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washington, dc

bios

green building & textiles

Allen Blakey is Vice President of Industry and Government Affairs for Vinyl Institute (VI), the national trade 

association for manufacturers of vinyl (polyvinyl chloride or PVC) resin. He directs association programs 

related to vinyl product industries (building, medical, packaging, consumer and other product areas) as well as 

policy development and government affairs. Before joining VI in 1999, Mr. Blakey spent 10 years as director of 

public affairs for the Environmental Industry Associations, representing waste service, recycling and equipment 

manufacturing companies. He was also a senior vice president with E. Bruce Harrison Company, a Washington 

public relations firm specializing in environmental and energy issues. He started his career as a reporter and 

editor with various specialized Washington publications covering medical products, pharmaceuticals, and 

chemicals.

Corey Brinkema is President of FSC-US, the national initiative of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). 

Mr. Brinkema has 22 years of national and international experience in sustainable development, including 10 

years in green building design and development. He was the developer of one of the nation’s first speculative 

commercial buildings built according to comprehensive green principles and a founder of Minnesota GreenStar, 

a regional standard for green homebuilding and remodeling. He has provided technical, management, and 

strategic planning oversight to projects in high-performance real estate and eco-industrial development, energy 

efficiency and distributed energy, manufacturing resource efficiency, recycled and green products marketing, 

and hazardous waste management and brownfields remediation. Mr. Brinkema is a director of the U.S. Green 

Building Council Mississippi Headwaters Chapter as well as the Eco-Industrial Development Council. He is a 

graduate of Dartmouth College and earned a M.B.A. from the University of Michigan. 

Rick L. Cantrell is Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, Inc. (SFI, 

Inc.), where he provides staff leadership in implementing, monitoring and promoting the Sustainable Forestry 

Initiative®(SFI) program. SFI, Inc. is an independent 501(c)3 organization that manages all aspects of the 

SFI program. Mr. Cantrell has been working for the SFI program in various roles since its inception in 1995. 

His professional experience includes working as a forest research associate at Auburn University, an extension 

forester at the University of Tennessee, a wetlands biologist for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and a private 

forest management consultant. Mr. Cantrell graduated with honors from North Carolina State University with 

a B.S. in forest management and from the University of Florida with a master’s degree in forest science. Mr. 

Cantrell was the 1999 recipient of the Society of American Foresters’ Young Forester Leadership Award and the 

1990 recipient of the Kentucky-Tennessee Chapter of the Society American Foresters’ Outstanding Service in 

the Promotion of Forestry award. 
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Christine Chase joined Green Seal in January 2007 to help with both product certification reviews and 

development of new standards. Prior to joining Green Seal, Ms. Chase reviewed industry data in support of 

the EPA Office of Water’s development of effluent guidelines and spent five years as a chemist in an analytical 

laboratory testing for semi-volatile organic compounds. She served as Project Manager for her capstone project 

in her master’s program. Her team researched the implementation of an electronic waste policy in New York 

City, incorporating aspects of extended producer responsibility. Her background includes surveying streams 

for the USDA Forest Service, field sampling for the Shenandoah Watershed Study, and coordinating student 

projects with the World Bank Institute on issues of corporate social responsibility. Ms. Chase holds a M.P.A. in 

Environmental Science and Policy from Columbia University and a B.A. in Environmental Science from the 

University of Virginia. 

Todd Copeland is responsible for Material Development for the Common Threads Recycling Program as 

well as Environmental Assessment of all Raw Materials at Patagonia, Inc. In this position, he focuses on 

recycling and assesses and improves the environmental impacts of the cotton, polyester, nylon, wool, and other 

raw materials that Patagonia uses. Before joining Patagonia, Mr. Copeland worked at the North American 

engineering headquarters for Honda. There, he developed materials for automobile interiors such as fabric, 

leather, carpet, plastics, and trim and was awarded a U.S. patent for co-inventing a stain-resistant, waterproof 

fabric for the Honda Element. Mr. Copeland holds an engineering degree in Polymer & Textile Chemistry from 

the Georgia Institute of Technology. 

Janice Frankle is an attorney in the Enforcement Division of the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of 

Consumer Protection. Her primary responsibilities include the Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing 

Claims (Green Guides), the Fair Packaging and Labeling Rules, and various other FTC Rules, Guides and 

Orders. Ms. Frankle received her B.A. from Indiana University, her M.A. from the American University, 

and her J.D. from the University of Miami.

Robert M. Frisby is an Assistant Director in the Division of Enforcement of the Bureau of Consumer 

Protection at the Federal Trade Commission. He has served in this position since June 2002. Mr. Frisby 

supervises a number of the division’s cases and projects. From 1990 to 2002 he was a staff attorney in the 

division, and from 1987 to 1990 he worked in the Bureau’s Division of Policy and Evaluation. From 1985 to 

1987 Mr. Frisby was a staff attorney in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of General Counsel. He 

received a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law and a B.A. from the University of Maryland.

Janice R. Gerde is a Research Analyst for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Laboratories and 

Scientific Services (LSS), Springfield Laboratory. Dr. Gerde joined the then-U.S. Customs Service in May 

1997, serving three years at the Savannah Laboratory before transferring to Springfield in July 2000. Her 

duties include analysis and projects to support trade issues as well as serving as national coordinator for the 

CBP Laboratory Methods Program, representative to the Textile Working Group for High Risk Textile Trade, 

and Radiation Duty Officer supporting LSS’s Radiation Technical Assistance Program. Dr. Gerde earned an 

interdisciplinary doctorate in fiber science and textile evaluation with an emphasis on computer-aided imaging 

from the University of Maryland, College Park. Professional affiliations include The Fiber Society, American 

Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC), ASTM International, American Chemical Society, and 

Microscopy Society of America. 
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Grace Gershuny has been developing and implementing organic certification programs for more than 30 years, 

starting with the Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA) in 1977. She was a founding member of the 

Organic Trade Association (OTA) and co-authored its “Guidelines for the Organic Industry” in 1985. From 

1994 to 1999, she served on the staff of USDA’s National Organic Program and helped draft a major portion of 

the National Organic Standards. She currently consults on regulatory and program development matters for the 

organic industry, including serving as a technical consultant to OTA, where she has helped develop and analyze 

organic standards for fiber, personal care products, and aquaculture. She also serves as OTA’s representative 

to the Global Organic Textile Standards (GOTS) Technical Committee. Ms. Gershuny has taught ecological 

agriculture and food system issues at the college level for 20 years and holds an M.A. in Extension Education. 

John Girman is Senior Science Advisor for the U.S. EPA Indoor Environments Division, where he is 

responsible for the technical analysis and content of reports and guidance documents on indoor air quality, as 

well as for providing technical input for policy decisions and developing research agendas for indoor air quality. 

Mr. Girman has authored or co-authored more than 70 publications and reports on indoor air quality. He is a 

founding member of the International Society of Indoor Air Quality and Climate (ISIAQ) and has served as its 

Vice President (Policy) and as a Trustee. Mr. Girman also served as an Editorial Advisor for the journal Indoor 

Air, a Councilor for the International Society of Exposure Assessment (ISEA), and a member of ASHRAE’s 

Environmental Health Committee and ASHRAE’s Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality Committee. He 

was elected to the International Academy of Indoor Air Quality Sciences in 1997. 

Sophia R. Greenbaum is Executive Director of the Sustainable Buildings Industry Council (SBIC). SBIC is 

an independent, non-profit trade association whose mission is to unite and inspire the building industry toward 

higher performance through education, outreach, advocacy and the mutual exchange of ideas. Ms. Greenbaum 

oversees the Council’s Beyond GreenTM High-Performance Building Awards program, its education and training 

programs, and its membership operations. SBIC is managed by Steven Winter Associates (SWA). Prior to her 

work on SBIC, Ms. Greenbaum worked on a variety of projects for SWA, including the Whole Building Design 

Guide (www.wbdg.org), the only web-based portal providing government and industry practitioners with onestop access to up-to-date information on a wide range of building-related guidance, criteria, and technology 

from a ‘whole buildings’ perspective. Ms. Greenbaum obtained her undergraduate degree from Wellesley 

College.

Peter J. Hauser is Professor of Textile Chemistry, Director of Graduate Programs, and Associate Department 

Head in the Textile Engineering, Chemistry, and Science Department at North Carolina State University in 

Raleigh, North Carolina. He joined NCSU in 1997 after a 24-year career in textile chemical research and 

product development with Milliken Research Corporation, Burlington Industries, and the Virkler Company. 

Dr. Hauser’s research interests include reduction of pollution associated with textile wet processing, high 

performance chemical finishes for enhanced value textiles, atmospheric pressure plasma treatments of textiles, 

and indigo dyeing and denim wet processing. His publication record includes one book, two book chapters, 62 

scientific papers, and 9 patents. Dr. Hauser received his B.S. and Ph.D. in Chemistry from North Carolina State 

University.

Kathleen Huddy is Director of Textiles for The Good Housekeeping Research Institute. Ms. Huddy’s 

department evaluates apparel, fabric, footwear, luggage, gardening products, and textile innovation. A mother 

of three boys, Ms. Huddy is particularly proud that her diligent work changed industry flammability standards 

for children’s Halloween costumes, sleepwear, blankets, and bedding. Her efforts also regulated the industry 

standard on crib sheet warning labels and amended another on thread count. Her work frequently appears on 

television as part of the Institute’s ongoing reviews and investigations. Before joining the Good Housekeeping 
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team, Ms. Huddy worked in the fashion/fabric/textiles industry, including executive training at Macy’s, buying 

positions at Mercantile Stores, and fabric development at The Wool Bureau. She has a B.S. in Consumer 

Sciences from Miami University of Ohio.

Frank Hurd is Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI), a nonprofit 

trade association representing the manufacturers of more than 95 percent of all carpet made in the United 

States, as well as their suppliers and service providers. CRI administers the Green Label and Green Label 

Plus programs, which test carpet, cushions, and adhesives to help consumers identify products with very 

low emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Mr. Hurd also serves as Chairman of Carpet America 

Recovery Effort (CARE), a joint industry-government effort to increase the amount of recycling and reuse of 

post-consumer carpet and reduce the amount of waste carpet going to landfills. A retired Colonel in the U.S. 

Army, Mr. Hurd earned master’s degrees from the Georgia Institute of Technology, U.S. Army Command and 

General Staff College, and National Defense University. He holds a B.S. from Mercer University.

Elsie Kappler is an attorney in the Enforcement Division of the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of 

Consumer Protection. In addition to conducting investigations and bringing actions related to “green” 

claims, her responsibilities include federal court order enforcement in a range of areas, including advertising, 

marketing, and financial practices. Prior to joining the FTC, Ms. Kappler was a trial attorney with the 

Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice and a partner with the Boston firm 

of Peabody & Arnold LLP. She received her A.B. from Wellesley College and her J.D. from Northeastern 

University School of Law

James Kohm is the Associate Director for the Enforcement Division of the Federal Trade Commission’s 

Bureau of Consumer Protection. In that capacity, he oversees enforcement of all consumer protection orders, 

the Commission’s Hispanic Initiative and Bankruptcy program, the Criminal Liaison Unit, and a myriad of 

FTC Rules and Guides. Prior to joining the Enforcement Division, Mr. Kohm served as the Bureau’s Chief of 

Staff with responsibility for the Commission’s seven regional offices, and as both the Acting Associate Director 

and an Assistant Director in the FTC’s Division of Marketing Practices. Mr. Kohm received his undergraduate 

degree from the University of Michigan and his J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center.

William E. Kovacic was designated to serve as Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission on March 30, 

2008, by President George W. Bush. Mr. Kovacic was previously sworn in as a Commissioner in January 

2006, following his nomination by the President and confirmation by the U.S. Senate. Prior to his appoint­men

as FTC Commissioner, Mr. Kovacic was the E.K. Gubin Professor of Government Contracts Law at George 

Washington University Law School, where he began to teach in 1999. He was the FTC’s General Counsel from 

2001 through the end of 2004. He earlier worked at the Commission from 1979 to 1983, first with the Bureau 

of Competition’s Planning Office and later as an attorney advisor to former Commissioner George W. Douglas. 

After leaving the FTC in 1983, Mr. Kovacic was an associate with the Washington, D.C. office of Bryan Cave, 

where he practiced in the firm’s antitrust and government contracts departments, until joining the George 

Mason University School of Law in 1986. Earlier in his career, he spent one year on the majority staff of the 

Subcommittee on Antitrust and Monopoly of the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, which was chaired by 

Senator Philip A. Hart. Since 1992, Mr. Kovacic has served as an adviser on antitrust and consumer protection 

issues to the governments of Armenia, Benin, Egypt, El Salvador, Georgia, Guyana, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, 

Mongolia, Morocco, Nepal, Panama, Russia, Ukraine, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe. Mr. Kovacic graduated with a 

B.A. degree from Princeton University and received his J.D. from Columbia University.
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washington, dc

Carlos Martín is currently Assistant Staff Vice President at the National Association of Home Builders, 

where he works on the National Green Building Program as well as issues relating to affordability in housing 

construction. Previously, he was Technical Director for Housing with the Development Innovations Group, 

working on international surveys of housing finance for the poor and community organizing in urban slums for 

the Gates Foundation. Trained as an architect, construction engineer, and historian of technology, Dr. Martín 

has served as the SRP Assistant Professor for Energy and the Environment at Arizona State University’s Del 

E. Webb School of Construction and School of Architecture and was a coordinator for the U.S. Department of 

Housing and Urban Development’s Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing (PATH). He received his 

B.S.A.D. from MIT and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Civil & Environmental Engineering from Stanford. 

Michelle Moore is the Senior Vice President of Policy and Public Affairs at the U.S. Green Building Council 

(USGBC). Growing up, Ms. Moore never expected to end up back in her hometown of LaGrange, Georgia 

working for a textile mill. So, of course, that is what happened. It, however, was not just any textile company. 

It was Interface, which had a great vision to become the world’s first sustainable enterprise. Ms. Moore’s 

experience as Interface’s Director of eBusiness taught her how to marry environmental performance with 

bottom line results. At USGBC, Ms. Moore is helping the green building movement grow from a niche 

market to defining the mainstream by leading the organization’s outreach efforts, including marketing and 

communications, public policy, development, and residential programs. She holds degrees from Emory 

University and from Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service. 

Patricia Frazier O’Leary is a Senior Director in the Agricultural Research Division of Cotton Incorporated, 

where she coordinates and manages cooperative research related to insect pest management in cotton. Ms. 

O’Leary is a member of the Entomological Society of America, the America Phytopathological Society, and the 

Society for Invertebrate Pathology. She also serves on the advisory council for the National Science Foundation 

Center for Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and the steering committee for the U.S. Department of 

Agriculture Southern Region IPM Center. In the international arena, she is a member of the International Cotton 

Advisory Committee’s Expert Panel on the Social, Environmental and Economic Performance of the world 

cotton industry. A native of Bolivar County, Mississippi and the daughter of a cotton farmer, Ms. O’Leary has 

a B.S. and a M.S. from Delta State University and a Ph.D. from Mississippi State University. Prior to joining 

Cotton Incorporated, she held research and product development positions in companies producing biologically 

based products.

LaRhea Pepper is Executive Director of Organic Exchange and serves as a consultant to the organization on 

operational and organizational development issues. As a fifth generation farmer, Ms. Pepper has a long history 

of leadership within the sustainable farming movement. She is a founding member of Texas Organic Cotton 

Marketing Cooperative (TOCMC), the largest organic cotton cooperative in the United States. She has started 

“value-added” programs like Cotton Plus and Organic Essentials, farmer-owned companies that take the cotton 

from field to finished product. In 1995, she served on the Administrative Council for Southern Sustainable 

Agriculture Research and Education. Two years later, she began working with Organic Trade Association’s 

(OTA) Fiber Council. Ms. Pepper joined the OTA board in 1998 to work on organic fiber standards for the 

industry. In 2002, she became a member of the Advisory Council of Organic Exchange, then Chairman of the 

Board. She is often invited to write and speak on issues related to organic cotton farming, organic cotton fiber 

use, and industry standards. 
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Sam Rashkin has managed Energy Star for Homes since its start in 1996. Under his leadership, Energy Star 

for Homes has grown exponentially to more than 6,000 builder partners and over 850,000 labeled homes. He is 

also introducing a new EPA Indoor Air Quality label for the housing industry linked to Energy Star Qualified 

Homes. Mr. Rashkin received his B.A. from Syracuse University, his master’s degree in Urban Planning from 

New York University, and is a registered architect in California and New York. During his 20-plus years as a 

licensed architect, he has specialized in energy efficient design and completed over 100 residential projects. 

He has served on the national steering committees for USGBC’s LEED for Homes, NAHB’s Green Builder 

Guidelines, and U.S. EPA’s Water Sense label. Mr. Rashkin has prepared hundreds of articles, technical papers, 

reports, and seminars and contributed to numerous books covering a wide variety of energy topics.

Thomas M. Reardon is the executive director of the Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturer’s 

Association (BIFMA) International, the North American trade association representing the interests of business 

furniture manufacturers and their suppliers. BIFMA’s mission is to lead, advocate, inform and develop standards 

for the North American office and institutional furniture industry. Mr. Reardon joined BIFMA in 1990 as 

Manager of Research and Information with responsibility for the industry statistical information program. 

Throughout his tenure with BIFMA he also has had responsibility for membership development, marketing 

programs, international affairs, communications and the annual industry leadership conference. Mr. Reardon 

was promoted to executive director in January 1998. Mr. Reardon’s furniture industry career began in 1985 in 

marketing and product development with Haworth, Inc., one of the largest office furniture manufacturers. Prior 

to that Mr. Reardon held a variety of positions with United Technologies Automotive Group. Mr. Reardon holds 

a B.A. in business administration. 

Kirsten Ritchie is Director of Sustainable Design at Gensler, where she works with companies worldwide to 

help improve the environmental and sustainable performance of their buildings and operations. An innovative 

civil engineer with over 25 years of experience in green buildings and materials, Ms. Ritchie helps clients 

address emerging environmental and sustainability topics, particularly within the context of competitive 

advantage. An active and sought-after advisor in national and international environmental policy and standards 

development efforts, Ms. Ritchie continues to initiate and influence progressive programs designed to improve 

the sustainable performance of the built environment. Current activities include participation on the US Green 

Building Council’s Material and Resources Technical Advisory Committee, chairmanship of the ASTM Task 

Force on Environmentally Preferable Products, and the San Francisco Mayor’s Green Building Task Force. 

Erin Shaffer is a consultant to the Green Building Initiative, serving as the key contact in charge of outreach to 

federal agencies, Capitol Hill, and the business community. She educates diverse stakeholders and lawmakers 

to the benefits of the Green Globes environmental rating system for commercial buildings. Ms. Shaffer has 

more than 20 years of experience managing complex environmental issues in several capacities. She was 

responsible for directing public affairs operations for a Fortune 30 company and representing the company 

before Congress, the administration, and the broader Washington community. In this capacity she developed all 

company environment-related public policy positions and directed all related corporate strategic advocacy work. 

Ms. Shaffer served as the Director of State Programs at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of 

Toxic Substances, where she focused on multi-pathway exposure to pollutants. She is licensed to practice law in 

Washington, D.C. and Connecticut. 
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Stephen Richard Sides is Vice President of Environmental Health and International Affairs at the National 

Paint and Coatings Association, Inc. For the last 22 years, Mr. Sides has managed a staff of six operating in 

all areas of health, safety, and environmental control. He works with industry committees to develop and 

communicate consensus positions on health, safety, and environmental issues before regulatory agencies 

and federal and state legislatures. Mr. Sides was appointed to the President’s Council on Environmental 

Quality Task Force on Lead Hazard Education, which developed a national public awareness campaign on 

childhood lead poisoning. He supported the development of the Coatings Care® program and is working to 

oversee its implementation. He has a B.S. in Chemistry from the College of William and Mary and a M.S. in 

Environmental Health from the University of Cincinnati. He is currently a Ph.D. candidate at George Mason 

University.

Pat Slaven has served as a Senior Project Leader at Consumer Reports for 13 years. Ms. Slaven is currently 

a member of the Appliance Department and has tested a wide variety of products, from washers and dryers 

to steam irons. She has worked on many projects involving clothing and interior textiles and tested several 

different kinds of stain remover, making her the resident textile and stain removal expert. Ms. Slaven’s 

educational background includes a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Michigan State University and a M.S. 

in Textile Science from the University of California at Davis. She is an avid kayaker and knitter who builds the 

boats she paddles and both spins and dyes the yarn she knits.

Robin Rosen Spector is an attorney in the FTC’s Division of Enforcement. In addition to her work on 

the Green Guides, Ms. Spector works on the FTC’s Guides for the Jewelry, Precious Metals and Pewter 

Industries; investigations involving the advertising and promotion of negative option programs, exercise 

products and devices; and order enforcement. Prior to working at the FTC, Ms. Spector was an associate at 

Howrey in Washington, D.C. Ms. Spector received her B.A. and J.D. from George Washington University.