What We Learned at The Road Forward International Summit
In this episode of Pave It Black, we unpack the major takeaways from The Road Forward International Summit, a global gathering focused on asphalt decarbonization, sustainability practices, and the future of asphalt pavement. Richard Willis and Brett Williams are joined by NAPA’s Senior Director for Sustainability and Intelligent Construction, Amlan Mukherjee, to explore the insights, breakthroughs, and unexpected conversations that emerged across the event.
Hear how the Summit created a unique space for stakeholders who rarely meet in one room. From agencies and producers to researchers, tollway leaders, and LCA consultants, the conversations highlighted how shared data, collaborative innovation, and clarity around market needs can accelerate meaningful decarbonization.
Here’s a sneak peek into this week’s conversation but be sure to tune in to the full episode for all the insights. Listen now
Richard: There are things happening down in Australia, in Europe, and Japan, and other locations. The group realized that it was important to try to learn from each other, not have to do the same experiments. How does this event strengthen The Road Forward initiative and build on the things that we’ve done to really propel us farther down the road?
A: Great question. Since The Road Forward Initiative started about two and a half years ago, almost three years now, there have been various efforts within the umbrella of looking at sustainability at NAPA, all the different sustainability-related programs, but also the broader scope of decarbonization. An EPD program is a building block within the decarbonization effort, but there are so many other aspects that are crucial and so many other building blocks that have to be connected together. There are so many different questions that come up within this holistic perspective. Innovation plays a critical role in this.
There are many different efforts happening all over the world, Richard, as you mentioned. The Summit was a great opportunity to bring everybody together and brainstorm on where we are. We shared notes and also created a platform where we can have more synthetic conversations where we can build on each other’s ideas and create a space for what evolves out of that interaction.
B: Are there other areas that were an important component to the Summit, having voices from around the world on this topic and on the different areas that were discussed?
A: Oh, absolutely. I can get into instances, but for example, with EPDs, which in Europe with their construction product regulation, EPDs are critical. Also, the way EPDs are developed in Europe is a function—there are multiple different product category rules—which is somewhat different from how we’ve written our product category rule and how we’ve been very prescriptive and how our EPDs are developed through the Emerald Eco-Label platform, which allows some amount of streamlining.
As we are updating our PCR right now, we are also looking at various experiences in Europe. At the same time, I think the conversation goes both ways because we do have the Emerald Eco-Label platform, which is quite unique in what it does for the asphalt industry.
