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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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!

Today on the show I have Samuel Crossley, a talented documentary filmmaker and photographer who was introduced to a camera at a young age, when his dad handed him a DSLR in manual mode and insisted he learn how to use it the hard way. Years later, after continuing to pursue his interests in photography, he ended up in film school and after being inspired by Alex Honnold on 60 minutes - quickly found his way to climbing and immediately fell in love with the sport and capturing its intricacies through a lens. Ironically enough, a few short years later Samuel ended up working directly with many of the biggest figures in climbing and was even asked by Jimmy Chin to work on the academy award winning documentary Free Solo.  This conversation is chocked full of some great wisdom nuggets and a lot of real talk, and I have to say - the chat with Samuel proved to be one of my all time favorites I’ve had on the pod, and I think you’ll shortly see why. Namely because Samuel is just so thoughtful and has a unique ability to gracefully articulate what he’s thinking. Oh yeah, and keep the google machine handy - Samuel is going to shed some light on the anatomy of an amazing big wall climbing photograph, and you’ll want to check out the photo below while he walks us through it.  Before we dive in, 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.   Show Resources  

Today I’m talking with climbing legend Lynn Hill, who helped pioneer and define female competitive climbing and is known for feats like the first free ascent of The Nose of El Capitan and being the first woman to redpoint a 5.14 - among many others. In this conversation, Lynn and I dive into some of the history and future of climbing (both of which she has helped shape btw), how she's navigated the still male-dominated outdoor industry, lessons on living an engaged life and raising kids with that same ethos, and tips for designing our lives around our own unique visions for happiness - not that of others. Also, 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.   Show resources

I’m happy to say, I’m celebrating my 50th episode today and I couldn’t be happier to be sharing it with friend and mover/shaker Wyn Wiley, aka Pattie Gonia. That’s right, a long form exclusive interview with your very own backcountry drag queen. If you’re not familiar with Pattie, she was born about a year ago from Wyn’s creative mind when he dressed in drag for the first time in his life and discovered that the experience brought him alive like he’d never quite felt before. When he posted about the experience, he received major backlash and people he thought were friends vanished from his life, published public slurs and even egged his house. Oh where to even start with all that we covered in this chat. Well first of all, the conversation was so good it went on for quite a long time and so I split it into two parts. In part 1, you will hear the origin story of Pattie and some incredibly insightful ideas for becoming a better ally and saving Mother Earth - or as Pattie likes to call it, Mother Natch. In part 2, we dive into some of the business aspects behind Pattie and the wild ride it’s been for Wyn - one that has completely changed his life. As I’ve reflected on this conversation, I have to say I have so much respect for Wyn for stepping into this journey and for being so humble  along the way. Think about it. How scary is it to put on makeup and high heels and confront the world in your truth even when you know some people will hate you for it, either because they passionately don’t agree with it or because they don’t think you’re doing a good job at it, just to name a few reasons. But Wyn, you decided to move forward anyway and we want you to know that we love you for it. Not only that, but your humility along the way as a self-proclaimed advocate in-progress, is what leaves us all inspired and reminded that we’re all on an imperfect journey of self-exploration. One of constant learning and hopefully empathy - for ourselves and others. So thank you for living your truth and sharing it with us.   Show resources

I’m happy to say, I’m celebrating my 50th episode today and I couldn’t be happier to be sharing it with friend and mover/shaker Wyn Wiley, aka Pattie Gonia. That’s right, a long form exclusive interview with your very own backcountry drag queen. If you’re not familiar with Pattie, she was born about a year ago from Wyn’s creative mind when he dressed in drag for the first time in his life and discovered that the experience brought him alive like he’d never quite felt before. When he posted about the experience, he received major backlash and people he thought were friends vanished from his life, published public slurs and even egged his house. Oh where to even start with all that we covered in this chat. Well first of all, the conversation was so good it went on for quite a long time and so I split it into two parts. In part 1, you will hear the origin story of Pattie and some incredibly insightful ideas for becoming a better ally and saving Mother Earth - or as Pattie likes to call it, Mother Natch. In part 2, we dive into some of the business aspects behind Pattie and the wild ride it’s been for Wyn - one that has completely changed his life. As I’ve reflected on this conversation, I have to say I have so much respect for Wyn for stepping into this journey and for being so humble  along the way. Think about it. How scary is it to put on makeup and high heels and confront the world in your truth even when you know some people will hate you for it, either because they passionately don’t agree with it or because they don’t think you’re doing a good job at it, just to name a few reasons. But Wyn, you decided to move forward anyway and we want you to know that we love you for it. Not only that, but your humility along the way as a self-proclaimed advocate in-progress, is what leaves us all inspired and reminded that we’re all on an imperfect journey of self-exploration. One of constant learning and hopefully empathy - for ourselves and others. So thank you for living your truth and sharing it with us. Show resources

On today’s show I'm talking with Josh Cogan, a dear friend and wise soul who I think has some really helpful insights about the experience we are all going through right now as a global community. Josh is an Emmy-award winning photographer, story teller, and anthropologist. His work is currently on display at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery in Washington DC, where he also lives and shoots for National Geographic and the United Nations, among many others. Josh has spent the last decade intimately involved with various infectious diseases all over the world covering stories for the World Health Organization, so his perspectives on the current global pandemic are especially interesting. Josh is also a mindfulness Jedi, studying under the likes of heavy weights like Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach. He focuses on helping men who struggle with the intense pressure to succeed, feelings of isolation and loneliness, and/or lack of time and direction to focus on what really matters. This topic has resonated with me on many levels, so much that I’ve joined as a core contributor to a project called Journeymen, which helps create community, dialogue, and adventure for men in the modern world.  I hope you find this conversation to be as insightful and replenishing as I did.   Show resources and links: Joshua’s website and instagram page Photography for National Geographic Joshua’s contribution to Pulitzer Center Co-founder of Journeymen