Welcome to Earth & Industry...

We can no longer think of the earth and industry as competing interests that only thrive at the expense of the other.  That world view is not sustainable on any level. Today’s businesses must balance people, planet and their profit to be successful.  Earth & Industry focuses on the intersection of these three elements, leading the discussion on how companies can maximize profits while being responsible citizens of this earth.

The Team:

Timothy B. Hurst |  Editor

Tim is the executive editor of the LiveOAK Network and the founding publisher of Ecopolitology. Before joining the team at LiveOAK, Tim was the founding editor at the environmental politics blog Red, Green and Blue and a regular contributor at sustainablog, CleanTechnica, Gas 2.0 and Celsias. When not reading, writing, thinking or talking about environmental politics and green business to anyone who will listen, Tim spends his time skiing, hiking with his dog, and getting dirty in his Colorado vegetable garden.

Tim Hurst can be reached via the contact form or by sending a reply to @ecopolitologist on twitter.

Jeff McIntire-Strasburg |  Contributor

Jeff McIntire-Strasburg has been writing about green business since 2003 as the founder and editor of sustainablog, a co-founder of Green Options Media, a writer at Treehugger, and, now, a writer at the Sundance Channel’s SUNfiltered blog.

Born and raised in the South (Florida and Louisiana), Jeff made his way out West in his early twenties to attend graduate school at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He has a Ph.D. in English, and has spent 15 years in the classroom in positions ranging from graduate teaching assistant to assistant professor. After reading one too many freshman essays, he decided it was time for something new, and made a career switch into corporate writing and editing. Jeff on Twitter.

William Sarni |  Contributor

William Sarni has more than 30 years of experience providing sustainability and environmental consulting services to private and public sector enterprises. He founded and currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer of DOMANI – a consulting firm focused on providing innovative business and technical sustainability solutions to companies committed to increasing revenue, mitigating risk and improving operating efficiency. In business for more than 10 years, DOMANI’s diverse client list includes Fortune 500 companies, multinational corporations and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).  Read his full bio here (pdf).  William on Twitter.

David Wescott |  Contributor

David Wescott directs the social media team for APCO Worldwide, a global public affairs firm. He served as a legislative aide to U.S. Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) and worked on energy and economic issues.  He also managed a pediatrics department in a public hospital in the mid-nineties.

David writes a personal blog called It's Not a Lecture and a column called "Living Locally, Working Globally" for Business Lexington.  He lives in Lexington, Kentucky, with his wife, his son, and his chocolate Labrador retriever.  David on Twitter.

Maria Surma Manka  |  Contributor

Maria Surma Manka is a senior account executive at Tunheim Partners, a leading strategic communications firm in Minnesota. Prior to the public relations world, Maria worked in communications at Fresh Energy, a nonprofit energy policy organization. Since 2006, she has covered energy policy and cleantech innovations on her blog, Maria Energia. She is also a former contributor to the Green Options blog network and her writings have appeared throughout the green blogosphere.

Maria is a traveler, a novice scuba diver and loves anything related to food: growing it, hunting it, cooking it, eating it. She appears as a riveted audience member in the film An Inconvenient Truth. Maria on Twitter.

Zachary Shahan  |  Contributor

Zachary has a B.A. in environmental studies and sociology (from New College of Florida) and a Master’s in city and regional planning (from UNC-Chapel Hill). Zachary has worked in natural foods stores, in government positions, as an urban research consultant, as the Executive Director of a non-profit organization promoting sustainable development and clean transportation, and, for the past couple of years, as both a professional blogger and an English teacher in Poland.

Beth Buczyinski  |  Contributor

Beth is a wandering writer interested in all things low-impact and planet-friendly. Her sustainable scribbling can also be read on The Ecospheric Blog and in Healing Path Magazine, a holistic living publication distributed throughout Colorado, where she currently resides. Beth is interested in (and writes about) unique green businesses that are doing their part to make a difference, as well as urban farming, upcycling, alternative transportation (a.k.a. I pledge allegiance to my bike), and her secret dream: off-the-grid living.

Becky Striepe  |  Contributor

Becky Striepe is an indie crafter living in Atlanta, GA with her husband, two cats, and her trusty sewing machine. She runs a crafty business: Glue & Glitter, sewing handmade house wares from vintage and revamped materials. Her mission is to use existing materials in products that help folks reduce their impact without feeling deprived.

Mridul Chadha  |  Contributor

Mridul Chadha is pursuing a master's degree in Renewable Energy Engineering and Management at The Energy and Resources Institue (TERI University), New Delhi, India. He received his bachelor's degree in Environmental Engineering in 2005 from the Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University. Mridul covers international environment politics, renewable energy policies and technologies and has written for Green Options Media and Celsias. He intends to use knowledge gained in the classroom to analyze the trends in energy policy and technology. Follow Mridul on Twitter: @mridul