Olga Kachook has now stepped into the Director of SPC position, an evolution from her previous role as Director of Innovation. Olga will provide leadership, aligning the work of the SPC around four pillars; packaging design, recovery, policy and innovation. Existing and new collaboratives will be strategically organized and developed within these pillars. With Olga’s presence and work done surrounding innovation, consumer studies, and collaboratives, she is primed to continue and expand on the foundation that colleague Karen Hagerman (previously the Director of SPC, now the Director of How2Recycle) had started.
Olga joined the SPC in 2019 after leading corporate sustainability and waste initiatives at World Centric, Etsy, Cascade Designs, and Cascadia Consulting. Her background includes expertise in compostable materials and composting, reuse and refill systems, food waste, life cycle analysis, and sustainable materials management. Olga received her Master of Environmental Management from Yale University’s School of Environment, and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from the University of Washington. She is certified as a LEED Green Associate and a TRUE Zero Waste Advisor.
When they’re not trying to save the world, you can find Olga hiking, crossing national parks off her bucket list (over forty so far!), and fleeing humidity with trips home to the PNW.
What is your why?
I do this work because I want to keep hiking in smoke-free mountains and traveling to see beautiful, not trashed, places. Not throwing valuable resources away is the only thing that makes sense to me!