No mandate. No law. Just scientists greening up their labs.

James Connelly is an architect who ended up running My Green Lab, the sustainability certification now adopted by many of the world's largest pharma companies.In this episode, we get into how and why scientists are stepping up to certify their labs, without a required law or mandate.Why James believes life sciences will be the first industry to separate growth from carbon impact.Real life examples of pharma employees who paved the trail for their companies, and got promoted along the way.Why certification works well for scientists (and builders).How to stay focused on the end goal of reducing environmental impact (instead of drowning in numbers and excessive reporting).How James taught himself about climate through a junior-high research project, why he became an architect, and how that eventually set him up to become CEO of My Green Lab.--⏱️ Chapters00:00 Cold open01:29 Meet James and My Green Lab02:14 What labs find on their first assessment04:38 The freezer that uses as much energy as two homes05:38 Why certification works for scientists07:37 How it scales from one champion to a whole lab12:37 The AstraZeneca supplier cascade16:39 Pernilla, Andrew, and getting promoted for sustainability work20:05 From architect to CEO24:21 Leading scientists when you're not one27:33 ESG, DEI, and political headwinds32:06 Why a nonprofit raised venture capital35:43 If not science, who else?38:15 Reporting vs. action43:28 Travel, anxiety, and self-care47:42 Where to find My Green Lab-- 🔗 ResourcesMy Green LabAmbassador Program (free crash course)Accredited Professional program ($25 student / $75 commercial)Annual online conferenceContact James: [email protected]🎧 Watch & Listen to the podcastYouTubeApple Podcasts🗞️ Sign up for the newsletter🤝 Partnerships ⁠[email protected]⁠✨ Work with me: For speaking, coaching, and workshops: kidoki.comKnow someone who thinks their job has nothing to do with climate? Send them this episode.