Bringing about impactful change is a formidable challenge. Particularly, changing the lives of children in India, whose household income is not more than $3 a day - with opportunity rather than handouts. Dr. Abraham Goerge, Founder Shanti Bhavan, an army veteran, entrepreneur and returned, to what he believes is his purpose in life, to India to found Shanti Bhavan. He believed strongly that these children can be made unstoppable by giving them a holistic education and an opportunity to blossom. An education that helps them compete academically, become leaders and gain personal growth. The student body is comprised of children from the most disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds—environments where daily guidance and support, often taken for granted in other households, may be entirely absent.

Shanti Bhavan brings the children to a healthy, safe and nourishing boarding school set in over 38 acres in the outskirts of Bengaluru. The children not only learn academics, but valuable life skills that will train them to seize opportunities with confidence and authority and not by some government set-asides. The graduates of Shanti Bhavan have gone on to several of the top universities in the US and India. Come take a listen to learn more about this powerful and impactful organization.

https://www.shantibhavanchildren.org/about-us/

Today we have on our show the passionate and even maybe maverick Jonathan Lundgren, director and founder of Blue Acre Farms and Ecdysis foundation. The word ecdysis means the process of shedding the old skin and that is what Blue Dasher farms wants to do by operating regenerative farm and scientific research hub designed to help foster a revolution in our food system. Blue Dasher Farm combines cutting edge science with hands on experience to remove barriers to the adoption of regenerative agriculture.

​They believe in a food system that promotes soil health, farm biodiversity, and nutrient dense food - all while benefiting the farmers who grow it. As a researcher who was honored by President Obama, in 2015 as one of the recipients of the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers, Jonathan talks about his time at the USDA and how going against the grain is not easy. But he felt change was urgent and left his job at the USDA to start Ecdysis foundation and Blue Dasher Farms along with several of his research fellows. ​Blue Dasher Farm relies heavily on their ability to show that they can support. They want to take the wind out of the argument "that may work on a research farm, but it would not work on my place." They are transparent and willing to compare their profitability to other more conventional operations. Although Blue Dasher is a for-profit enterprise, their mission is to help promote the regenerative agriculture movement and strive to be financially solvent while farming in a sustainable way.

https://www.bluedasher.farm/

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Most US elementary school students learn about photosynthesis in their science class. The process is very simple - chlorophyll in the leaves and green stems absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen back into the atmosphere. It is nature's elegant way of capturing carbon dioxide. Carbon cycle is where humans and human activities put out carbon dioxide and processes such as photosynthesis absorb it. But when the NET carbon dioxide into the atmosphere exceeds what is absorbed - that to the extent of 30 - 50 gigatons of carbon dioxide, then we have a problem on our hands. Observing and learning from nature our guests Beth McDaniel, President and Dr. Steve McDaniel, CEO and Chief Innovation Officer of Reactive Surfaces try to replicate the carbon capture process in nature in their solution. They have created coatings that can be applied to surfaces to capture carbon - just like nature does it with leaves and stems. Using polymeric materials thinly spread on a surface, adhere to the surface and then cured. These surfaces when exposed to sunlight, will photosynthesise, capturing and fixing carbon, using the photosynthetic process to carbohydrate. To learn more about this truly fascinating solution listen to our latest episode of Mindful Businesses.

Mentions:

Embassy Row Project - Envirotech Pre - accelerator

Xprize

Musk Foundation

#climatechange #carboncapture #carbonsequestration #mindfulbusinesses #reactivesurfaces #photosythesis #learnfromnature #sustainablematerials

https://reactivesurfaces.com/

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