Origin Stories

Ep. 7: Dave Rouse — From saving lives to saving the planet

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Episode notes

Carbon Click CEO Dave Rouse pivoted from saving lives as a medical student to saving the planet and being a part of the global reset. Carbon Click makes it easy for people to take action on climate change by buying carbon offsetting credits at the point of sale, making every purchase climate friendly.

According to Dave's LinkedIn profile: "Our planet like the Titanic, has been on an unsustainable "collision course". Businesses seemed asleep at the wheel or distracted by short term financial profits. The ship has almost stopped during CoVID-19, representing perhaps the only opportunity IN OUR LIFETIME, to change it's course!"

He's driven by Triple Bottom Line profitability (social, environmental, and financial returns), one of the reasons he fell in love with Carbon Click as an investor and agreed to take on the role of CEO.

In this episode Dave talks about...

— choosing to try and save the planet instead of saving lives as a doctor;

— investing in struggling businesses and how eliminating wastage is the key to profitability;

— growing up in the bush and how it inspired him to become an environmental entrepreneur;

— how COVID impacted the climate change movement and his own business;

— working 80-hour weeks during lockdown;

— the importance of a Plan B and getting fresh eyes on a business;

— on being motivated by hope as well as fear;

— the opportunity for New Zealand to be a world leader when it comes to sustainable and environmentally friendly products and services and charge a premium;

— getting into politics;

... and much more.