E3. Kate Williams - Wild Lessons: Crafting a Life Story in the Wild & Leading '1% for the Planet'. Building a global community through the power of stories.

William Laitinen  00:45

There's always a moment when you hear the call to a life that will make a difference. Maybe you hear it for the first time, or maybe you've been hearing it all your life. But there is one thing that these invitations require of you, they require action. And when you answer your calling with action, you have the power to build a better world. And in a world that can sometimes feel broken, there is still so much good to be built. I'm William Laitinen and this is Built for Good, stories of real people who are changing the world. Episode three, Kate Williams 1% for the planet.

Two fishermen, their lines dipping in the clear rushing river, the wilderness around them serving as their only audience. One is Yvon Chouinard the trailblazing founder of the global brand, Patagonia, and the other Craig Matthews, the renowned conservationist and fisherman. As they stand waist deep in the water, surrounded by nature's beauty, they share a worry, the noticeable change in the environment around them, a change accelerated by human actions. Between casts and conversation, an idea begins to form an idea as powerful as the river around them. What if they could harness the power of business for good. What if businesses could give back just 1% of their annual sales to the very planet that sustains them. And there amongst the rippling water, and the whispering wind, the idea of 1% for the planet was born. Every idea needs a leader and 1% for the planet found a talented leader in Kate Williams, with Kate leading this simple idea has grown into a global movement, harnessing the power of storytelling and community building to create global change. After finishing high school at 18, Kate chose a different path. Instead of the lazy afternoons of graduation with friends, Kate joined a 30 day wilderness trip with the National Outdoor Leadership Camp. And it was there in the quiet wilderness of the Rocky Mountains of Western Wyoming that she heard a calling that would change her life. As Kate recalls however, the calling to this path was not the easy option.

Kate Williams 03:26

At the time I was you know as we said 18 I weighed like 110 pounds, I was put in a 70 pound pack, maybe a little bit more than that. So a very heavy backpack for those of you who never carried a pack of that size, it was definitely a big thing. And we set out and we were going to be out and mostly self-sufficient for these 30 days. I remember one time stepping up out of a stream and literally like flipping over onto my back because my pack was so heavy it pulled me over. So I had those little adventures along the way.

William Laitinen  04:03

It was amongst these small adventures and the beauty of the natural environment, that Kate’s narrative started to change.

Kate Williams 04:12

It was absolutely gorgeous, like the air is really dry so you could smell the sage you could smell the snow, I don't know if that makes sense to anyone but you could like traveling on snow it has this kind of unique really clean smell which I fell in love with on the spot. And you know we had a route we were going to travel from point to point and along the way learn things.

William Laitinen  04:35

Out in the wilderness, Kate experienced both difficulty and awe she was exhausted as the burden of a backpack pressed into her shoulders as she plowed through the untouched snow, her boots leaving a solitary trail in the otherwise pristine landscape. Yet amongst this physical struggle isolated from the outside world, deep bonds with the other members of the expedition began to grow.

Kate Williams 05:00

In the context of those challenges I was bonding and connecting with the people in my group and I was learning skills and that felt super awesome, all of that felt great.

William Laitinen  05:08

Yet Kate knew these days would be difficult.

Kate Williams 05:11

You know, we had like real objective challenges in terms of just some of the basics of travel and feeding ourselves. And despite that, along the way I was super happy, you know, I loved the challenge of like, I can carry this pack. I also partly felt like well, they said I should be able to so I got this like I can do this. So I kind of believed what I was being told I was capable of which is actually not a bad thing in life.

William Laitinen  05:40

Every step that Kate took became both a test and testament to who she wanted to be. As the days unfolded, the journey promised to become a life changing experience. But the path she took was not what she had expected.

Kate Williams 05:57

Basically, what happened is, you know, kind of everything that went wrong could go wrong and in the ways that happens.

William Laitinen  06:03

During a rock climbing lesson, as their instructor reached out for a handhold, a loose rock gave way and after trying to find his footing, he slipped, fell and with a sickening crack broke his leg.

Kate Williams 06:20

And that was a really big deal because we were probably 30 miles from the nearest trailhead, and this was pre cellphones like we had no form of communication other than our bodies.

William Laitinen  06:35

Miles away from the nearest form of civilization, the young students were suddenly tasked with initiating and leading an evacuation. And just out of high school, Kate was faced with a challenge that most of us, even as adults would have found daunting.

Kate Williams 06:52

I was as an 18 year old, tasked with managing the group that wasn't running out to communicate. So a couple of people went out to run literally to the trailhead to get word out that we needed a helicopter to come in. Another small group started carrying the instructor, the injured instructor up to a place where the helicopter could get to him. And then we had the rest of the group that needed to get all of the gear and all of ourselves to this pass, called Haley pass, I still remember it really distinctly in the Wind River Range. And I was the one who was tasked to be the leader and I do remember having one of those classic like, look over my shoulder, like, are you talking to me? I just was kind of like, alright, they are talking to me and so now I need to do this. And so I spent the night with the group that I was now responsible for, and then we were to get up in the morning and get up to the pass.

William Laitinen  07:46

The next morning, after a restless night of sleep, they found that a deep layer of crystal white snow had settled over their tents, filling boots and bags, the group was tired, hungry, cold and scared. And in that cold morning air, the doubts hung about in the rising mist. Kate had little wilderness experience and no emergency response experience. And suddenly, she had to lead a whole group without any instructors to rely upon.

Kate Williams 08:19

That was such a huge moment for me because, I was like, alright, this is needed, I need to be able to do this and the belief exists that I can do this. I didn’t know about kind of breathing or any practices like that then but I did have this moment of centering in myself of like, I need to show up in this moment and so I'm going to show up in this moment. And that's been a really powerful thing for me.

William Laitinen  08:46

In moments like this when we take action, it forces the change to take place. It is a movement forward instead of reflective stagnation, and this is how we create a new story in our life.

Kate Williams 09:01

And what was so cool and life changing and sort of where the pivot started was, I did it, and I had this feeling of like, I've got this and other people need me to have this and it just felt really right. I was kind of surprised but sort of delighted by that and the moment when all of this kind of coalesced for me as a kind of life changing moment which, you know really has stayed with me, is when the helicopter was lifting off, it was sunset we were standing on this pass, the whole group was back together like I had done what had been asked of me and what I came to understand as my job of getting, you know, my group safely up to the pass.

William Laitinen  09:48

Reflecting on that pivotal day, Kate shares that two factors were crucial in her ability to step forward, go beyond and emerge stronger. Firstly, being recognized as someone who could rise above her own doubts and fears compelled her to meet the challenges presented and step forward to lead.

Kate Williams 10:07

I just had this feeling of like, I'm so happy, I'm exactly where I should be and this is what I want to do with my life and this was like a combination of the experience of being really connected to the community of people like I had been asked to lead, and it was leading a group of people like we were together, we're in it together, and I really, really felt that.

William Laitinen  10:29

Second, she was struck by the awe inspiring beauty of nature. It's roars, whispers and size echoed not just the power, danger and excitement, but also the wisdom. It's in the crunch of the snow under her boots, the whistle of the wind, carrying lessons of resilience, and humility.

Kate Williams 10:51

I was standing there looking at the sunset, like hearing the helicopter, sort of fade into the distance, like kind of, you know, hearing the some of the chatter of the group, as people kind of settled in, we were going to camp there that night, you know, some of the smells of making mac and cheese.

Kate Williams 11:15

Like looking out at the incredible beauty of this place, where we were, and I just felt really connected to that and so that moment of like, this is what I want to do, the community and the wild, set me on the course for my life, which was really pretty amazing. And then I went and ate mac and cheese and it was really good.

William Laitinen  11:35

The simple things.

Transformational experiences, shift our understanding, and create new, more complex versions of ourselves. Kate realized through the challenges of this journey, that we as humans, exist within a deeply complex and interconnected web of life. And when we embrace this coexistence, we can develop a deep sense of love, and purpose for all those that we share our planet with.

Kate Williams 12:07

We were really, really connected in the challenges of the experience connected us but the beauty of the place, also connected us, I think you know , experiencing awe, together is really powerful. So, you know, the joint effort, the collaborative effort of doing a hard thing enabled all of us to do more than we thought we could have done.

Kate Williams 12:42

I think when I had that realization of my capability, it was kind of realizing I am where I belong, and I belong to the natural world, we are not separate, because I do think western human culture is set up in a lot of ways, even environmentalism is set up to have like, humans and nature as two separate things, when in fact, we are part of nature, we are connected.

William Laitinen  13:09

After Kate's pivotal life moment, she began to understand what she wanted her story to be. But life has a tendency to be difficult and full of challenges.

Kate Williams 13:21

I was laid off from a job in early 2000s, after 911 and it was a sort of economy dip, it was in the tech bubble burst and the funding for the program I was working in dried up so they just cut our whole program.

William Laitinen  13:34

At that moment, with a six month old baby and no job, Kate and her partner were overwhelmed with new experiences, and also expenses, but is often in these difficult moments that we truly discover what we value and what we are capable of achieving.

Kate Williams 13:54

So it was not at all what we had in mind. And it was not a happy moment initially, but what it led to was this really clear moment of saying like, what do I want?

William Laitinen  14:06

About nine months after that, a friend of Kate's calls her up to let her know, a local nonprofit, is looking for an assistant director. She has the opportunity for an interview and in that moment, she has a radical decision to make.

Kate Williams 14:20

I remember sitting in that interview and having the conversation and just asking myself, like, what do I want. And I realized, like, I didn't want the assistant director job, I wanted to be the executive director. This was not characteristic of me but it was a pivotal moment, I remember saying that I said, Thank you so much, it's been really nice to talk to you, I'm not interested in this job, I would be interested in being the executive director, and walked out. Two months later, they called me back and said, hey, we just got some funding, and we'd like to, you know, offer you that job would you be interested? So I became Executive Director of that for 10 years and then that was the job I had before moving to 1% for the planet. So I think I learned I was more resilient than I thought I was, but then also somehow figuring out how to say what I wanted, like that was a learned skill for me in a big way. And I think it's something I still have to learn but I think that was really valuable for me.

William Laitinen  15:13

When we reflect on our journey, the narrative can seem so neat and coherent. But the truth is, getting to where we want is built upon many moments of action, moments of saying yes, but also saying no, and having the courage to change the story in our life.

Kate Williams 15:33

I never graduated from college or grad school or sat down with my dad and said, I want to be a CEO. That was not part of my formula. But when I really look back at the things that were really pivotal, I kind of feel like it was the stuff that was hard that I got through and learned from.

William Laitinen  15:52

Kate not only works for 1% for the planet, she leads it, she travels the world, host conferences, meets amazing people, and inspirational charities. And at the heart of her work helps to alleviate suffering in the world.

Kate Williams 16:08

I think that the best part, the most fun part of my job, what gives me so much joy is that every single day without fail, I get to be in conversation and connection with people who are doing interesting things that are creating hope. One of the other things that's really fun about my job is that I'm constantly thinking and this is like the intellectual side of me coming out, like how do you organize people to drive change at scale? Like, honestly that, you know, second to my 18 year old mountain top experience that's a question and a passion that I've been really interested in for a long time because I don't think as humans, we've really nailed that.

William Laitinen  16:53

When I interviewed Kate, I shared a story from one of my all-time favorite children's books, Harry and the bucket full of dinosaurs, because I felt it beautifully captured the power of stories and businesses working together. In one of my favorite stories, Harry visits the zoo, and finds out about endangered animals. And when he discovers the word endangered, he’s shocked that there are so many endangered species. And so he asks his nan what he could do. His sister an ever present character scoffs at him and says, you're too small to make a difference in the world. But Harry perseveres and creates posters to be displayed in his local shop window. And the owner of that business suggests that Harry's pictures be sold as postcards. And when they sell them, a little bit of the profit can be given to a charity, who, in turn, will help save endangered animals.

Kate Williams 17:51

That story is great, because I do think one of the things that is true in this case is that small habits that people repeat over time, are one of the effective ways that people can drive change effectively at scale, the 1% for the planet model does rest on that idea. With the one like caveat, I would add that, you know, it's 1% of sales, which is not super small, like for many of our business members who may be listening 1% of sales is not just like, you know, a little bit of roundup at the end of a purchase, you know, it feels like a very real number which is good, but it's also manageable and you can wrap your head around it and you can like again, attach it to your larger enterprise, which I think really matters. So a lot of times when people think about philanthropy or giving back, they think about it as kind of a nice thing that you do at the end of the year or at some point during the year when you have a little extra money lying around. But what we really try and bring forward is that giving can become a strategic part of your business, it can be a way in which you drive your brand more powerfully and bring, you know, the power of the partnership stories into your brand.

William Laitinen  19:00

My own experience of buying is that I want the brands who give back to the environment to grow and thrive. And one of the most effective ways to understand the good work that my purchases are doing is through stories.

Kate Williams 19:15

And that's one of the things that we work really hard on at 1% for the planet is how we tell the stories of the partnerships in our network between our businesses who are giving their 1% and the amazing environmental partners who are receiving and implementing impact. And it's that whole story that creates a different understanding of how a community of people that is transactional at one level can also be transformational through how we understand what's possible. I just imagine it as this web of dynamic lines and each line is representing a partnership just, you know, totally sort of encircling the globe. So it's really, really quite amazing. And each one of those is a really beautiful story like a universe in itself. One example, recently, we just learned that one of our environmental partners focused on coral restoration gets 40% of their annual funding through 1% for the planet, that's really great, because that's a big amount of funding for a nonprofit. And when I say coming from 1% for the planet that is not self-congratulatory, that is our network, those are members in our network who are giving. And so you know, it's really, really wonderful to see that. So I could talk for hours about these powerful examples. But I think the takeaway is it is this global web of partnerships that are touching down in really particular ways that then ladder up again to that global scale of change.

William Laitinen  20:47

1% for the planet aims to inspire companies to give back to the environment they rely upon. Because without a sustainable environment, there can be no sustainable business success. One of my favorite stories of a business that is doing good in the world through their 1% for the planet contribution is my local coffee roaster, Crankhouse Coffee. Their story of how a humble coffee bean can become part of a global story of environmental and human conservation is simple, yet inspiring. In the mist shrouded coffee fields of Brazil, a humble coffee bean begins its journey to become part of a global fight to save our endangered rain forests. Born under tropical skies, our green coffee bean leaps over oceans to the shores of England to the artisan roasters of Crankhouse Coffee, who are part of the 1% for the planet movement. The once green bean is then gently tumbled and roasted. Its emerald sheen giving way to a rich mahogany hue. Freshly roasted the beans tumble into bags, ready to be brewed and transformed into the perfect morning espresso. The echo of the beans journey resounds in every cup, made even sweeter by a small contribution given to a rainforest protection charity 1% at a time, this story is made possible through a beautiful cooperation of farmer, roaster, and customer all brought together by 1% for the planet.

Kate Williams 22:35

So you sell a bag of coffee, and you get paid for it and the pay that you get for it covers the actual costs of that coffee and then a little bit extra for either continuing to build the business for paying the staff or doing all of the things that you need to do.

William Laitinen  22:51

Kate explains that the money generated by the sale of the coffee is normally reinvested back into the business. But through 1% for the planet Crankhouse Coffee has committed to giving 1% of their annual sales back to environmental charities.

Kate Williams 23:04

Businesses do, I think need to invest in the things that make their business footprint more sustainable for the earth.

William Laitinen  23:12

There's almost a triangle, right? Because what we haven't mentioned yet is so the customer who comes along and buys the bag of coffee, not only gets the coffee, and that kick they want in the morning, but they also get the kick of helping the environment that's there, they get that extra feelgood factor, because in that purchase, it's not only the coffee they get, but they also get that genuine link to that story that we've talked about. Right?

Kate Williams 23:38

Totally, and I'm glad you brought that up because there's tons of consumer data like 93% of Gen Z want companies to credibly be part of solutions. So if 93% of consumers are saying we want to purchase things that have a credible solution embedded in them, it's probably a good choice to figure out how you embed a credible solution in your business, because that's what your consumers want. We are all people, figuring out how to have the stories of our lives be meaningful. And I think our purchases are often a part of that, you know, that's a real value and it leads to ways in which 1% for the planet is good in terms of driving impact, but it's also good in terms of business, because it's a way to connect with consumers who have purchasing dollars in ways that truly have meaning and value.

William Laitinen  24:33

So my fun last question to you Kate is this, so if you had an unlimited budget for a holiday, where would you go? And why?

Kate Williams 24:46

That's the best question. I don't have a bucket list. So I could potentially answer this question differently on a different day. But right now, what immediately jumps to mind for me is that I would want to do an extended point to point backpacking trip in Patagonia. So I'd want to figure out some longer route than I've been able to do and just like really have an extended time with, you know, my people, and just be out there. So what's interesting to me is, as I'm saying that I'm realizing like, you know, that's not a super expensive high budget trip, but that's totally 100% what I'd want to do.

William Laitinen  25:26

Beautiful so when you say an extended, how long would you ideally go for?

Kate Williams 25:31

Maybe a month, like really be out there. I also don't mind some creature comforts and maybe then have like, a nice week afterwards at a place that has an awesome sauna and you know,

William Laitinen  25:42

Now we are talking you see you got

Kate Williams

Cold plunge pool and like

William Laitinen 

You’ve got an unlimited budget Kate so you can you can throw in a bit of luxury at the end of it

Kate Williams 25:47

Yeah so okay, so order up a Spa at the end of the one month trail, and have you know, nice like, woodfired sauna and, you know, good food and all of that,  I’d take that.

William Laitinen  26:00

Wonderful, well, I think that's beautiful. For those out there, you should definitely find out about Patagonia because it is probably one of the most beautiful intact places of nature in the world.

Kate Williams 26:09

I think it came to mind because it really is the place that most distinctly I remember feeling like awe, in such a like powerful way and think I'm kind of hungry for that right now. Just like an environment that kind of brings you to your knees in the best of ways because it's just so vast and big and wild. So, need a good dose of that..

William Laitinen 

Yeah, me too.

William Laitinen  26:35

The making of this episode has been a powerful reminder of the importance of stories, Fiona and I have been working on the Built for Good show, with a simple intention to tell the stories of people who can help you change your life. Because we know the power that a story has to change our inner and outer world. Kate’s story was moving for us, not because it was a superhuman tale, or a world record achievement. It was moving because Kate experienced difficult moments that we all face. And in her difficult moments, she decided to listen to the positive voices, who believed in her ability to step forward and achieve. We all need encouragement to make change in our life. But none of that encouragement will matter unless we have the courage to listen and take action. Kate, and many of our guests have shown that when we step forward with courage and action, we can make our life anything we wanted to be. Built for Good is made by many and I would like to say a massive thank you to Fiona Laitinen, she is my co-writer and co-producer, simply put without Fiona, this show would not exist. Also a special thank you to Aaron, who's continued inspired work on the sound score and sound design really brings Built for Good to life. And of course to Charlotte and Carmen who continue to contribute to what Built for Good is. And finally, a special thank you to Dave at Crankhouse Coffee, because without Dave's coffee, we simply would not get through as much of the show as we do.

Thank you and be well.