In this podcast we sit down with Esteban Araya Chaves, the CEO of Florex. Florex is a Costa Rica based manufacturer of toxin-free cleaning supplies. From the origin of Esteban’s father, Don Carlos, starting a business for women and mothers in Costa Rica to support themselves, he noticed the negative health implications of working with toxic cleaners for hours on end. Because of this Don Carlos and Doña Silvia started Florex, a company to manufacture human and environmentally-friendly, high-performance biodegradable cleaning products right in their home country of Costa Rica. We dive into Esteban’s past, future and present as he explains the journey of not only himself and his family, but the journey of Florex and its impact for Costa Rica and beyond! Interested in more?

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eicstoryprojects.org

@eicstoryprojects

Mare Blu is a passionate team in Costa Rica led by Gero and Paula, dedicated to ocean conservation and community health. In this episode, we take you on a "walkabout" to their new center in Guacolio to see how they are turning ocean plastic into building blocks for houses. The conversation explores their messy and inspiring journey of creating local jobs, protecting sea turtles, and finding a deep sense of purpose in the face of big challenges.

To learn more about Mare Blu, check out their website at mareblucr.org or follow them on Instagram @mareblucostarica.

For more about this story, and the rest of the Entrepreneur-Innovator-Changemakers’ Story Projects, go to eicstoryprojects.org. Also follow us on Instagram and YouTube at EICStoryProjects!

Arthur revisits Veronica Carrera, 2015 Best Executive MBA winner, avid triathlete, and author, at her holistic mountain retreat in Guanacaste, Costa Rica.
In this episode, Arthur catches up with Veronica and her life and business partner, Angélica Coronilla, on their journey to help the people of our modern world heal and grow. They reflect on the blessings that can come from destruction and finding magic within and around us.

To learn more about Ater Tumti and Veronica Carrera's journey, visit https://www.atertumticostarica.com/about.
For more about this story, and the rest of the Entrepreneur-Innovator-Changemakers' Story Projects, go to eicstoryprojects.org.
Also follow us on Instagram and YouTube at EICStoryProjects!

Flor is part of our ongoing storytelling, starting from when we met her last year when she worked with Bean Voyage. 

While still close with Bean Voyage and the community, Flor shares how she has gone full time as an entrepreneur who clearly cares for life on land, sustainable communities, and gender equality. Her farm, Finca Las Piedritas, is alive with so much of what Flor values: healthy soil, family, community, and amazing coffee.

To learn more check out her instagram @laspiedritascr and our website eicstoryprojects.org! 

Caetana Verela-Hall is a holistic doctor whose unconventional approach provides healing through integrative medicine. With influence from ancient Chinese Medicinal practices and her time as an occupational doctor, Caetana helps people feel good and live well at her practice, Casa SanAndo in A Coruña, Spain.

In this episode, Arthur chats with Caetana all about what it means to take care of your health and well-being, the systemic limitations keeping people from that care, and her journey as a medical practitioner.

Learn more at eicstoryprojects.org!

Alessandro Carpentiero is from Milan, Italy and is the co-founder of Beyond Sapiens where they work to help leaders blend the latest science with holistic practices that help optimize the mind and body. Alessandro is all about human potential through creating synergy between mind and body and how we might elevate our collective consciousness... and he does it in the business world, communicating it in ways that that this fairly skeptical population can hear and embrace. 

He shares his own journey from being a very successful photographer to his personal experiences with burnout and the founding of Beyond Sapiens as he took the learning from his own journey and now helps other leaders develop holistic wellbeing and flourishing.

Derreck Kayongo is likely most known for his brilliance related to the Global Soap Project which started with his first time staying in a US hotel where he observed something odd to him...something that many of us have observed...that the hotel gives guests multiple bars of soap and that the unused portions were just thrown away.  He found out that 800 million bars annually were thrown out in the US and he held that observation until he was able to act on it and provide an alternative to throwing all these bars away and fundamentally impacting the industry and even more importantly, communities around the world and the health of mother earth. 

While this story is a big part of his journey, this conversation reveals so much more.  Derreck shares about his youth in Uganda including the real dangers they faced, about becoming a refugee and ultimately making his way to the US where he grew in his education and understanding of this vastly different culture. He speaks of the powerful influence of his parents, the connection to his family and the ups and downs of living a life of impact. Derreck is currently working in green chemistry with Clean Production Action and shares the importance of shifting to chemicals that are safe for people and the planet.

Derreck shares powerful messages about finding out who you are in this world and building conviction around your role and your life’s purpose.  All impacting ones’ well-being and flourishing. 

Learn more at eicstoryprojects.org!

From Santa Fe, New Mexico, Sam Wolf shares his journey from a high-stakes litigation lawyer to becoming the COO and General Counsel of Falling Colors, one of the world’s top-ranked B Corps. After years of facing the physical and mental toll of "shareholder primacy" and professional burnout, Sam shifted his focus toward building a business model that legally protects social impact and prioritizes the "double bottom line." 

Sam explains the crucial differences between B Corp certification and Benefit Corporations, offering a deep dive into how companies can bake purpose into their legal DNA. He shares his unique thoughts on flourishing and well-being, highlighting practical ways his company supports employee health like their "four-hour" response rule and a commitment to local community sourcing. Sam’s story is a powerful look at how legal structures and intentional leadership can be used to create a more fair and sustainable world. 

Learn more at eicstoryprojects.org!

Veronica Carrera, 2015 Executive MBA winner, avid triathlete, and author, is the founder of Ater Tumti, a one-of-a-kind, Costa Rican holistic mountain retreat.

Veronica stepped away from a successful career in Corporate America after a transformative experience with plant medicine. Her and her partner, Angélica, moved to Costa Rica to pursue an exciting new holistic life fostering community, connection, and metamorphosis. They discuss their struggles, passions, and the journey that led Veronicas to create Ater Tumti.

To learn more about Ater Tumti and Veronica Carrera's journey, visit https://www.atertumticostarica.com/about.

For more about this story, and the rest of the Entrepreneur-Innovator-Changemakers' Story Projects, go to eicstoryprojects.org.
Also follow us on Instagram and YouTube at EICStoryProjects!

From Chiapas, Mexico, Frida Ibarra shares her story revealing an inspiring young changemaker in the making.  In addition to her desire to pursue completion of a Masters degree in data science to help further empower women in STEM fields, Frida has already impacted many lives of women and girls in Latin America through teaching coding... and she has loved being part of it all.  

Frida shares her thoughts on flourishing and well-being emphasizing the importance of community and the challenges of dealing with social injustices in the world.  Building on a family tradition of impact, she shares her future plans of returning to be part of positive change for women in the region where she was raised.

Learn more at eicstoryprojects.org!