Announcement from Change Chemistry Executive Director Joel Tickner

Each New Year offers a chance to envision what we want to accomplish in the next 12 months. For me, this year will bring a significant transition, and I need your help to catalyze new growth and opportunity for Change Chemistry as it enters its third decade in 2025.

After nearly 20 years as Change Chemistry’s Executive Director, I will step down from this role and become a strategic advisor to the organization, focusing primarily on strategy, policy, and research. I realize this is a significant change for the organization, our members, and the broader community, but I believe this is the right decision and right time for both Change Chemistry and for me. We’re excited to have begun looking for a new Executive Director to lead us into what promises to be an exciting next decade for Change Chemistry.

When we established Change Chemistry as an independent nonprofit association in 2020, we reserved a Founder role on the Board of Directors to ensure that the organization stays true to its mission. In this role,  with a singular focus on strategy, policy, and research, I will both support a new Executive Director and better leverage the knowledge, experience, and connections I’ve built over decades. This is vital to accelerate our efforts to scale sustainable chemistry and transform the chemical industry and the sectors that rely on it.

With the Change Chemistry Board, we have already started the process of finding a new Executive Director to guide and grow the Change Chemistry organization, one we have built together over the last 20 years. We are looking for the right person to deliver on Change Chemistry’s vision of a global economy where all chemicals, materials and products are safe and sustainable from creation through disposal and reuse. We are seeking an Executive Director who is not only passionate about Change Chemistry’s mission but also has a successful track record in fostering cross-sector collaboration, with credibility among public, private, and NGO partners. They will work closely with the Board, myself, our staff, and community to take Change Chemistry to the next level in influence and impact. Here you can find a link to the job posting.

Leading the creation and growth of Change Chemistry has allowed me to seed a movement that will one day see safe and sustainable chemistry as the new norm. I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished to date and am excited by what’s ahead in our third decade. Working together, our impact will only grow.   

We have created a vibrant community through this organization that promises an amazing future. Collaboration is in our DNA and building trusted relationships is key to changing chemistry for the better across all industries, sectors and supply chains. I look forward to partnering with an expanded group of passionate changemakers as we navigate what’s ahead and appreciate your insights about how we do that.

Thank you for your support all these years.

Joel Tickner

Change Chemistry Founder