Biochar, Sustainability in Sports, and Using LinkedIn to the Fullest with Sameer Neve

Welcome back to Environmental Professionals Radio, Connecting the Environmental Professionals Community Through Conversation, with your hosts Laura Thorne and Nic Frederick! 

On today’s episode, we talk with Sameer Neve, a sustainability strategist, biochar researcher, and environmental justice advocate whose work spans everything from sports to soil science about Biochar, Sustainability in Sports, and Using LinkedIn to the Fullest.   Read his full bio below.

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Showtimes: 
0:35 - Fun Facts about Peppers
3:36 - Nic and Laura talk bad bosses!
12:03 - Interview with Sameer Begins
25:52 - How to connect with your community as an introvert
41:01 - Sameer's Field Story 

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This podcast is produced by the National Association of Environmental Professions (NAEP). Check out all the NAEP has to offer at NAEP.org.

Connect with Sameer Neve at https://www.linkedin.com/in/nevesameer/

Guest  Bio:
Sameer Neve is an innovative Environmental Engineer, sustainability advocate, and interdisciplinary researcher with a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology. With over 7 years of experience at the intersection of science, policy, and impact, Sameer has led projects focused on decarbonization strategies, ESG frameworks, and advanced environmental site assessments across sectors ranging from energy and infrastructure to education and sports.

Currently serving as an Associate Consultant at WSP USA and Advisory Board Member at HydraEarth Network, Sameer brings his expertise in clean energy and workforce development to shape equitable and resilient environmental solutions. His groundbreaking work in biochar research—particularly the sustainable reuse of spent biomass—has informed innovations in soil remediation, biodiversity restoration, and climate-resilient infrastructure. His efforts have been recognized through multiple peer-reviewed publications and a U.S. patent.

A strong advocate for environmental justice and community-led solutions, Sameer has contributed to national-scale environmental justice datasets, urban decontamination projects, and inclusive sustainability strategies that prioritize historically underserved populations. He also brings sustainability thinking into non-traditional domains like sports, where he explores how athletic facilities, events, and infrastructure can align with low-carbon, nature-positive goals.

From building local water purification systems in India to mentoring future environmental leaders in the U.S., Sameer continues to bridge technical expertise with real-world impact. His mission is clear: to design systems, inspire change, and build a future where biodiversity thrives, equity is embedded, and sustainability is second nature.

Music Credits
Intro: Givin Me Eyes by Grace Mesa
Outro: Never Ending Soul Groove by Mattijs Muller

Transcript

Hello, and welcome to EPR with your favorite environmental nerds, Nick and Laura. On today's episode, Nick and I talk about dealing with difficult clients. We check in with Sameer Neve to discuss biochar, sustainability and sports, and using LinkedIn to the fullest. And finally, peppers, like tomatoes are fruits, not vegetables. They're also rated by hotness scale on the Scoville units. Did not know that. Bell peppers have a rating of 0. Wait, hold on. They're rated on Scoville units as well as tomatoes or just on their own? Oh no, no, so Scoville is. It is for just peppers. So I was just saying peppers are fruit and Scoville units measure how hot a pepper is. OK, just checking, I read that as both our fruits and Scoville units. No, no, exclusively for peppers, the Scoville scale, so bell peppers rate in clock in at 0, no spice, no heat. OK, OK, and jalapenos have a rating of 2500. The hottest pepper currently, which changes as we keep making them hotter, love that. The pepper is X at 2.6 million Scovilles, does that just like kill you instantly? How's that not poison? Well, it's, it's called Pepper X. It's Tepper X. It actually has health warnings. Like, I think once we got to the Carolina Reaper, now it can actually genuinely like 3rd degree burn. Kind of. I don't know if it's like, it's not quite the same as like a, a burn, but it's quite similar to, it does some terrible stuff to your stomach. It can really tear up your insides. So I will not be trying one. I will say that. No, no, I don't, I don't think you should. That it would ruin your podcast career. Yeah, I'd never talk again. Someone out there is saying that's not a bad thing. Yeah, thank goodness, oh yeah, slipping it into my drink or whatever.

Get that music into my drink. I meant food. Oh goodness. 

The National Association of Environmental Professionals is working on providing guidance and support for those affected by the changes in the government since the start of the year. If you are a member of NAEP, be on the lookout for a survey asking how NAEP can support current and former government employees. Also, for those who are either members or not members, look out for webinars about transitioning to the private sector, virtual job fairs, in-person networking, and an Ask Me Anything on YouTube. Check all this out at www.AE.org. 

Let's get to our segment.

OK, so yeah, let's start a new thing where we roll call, everybody send in your events and your complaints. Maybe, maybe those will like roll in. Yeah, bad bosses would be great, bad clients would be great. All right, so head to the website, hit email us and send us your bad boss stories alongside your field stories. Yeah. And it will give you our take on it. Yeah, and that was info@environmentalprofessionalsradio.com, just saying. Send it. Send it. 

Gosh, there's lots of different clients that that I work with. There's lots that Laura worked with and so it could be any we have had, I can just tell you, the film festival, we have this running joke now, where no matter which location we're doing, because you know, we have several events throughout the year now, and every time. We solicit presenters, panelists. There's one person who is just off the rocker crazy, and they're such a pain, and they don't even know that they're like causing so much drama behind the scenes that we've now labeled them similar to Karen. Because there was the original one and now every other event we're like, well that's our whatever Karen and now that's out of the way we know who that is now we can continue inviting people who will the rest of them will be fine. Yeah, but it's funny cause like, I mean, as a consultant, you deal with clients, you know, all over the place all the time, but, you know, gosh, there's people in every aspect of your life where you can have challenges with them, sometimes it's personality, sometimes it's, you know, circumstance. There's lots of different challenges, so everybody comes with, you know, different ego and different perspective, and, you know, for me, like the thing that's hardest is for me specifically is when somebody thinks they know everything and they don't know everything, and all they end up doing is making more work for everyone else, and that's tough because you have to hope that management and leadership on the client side is good enough and strong enough to be, if there is an issue, you can bring it up and be like, hey, look, this person is wasting our time. If you like wasting money. We can keep doing this, or we find a new solution, right? 

And there's a nicer way to say that than how I just outlined it, but yeah, you know, there's always stuff like that. There's always people, and some of it's, I've noticed this too, whenever you get new people. In an environment, they want to kind of like prove that they know what they're doing, right? Yeah, and it's like, have you ever worked on projects before, like this big and this difficult? I'm like, yeah, lots of different clients, lots of different places all over the country. And it's like, I don't have to give you my bona fides, but you're trying to say you have them. And so I don't take that personally, you know, OK, you have worked in a lot of places, me too, cool. Let's understand that we both know what we're talking about, that's great. How do we get past that part? Now that we're past that, what's next, right? And sometimes that just calms down over time, you know, cause you get to know people, you find out what they are like and what they want to hear and how to influence some of the decisions they make, right? Yeah. Sometimes you can find out that one little area where you can like crack them into a human, a little bit, you know what I mean? You find that little like sliver of like, oh, that's what you think is funny, or this is the way I could reach you and you'll understand what I'm saying. Yeah, that's exactly, exactly it. And when you're meeting new people or you have new people in a new environment, that's really hard. everybody's very guarded, they're trying to, you know, have some authority or have, you know, command respect and some people just may have challenges with that. 

They may not be good at actually understanding that respect is earned. You can't just show up and have respect. It doesn't work that way. You've got to earn it. And you can't earn it if you're firing missiles left and right, you know, it's like, why are we even shooting a missile when we, you know, you know what I mean, like, it's hard for some people and, and it might also be just team related. There might be a chemistry related. And as you get to know somebody, like you said, you kind of figure out, oh, these are their, the quirks, this is what they like, this is what they don't like, and this is how we can avoid stress. And yeah, I've got a client that is hard. He is successful, lots of money, very young. And does not want to have small talk. It's like, get to the point and don't be namsy pamsy about it. Just tell me like it is and I'm gonna tell it like to you like it is. So, and, and then I think, for example, I went to this person's Christmas party and they were like, what do you mean you're not drinking at my party? I was like, Well, I don't, I'm not doing that, you know, like I got to get on the subway after dark in New York. I'm not drinking before I could do that. It's the same as drinking and driving, but a different consequence. And, um, you know, and so I got a mocktail and he was enraged by this decision that I made. So I just laughed at him. And you could be offended or you can whatever, but I just have to laugh at it because I got under his skin, which was hilarious. 

But everyone knows that he's like this. I don't have to complain to other people. I don't have to, you know, everybody knows. That's how I feel about when someone is like that, you don't have to gossip because I think I see a lot of that where people want to tell then, so they get somebody gets at you. And then you want to tell 10 other people how horrible they are. Yeah, and that gets you nowhere. It really doesn't help, yeah, and, you know, sometimes they're coming from different perspectives too, and it's not as negative as you think it is, but because you had a bad interaction one time or the first time, you kind of think they're all gonna be like that, and that may not be the case, and that happens a lot, a lot, a lot, and that's a really good life lesson. It's like take a breath, you know, this person was purposefully trying to see if I would give in. You know, and I think, and now, you know, not doing that, the next time I've seen him is a little bit more level of respect, you know, because he wants to see who he can put under his thumb and who he can't. Yeah, you set a boundary and you stayed to it. Yes, exactly. And you know, it's funny, there was somebody we used to work with long time ago, and he was just very, very demanding is what I would call it. And, oh, he's such a, you know, he's he's awful, he's mean, he's terrible. And it's like, well, OK, what is he saying? He's like, he told me I had a problem with my document and I need to fix it. 

And I'm like, why is that bad? It's like, well, it's just really abrupt. I'm like, did he call you any names? No. OK. So, the problem is just how he delivered the message, not the message itself. Yeah, exactly, OK, but he typed it. So how do you know that his tone is that way? Well, that's what he is when he talks. I'm like, OK, but again, you're putting all of your own stuff in front of that too. So sometimes it's like You're taking everything he's saying very personally because he, and you find out like, oh, you, you guys had a bad experience with him, and you had issues from that. And so now everything he does is a problem. And it's like, well, if you take everything personally, everything will be a problem because you're taking it personally. If you just look at it as the text is fix this sentence, then fix the sentence and you don't have a problem. You know, the end, you know, you have to think about who sent it to you. Like, take that out of there. If I said that, and you wouldn't have a problem with it, the guy's not the problem. And I think that's hard for people sometimes too, because it's just people don't like being offended or they don't like feeling like they're not being heard. And when you have those things. 

Yeah, I've had that situation though, where there's just someone that there's just friction for whatever it is. And for me, I've tried to Is there someone else who can take the lead on it, so I'm not the one having to, and that's it's not like giving in or backing out, it's just, do I have to be the person who interacts with this person because that happens too. There's just times where oil and water do not mix. And there's no point in trying to make it. Yeah, and it's like, I even tell people this too, like it's like everybody has people that don't like them, everybody. And if that's the person that you have to deal with on a day to day basis. Find ways to interact with them less, and you can't always avoid people, but the less you interact with them, the less chance you're you'll have of doing that. And that's true of lots of things. There's even certain projects with people that, you know, I won't work on because I know that person will drive me up a wall, and I am, you know, strong enough in my convictions to do and say something about it, which is not the right thing to do in this case or in this instance, and that's not necessarily. We don't need to have a fight every time there's a difference of opinion. Yeah, and it's really hard to know that sometimes, it's really hard to ask for that. And yeah, it can be a challenge, but it's honestly some balance of all of the things we've talked about is the best way to handle it. It's never one thing. Exactly, it's never one thing, every situation, every person is different, but I don't know, say it a million times. 

Reading the four agreements and living by those things is the best way. It's really focusing on your own inner peace is the best thing that you can do in any of those situations. Yeah, that's totally true. You're control of your own emotions a lot more than you think, and it's easy to say that less easier done. Yeah, and honestly, sometimes people have bad days too. Sometimes it's just, you know, some people walk up, wake up every day on the wrong side of the bed, but sometimes people are just having a bad, bad day or a bad week, and they're taking it out on you and the night, it's nothing to do with you. That can happen too. So I don't know, that's a lot, that's a lot of information we just kind of threw out there, but yeah, that's good. What are we gonna get to next? Our interview. The interview is what we do after the segment, Laura, if you're wondering. Cool, cool. 

Welcome back to EPR. Today we have Sameer Neve with us. Sameer is an environmental engineer and sustainability strategist exploring green technology, circular systems, and sustainability in sports. Super exciting. Welcome, Sameer. Hi, thank you so much, everyone. Awesome. So I know that our executive producer will be super excited to hear about all your sports stuff as she is in school right now for semi-pro soccer. So we're just going to shout her out for that. Not in school. Come on, you're semi-pro and uh I'm also curious, uh, Laura, come on. Y'all know I know nothing about sports, right? So this will be an interesting conversation. So, Sameer, you finished your PhD in environmental engineering not too long ago. Congratulations. Thank you so much. Can you tell us like what you studied and what made you want to focus on that? Yeah, so for my PhD in Environmental Engineering, I went to Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey and uh my focus area was sustainable reuse of spent whatever biomass for generation of bioethanol and biochar. So basically what we did is we took used grass, which was already in place for environmental remediation, and then instead of sending it to landfill, we used it to generate bioethanol from the shoots and biochar from the roots. Biochar is like an activated carbon but better and uh we used it for water treatment and the used biochar from water treatment was put into concrete. So instead of putting that again into landfill, we put it to rest in concrete. That's really interesting. 

So how do they make the biochar? So there is a process called pyrolysis. It's a process where you basically burn stuff and how you end up taking out air from the chamber and burning it in a limited oxygen environment. That's what gives it the definition of biochar as compared to an activated carbon or just charcoal. So that is something which makes it really porous, has makes it like a sponge which can take up all kinds of contaminants, hold water, make a very small microecosystem within it. So it can help soils, trap contaminants. You put it in water, it will suck up all the bad things in there. You put it right in your room and it acts as a room cleanser, not a room freshener, minded, but a room cleanser. So it works, works like a charm. Pun intended. Yes, yes. Well, that's pretty cool, but it's very specific. So what's your background? How did you end up there? Actually, it dates back to my school days and I was very fascinated with all these bell peppers having different colors. Uh, so I was, that, that, that's what sparked my interest in how does this happen? And that's how I got drawn into biology in general. And then I used to go out for hikes and nature trails with my father, and that brought me an engineering perspective to how things are built around us. So I decided, how can I merge these together? And at the same time, my father got into a work that was more of an environmental engineering domain, and that was pretty much easy for me to understand how things work and what I'm getting into. So I started with my bachelor's and master's in environmental engineering right up front, and that's how I transitioned into a PhD career. And I'm in an industry now where I can apply what I learned. And that kind of helps me get the full circle. 

Yeah, that's really awesome. So follow up question, why are peppers different colors? Apps are different colors because of genetics though, so it has something to do with environmental conditions, but it's more about biotechnology, and I'm not an expert on that. No, I love that, you know, we talk a lot about just early in your career, you don't really know what your passion is, but just follow what you're curious about. Exactly. No, and uh one thing that always stayed with me is I don't want to be a screen person. So I did not want to get into coding in the IT sector as such. At the same time, there were a lot of boom of core disciplines back in India when I was getting into a grad school. So mechanical engineering, civil engineering, electronics, and IT, these were the 4 ones that everyone was going to. And I decided to swim the other way. So that's how I am. That's awesome. Would you mind speaking about your transition to the United States? Yeah. So it was a great opportunity for me actually, because when I was completing my master's, there were a lot of different avenues that were opening up as I was finishing. So I had opportunities to do local government jobs. In local industry jobs, and then a couple of my friends who were gearing up to come to the United States for their PhD. I have always been someone who used to network a lot, so I ended up speaking to a couple of people in the United States in that process. And that gave me sort of a foot in the door opportunity to what education, at least a PhD level education is in the United States. And that's how I thought, you know what, if I'm anyway considering doing a PhD, why not do it in a place where I can be challenged and it will be a new opportunity, new beginnings. And my parents were supportive enough and the best thing that happened to me was all of this was on a scholarship. 

So I didn't have to burden my parents. It's awesome. That's really awesome. And that's a perfect segue into the work you're currently doing, but along the same lines of transitioning your career to the United States, did you have challenges finding the work after you had graduated? Yes. So one thing I want to really stand by with all my sort of friends who come from other countries is We fall into an immigrant criteria, right? And so there are certain challenges that we have to go through, no matter how talented you are or you are not for the sake. So, so on that note, what makes it very difficult is to get the right opportunity at the place who sponsors your work visa. So it's not always easy to get such, uh, you know, jobs. So what, one thing that I really, really tell all my juniors even at school is try and get in touch with people across different market sectors, because you never know. There are so many things that are going on right now that are. Disciplinary. There are people who do data science for environmental professionals. So it doesn't have to be an IT sector job specifically, you know? So just networking helps in general, and that's what happened to me. So the job I am in right now, I met my boss's boss, I guess 5 years ago back at Stevens, when I was managing the sustainability seminar series. And I used to bug him every 6 months, saying that, you know what, do you have internships? Do you have internships? And then after I graduated, do you have a job? Do you have a job? So for a year, there was no opening as such, but I managed to find another job in the place. But I always wanted to come back to the New York, New Jersey area. 

So that's how I ended up emailing him and contacting him again, asking. If there are opportunities and something worked out, so here I am. I freaking love that and I thank you for sharing that because I've been getting a lot of questions about that as a career coach for the environmental space lately. How do I find work? I know I have, I have a visa and I have to find something within a time frame which adds an extra level of stress and pressure. And these are the things that I generally tell people, but I love to hear it from someone who's actually successfully navigated that. So thank you for that. No, actually, I would like to add one thing. Uh, so I'm not as extrovert as some people perceive me as, but what is important is to talk to the right people about the right thing, and that's enough. You don't have to blabber, you know, you just have to talk about things that resonate with each other. So even a couple of lines, one cold email is also something that can get you the opportunity. So don't hesitate to, at least don't hesitate to send an email. Yes, I think you were looking right at me when you said don't blabber. It's great advice. It really, it truly is. Yeah, that's great. That's really great advice for anyone looking for a job. Actually, I'm always telling people to be more bold. It's already a no if you didn't get asked for a yes, you know, so like, what do you, what do you have to lose? Absolutely. So that's amazing. But let's talk about the work you're actually doing now. So you're at WSP and you serve on the advisory board at Hydra Earth. 

So what kinds of projects and things are you working on? So at WSP I am part of the renewable energy permitting team, so we do a lot of due diligence about energy projects before they get commissioned, making sure that if there are transmission lines that need to be put in place, they are following the guidelines and the laws before they get into place, and they are not causing any harm to the general local public through which the transmission system will pass through. And uh in addition to that, I love one part of my job, which is doing wetalin delineations. So it goes back, it, it goes back to my nature trails with my dad, where we used to just wander around looking for different. allow us to plug, but this time we don't plug. We snap pictures and we record whether, uh, you know, that, whether it's going to be a hurdle for transportation or commissioning of any sort of a renewable energy project in the week. So those are the two most exciting things that I do a job for the WSP. But for the Hydra network, uh, it's a new NGO that is coming up for workforce development. So there are a lot of exciting opportunities where we are trying to basically bring more people to do some actionable work in the energy domain where they would eventually be leaders who can make energy more easily available to people and having skilled labor into this particular sector and not just someone, you know, who just puts brick and mortar together. So it's kind of like uh using the community to forward kind of thing. Yes, absolutely. And making sure that people are aware of what this field has to offer and training them in the right direction so that they can, you know, make the best use of it. Interesting. So how did you get into that? What made you want to join up there? So I was actually approached by the CEO of that board because of a bunch of my LinkedIn posts that are catered towards informatics as such. Uh, so I kind of resonated with her instantly about the shared passion of spreading the word and uh making sure that the right people get in the right place so that work, work happens, uh, better and easier. I'm over here looking you up on LinkedIn right now. 

No, wait, wait, I didn't see these polls. all the time, like, you know, LinkedIn is, is one of those things where it's like, ah, yeah, yeah, I've got a profile, but I never use it, but I'm telling you, people all the time, it has become probably a most toned down and a really professional social media app to use. I love it. I'm one of its biggest fans. Yeah, I do too. I'm, I'm probably more on LinkedIn than on Instagram, that's for sure. I will not comment on which one I'm on more uh but no. Just don't say Facebook. Right, no, I think I still have it. Um, no, we'll have to find people, you know, all in that category, but it's my parents, it's basically my parents, um, yeah. But yeah, so working with that community-based like uh mindset um and, and working on finding people to, you know, bringing into the field, how does that impact like your thinking about the actual job you have? Does it the work that you've done and the work that you want to continue doing? Like, is there kind of a marriage between these two different things you're doing? Absolutely, 100%. It's mainly because environmental engineering in itself is such an applied field that you cannot do it without involving people around you. So if you're doing some sort of uh let's say a water treatment facility, it's eventually for the community. So you can't leave the community out of it. If you're trying to put a renewable energy power plant, who are you going to send that to? There's only one Earth. So that's what eventually we are all striving towards. And so there's a, it's a very easy and a direct connect between what we try to do, whether at WSP or at Hydra or with what we do in our personal lives. So that has always been one of my strongest inspirations to continue doing what I'm doing. Yeah, and I mean I, it feels like it's almost like another example of you, you say, you know, you're not an extrovert, but here's like working with communities, communication, it's reaching out, talking, so. 

That has to be somewhat rewarding for you to be through that. What is your advice then if somebody does, because again, like that seems like a very hard thing to do to connect with the community if it's not your default, you know. So yeah, I have seen a very common thing around people that they don't know where to start, and I always say just start with your neighbor. Cause right now, let's say if I'm doing a landscaping project, it's spring cleanup, and you can just knock on their door and say, you know what, I'm doing a spring cleanup. Do you want to do it too, maybe you can get a package deal. You never know. And there can be incentives hidden in these sort of collaborations. So it's always easy to start with someone whom you know because that person can be the extrovert that you are not. So you can sort of leverage their marketability as such, or, uh, you know, their outspokenness and their contacts, their reach. They might end up being on the board of the city, they might be probably one of the most social people, you know. So you don't have to necessarily take charge of every single thing. You can be the CEO, but they can be your HR. Right? I know Laura's beaming right now, so that's great. I love that. It's really, really fun. 

So we're talking about a lot of different things all kind of coming together and in your experience, like where do you see environmental challenges that need, I guess the most attention in communities? What are you seeing in what you're doing that requires new approaches to finding solutions? There are lots of talks going on around how devastating the emerging contaminants are, how emerging the micro pollutants are, and things like that. But deep down as someone who has worked on these things in a lab, you can't even see them, you know, with your naked eye. So it's difficult to believe what people are talking about for someone who is not from the profession, right? So, I personally feel that we need to start at what people see. And it's simple things like waste management, water treatment that you can see in the sense that there's a bunch of stormwater runoff that passes through our, you know, roads into the culverts, into the streets and comes back to you. But then on the way, it has so many different nonpoint source pollutants that get entered into it. Those are the points where we as professionals can impart more responsibility on the community. To contribute so that everyone helps each other. And so it doesn't have to be a rocket science as such. There can be simple solutions to simple problems. You don't have to create problems and then solve them. Yeah, so is it just like even something like awareness sometimes helps more than saying nothing. Yeah, absolutely. And there are, like, for example, again, this is not a promotion, but the township that I live in uses an app called Recycle Coach. And so if you put on the updates for it, it tells you on what days there are going to be waste pickups in terms of trash or recycles. But then what the app also does is it tells you what qualifies as recycles, what kind of recycles are we picking up this week. And, uh, then it also has pop quizzes as to can you compost, what is a compost, what can you put things in that, and how can you make it? And there are some small initiatives that go around. In the county and stuff. So, you know, things like these that can make a difference in, let's say 10 out of 30 or 40 households that can eventually scale up. Oh yeah. 

You know, even alerts like that are very important, like for me personally, like when I see that, it's super helpful, right? It just, it's like, oh yeah, today's the day I need to do the thing and it's simple, it's very simple. I love that. um, how that got started or? Uh, no, I have no idea how that got started because um I moved into Wayne sometime. early last year. And before that, in all the other places that I lived in New Jersey, I had never heard of this app. Uh, all of those townships had their regular flyers posted in every community places or, uh, apartment buildings and stuff, but nothing that reminds you the night before that you have to put your trash out in the morning. Yeah, mm, OK, well, that's a, that's a shout out for other towns to get on it. So how about that? Um. Well, I mean, OK, I know I want to get to sports, I promise, I really, really do, but I have one other question before we do. We talked a little bit about like communicating with people and we're, we just gave an example of Something that like, you know, maybe more millennial or you know whatever we younger generations oh an app. I love apps. I'm all over the app. Give me the app. But there's other folks that don't want to communicate or can't find the app. What do you mean? What is a nap? How do I get that one? I'll take one of those, yeah, um, so how do you communicate across different generations because we're all, all a little different. Yeah, absolutely. Great question, by the way. What brings baby boomers to Gen Alpha together is the voice, and it can be through any media. So it can also be, uh, courtesy of USPS through your mailboxes, through newspapers, community newsletters. There are the coupons that come on, right? I get like a packet of 20 things that I don't use every week, but instead, I can, if I have someone sending me 10 tips. Every month, that can still end up being a very valuable thing to do. And I've seen senior citizens and elderly people carry physical coupons to the store. So if that is the media that reaches them, so be it. It's about your text and the message, right? It's sound, video, text, anything works. It doesn't have to, I mean, people still used to practice a bunch of these things even before app was an app, right? 

So it's all about the media. The way it reaches them. That's totally true, and I think, you know, it's there's always an adaptability to I think some people, regardless of generation will prefer one method over the other, so you might as well, uh, be adaptable, understand your community. I mean, it kind of goes back to what we're talking about before, right, where the more you connect with people, the more you understand the way that they want to be reached. Right, absolutely. Yeah, so, OK, all right, now it's sports. I'm sorry, I got to get it out. So you have You're launching a research project about sustainability in sports. So I want to know what's it about? Why did you choose sports? Is there a sport in particular you're looking for, but like, where did that idea come from? Yeah. So as a guy to begin with, with no offense to any other gender, I have always been into sports and outdoors. So back in India, I played a sport called cricket. Uh, I continued to do it here and there is a huge league of cricket playing teams here in Jersey and in New York area, especially, it is now spreading throughout the US. So how it all started basically is a marriage of two of my likes, sustainability and cricket to start with. And then I started thinking on how I can, which are the areas within the sport that I can tackle when it comes to sustainability. There is operations, there's manufacturing, there is supplies, there is event management, and there are so many other domains that can be worked on. And then I realized that it can be translated into other sports. But the problem is, the facilities in itself, they are kind of aware of certain parts of sustainability by themselves. So they are, you know, trying to go green in terms of putting, uh, green roofs or solar panels on top of their facilities, tracking their waste, tracking their water and things like that. But This is all mainly related to their facilities as compared to the actual sport. 

But then, when it comes to the sport, there are things that you use as part of the sport. Like there's a pitch, there is a ground, it needs water. It has grass. Someone needs to cut it. So where's that grass gonna go? There are a bunch of things related to it, and that's what sparked my interest. And that's how I've started getting into, you know, more nitty gritties of the sports that I can access. And then try to find a solution in which the sport can sort of reinvent itself that can make it more sustainable. For example, if there are wooden baseball bats, what happens to the broken bats? How many times can you fix them? Can you make biochar out of it and put it in the ground where the game is played? There are ample of opportunities, so, and it's a huge sector, and there are people who are working on individual components of this. But I wanted to be a part of them and sort of spearhead some sector so that I can make a significant contribution there. Yeah, which is really wonderful and of course my next follow-up is, so the most recent World Cup in cricket, what happened, what happened there. So, the 2024 World Cup, India won. OK, so India won that one. So is the one I'm talking about then. I don't want to talk about. That's what I was getting at. But you know what, the 2024 World Cup though USA team did excellent. Yeah, yeah, I know, I know, I do remember that. And so I was like, uh oh, yeah, but no, I got it. I had to get it in. But um Nicks throwing jabs on it. What's going on? That's the most important thing. Honestly, I think the US did shockingly well. I think is the way the phrase to use in their last World Cup. So I just want, I knew that, so I had to say it, but um, so it's really cool to hear that like, you know, there's obviously different ways to make that better in sport will be a little bit different. But yeah, where do you expect that to go from here? 

So you have kind of an idea and where you want things to go, where, where are you hoping it'll end up? I'm currently in the process to talk to people who practice the sport in a way that they I mean, there are players, but at the same time, they're also sort of managers who can see the big picture. So I'm trying to get in touch with people like that who can help me understand, you know, these are the things that we discussed, and this is where the sustainability component can come and then this is where it can actually make a difference. But because otherwise there's no point knocking on the door, which is going to be shut permanently, right? If there's no growth prospect in there, then it doesn't help to pursue that. So rather talk to someone who can actually guide you to a point where, OK, then I can build on onto that conversation and see where it can take you. So I'm right now, if I may, I would like to use your forum to request if someone can reach out to me through LinkedIn or something and then maybe we can have a conversation about it. Very cool. I mean, that sounds really neat and I would love to, you know, check back in with you at some point and see how it's going because that sounds very, uh, you can actually see it on my LinkedIn in a few months. I might actually have a contact for you. I'll uh follow up with you on that later. Um, but I imagine that having those conversations can sometimes be challenging and um have you found any ways to successfully tap into, because I, I can see if I, let's say, I don't know, I don't know who you're reaching out to specifically, but if I am the owner of a team or are you finding like, you're just looking for smaller teams, bigger teams? I'm currently looking for smaller teams. 

Fortunately, back in India, I have a couple of contacts that are directly related to some big guns, but since they are big guns, they're not really accessible as such. So right now, my target audience is anyone who is approachable, pretty much, and who has an interest in this kind of a marriage. Because many times what happens is they don't even realize that this is something that can be done without, you know, getting into the way of what they're doing right now. So if Marley is playing soccer, there are different components of the game in itself that can be helped in this process. So you can sort of talk to anyone who can help and get in touch with and just start. Yeah, that's how, I mean, honestly, that's how it starts, and uh yeah, Marley's gonna have to find someone in soccer to at least get you, but I know she will actually, because Mar Marley might be that extrovert you need, so I just let you know, just letting you know now. Well, you know, there is on, no matter what you're doing, when we post things online and we talk about the work, that's all seems very glamorous, and of course we want to share the good things about the work we're doing, but in some of your past roles, have you run into some challenges and how did you feel like the best way to get through those are? Challenges are always there. There were a couple of instances that I remember very distinctively where in my previous job, actually, I was positioned as a site lead at a facility that was converted from, um, industrial facility to a residential facility. There was a contamination in the soil that was leading to indoor air pollution, and so I was stationed there to take care of that. So since there was an existing situation, people had to vacate that property. And so there were like 150 apartments with no people in there. Especially during the winters when it gets kind of dark early, I was just alone there roaming into different, I was just hoping that no one else pops out of their door, you know? That, that was a bit scary. 

So many times it helps to have someone with you in such sort of situations, but eventually, you mature in as part of your job, right? So you, you find the ways in which you can handle such situations. And, uh, those are some of the things that help you become a better professional. So along with that, one important thing that definitely comes to my mind is there are field jobs that you have to do, and they can get scary as well because you don't know what kind of Environment you're getting into some of the times, you just know from the map that, OK, it's a wilderness, but many times you don't know the extent of that, if there are, you know, physical harms that come along the way. And simple things like thorns, you know, they are in a way harmless to say, but if one gets into your eye, then that's, yeah, that's a whole different challenge than getting scared. In this facility, yeah, yeah, for sure. And uh I don't know, you might be taking a peek somehow at our notes here, but the next thing we have going on is our field notes segment. 

This part of our show where we talk to our guests about memorable moments doing the work. And for listeners, we ask that you send us your funny scary. Awkward field stories with us so we could read them on a future episode. You can send it to info@environmentalprofessionalsradio.com or just go to the website and submit it there. And so Sameer Neve, you've been doing this work in the field and I think you've gone to some pretty awesome places. Can you share some of your field stories? Yeah, I was actually one of my best experiences has been in upstate New York. It was a wetland site, which was like 1 hour from Rochester and 1 hour from Buffalo, uh, right in the middle of that. And we were there for about 2 weeks. I mean, there were other teams who were there for much longer, but I was there for 2 weeks. And on my off days, there were so many pretty things to do around, and I was fortunate that my wife could join me there and she could also experience that. And so it becomes so easy when your work is something that you love, and so it doesn't feel like work, you know. So some of these field days are actually like a blessing, especially if the weather is on your side as well. Yeah. I don't know why you made me think of like, uh, I remember doing a a cultural survey in New Jersey, and we had people come out from Denver and you talk about being, you know, it's so great to be outside. My perspective. I, you know, it's April, it's like 78 degrees, it's like it's a nice breeze, it's a beautiful day, but it was like apparently somewhat humid, and I just, I had no perception of it and the people in Denver were like sweating like, oh, how do you ever work in these conditions? 

It's unbelievable. And we're like looking at him like, are you come back in June, like or lie. Like this is nothing, you know. I know it's so relative here in the city. Uh, my roommates, when it's in August and it's 7, what is it? It's like 85, 87 degrees and they are dying. And I'm in jeans. They're like, What is wrong with you? I'm in Florida. This is nothing. I know. It's so funny. Yeah. One more thing, uh, one more thing I would definitely like to add on is I was recently invited by one of my legends, the legends of Biochar. Her name is Kathleen Draper. She works out of a place called Canandaigua, which is in near in the Finger Lakes area. And, uh, she had a burn and learn experience for people who are interested to see how Biochar is made and how it works. And I had the best afternoon there, not only because I got to spend time with someone who I admire so much, but again, this was one another opportunity where I could tag my wife along, and she has been supportive of this, so she enjoys that. But more importantly, it's because I could talk to people just piggybacking off what you said earlier, from a generation who doesn't understand apps. So I could explain what biochar is to a 75 year old as much as I could explain to a 15-year-old. And that is something that I strive for, and that is something that I feel everyone should, who's trying to do anything that they do. Need to know how to do it. Because otherwise, I mean, how are you going to spread the word, right? It makes it very easy if you know a way to get to these kind of audiences and then, uh, you know, just expand the fan base. Yeah. That's very cool and like, I don't know, it kind of leads to like our, so I know we're getting close to time, so we have one more official question for you and we love to, the reason we ask these questions, like the reason we, we love to ask people's hobbies and like the things that they like to do in their free time, and it's almost like kind of what you said, it's giving another data point. For someone who's maybe nervous to talk to you or wants to try to connect with you, so we, we always try to ask, like, what do you do for fun, right?

 Like what is your, your kind of thing? And you, you've mentioned collecting drifted pieces when you travel. So talk about that. Like what does that mean? Like how did, how did you like did it just something that evolved as you started traveling? Yes, but I must say that, uh, a lot of credit for this goes to my wife. So, uh, we travel a lot together and she's a very artsy person. And so she has an eye for these things. So any time where we have traveled throughout the states, we have made it a point to find out some time and go to a thrift store where we can find memorabilia, what people have donated in the first place and what we can take from them. So instead of going to A national park where to get a magnet from there. Instead, you go to a thrift store and you get, uh, you know, memories created by people that you can make them your own and have, you know, a new memory attached to it. So it is really very interesting in a way. And as I said, a lot of these things come from my wife, so she has more understanding of what will fit where. So we kind of end up in the right aisle in front of the right thing. It just, yeah, it just happens that way. So, but it has been great. We have had big bongo drums kind of a set, uh, from a place in California that we went to, and we got a bunch of magnets and, uh, we made it a point, like most of us put magnets on the fridge for places that we have been to. So we have made two sides. of the fridge, one side are the magnets that we have been to, and the other side is our to do list. So when we end up going to these places, we move the magnet from one side to the other. Oh, cool. Oh, that's very cool. I love that. In a way, it kind of becomes our bucket list. Yeah, exactly, exactly. And it's like a unique way of doing that too. 

And I, I just, you made me think of it like. You talk about thrift stores and getting new experiences. My brother once got me, but my family's from like outside of Pittsburgh, that's where my parents grew up, so we're all Pittsburgh Steelers fans, like the American football. Like we have like, he got me this thrift store mug that had the name Donna on it and like for whatever reason, Donna's mug, right? And, and he, for whatever reason he got me this mug, he's like, he's trying to scratch the name out, but you can still kind of tell, you know. And so like, it ended up being like terrible luck. She was, you know, we, we, I mean, like you can hear me talk about it. It's like almost like a person watching this thing. So when things would go poorly, it's like, Donna, you know. We gave a rallying cry for us and it's just, you know, who knows why it was donated, but we had a great kick out of it for years. It was wonderful. So yeah, I love it. In fact, in fact, I heard a very cool story about thrift items that there was someone who just bought off a pot from a thrift store and it turned out to be like a classic antique and it fetched him. A lot more. And there was actually a picture of a Goodwill sticker of $5 on it and versus a bill that he got, which was triple digits. Oh my gosh, yeah, yeah, so there's always, there's always gems out there. It's always. Anyway, I know, I could talk to you about that forever. I know we've got wrap up here. We are running out of time. We're just such a bummer. But before we let you go, is there anything else that you'd like to talk about we didn't touch on? A couple of things actually, I have always tried to spread the word about two things. One is educating people about environmental science in general. So it is important that if podcasts like these can reach to schools, middle schools and high schools that people can get, uh, the students can get motivated from. And, uh, this can be someone else's green, red, or yellow bell pepper for that matter. And on the other hand, I have been working on the sustainability for sports things, which I know we spoke about, but again, I would like to reiterate saying that there are ways in which you can look at what you do differently. So keep that curiosity alive so that, uh, you know, there is a part of you who wants to do it a little bit differently so that you can stand out from the group. Great. I love that. I do too. That's awesome. So, I don't know, I'm curious about so many more things about you, but we are out of time. 

So where can people get in touch with you? People can get in touch with me through LinkedIn. That's the best way to reach me, but I will also put in my email address in place. Uh, it's Sameer. Neve, S A M E E R. NE V E at gmail.com. And I am pretty responsive to both the platforms. Awesome. Thank you, Sameer. That's our show. Thank you, Sameer, for joining us today. Please be sure to check us out each and every Friday. Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review. Bye. See you, everybody.