From the CRI blog
Posted: 06 Jun 2013 03:30 AM PDT | carpet-and-rug-institute-blog.com
For their efforts on behalf of the carpet industry, Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) vice president and government relations director Jennifer Mendez and Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE) executive director Dr. Robert (Bob) Peoples were two of several carpet industry people named to Floor Covering News’ list of People Driving the Industry in the magazine’s May 13/20, 2013 edition.
According to the magazine, the title of the article refers to “someone who goes above and beyond a company or organization and works for the betterment of an industry or society.” As far as we are concerned here at CRI, that description could not be more apt for these two.
While the term “road warrior” may be applied to numerous people in the flooring industry few, if any, would argue the expression being associated with Jennifer Mendez.
Unlike the rest of CRI, she lives in the D.C. area and is responsible for directing government relations on the federal, state and local levels as well as interacting with government agencies and other Washington-based trade associations. In other words, she is literally crisscrossing the country representing the interests of the carpet industry and trying to educate legislators and their staffs—especially when it comes to the industry’s environmental record—to allow them to make informed decisions.
What many do not realize is laws passed in state legislatures, city councils and county boards, along with mandates from federal and state regulatory agencies, can all influence the way carpet is manufactured and used. As such, Mendez has made it her mission to ensure the carpet industry is represented in the best light possible.
Werner Braun, CRI’s president, called Mendez a “tireless advocate for the carpet industry and its employees. Her input with state legislatures on carpet-related issues has been invaluable.”
CARE’s first executive director, Bob Peoples returned to the leadership role of the organization in 2012. Since then, Peoples has been helping CARE, California and the rest of the country better understand the hows and whys of California’s AB 2398 Carpet Recycling law. The FCN article goes on to detail how Dr. Peoples has been making his mark in other ways:
Outside of AB 2398, Peoples has been involved in helping the industry find a solution to the growing problem of post-consumer carpet (PCC) made from polyester (PET) as the fiber currently has no viable markets, similar to the case with PCC nylon.
John Votaw, owner of Southeastern Plastic Recovery in South Carolina, called Peoples “wicked smart. But he’s not arrogant about it. He’s very open and has no hidden agenda. To him, this is not just a job; he really wants carpet recycling to succeed with things like cardboard, cans, paper, etc.”
As president of the Carpet and Rug Institute and chairman of the CARE board of directors, I offer my heartiest congratulations to these two leaders in the flooring industry.
– Werner