Partnership with CleanHub:

 

Starting July 1, 2024, I will be partnering with CleanHub. CleanHub is a Berlin-based company that provides a scalable solution to plastic pollution. They connect coastal communities to proper waste collection where it didn’t exist before and create safe and dignified jobs in local communities. I will be achieving a plastic neutral certification from them or what they call plastic +.

​

Simply put, I will be helping to recover more plastic than my company produces. After that CleanHub collects, sorts, and then sends it to cement plants that use it as a fuel alternative instead of coal. CleanHub has many admirable aspects, including fair wages for workers and systems in place to track plastic collection and avoid greenwashing. 

 

If you are curious, you can see my impact report here:  CleanHub Impact Report

 

 

A little backstory:

 

Growing up next to the South Fork of the American River, I developed a love for rivers and water centric sports. After graduating high school, I attended the University of California, San Diego. This passion led me to pursue a degree in environmental science and ecology.

​

In my twenties, I spent summers working as a river guide and traveled while substitute teaching during the off-seasons. Despite my efforts, I had no clear direction for my career after river guiding. Environmental consulting or some type of river or ocean related career seemed appealing, but I thought I would need to get a master’s degree to make a decision.

​

In the meantime, I had started drawing again which was one of my favorite activities to do as a child. I had always wanted to be an artist but truly never thought it was possible. In June 2017, I ordered a set of stickers to sell at Camp Lotus, a small campground by the river in my hometown. That summer, I made $1,500 from selling stickers, enough to buy a plane ticket to Zambia to kayak the Zambezi River. Selling stickers became a great side hustle until 2020 when I decided to pursue art full-time. 

​

However, as this dream became a reality, it had a downside—I was starting to produce a lot of plastic. The idea of an art career that generated vinyl waste always bothered me. I wanted to find a way for my company to positively impact the world's plastic problem and the environment. Working with CleanHub is a small step in that direction. The idea of cleaning the ocean as my company grows and helping create jobs where people can pick up trash and get paid a fair wage puts a smile on my face. 

​