Brighter Work

Nona Yehia - Vertical Harvest’s Co-Founder & CEO

In this episode, we sit down with Nona Yehia, the visionary architect behind Vertical Harvest—a three-story hydroponic greenhouse built to grow food and opportunity in the unlikeliest of places: Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Nona shares how she turned a bold idea into a blueprint for inclusive, sustainable business—where half the workforce is made up of people with disabilities, and every role is designed around each employee’s unique strengths. You’ll hear the behind-the-scenes story of building a farm in a ski town, rethinking what meaningful employment looks like, and challenging the systems that leave too many people out.

Toral Gandhi - Open Water’s Senior Director of On-Premise Sales

In this episode, we dive into how Toral Gandhi became the first employee at Open Water and helped grow it into a brand now found at Whole Foods, sweetgreen, and the Four Seasons. She shares what it’s like to convince businesses to ditch plastic, how she ended up in sales without ever planning to, and what it’s taken to build a purpose-driven career from the ground up. From early challenges to big wins, this episode offers a behind-the-scenes look at Toral’s path—and what others can learn from it.

Charlie Clark - Cotopaxi’s Director of Giving and Cause Marketing

Not knowing what you want to do is a relatively universal experience, but once you’re actually experiencing it—it can feel pretty damn isolating. That’s why I’m excited to introduce this week's guest, Charlie Clark, and he’s living proof that it’s totally okay, or better yet, even a good thing to spend some time grappling with that question. Because it’s only then that you might unexpectedly come across a career path that you never would’ve thought of, or in his case, even knew existed… Charlie has since figured out what he wants to do, and it’s building strategy for how purpose-driven companies approach giving. Tune in as we explore Cotopaxi’s partner-forward approach, why community-sourced solutions create lasting change, and so much more. Note: this episode was recorded in November of 2022, since then, Charlie’s title has changed to Director of Giving and Impact.

Leah Shoot - DeliverZero’s VP of Strategy

If you’re a big fan of takeout and delivery but feel guilty about all the waste… we have great news for you. DeliverZero partners with restaurants to offer reusable containers that customers have 3 weeks to return either to a drop-off point or opt for home collection. They’re rapidly expanding, and we sat down with their VP of Strategy, Leah Shoot, to get the inside scoop on how she landed such a cool gig and all things DeliverZero. SXSW Panel Picker: http://panelpicker.sxsw.com/vote/137630 [http://panelpicker.sxsw.com/vote/137630] Sign up for DeliverZero’s Newsletter: http://www.deliverzero.com [http://www.deliverzero.com] Upstream’s Reuse Wins Report: http://upstreamsolutions.org/reuse-wins-report [http://upstreamsolutions.org/reuse-wins-report]

Isabella Todaro - Climate Neutral's Director of Carbon Measurement

Climate Neutral is on a mission to make it incredibly easy to vote with your dollar. By providing a way for companies to calculate their emissions, guidance for reduction goals, and a final stamp of approval that companies can add at their point of sale—Climate Neutral is streamlining and incentivizing carbon neutrality. Here we chat with Isabella Todaro, who, at the time of this interview, was their Director of Carbon Measurement. She walks us through how companies become Climate Neutral Certified and provides insight into how this movement can sway heavy hitter industries such as steel, cement, and textile. Climate Neutral has an expansive volunteer program. If you're interested in learning more, tap the link below. https://climateneutral.notion.site/Looking-to-Get-Involved-with-Climate-Neutral-1330539994644816bef3fe38f517b167 [https://climateneutral.notion.site/Looking-to-Get-Involved-with-Climate-Neutral-1330539994644816bef3fe38f517b167] This interview was recorded in December of 2022; in July of 2023, Isabella left Climate Neutral to pursue her MBA at Columbia in New York City.