Over the next few weeks, we will run a Q+A blog series showcasing the ten incredible change-makers who represent our 2019 Living Future Heroes. Introducing Rochelle Routman, Chief Sustainability Officer at HMTX Industries:
Q: How did you become involved with ILFI?
A: I attended the 2012 Living Future unConference as a newcomer from the Southeast region of the US, and quickly noticed that the audience was mostly architects from the Pacific Northwest. The message seemed somewhat theoretical, but that didn’t matter to me. I immediately fell in love with the people, the programs, and saw the organization’s potential: one that supports life on earth rather than chipping away at the productivity of our ecosystems.
At the time, I noticed that ILFI didn’t have any major corporate sponsors. I attended sessions on Declare but realized that it wasn’t widespread yet in adoption. JUST had been recently rolled out, but also was not yet widely embraced by manufacturers. It became immediately clear to me that my mission was to validate ILFI’s work in the corporate sector, and help ILFI go beyond its nucleus by spreading its message to wider and more diverse audiences.
After attending that unConference, the sessions, the keynotes, and the new people I met were all I could think about. I knew I had to sell my employer (at the time, Mohawk Industries), on supporting ILFI – and after several dinners and bottles of wine, the first significant corporate sponsorship for ILFI came through.That sponsorship was primarily focused on helping ILFI expand their collaboratives across the country through “educational cocktail parties” (bit of an oxymoron). As a result of these events, the awareness of the LBC was expanded to 20 different cities, with many new people committed to a Living Future and several new collaboratives.
In my new role as Chief Sustainability Officer at HMTX Industries, a global flooring company that is led by our open-minded CEO Harlan Stone, I continue in my role as an advocate for all of ILFI’s programs. In fact, HMTX Industries was the first Global Angel sponsor of ILFI with a focus on China, as well as Australia and Europe. There are even more exciting announcements to be made in the near future regarding HMTX Industries’ commitment to a Living Future. Stay tuned!
Q: What was your “aha” moment that inspired you to join this movement / become involved in ILFI programs?
A: I read an article in Trim Tab magazine called Religion, Science, and Spirit: A Sacred Story for Our Time by Dr. David Korten. As a scientist and a person interested in spirituality, I was immediately captivated by this article. This theology identified the human role as one that supports the continued evolution and creation of life on earth. Dr. Korton’s ideas were very similar to mine, and it was a major epiphany when I discovered there were other people thinking the same way! The best part was that he was a speaker one year at Living Future, and I had the opportunity to hear and meet him in person!
Q: How did your background lead to where you are in your career now?
A: I’ve always been fascinated with the environment. I grew up in Western Pennsylvania and had a fantastic middle school teacher who took us on fossil collecting field trips. I knew I was meant to be a geologist and embarked on that course of study at the University of Georgia. But in the 80’s, geology graduates were encouraged to work for oil companies. I was often told, “you’ll never make any money working for the environment – you need to work in oil!” Needless to say, I did not heed this advice and instead began my career in the environment working for the Georgia Environmental Protection Division.
I went on to attend graduate school to study Environmental Policy at Georgia Tech, then worked for an aerospace company and an electric utility before finding myself in the flooring industry. I still rely on my background in the natural sciences and use it every day to guide my decisions, particularly in how I live my life and what I communicate to others.
Q: How do you see yourself creating a Living Future in the next 5 years? How have you in the past 5?
A: In the next five years, I see myself continuing along the path of transparency, but with an increased focus on social justice. As HMTX’s Chief Sustainability Officer, I have an open forum to communicate my ideas and educate employees and customers about the important work that ILFI is doing.
At HMTX Industries, I’m working with large customers to spread the word about social justice. I view social equity and JUST as the new frontier in building product transparency, and in fact equivalent in importance to product transparency. HMTX has acquired JUST labels with our two main Chinese factories, and this was a first for a flooring manufacturer as well as any company doing business in Asia.
As part of our Global Angel Sponsorship of ILFI, HMTX Industries will bring Living Future programs and events to China in 2019 as a way to engage the biggest construction market in the world. I look forward to connecting with people from diverse backgrounds, and bringing more people into this mission.
Q: What is your Call to Action for the green building community?
A: Keep putting yourself in uncomfortable situations. We need to remain true to ourselves, yet seek employment with organizations and work with trade organizations that don’t traditionally support an environmental agenda. It is through this uncomfortableness that we will be able to influence others and recruit a larger army, which is needed to accomplish a living future.
Further, we need to quit being fearful about vocalizing our beliefs. For far too long, those that are concerned about the environment and all of life on this glorious planet have been silent, but the declining environmental systems, including the climate crisis, demand us to chart a new course in a big way and speak our minds and our plans for the future with integrity and confidence.
