Sam Rosolina on Southern Appalachia and Environmental Chemistry

In this episode I speak with Sam Rosolina, an environmental chemist currently serving as Vice President of Applied Innovation at Microbial Insights, a laboratory that uses microbes to clean up environmental contamination. We discuss:

• How growing up in rural Northeast Tennessee shaped his love of nature.

• How witnessing the devastating 2008 Kingston coal ash spill motivated his pursuit of environmental chemistry research.

• His path from academic heavy metal detection to leading isotope analysis at Microbial Insights, tracking microbial breakdown of contaminants.

• The compelling parallels between microbial and human communities, particularly in their reliance on specialization and mutual support.

• His perspective on the balance between voluntary and compliance-driven environmental action, noting regulation's historic role in driving improvements.

• How finding stability in place and career has enabled broader thinking about research while maintaining deep regional connections.