Clean & Green Living

What if I told you the shoes and clothing that you no longer want don’t have to go to waste? What if those shoes could provide relief and create jobs? What if they could empower people to break the cycle of poverty? What if you could turn shoes and clothing into opportunity?

That is the work of Soles4Souls and of today’s guest, Buddy Teaster. Since 2006, Soles4Souls has distributed more than 51 million pairs of shoes to 127 countries and all 50 U.S. states. Not only do they donate shoes to those in need, but they also help people launch and sustain their own small business selling donated shoes and clothing. 

Buddy is a passionate entrepreneur showing the world how social enterprise can be used to make the world a better place. 

About Buddy

Since 2012, Buddy has been president and CEO of Soles4Souls, the largest not-for-profit shoe and apparel social enterprise in the US. He has helped rebuild the board, expand partnerships, and extend Soles4Souls’ global reach while doubling down on the mission of disrupting the cycle of poverty. Buddy was named to the National Retail Federation Foundation’s 2018 List of People Shaping Retail’s Future. Prior to Soles4Souls, he served as Chief Network Officer for the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO), a non-profit organization committed to developing better leaders through education and idea exchange. His extensive speaking experience includes topics ranging from leadership and philanthropy to managing excess inventory and social enterprise. Buddy, a committed ultra-runner, has completed nearly seventy ultra-marathons. He and his wife Becca have been married since 1992 and have two delightful daughters and two semi-okay dogs.

Connect with Soles4Souls

Website https://soles4souls.org

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/soles4souls 

Twitter https://twitter.com/soles4souls

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Soles4Souls/ 

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/soles4souls-inc-/

Coral reefs cover less than 0.1% of the Earth’s surface, yet are estimated to support greater than 25% of marine biodiversity. Due to both human influences and global climatic changes, the structure and function of reef ecosystems are being altered. 

My guest, Brian Zgliczynski is a PhD marine biologist at Scripps Institute of Oceanography and a coordinator of the 100 Island Challenge. Brian and his team study coral reefs around the world in order to understand how reefs are structured, how they change over time, and how they can be managed and protected in the face of global change

Before this interview I knew very little about coral reefs but thanks to Brian my eyes have been opened to why it is so crucial that we protect and preserve these most vital underwater ecosystems.  

About Brian

Brian is a marine ecologist with interests in coral reef ecosystems and fisheries ecology. His research is motivated by a desire to understand how human activities and biophysical forces influence the structure and function of coral reef communities. Brian completed his Ph.D., at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (2015) where he examined the effects of fisheries exploitation and oceanographic productivity on reef fish assemblages from the central Pacific. Brian is currently working as Project Coordinator of the 100 Island Challenge project.

Connect with Brian’s Work

100 Island Challenge https://100islandchallenge.org

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100islandchallenge/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/100islchallenge

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCR6xc-3SFGmqdYthU8VrgsQ

Instagram: https://100islandchallenge.org

Email Brian: [email protected]

Have you ever asked yourself these hard questions...What do you really, really want in your life?  What matters most to you?  These are the questions you will find in the Life Brief.  The Life Brief is the creation of Bonnie Wan. It’s a practice that helps you uncover what you really want in life in order to live with intention, creativity and joy. 

In 2010, during a crisis of meaning, Bonnie took her professional experience as a creative strategist and wrote a creative brief for her life. The resulting Life Brief not only saved her marriage and took her family down a new and exciting path, but it was also the beginning of her work to help others evaluate their lives to find the things they desired most. 

When my friend Erin introduced me to Bonnie and to The Life Brief, I knew I needed to have Bonnie on the show. Her energy is palpable, her boldness admirable and The Life Brief is without a doubt an exercise that everyone should explore. 

About Bonnie

Bonnie Wan is creator, speaker, and author of The Life Brief, a practice that helps people live with intention and imagination. As Partner and Head of Brand Strategy at Goodby Silverstein & Partners, Bonnie has spent almost three decades building brands for clients like Nest, Comcast, Adobe, HP, and BMW. Her creative work also includes innovative, award-winning campaigns fighting child sex trafficking, racial justice, gender inequality, cyberbullying, and college-campus rape. In 2010, during a crisis of meaning, she wrote a creative brief for her life and The Life Brief was born. The resulting Life Brief not only saved her marriage but kicked off ten years of family adventure filled with unexpected twists and unimaginable gifts. Today, Bonnie teaches others how to get clear and then creative about living their best lives through her Life Brief Workbook, workshops, retreats, and keynote talks.

Bonnie is featured in the documentary film, The Big Flip which chronicles four breadwinning moms and their stay-at-home husbands. She has appeared in Jeff Goodby and Rich Silverstein’s Masterclass on Advertising and Creativity, Katie Couric’s Katie show as well as HuffPost Live. She lives with her husband, four kids, and Charlie the dog.

Connect With Bonnie

Website https://thelifebrief.com

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/livingthelifebrief/

Each year in the US, Approximately 17 million tons of textile waste are placed into landfills and Scott Hamlin is on a mission to change that. Scott is the founder of Looptworks, a Portland, Oregon based company that re-purposes and upcycles abandoned, pre-consumer and post-consumer materials into limited edition products. Their end goal: zero waste.

From leather airplane seats, to NBA jerseys and Patagonia fly fishing waders, Lootpworks takes these unwanted products and materials and transforms them into something new, useful and incredibly unique. And, in the process they limit the use of natural resources and reduce carbon emissions. 

In this episode, Scott will share with you easy ways to reduce your consumption and make more sustainable choices. 

About Scott Hamlin

Scott Hamlin is the founder and CEO of Looptworks, a certified B corporation and mission-driven brand that gives new, higher-value life to excess textile materials in pursuit of circularity. 

With industry experience at Adidas AG, Jockey International and Royal Robbins, Hamlin is considered a thought leader on the circular economy. His passion is focused on re-imagining product creation with a focus on zero waste and closed-loop manufacturing methods. By re-using the world's pre and post-consumer excess, the Portland, Oregon-based brand aims to eliminate global textile waste, while inspiring people to reduce their impact on the planet.

Hamlin was recognized for his work in the area of sustainable capitalism and was selected to participate on a panel with former Vice President and Nobel Peace Laureate, Al Gore as a pioneer of sustainable industries. He has served as the keynote speaker at Temple University’s Social Entrepreneurship Conference, as well as speaking engagements at Harvard University, The Green Biz Forum, Sustainable Brands, and many other universities and business conferences both in the US and internationally.

Connect with Scott

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-hamlin-b989415/

Website https://www.looptworks.com

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Looptworks

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/looptworks/

Twitter https://twitter.com/looptworks

Never have the stakes been higher. We are facing an environmental crisis,... climate change, soil degradation, plastic pollution and loss of biodiversity.

While business is often at the root of these problems, it can also be a part of the solution. Today I am talking with Richard Yelland and Jeremy Black, producers of the documentary, Seeding Change. 

Richard, a highly accomplished filmmaker and Jeremy, a co-founder of Sambazon, set out to tell the story of Sambazon and their journey over the last 20 years as an organic, fair-trade Acai company. Along the way, they realized there was a bigger story to tell, that of how triple bottom line businesses like Sambazon, are making a positive impact in the world. 

Today we’re talking about all that lead up to the film Seeding Change and, of course, the film itself and its mission to educate consumers on how we can all help save the world one purchase at a time.

About Richard Yelland

Richard Yelland is an Emmy® Award-nominated director and award-winning filmmaker. Powerful visuals and strong performances are a trademark of his projects for Nike, HISTORY, Surfrider Foundation, Sambazon & Outside Television. “Richard is a fantastic filmmaker,” said Oscar® nominee Morgan Spurlock.

Richard's documentary film "Floating: The Nathan Gocke Story", was ‘Emerging Documentary' winner at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival. His next film, 12 Miles North: The Nick Gabaldon Story, presented by Nike, tells the story of the first documented African American surfer and is “Unlike any surf film you've ever seen,” according to ESPN. 12 Miles North was a 2014 Webby Award winner and inspired Santa Monica's annual Nick Gabaldon Day.

"Sine Qua Non: The Psychology of Big Wave Surfing with Greg Long", Richard's following effort, was an official selection at the Maui Film Festival and winner at the 2014 BLUE Ocean Film Festival.

His latest feature, "The Long Way Back" documents the addiction that nearly killed Todd ‘Z Man' Zalkins after the overdose of his longtime friend and Sublime frontman, Bradley Nowell. A Best Documentary winner at The Phoenix Film Festival, The "Long Way Back" received exclusive coverage in Rolling Stone and global distribution from The Orchard (SONY).

Richard received his Emmy nomination for “Pool,” a PSA he wrote and directed for the Life Rolls On Foundation featuring wheelchair "pool skater" Darwin Holmes.

About Jeremy Black

Jeremy Black is a co-founder of Sambazon Acai.  Taking the leap from a successful career as a financial planner, Jeremy joined brother Ryan Black (CEO) and friend Ed Nichols in early 2000 to introduce açaí to the U.S.market.  In addition to helping create global awareness and demand for an unknown fruit, the team pioneered a sustainable business model in the Amazon to import organic, fair-trade superfoods.

Jeremy was a key player in Sambazon’s rapid growth from a startup to a $100+ Million dollar global brand.  From meager beginnings of one product at a handful of juice bars around Southern California, Jeremy spearheaded the development of the brand, the products, and the marketing for a full portfolio of products in frozen, juice, energy, and supplement categories that are now sold in health food stores, juice bars and conventional grocery stores across the globe.  Over the past 17 years, Jeremy helped the Sambazon team create an entirely new category in the natural foods category and a business that creates positive socio-economic and environmental change. 

As an avid surfer, yogi and snowboarder, Sambazon has become a way of life for Jeremy, providing organic energy for worldwide travels and active pursuits. 

Resources Mentioned

Toolkit https://www.seedingchangefilm.com/take-action

Connect with the Filmmakers

The Film https://www.seedingchangefilm.com

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/seedingchangefilm/

Is there a birthday cake from your childhood that stands out in your memory? For me, it was the cake I had with a barbie and the cake skirt around her. Mine was pink and my twin sister’s was purple. As a parent, I can confirm that birthdays are a huge part of a child’s life, yet sadly there are hundreds of thousands of children whose birthdays go uncelebrated each year.

Jaime Lehman was shocked and saddened when she learned that her friend had never had a birthday cake and in that moment the idea of For Goodness Cakes was born. For Goodness cakes is a network of volunteers who bake and deliver birthday and graduation cakes to at-risk and disadvantaged youth all across the country. Their mission is to celebrate these youth and give them a much-needed pause and escape from the increasing pressures of their situation. Since January of 2016, For Goodness Cakes has brought joy and celebration to the lives of over 5000 children through their cakes. 

About Jaime

Jaime is the Founder and Executive Director of For Goodness Cakes. Her favorite cookbooks include Alice Water’s The Art of Simple Food and Donia Bijan’s Maman’s Homesick Pie: A Persian Heart in an American Kitchen, both of whose authors helped to inspire a deep love of cooking for others.

Connect with For Goodness Cakes

Website https://www.forgoodnesscakes.org

Instagram https://www.forgoodnesscakes.org

Twitter https://twitter.com/FGC_org

Facebook https://facebook.com/forgoodnesscakesinc

We live in a world where we are bombarded with fad diets and food recommendations that, quite frankly, lack the science to back them up. Every diet claims to be the “best” and the healthiest, and it’s impossible as consumers not to be overwhelmed and confused. 

Today’s guest, Simon Hill, is a master at breaking down that confusion. Simon is a nutritionist, physiotherapist, and the host of the top-rated Podcast, Plant Proof. On the show, he interviews doctors, athletes, climate change experts, and other people who are all united by a shared passion for a plant-based lifestyle. What I appreciate about Simon is his commitment to sharing evidence-based nutrition advice that is easily digestible to anyone, science background or not.  

In his new book, The Proof is in The Plants, Simon clears up the confusion around what we should be eating by providing unbiased, agenda-free scientific data. Most importantly, he shares the practical steps we can take to make better food choices for our health and the health of the planet.  

About Simon

Simon Hill is a Physiotherapist and Nutritionist who is passionate about making nutritional information simple and accessible so that people can make informed decisions about the food they feed themselves and their families. In 2008, Simon completed a Bachelor of Physiotherapy and immediately began working as a Sports Physiotherapist in Melbourne both at a leading private practice and with professional AFL & VFL footballers. 

Over the years, however, Simon became increasingly curious about the role nutrition played in nourishing the body and preventing disease. By using his research skills developed during his honours degree, Simon dove deep into the available literature on nutrition & disease and soon became fascinated by the vast evidence out there that proved that simple lifestyle changes could help people prevent and sometimes even reverse many of the leading chronic diseases that plague the western world today. Concerned with the fact that this information was not reaching people but was instead getting lost amidst the myriad of marketing ploys pushed by industries that were more interested in profits than the health and general well-being of the public, Simon shifted gears in his career undertaking a Plant-Based Nutrition Certificate and a Masters in Nutrition. 

During this time, he set up plantproof.com and began hosting world-renowned doctors and public figures, such as Neurologist's Dean & Ayesha Sherzai, MD, Dr Will Bulsiewicz, MD, Dr David Katz, MD, Environmental Researcher Nicholas Carter, Climate Scientist Dr. Jonathon Foley and Ultra-Athlete Rich Roll on the Plant Proof podcast. 

Over the course of the past decade, Simon’s mission has become clearer and clearer. Most of the time nutrition is spoken about in isolation from other major world issues, despite an enormous degree of interconnectedness. Just as our food system is a human health issue it is also a human and animal rights issue. Just as climate change is a planetary health issue, it is a human rights issue. 

Through the Plant Proof channels, Simon’s hope is that more of us will work together to create a more equitable, beautiful, and peaceful world. Something we are proud of today, and something future generations continue to enjoy. And this starts with becoming more connected, more informed, more mindful, and more conscious.

Connect with Simon

Website https://plantproof.com

The Proof is in The Plants Book https://plantproof.com/book

Podcast https://plantproof.com/all-podcasts

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/plant_proof/

Twitter https://twitter.com/Plant_proof

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/plantproofnutrition/

Many of us have found ourselves at a place that feels like rock bottom, a place where we feel beaten down and broken and ready to throw in the towel. In 2017, at the very top of her sport, Hillary Allen was competing in Norway at the Tromso Sky running race when she fell 150 feet off an exposed mountain side, breaking her ribs, both wrists and feet,  suffering a concussion and too many other bumps and bruises to count. In that moment, HIllary went from being at the top of her sport as a competitive runner to her literal and figurative rock bottom. 

In her new book, Out and Back: A Runner’s Story of Survival Against All Odds, Hillary is sharing her journey to finding strength, healing and hope during her recovery from that near-fatal accident. Her story is an inspiration to anyone who has been at rock bottom and has worked to rebuild their life and find the something better. 

About Hillary

Hillary’s career as an endurance athlete has not been straightforward. Through injury, setbacks, and unexpected challenges, Hillary’s had to re-think what she considers impossible. Early in her career, Hillary earned the nickname “Hillygoat” when she proved her ability to run fast on steep, technical mountain terrain –  a style of running known as Skyrunning.  Since then, she has raced all over the world, racking up wins and course records, establishing herself as one of the best mountain ultra runners in the world. In 2017 she had a life-threatening accident, where she fell 150 feet off of a ridge-line during a Skyrace in Tromsø, Norway. She was told she would never run again. After several years of rehab and recovery, Hillary made a full recovery and returned to elite-level racing, racing some of her longest and most challenging events post-accident. She maintains the belief that ‘your best athletic days are ahead of you if you’re willing to work hard for what you love. Hillary also studies and teaches science, using her master's degree in neuroscience and physiology, and structural biology. She is also a trail running coach and a gravel cyclist.

Connect with Hillary

Website https://hillaryallen.com

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hillygoat_climbs/

The Book- Out and Back: A Runner’s Story of Survival and Recovery Against All Odds

https://hillaryallen.com/out-and-back-a-runners-story-of-survival-and-recovery-against-all-odds/

Maybe it’s just me, but does anyone else feel like manners and common courtesy have been thrown to the wolves? I mean literally, people behave like wolves. In this past year I’ve witnessed the worst of people..rude, inconsiderate, selfish and sometimes just plain despicable. I truly believe the world is a better place when all people show respect, kindness and consideration, and there is no better person to dig into this topic than Lizzie Post.

Lizzie is the great-great-granddaughter of Emily Post and a co-president of the Emily Post Institute. She is also the co-host of the Awesome Etiquette podcast. I grew up with Emily’s Post’s book of Etiquette sitting on a table in our living room and while my mom never made me read the book cover to cover, the contents were communicated and good manners were non-negotiable. 

Lizzie and I are talking about modern manners and the ways in which we can handle ourselves with consideration, respect, and honesty. 

About Lizzie

Lizzie is the great-great-granddaughter of Emily Post, author of Higher Etiquette, and co-author of Emily Post’s Etiquette 19th edition as well as Emily Post’s Wedding Etiquette 6th edition, and The Etiquette Advantage in Business 3rd edition. She is a co-president of the Emily Post Institute as well as a co-host of the Awesome Etiquette podcast (now in its fifth year), a weekly Q&A show that explores the topic of etiquette through the lens of consideration, respect, and honesty. Lizzie does speaking engagements across the country sharing advice about lifestyle and wedding etiquette. She has worked as a spokesperson for brands including Bank of America, American Express Platinum, AirBnB, and Marshalls. She has held columns with Good Housekeeping, Women’s Running, Houzz.com, The Farmhouse Movement, and Broccoli Magazine. Lizzie offers a fresh, relatable, perspective with an engaging voice.

She delights in encouraging the individual to stand up for personal boundaries while respecting others. Lizzie enjoys tackling etiquette’s taboo topics with the media, making her a popular source. Her interviews include NFL Films, NBC’s The Today Show, Katie, Fox & Friends, Live with Kelly and Michael, The Gayle King Show, The Wendy Williams Show, Slate, Refinery29, Vanity Fair, Time Magazine, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, Harper’s Bazaar, Travel & Leisure, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, The Huffington Post and more.

Lizzie Post holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Art Education from The University of Vermont and currently lives in her native Vermont.

Resources Mentioned

The Rituals of Dinner https://www.amazon.com/Rituals-Dinner-Margaret-Visser/dp/0140170790

Higher Etiquette  

Connect With Lizzie

Website https://emilypost.com

The Podcast https://emilypost.com

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/emilypostinstitute/

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/emilypostinstitute/?ref=ts

Twitter https://twitter.com/EmilyPostInst

Today’s guest is Dr. Marion Nestle. Marion is a consumer advocate, nutritionist, award-winning author, and academic who specializes in the politics of food and dietary choice.  Her most recent book, “Let’s Ask Marion”, breaks down what you need to know about the politics of food, nutrition, and health. 

Marion believes that the three largest health nutrition problems facing our world today are hunger, obesity, and climate change and that they are all, in part, due to dysfunctional food systems. 

Marion advocates that we must understand, confront, and counter the political forces that created these problems in order to end them.

This episode will open your eyes to the impact of food politics on our communities and families, our health, and our environment.  

About Marion

Marion Nestle is Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health, Emerita, at New York University, in the department she chaired from 1988-2003 and from which she retired in September 2017. She is also Visiting Professor of Nutritional Sciences at Cornell. She holds honorary degrees from Transylvania University in Kentucky and the Macaulay Honors College of the City University of New York.

She earned a Ph.D. in molecular biology and an M.P.H. in public health nutrition from the University of California, Berkeley. Previous faculty positions were at Brandeis University and the UCSF School of Medicine. From 1986-88, she was senior nutrition policy advisor in the Department of Health and Human Services and editor of the 1988 Surgeon General’s Report on Nutrition and Health. Her research and writing examine scientific and socioeconomic influences on food choice and its consequences, emphasizing the role of food industry marketing.

She is the author of six prize-winning books: Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health (2002); Safe Food: The Politics of Food Safety (2003); What to Eat (2006); Why Calories Count: From Science to Politics, with Dr. Malden Nesheim (2012); Eat, Drink Vote: An Illustrated Guide to Food Politics (2013); and Soda Politics: Taking on Big Soda (and Winning) in 2015. She also has written two books about pet food, Pet Food Politics: The Chihuahua in the Coal Mine (2008) and Feed Your Pet Right in 2010 (also with Dr. Nesheim). She published Unsavory Truth: How Food Companies Skew the Science of What We Eat, in 2018 (and its Portuguese translation in 2019).  Her most recent book, with Kerry Trueman, Let's Ask Marion: What You Need to Know about the Politics of Food, Nutrition, and Health, was published in September 2020.

From 2008 to 2013, she wrote a monthly Food Matters column for the San Francisco Chronicle food section. She blogs daily (almost) at www.foodpolitics.com. Her Twitter account, @marionnestle, has been named among the top 10 in health and science by Time Magazine, Science Magazine, and The Guardian, and has more than 144,000 followers.

Resources Mentioned

Marion’s Books https://www.foodpolitics.com/books/

Connect with Marion

Website https://www.foodpolitics.com

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/marion.nestle

Twitter https://twitter.com/marionnestle