RRS adds to consulting staff

Sustainability and recycling consultancy RRS (Resource Recycling Systems), headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan, has announced the addition of three senior consultants: Resa Dimino, Bob Gedert and David Refkin.

Dimino has worked in the public, private and nonprofit sectors during her more than 25-year career, including initiatives in waste reduction, recycling, product stewardship, solid waste management and environmental economic development. Most recently, she was the principal for RADimino & Associates, the director of public policy for the National Association for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR) and the senior advisor for policy and programs for the Product Stewardship Institute. She is a founder and current board member of the New York Product Stewardship Council.

As senior consultant with RRS operating out of the Albany, New York, area, Dimino will focus on corporate clients and collaborative initiatives to improve recovery, increase sustainability and facilitate product stewardship.

Gedert comes to RRS from Austin, Texas, where he served as department director of Austin Resource Recovery, leading the city toward zero-waste goals through services like recycling, solid waste collection, household hazardous waste, yard waste, storm debris collection and litter abatement. In addition to his tenure at Austin, he has influenced resource recovery in many communities, including the Ohio counties of Auglaize and Highland and the city of Cincinnati; the city of Fresno, California as chief of recycling operations; and communities across Indiana as chief of source reduction and recycling with the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. Gedert also was the executive director of the California Resource Recovery Association. He is president of the National Recycling Coalition, an executive committee member of the Municipal Waste Management Association of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and on the board of directors for the National Stewardship Action Council.

Gedert will bring his extensive 35-year public sector experience to his role as affiliate senior consultant at RRS, operating out of the Cincinnati area.

Refkin joins RRS as affiliate senior consultant operating out of the New York City area. He brings 37 years of business and environmental experience to assist RRS clients with increasing recovery of valuable commodities, creating strategies to minimize business risks, implementing sustainable materials management strategies and building resilience from the impacts of climate change. Prior to RRS, Refkin was president of GreenPath Sustainability Consultants, where he created CSR solutions with consumer packaged goods companies, water providers, recyclers, energy and paper companies, trade associations, environmental groups and publishers. During his 26-year career at Time Inc., he served as president of TI Paperco and as director of sustainable development, where he played a major role in the development of forest certification. Earlier in his career he was a senior accountant at Deloitte and BDO. Refkin served as president of the National Recycling Coalition and on the Executive Committee of the Heinz Center. He is a member of the Forest Legality Alliance, Northeast Recycling Council and American Water Works Association.

“RRS’ client base is expanding, and the opportunity to bring on three powerhouse sustainability and recycling experts struck at the perfect time,” says Jim Frey, RRS principal and CEO. “We believe the industry know-how Resa, Bob and David bring to the table will allow RRS to bring even more innovative solutions for recovery and sustainability to the resource challenges our clients face.”