coalitions across the United States - with coalitions serving communities where more than 75 million Americans live.
2019 - Led the development of Upstream’s current work to “make throw-away go away” through business, policy and culture making campaigns. More than 84 million people now live in places that have passed our model reuse ordinances that help make sit-down dining disposable-free, eliminate unnecessary disposables in take-out, and pave the way for reusable take-out and delivery systems.
2018 - Supported the Urban Sustainability Directors Network in convening city governments across the United States to develop plastic pollution prevention strategies and policies.
2017 - Advised the United Nations Environment Program on their plastic pollution strategies and approach.
2016 - Co-founded BreakFreeFromPlastic, a global movement to envision and create a world free from plastic pollution. More than 2,500 organizations are now collaborating around the world.
2015 - Became CEO of UPSTREAM. Launched the Plastic Pollution Prevention Project (P4) to bring all US organizations with plastic pollution projects together to begin collaborating and having an impact at scale.
2014 - Facilitated national dialogues with city governments and the solid waste and recycling industry to understand, develop and codify their position on EPR for packaging.
2013 - Ideated and launched the Make It, Take It Campaign to put pressure on consumer brands to take responsibility for their packaging.
2012 -Developed model extended producer responsibility (EPR) for packaging legislation, requiring consumer brands to pay for the collection and recycling of their packaging, and for litter reduction and mitigation. Co-developed and facilitated 2-day strategy meeting with 100+ representatives from consumer brands, packaging suppliers, commodities associations and NGOs.
2011 - Ideated and launched the CRADLE2 Coalition, a network of state-based NGOs working to pass sustainable product policy across the United States.
2010 - Drafted legislation and led campaign which created the country’s first product stewardship framework law, deputizing state agencies to require producers to set up collection and recycling systems for their products.
2009 - Lead Maine organizer and campaign strategist for Climate Action Coalition’s efforts to build support for federal climate legislation.
2009 - Led campaign and drafted one of the first state bills to ban plastic bags. Resulted in New England’s major grocers promoting reusable bags through signs, store changes and refund policies.
2009 - Led campaign to require lighting manufacturers to pay for the collection and safe disposal of mercury-containing fluorescent lamps. This campaign helped spur the development and deployment of energy-efficient LED lighting, and the retiring of mercury-containing compact fluorescents.
2008 - Lead strategist on campaign which passed first-in-the-nation law setting up a toxic chemicals assessment and safer substitution system. This became the model which California used for its Green Chemistry Initiative, and which policymakers used to inform the reformation of the Federal Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
2007 - Led campaign to ban mercury in batteries, which resulted in industry changing standards so all batteries sold in the US are now mercury-free.
2007 - Lead strategist on campaign which passed first in the nation law requiring furniture and electronics to phase out toxic brominated chemicals. This completely changed industry standards, and all furniture sold in the US is now free from toxic flame retardants.
2006 - Led campaign to pass first in the nation law requiring thermostat manufacturers to pay for the collection and safe disposal of mercury-containing thermostats. This campaign led to agreement where all thermostats sold in the US are now mercury-free.
2005 - Supported the development and formation of Safer Chemicals, Healthy Family Coalition.
2004 - Lead organizer for Collaborative Defense Campaign efforts to prevent federal environmental rollback agenda.
2004 - Supported formation of Electronics Takeback Coalition and Multi-State Mercury Campaign.
2003 - Lead organizer on campaign to pass first-in-the-nation law requiring computer and television manufacturers to collect and recycle their products. Helped create national model where 80% of the country now has e-waste recycling paid for by the electronics industry.