“Eye-opening!”
Finding Sustainability: The Personal and Professional Journey of a Plastic Bag Manufacturer, by Trent A. Romer, is an eye-opening discourse about something that is critical to our lives and to the lives of future generations. The author, also the owner of a packaging company that uses plastics, describes his journey, a very recent one, as he delved into a subject that both defined his family’s company, and held its fate – the future of plastics. Romer takes us on a journey as he investigates, without bias, the effects of the plastic industry on the environment, the alternatives to fuel-based plastics and the reality of shifting a global platform to one that uses bio-based “plastics” which are recyclable or biodegradable, and not harmful to our planet. He introduces us to the concept of a “circular economy” vs a “linear one”. For decades, we have operated on the “linear economy” – the idea that resources were unlimited and with no concerns for the environmental impact of our waste. Today, as people get more educated on the environmental downside of plastics, for instance, the “circular economy” becomes the obvious choice for companies, for government regulations and for consumers, one where we all must operate the same way that Nature does – that is, everything that grows can be consumed and then can be integrated for use again. As the author stresses, education on sustainability is a vital part of changing our ways, and this includes redefining such terms as “garbage”, which in the “circular economy” is not seen as waste, but as a “resource”. An important read for anyone.
About Trent Romer
Trent Andrew Romer has been in the custom plastic bag manufacturing business for over 25 years. He is the 3rd generation co-owner of his family’s business Clear View Bag Co., Inc founded in 1961 by his grandfather. He is guided by his faith and loves the outdoors both of which he found at a young age. His passion for the planet, his faith, and his family business ignited a quest to take action toward a better future. He has traveled extensively to learn about and apply sustainability in his professional and personal life.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Hamilton College and went on to get master’s degrees in both Education and in Business from the University at Albany.
Trent is a big fan of basketball, the ocean, 80’s music travel, history, routines, weekends with no schedule, butterscotch brownies, old friends and long bike rides.
He lives outside Albany NY and spends summers vacationing at national parks, nearby lakes and the ocean with his wife, three boys and beloved dog Bear.
