Product Stewardship Institute

What Product Stewardship Institute does

Product Stewardship Institute (PSI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2000 and headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. PSI operates as a policy expert and consulting organization that facilitates the development of extended producer responsibility (EPR) laws in the United States. The organization convenes multi-stakeholder dialogues among state environmental agencies, local governments, businesses, nonprofits, and academic institutions to build consensus on EPR policy design. PSI has developed model legislation for 22 product categories and its work has contributed to 150 EPR laws enacted across 34 states plus the District of Columbia, covering approximately 272 million people and 1.3 billion acres.

PSI's core offerings include model EPR legislation, stakeholder facilitation methodology, technical consulting, and knowledge resources such as webinar archives, legislation libraries, and research reports. The organization operates a membership-based model with 47 state environmental agency members and 110+ corporate, academic, and nonprofit partners. Revenue is generated through membership fees, partnership fees, consulting services, and tax-deductible donations. PSI's annual U.S. Product Stewardship Forum serves as the premier EPR conference in the U.S., attracting 300+ attendees and functioning as a key member recruitment and thought leadership platform.

The organization pioneered product stewardship in the U.S. and originated the multi-stakeholder dialogue that led to the creation of PaintCare, which has collected 82 million gallons of paint since inception. PSI continues to facilitate EPR adoption across emerging categories including packaging, batteries, textiles, and EV batteries, maintaining strategic partnerships with Producer Responsibility Organizations such as Circular Action Alliance and the Extended Producer Responsibility Alliance (EXPRA). Operations are supported by standard nonprofit technology infrastructure including Wild Apricot for membership management and Affinipay for payment processing.

Name

Product Stewardship Institute

Legal name

Product Stewardship Institute, Inc.

Website

https://productstewardship.us

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Product Stewardship Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit policy expert that facilitates extended producer responsibility (EPR) legislation across the U.S., serving state environmental agencies, local governments, businesses, and nonprofits with model legislation and stakeholder facilitation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Policy Consulting

NAICS

Administration of Environmental Quality Programs (9241)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Supply Chain & Product Environmental Compliance (RoHS, WEEE, Packaging EPR, Eco-Design/Labeling Regulations) (EUAHABAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Product Sustainability & LCA/EPD (Eco-design, PCF) (EUAHAJAF), Technical Committees, Working Groups & Expert Panels (BPADANAB)

Keywords

• Extended producer responsibility
• Product stewardship policy
• Environmental policy consulting
• EPR program design
• Producer responsibility advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: PSI operates as a membership-based nonprofit organization. State environmental agencies, local governments, corporations, academic institutions, and other organizations pay membership fees to join PSI and gain access to policy models, technical assistance, webinars, resource libraries, and the legislative network. Specific membership tiers and fees are not publicly disclosed.
2. Partnership Fees: PSI offers a Partnership tier for organizations (businesses, PROs, etc.) that wish to engage with PSI's EPR network. Partners pay a fee in exchange for access, strategic guidance, and participation in PSI-facilitated processes.
3. Consulting Services: PSI offers consulting services to governments, businesses, and other organizations seeking EPR policy development and implementation support. This includes facilitating advisory boards, providing expert testimony, and developing implementation resources.
4. Donations: PSI accepts tax-deductible donations from individuals and organizations. The nonprofit is registered with giving platforms including Fidelity Charitable, Benevity, and Silent Donor. PSI's Tax ID is 20-2059607.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Product Stewardship Institute (PSI) is a nonprofit policy expert and consulting organization that advances Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and product stewardship. It works with governments, businesses, and other stakeholders to develop, implement, and evaluate EPR laws, policies, and programs that shift end-of-life product management costs from taxpayers to producers.

Product overview

The Product Stewardship Institute (PSI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit policy expert and consulting organization that pioneered product stewardship in the United States in 2000. Rather than offering a traditional product platform, PSI provides a suite of services including membership programs, consulting, public resources, and the annual U.S. Product Stewardship Forum event. PSI facilitates multi-stakeholder dialogues and develops model EPR legislation for 22 product categories (batteries, carpet, electronics, gas cylinders, HHW, junk mail, lighting, mattresses, medical sharps, mercury auto switches, mercury thermostats, motor oil, packaging, paint, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, phone books, radioactive devices, refrigerant-containing appliances, solar panels, textiles, and tires). The organization works with governments, academia, nonprofits, and businesses to advance extended producer responsibility laws and programs nationwide, serving as the central coordination hub for the U.S. EPR movement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Membership Program Annual membership program for state, local, and tribal government agencies and other stakeholders to engage with PSI's EPR policy work, network, and resources.
• Partnership Program Corporate partnership program offering businesses and organizations structured engagement opportunities, recognition, and input on EPR policy and product stewardship initiatives.
• Consultation Services Advisory and consulting services on the design, development, and implementation of EPR legislation and programs for governments and producer organizations.
• U.S. Product Stewardship Forum Biennial national conference bringing together government, industry, NGO, and academic stakeholders to advance product stewardship and EPR policy in the United States.

Quantifiable outcome

• 150 EPR laws enacted across 34 states + D.C. covering 272 million people and 22 product categories
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• PaintCareflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPaintCare is the nonprofit organization that plans and operates paint stewardship programs in states with paint stewardship laws. PSI originated the concept and facilitated the multi-stakeholder dialogue between the American Coatings Association (ACA) and government stakeholders in the early 2000s that led to PaintCare's creation. PSI continues to collaborate with PaintCare on webinars, policy support, and program expansion. PaintCare now operates 11 paint stewardship programs and has collected 82 million gallons of paint.
• Oklahoma Meds & Sharps Disposal Committee (OMSDC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOMSDC is a PSI partner coalition focused on statewide solutions for safe disposal of medical sharps and pharmaceuticals in Oklahoma. PSI supports the coalition through resource sharing, press release distribution, and collaborative awareness campaigns. PSI featured OMSDC's Community Guide & Safe Disposal Awareness Campaign in a 2026 press release.
• Extended Producer Responsibility Alliance (EXPRA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEXPRA is the international association of Producer Responsibility Organizations. Joachim Quoden, EXPRA's Managing Director, participated in PSI's annual Forum as a speaker and received PSI's 2025 EPR Global Mentor Award. EXPRA brings European EPR best practices to PSI's U.S. network. PSI cited that in 35 years of EPR in Europe, no direct, automatic consumer price increases were observed.
• Circular Action Alliance (CAA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCAA is the primary Producer Responsibility Organization for packaging EPR in multiple U.S. states (Colorado, California, and others). PSI facilitated the Colorado Packaging EPR Advisory Board through the plan review process and has ongoing collaboration with CAA on chain-of-custody methodologies and program design. PSI's newsletter and blog frequently cover CAA program developments.
• California Product Stewardship Council (CPSC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCPSC is a coalition of local governments advocating for product stewardship in California. CPSC sponsored landmark EPR legislation including California's first textiles EPR law (SB 707), marine flares EPR (SB 1066), and carpet amendments (AB 863). Doug Kobold of CPSC received PSI's 2025 Environmental Leader Award. PSI and CPSC collaborate on policy advocacy and stakeholder engagement.
• Northwest Product Stewardship Council (NWPSC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNWPSC is a coalition of local governments in the Pacific Northwest advocating for EPR. Adrian Tan of NWPSC co-chaired the coalition and NWPSC worked on Washington's Recycling Reform Act (SB 5284). McKenna Morrigan of Seattle Public Utilities (an NWPSC member) received PSI's 2025 EPR Local Leader Award. PSI collaborates with NWPSC on regional EPR policy development.
• National Stewardship Action CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe National Stewardship Action Council championed multiple California EPR bills including marine flares (SB 1066), carpet amendments (AB 863), and paint amendments (SB 1143). The Council is a key advocacy partner in California's EPR legislative efforts and collaborates with PSI on stakeholder engagement and policy advancement.
• StericycleminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorStericycle is featured in PSI's testimonial quotes, with PSI noting that 'product stewardship initiatives regularly break new ground for the waste industry and help us develop and expand opportunities to serve new communities across the U.S.' Stericycle provides waste management services and has collaborated with PSI on expanding EPR services.
• American Coatings Association (ACA)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerACA is the trade association for paint manufacturers. PSI convened a multi-stakeholder dialogue with ACA in the early 2000s that led to the creation of PaintCare. Jeremy Jones of ACA received PSI's 2025 Corporate Stewardship Excellence Award. ACA has been a core industry partner in PSI's paint EPR initiative since its inception.
• Recycle ColoradocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRecycle Colorado is a PSI partner that co-led Colorado's Battery Stewardship Act (SB 25-163) alongside the National Waste and Recycling Association – Rocky Mountain Chapter. Executive Director Liz Chapman emphasized the collaborative approach in developing the bill. PSI supported the development of Colorado's battery EPR legislation.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Earth911: Earth911 is a recycling and sustainability information platform helping consumers and businesses find recycling solutions. While it focuses on consumer-facing recycling information rather than policy facilitation, it operates in the adjacent product stewardship education space and serves as a complementary resource for PSI's audience.
• Basel Action Network (BAN): Basel Action Network is a nonprofit focused on combating the export of hazardous waste, particularly e-waste, and promoting responsible electronics recycling. It overlaps with PSI's electronics EPR work and operates the e-Stewards certification standard—making it a peer in the electronics product stewardship space.

Direct peers

• California Product Stewardship Council (CPSC): CPSC is a coalition of California local governments advocating for product stewardship. It sponsored landmark EPR legislation including California's first textiles EPR law (SB 707), marine flares EPR (SB 1066), and carpet amendments (AB 863), operating as a regional/state-level advocacy peer to PSI's national scope.
• PaintCare: PaintCare is the nonprofit Producer Responsibility Organization for paint stewardship in the U.S., created through the multi-stakeholder dialogue that PSI facilitated. It operates 11 paint stewardship programs and has collected 82 million gallons since inception—making it both a PSI-facilitated program and a key ongoing partner in the EPR ecosystem.
• Circular Action Alliance (CAA): Circular Action Alliance is the primary Producer Responsibility Organization for packaging EPR in multiple U.S. states (Colorado, California, others). PSI facilitated the Colorado Packaging EPR Advisory Board and collaborates with CAA on chain-of-custody methodologies, making it both a peer in EPR program operations and a close strategic partner.
• Product Policy Institute: Product Policy Institute is a think tank focused on product and packaging policy reform, with overlapping coverage of EPR, extended producer responsibility, and producer pay models. It represents a closely aligned policy peer organization that complements PSI's state-level facilitation work with policy research and analysis.

Broad incumbents

• Closed Loop Partners: Closed Loop Partners is an investment firm and innovation platform focused on building the circular economy. It operates funds, a Catalyst accelerator, and the Center for the Circular Economy—serving as a broader-incumbent peer that addresses circular economy and recycling infrastructure through capital deployment rather than policy facilitation.
• Eunomia Research & Consulting: Eunomia is an environmental consultancy that provides research and advisory services on waste management, recycling, and circular economy policy globally. It is comparable to PSI as an independent policy advisor for EPR and producer responsibility frameworks, particularly in Europe and Oceania.
• Resource Recycling Systems (RRS): Resource Recycling Systems is an environmental consulting firm specializing in recycling and sustainable materials management. It serves governments, brands, and trade associations with program design and policy consulting—overlapping with PSI's policy advisory work but as a for-profit consultancy with broader recycling infrastructure focus.

Regional players

• Northwest Product Stewardship Council (NWPSC): NWPSC is a coalition of Pacific Northwest local governments advocating for EPR. It played a key role in Washington's Recycling Reform Act (SB 5284) and works on regional EPR policy—functioning as a regional peer to PSI that focuses on state-level advocacy in Washington, Oregon, and surrounding states.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/ProductStewardship
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/productsteward
• Instagraminstagram.com/productsteward
• Xx.com/productsteward

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Product Stewardship Institute