Bill Sheehan co-founded Upstream (formerly the Product Policy Institute) with Helen Spiegelman in 2003 and serves as its Executive Director. Bill advocates for public policy that protects public health and safety and slows climate change by encouraging waste prevention, clean production and reduced use of toxics in products. He developed, with Spiegelman, a historical analysis that showed how municipal recycling and waste management services enable product manufacturers to design and sell goods without considering disposal costs and impacts.

Since 2005, Bill has worked with local governments, communities and NGOs to bring “extended producer responsibility” (EPR) policies to the U.S. to spur green product design. This work resulted in the formation of local government Product Stewardship Councils in California, New York, Texas and Vermont; he is working in several other states to form Councils. Bill holds a Ph.D. in ecology from Cornell University.