NYC Climate Week Drives RTI’s Sustainability Mission

Every year, global leaders in the environment, climate, and sustainability space gather in New York City for Climate Week to discuss and advance ideas on climate solutions.

This year, I am excited and honored to join tremendous organizations such as the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Food Planet Prize, NRDC, CookUnity and Mill for "Solving Food Waste is a Key Solution to the Climate Crisis" at WNYC-NPR Studios' The Greene Space in Manhattan on Monday, September 21st beginning at 9 AM ET.

This event brings together a diverse group of leaders from government, business, hospitality, and sustainability to explore how reducing food waste can cut emissions, strengthen food security, and build more resilient food systems.

Food waste does not always get the attention it deserves in climate conversations, but it should - and as an industry leader in sustainability, we have a responsibility to keep it at the forefront of the discussion. When food is wasted, we lose the meal and everything it took to grow, process, and transport it. Then, when it ends up in a landfill, it generates methane, a greenhouse gas far more potent than carbon dioxide in the near term. It is a problem hiding in plain sight, and commercial kitchens are one of the biggest sources.

During Climate Week NYC, I am joining a panel on food waste action in commercial kitchens and food service titled: Food Waste Action in Commercial Kitchens and Foodservice, alongside leaders from Compass Group and the Culinary Institute of America, to talk about what is actually possible when foodservice operators have the right systems in place. This includes reducing environmental impact and contributing to a circular economy for a more sustainable business.

At Restaurant Technologies, we see this up close every day: used cooking oil (UCO) is one of the most overlooked waste streams in any kitchen, and it does not have to end up as waste at all. We work with over 45,000 commercial kitchens nationwide including restaurants, hotels and resorts, grocery and convenience stores, colleges and universities, and more to ensure their UCO is recycled and converted into renewable diesel or biodiesel for vehicles on the road, or fuel for planes in the air.

In 2025, we helped convert nearly 100% of the UCO we collected, which equates to almost 400 million pounds. It is proof that a byproduct most people never think about can have a real second life - and that there are parts of every business that are often overlooked but can make a huge difference for the environment.

As a leader in sustainability in our industry, being part of NYC Climate Week is a natural extension of what we do daily, which is helping our customers build a safer, more efficient, and more sustainable foodservice operation. I am looking forward to sharing what we've learned, and even more so to learning from the incredible group of people in that room.

The event will be livestreamed at FoodTank.com if you would like to follow along, and I will be sharing more reflections here after Climate Week wraps.