Michelle Bellanca - Breakthrough to Business

In this episode of Leveraged Storytelling, host Arick Wierson sits down with Michelle Bellanca, CEO and co-founder of Claros Technologies, to unpack the science, stakes, and solutions around PFAS—the so-called “forever chemicals.” Bellanca explains why, while substitutes exist for things like nonstick cookware and food wrappers, PFAS remain irreplaceable in life-saving applications such as heart stents and in the semiconductor chips that power everything from microwaves to supercomputers and data centers. Outright bans, she argues, simply aren’t realistic for these essential uses. Together, they explore Claros’ two-pronged approach: world-class analytics and total destruction of PFAS across long-, short-, and ultra-short-chain compounds—permanently eliminating them rather than fragmenting them into smaller, equally harmful pieces. The conversation also contrasts EU and U.S. regulatory paths, dives into Minnesota’s consumer-driven push, and explores how targeting PFAS at the industrial source can enable responsible use without perpetuating environmental damage. After decades as a senior executive at 3M, Bellanca identified and helped spin out a revolutionary technology from the University of Minnesota—scaling it into what is now known as Claros Technologies. Today, Claros is recognized across the industry as a game-changing solution that is, quite literally, taking the “forever” out of forever chemicals.  Bellanca also reflects on the tradecraft of communicating about an issue that sits at the crossroads of environmental science and public health: how to make a complex, technical problem accessible to the public, while also persuading stakeholders, regulators, and commercial partners that solutions are both possible and necessary.