Chris Nelson is the Environmental Permitting Manager for 3M Co., headquartered in St. Paul, Minn.  In this role, he is responsible for permitting strategy and implementation for 3M facilities. He has worked on 3M permitting and compliance issues in many US states and some international manufacturing locations.

Mr. Nelson has worked at 3M for three years, supporting permitting and compliance efforts. Prior to joining the company, he worked for 13 years at the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, initially as an engineer focused on air quality issues and later managed a cross-media permitting program and dabbled in legislative affairs.

He has a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from the University of Minnesota, and is a registered professional chemical engineer in Minnesota. Mr. Nelson sits on the Air & Waste Management Association Board of Directors and chairs the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce's Air Quality subcommittee.

Greer Tidwell is Director of Environmental Management for Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations.  His role includes overseeing the company’s tire manufacturing plants, which have achieved strong environmental sustainability performance, including: ISO-14001 certification, zero waste-to-landfill status, certification as the first LEED-certified tire plants in the world, and status as the world’s first manufacturing plant certified for zero landfilling by Underwriter’s Laboratory. Several of the plants he oversees have certified wildlife habitat areas which are educational resources for the community.

Mr. Tidwell actively contributes to environmental conservation and quality efforts in Tennessee, and currently serves on the Board of the River Network. He is a registered patent attorney and earned engineering degrees from Baylor University and Tennessee Technological University and his law degree from Vanderbilt University.