Today on the show I have Alex Schulze and Andrew Cooper, 2 surfers that met in college and founded 4ocean, a company whose purpose is to end the ocean plastic crisis by cleaning the ocean and coastlines and working to stop of inflow of plastic by changing consumption habits. In 2 short years, 4ocean has gained incredible traction and created massive international impact. Its social audience has grown to over 3 million and the company has removed almost 7 million pounds of plastic worldwide. How have they scaled so quickly you might ask? Well Andrew and Alex work their asses off for one, but what’s perhaps more compelling is their unique business model. To fund the massive international cleanup efforts, 4ocean sells recycled bracelets and other reusable products. For every unit sold, they remove a pound of plastic from the ocean. This episode is packed with sage business and life advice, so grab a cup of coffee and your notebook and enjoy!   Show Resources: 4ocean company website 4ocean Instagram Tom’s Shoes (company that helped pioneer and popularize the one-for-one business model)

Alex Schulze and Andrew Cooper of 4ocean on Building an Impact-Driven Sustainability Business

The Adventurepreneur Podcast shares the stories of unconventional problem solvers, change makers, and entrepreneurs - building businesses, projects, lifestyles, and brands around a love for adventure, travel, and the outdoors.

Adventurepreneurs are thrill seekers, explorers, fun hogs, thought leaders, influencers, and lifestyle designers. They are the people brave enough to not let traditional definitions of success confine them. They are often irreverent misfits and risk takers, living life on their own terms.
This is a show created for the adventure community and those looking to live a fulfilling adventure lifestyle. Whether you want to learn the tricks of the trade, be inspired, have a good laugh, be more productive, or start living the life you always wanted, The Adventurepreneur Playbook can and will help you kick ass along the way.

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Today on the show I have Dory Trimble, Executive Director of the Honnold Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to promoting solar energy for a more equitable world.    What to say about Dory…? Well first of all she’s a total bad ass. Honestly, I find Dory’s perspective so invigorating and I think you’ll see why in this episode, which turned out to be one of the most insightful I’ve done. Her grit, tenacity, and proclivity for problem solving is something we can all learn from - so I’m excited for you all to snag some good takeaways.    One quick note on this episode, it was actually recorded almost a year ago but most everything we talked about is still as relevant today. I also wanted to point you in the direction of a new resource the Honnold Foundation has, which I found to be a very practical and action-focused list of things you can do to be proactive about climate change. It’s called Alex’s Sustainability Tick List, I encourage you to go over to Honnoldfoundation.org and check it out.   Last but far from least, I’m psyched to announce that my company Outwild is holding a retreat for early stage entrepreneurs and freelancers later this month. We’ll be gathering some awesome thought leaders and workshop leaders at an amazing sustainable ranch in the mountains of Northern Utah, for 3 packed days of building businesses and playing outside. We’ll be hanging with the head of marketing at the US Ski Team, to the Founder of Goal Zero, angel investors, a Wim Hoff breathing and cold immersion instructor, and half a dozen other seasoned outdoor and adventure entrepreneurs. Of course we’ll be climbing, biking, paddleboarding and making new friends along the way too. So if you’re either brewing over a startup idea, in the nascent stages of starting a business, or interested in making the transition to freelance work, this event is for you. We’ll be covering topics like: entrepreneurial mindset, drafting lean business models, early-stage marketing, boundary-setting to avoid burnout, and more! The best part of all this, I’m offering $500 off - literally only to the listeners of this show. If you’re interested, head over to outwild.co and use the code “Podcast500”, that’s with a capital P and no space. Again Podcast500 for $500 off Outwild for the Entrepreneur, July 29-Aug 1st.

Dory Trimble on Sustainability, Problem Solving & Creating Opportunity

Today on the show I have Louis Arevalo, a super talented outdoor photographer and journalist and one of the sweetest guys out there. Through Louis’s career, he’s been published in some of the industry’s most coveted publications and worked with many leading brands, but it wasn’t always that way. Louis worked for many years at FedEx, double timing it trying to make a living wage while also building a photography business on the side. After a lot of hard work and grit, Louis eventually was able to go full time into photography and never looked back.  Earlier this year, the Salt Lake City native was backcountry skiing a fire burn out zone in the southern Wasatch, when we took a fall and started to tomahawk high speed down the mountain. While he a was tumbling, his ski edge hit his head and literally scalped him - and he landed squarely on his upper back against an old burned tree trunk.  Louis lost consciousness, but luckily, his friend had been trained as a ski patroller and acted fast to save his life.  The incident left Louis fully paralyzed from his chest down. If you want to hear the full story, stay tuned to the end of the episode, you’ll be glued to your speaker I guarantee you that. My heart goes out to Louis and his family, not only because no one should have to go through that (let alone a notoriously sweet guy like Louis), but also because so many of us in this community are constantly in those same positions. Risking ourselves to pursue the things we love. It really makes you take a second to breath it all in. If you’re anything like me, you leave these types of stories feeling a little helpless. Well, if that’s you please consider taking action by donating to Louis GoFundMe page, every little bit helps. I’ll have the link available in the show notes, or you can Google Louis Arevalo GoFundMe and you’ll find it. A quick reminder that as we move closer and closer to election season it’s important to start thinking about your role in the fight against climate change. My go to resource is Protect Our Winters. The y make it easy to get your friends and family registered to vote and have lots of information on how to make informed decisions and get involved. Head over to their website or check them out on the socials for all the deets.   Show resources here.

Louis Arevalo on Outdoor Photography, Forgiveness, and Life-changing Paralysis

Today on the show I have Kate Williams, CEO of 1% for the Planet, a global movement started by Yvon Chouinard (the founder of Patagonia) and his friend Craig Matthews to inspire businesses and individuals to support environmental nonprofit solutions, through annual membership and everyday actions. I’m also joined by Ben Stuart, Chief Marketing Officer for Bank of the West, a midsize national financial institution who is taking some bold actions to support climate change in meaningful ways. Did you know that only 3% of all philanthropy in the US goes toward environmental giving. Did you know it’s very likely that your banking institution uses your money to invest in and support fracking and fossil fuels. In this episode, you’ll hear how Kate and Ben are looking to change that as we explore what it means to leverage business as a tool to support a healthy planet and society.  If you’re anything like me, this conversation will spark some curiosity to dig deeper, so I encourage you to visit onepercentfortheplanet.org and bankofthewest.com to learn more. One quick reminder before we dive in. As we move closer and closer to election season it’s important to start thinking about your role in the fight against climate change. My go to resource is Protect Our Winters (who is a supported by both 1% for the Planet and Bank of West coincidentally). They make it easy to get your friends and family registered to vote and have lots of information on how to make informed decisions and get involved. Head over to their website at protectourwinters.org or check them out on the socials for all the deets.

Kate Williams & Ben Stuart on Climate Action, Taking a Stand, and Responsible Business

Today on the show I have Emily Harrington, a professional rock climber and well-rounded adventure athlete. Emily starting climbing at a very young age in her hometown of Boulder, CO and quickly became one the best young female climbers in the world. She has been the US National Champion for sport climbing five times and has completed numerous first female ascents of 5.14 sport routes. She is also a vocal partner athlete for Protect Our Winters, using her platform to educate and activate outdoor recreationists on important topics related to fighting climate change. In this conversation, Emily offers some great advice for goal setting, training, and navigating the pandemic. This episode was recorded as part of a live Outwild speaker series event with questions from a live audience near the end (and even includes some insights from Emily’s dad who was in the audience). One quick announcement before we get going. For you business owners and employees within the outdoor industry out there, please consider signing or encouraging your leadership to sign the Outdoor CEO Diversity Pledge, which connects leading outdoor brands with inclusion advocates to advance representation for people of color across the industry. My company Outwild is proud to have signed the pledge, and I encourage to check it out and learn more at insolidarityproject.com. Also for context, this discussion with Emily took place before the killing of George Floyd on May 25, 2020.   Show resources here.

Emily Harrington on Fear, Goal Setting, and Perspectives on the Pandemic

Revised Version Today on the show I have Jedd Rose, founder and president of Topo Designs. Jedd has quickly become one of my favorite people in the outdoor industry, not just because of the great relationship we’ve built between Topo and my company Outwild, but also because Jedd is just such a great guy. He’s super insightful, humble, driven, and he surprises you with little nuggets that let you peer into the depth of his personality - you’ll see what I mean in this episode.  Jedd and his co-founder Mark Hansen created Topo Designs with a unique vision in mind: to build a fashion forward, utilitarian clothing and gear brand that blends an outdoor vibe with an urban cool factor. As Jedd would describe it, Topo is ‘built for anywhere on your map.’ In the relatively few short years they’ve been in business, Topo has risen to one of the most popular brands in the industry.  In this episode, Jedd and I get into the nitty gritty tactical details behind building a stellar brand. Everything from finding a good business partner, to raising money, to dissecting and preparing for the various stages most businesses go through - with a whole lot more sandwiched in between.  Before we dive in, I want to thank all my listeners for your patience while the show was on a short break so that we could all focus on learning about and elevating the voices of the BIPOC community during this historic fight for racial equality. Thank you all for supporting that initiative, it’s important work and your allyship and action is critical beyond measure. Speaking of activism, a quick reminder that as we move closer and closer to election season it’s important to start thinking about your role in the fight against climate change. My go to resource is Protect Our Winters. They make it easy to get your friends and family registered to vote and have lots of information on how to make informed decisions and get involved. Head over to their website or check them out on the socials for all the deets. The original version of this conversation took place in front of a live audience of students studying life design in the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado, Boulder. The version you’ll hear took place online in our homes to respect social distancing. Alright, here’s my conversation with Jedd Rose. Enjoy!

Alex Schulze and Andrew Cooper of 4ocean on Building an Impact-Driven Sustainability Business

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