Realizing a big business ambition does not have to come at the cost of the planet’s well-being. In fact, the best way is to bring in revenue while being ethical at the same time. Today’s guest is Adrian Solgaard, whose sustainable travel company, Solgaard, removes five pounds of plastic from the ocean for every single product that they sell. 

Adrian is a serial entrepreneur that has done a little bit of everything, from running a creative agency to launching bicycle locks on Kickstarter, but the reason he joins us today is because of his latest social enterprise. In it, he uses business in service of the planet by helping clear China’s Yangtze river of plastic and recycling it into products, bricks, and energy too! 

In our conversation with Adrian, we talk about what it takes to get ideas of this proportion off the ground and all the lessons he has learned along the way. He is a big believer in the power of collaboration, speaking about how he couldn’t achieve his vision without finding experts to help, and how powerful storytelling is critical to winning them over to his cause. 

Another big takeaway from today is that Adrian's solutions mindset is contingent on him being able to ask the right questions. We also talk to him about motivation, aiming high versus doing things step by step, and why he decided to raise so much capital on Kickstarter rather than get a regular job while penniless and sleeping on his friend’s couch! 

Follow along and be inspired by Adrian’s work and ideas today! Check out the episode on any of the following platforms: