David Katz; How to Show Up

Every year, plastic bottles affect our environment. Bottles end up in our landfills and oceans. 

In the ocean, bottles form HUGE mounds of trash called gyres. These bottles break down into microplastics that affect the ecosystem. As ocean animals eat the plastic, it slowly makes its way up the entire food chain — even to humans.

We all know that plastic is a BIG problem. However, no one has ever stepped up to the challenge of correcting the issue. 

Well, on the latest edition of The Art of Making Things Happen with Steve Sims, we found the one man dedicated to the cause. 

We spoke with David Katz about what he’s doing to eradicate plastic from our oceans through his company Plastic Bank. Keep reading to discover how Plastic Bank is changing people’s lives. 

What Is Plastic Bank?

Plastic Bank is solving the environmental and social problems of plastic at the root cause. Since plastic waste is a problem that affects poor communities worldwide, Plastic Bank helps turn plastic into money. 

With their Social Plastic initiative, they empower communities and reduce the need for virgin plastic around the world. 

Plastic Bank Members collect the plastic waste in their community and exchange it for a digital currency used for groceries, cooking fuel, school tuition, health insurance, and more. 

The plastic is recycled back to large companies who reuse it to save our environment from future plastic creation.

How Gen-Z Will Change the World

If you look at the children between the ages of 13 and 19, you’ll find a group of socially aware and responsible children who want to see a change in the world. 

They’re marching in the street for climate change. They’re following socially responsible brands. They care about the planet and want to find ways to change the environmental issues they have inherited. 

The Gen-Z generation is devoted to working for businesses that are doing good in the world. David says it’s because of them that we are entering into a new economy that he calls “The Purpose Economy.” 

Katz says this is due to millennials and Gen-Z’s getting raised in an environment of fear. They’ve dealt watched the great recession, global warming, environmental issues like pollution, and more. Since they’ve lived through this fear, they are committed to changing it. 

That means they want to partner with companies doing dedicated to the purpose of changing the world positively.

People, Planet, Prosperity

Businesses of good understand that if they are going to change anything, they must first work to fix the problem of poverty. That means that business must be profitable to help others become prosperous. 

David explains it like this, “You cannot donate the end of poverty.” 

David explains that poverty ends when: 

• There is community 
• They have mastery over self
• They have mastery over their life
• They have hope

You end poverty by helping others lift themselves up. Then they can help lift others. Plastic Bank seeks to help lift others out of poverty through its mission to increase recycled content. David shares how Plastic Bank is helping others during this TED Talk. 

How to Show Up

One way that you can show up is to go to your local grocery store and ask the manager: 

• Can you show me what items have recycled content? 
• Can you show me what items are restorative or regenerative? 
• Can you show me what items that support a societal cause? 

David understands that this takes courage, but he understands that the power is in the retailer, not the customer. If the retailer says people want only environmentally sustainable items, big companies will change their processes. 

Change Happens One Moment at a Time

For entrepreneurs, David offers one piece of advice. 

He stated that when he started, David had all these doubts swirling around in his head until he realized that he didn’t have to be the person who can change this massive problem. So instead, he worked each day to become that person. 

If you’ve got a big dream that you want to bring to the world, remember that change happens one moment at a time. If you’re looking for more support, why not join our online mastermind Facebook group, An Entrepreneurs Advantage. 

If you’re looking for more great content, check out The Art of Making Things Happen with Steve Sims.