Meet Marty Salamone, government affairs and sustainability coordinator for the International Sleep Products Association.
It’s fair to say Marty Salamone contains multitudes. When he isn’t busy in his role as the government affairs and sustainability coordinator at the International Sleep Products Association, he tends to his variety of interests. In his free time, he hikes around Northern Virginia and Maryland, keeping an eye out for interesting birds and foraging for edible plants.
Indoors, he enjoys reading and, to turn his brain off after work, enjoys watching reality television — anything from “Survivor” to the “Real Housewives” franchise. Salamone also has a black cat named Persephone, who, he says, “is a big supporter of ISPA and the mattress industry.”
BedTimes: Describe your role in a few sentences.
Marty Salamone: My role is unique as I split my time between ISPA’s government affairs and sustainability departments. For the government affairs part of my role, I am responsible for ISPA’s legislative tracking and supporting the advocacy needs of both ISPA and MRC. Additionally, I support ISPA’s sustainability initiative through engaging ISPA’s membership through the ISPA Sustainability Committee and MRC’s industry workgroups, among other projects. I also help plan and execute ISPA’s Sustainability Conference.
BT: What drew you to ISPA?
MS: Learning about the Mattress Recycling Council’s successful state programs is what initially hooked me. I was sent home from college for the Covid-19 pandemic and instead of taking remote classes for my entire junior year, I started searching for internships related to environmental policy and ended up interning with ISPA and MRC. I learned a ton and loved working with the government affairs and sustainability teams so much that I returned for a second internship and later full-time employment after I graduated in 2022. They couldn’t get rid of me!
BT: What’s something about ISPA that people might not know?
MS: Enacting legislation to operate an MRC state program takes years and a ton of collaboration both internally and externally.
For example, ISPA has been working on mattress recycling legislation with interested stakeholders in Maryland since 2021. ISPA takes lessons learned from our MRC operations team and incorporates them into legislation for new states. Without a strong legislative foundation, it is incredibly difficult to operate a statewide mattress recycling program.
BT: What is one of the most exciting things you’ve accomplished since working for ISPA?
MS: I am very proud of ISPA’s 2024 Sustainability Conference. I felt it was our best yet with a fantastic lineup of speakers. Working with Kate Caddy, ISPA’s sustainability director, on the content for ISPA’s past three sustainability conferences is always one of the highlights of my year. It has been rewarding watching how the ISPA sustainability conference has evolved over time, and I am so excited for our 2025 conference in Atlanta Sept. 10-11.
BT: What is a book, podcast or movie that you enjoyed recently you’d recommend to others?
MS: I firmly believe that “The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City” is the best show on television. It has a truly fascinating cast of characters, drama, beautiful scenery and even
a federal criminal investigation. I also recently read the book “Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland” by Patrick Radden Keefe. I found the way Radden Keefe structured the narrative compelling and an effective way to approach such a complicated, sensitive topic.
