Erin Schrode is an activist, social entrepreneur and writer. Since co-founding Turning Green in 2005, she has developed eco education and action platforms to inspire, educate, and mobilize millions of students and the global public with this non-profit and beyond. This leading voice on millennials, sustainability and social impact and vocal advocate for environmental action, public health and equal justice recently ran an unprecedented campaign for US Congress in California’s District 2 – working to redefine civic engagement, reinvigorate a culture of public service, and expand the definition of politician for a generation and a nation.

 

A passionate writer and orator, Erin was on air with ABC News for the election season, speaks internationally, lectures at major universities, and consults and collaborates with corporations, governments and organizations – including IKEA, the US State Department, Apple, The Coca-Cola Company, Microsoft, Nestlé, Unilever, Chipotle, United Nations and more – on generational trends, responsible consumption, behavior change and purpose to drive positive impact and better business. She writes for Cosmopolitan Magazine, Refinery29 and Fusion, among others. Honoring her commitment to lead through action, The White House called Erin “a dynamic, passionate and ambitious young woman committed to creating big change everywhere she goes.”

 

For the past decade, Erin has been featured in and tapped as an expert for the New York Times, CNN, Vanity Fair, San Francisco Chronicle, New York Post, Seventeen Magazine, Teen Vogue, National Geographic, ABC, NBC, BBC, FOX, Glamour, Forbes, Discovery, E!, The Huffington Post, OK!, AOL, Mic, Sundance, HelloGiggles, GOOD, Slate, in various books, publications, and other media outlets, as well as her own blog, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat. CNN profiled Erin as a Green Pioneer, one of six “leading lights in the environmental movement: a role model for young environmentalists [who] inspires others to follow in her footsteps;” Participant Media elected her one of ten Inspiring Climate Leaders alongside Al Gore, Bill McKibben, and global luminaries; Refinery29 selected Erin for its 29 Under 29; and OK! Magazine named her America’s Green Girl.

 

The “internationally recognized speaker and leader among next generation social entrepreneurs” hosts events, conferences, and digital programs with diverse stakeholders for broad audiences. Erin has worn many hats: brand ambassador for IKEA and will.i.am's EKOCYCLE, spokesperson for leading organic brand Nature’s Path, face of Seventh Generation personal care line, advisory board member for Myspace, Intel, Run for America and Mobile Kitchen Classroom, lead witness before California congress and DC lobbyist, creator of a green skincare collection with Whole Foods Market nationwide, “eco-activist-cum-runway-model” in New York Fashion Week, and collaborator with top designers on ethical lines.

 

"One of the leading young green movers in the country," Erin addresses influential global leaders at forums like The White House Summit on Environmental Education, Mashable / UN Foundation Social Good Summit, World 50, Sustainable Brands, and One Young World where she serves as US Ambassador. Erin was elected to a delegation at the UN Commission on Sustainable Development, named a Young Challenger at Nobel Laureate Yunus’ Global Social Business Summit, honored with the Diller Tikkun Olam Award for outstanding leadership in community service and commitment to improve the world, and given the Natural Products Innovator Award. She proudly serves on the Board of Directors for the Captain Planet Foundation and Zioness and advisory boards of Kiss the Ground, IsraAID, Conservation Lands Foundation, SWU Center for Combatting Anti-Semitism, and Birthright.

 

After working in disaster response in Haiti, she founded and launched The Schoolbag, a youth education project to provide tools and materials for students in need, as well as initiate active citizenry and environmental stewardship. The program reached over 30,000 students in Haiti, in addition to deliveries in East Timor and South Africa. This social entrepreneur and community organizer champions civic leadership, conscious living, and environmental stewardship worldwide – writing curriculum for an eco center for Palestinian, Israeli, and Jordanian students, developing recycling infrastructure in Ghana, and telling the stories of Syrian, Iraqi and Afghan refugees in the Mediterranean and Native Americans at Standing Rock while working in solidarity on the ground. Since Hurricane Maria, Erin led #ChefsForPuertoRico as COO of the largest feeding program in Puerto Rico — named one of Fast Company’s most innovative companies, for which founder Chef José Andrés was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize — serving over 3.7 million meals to US citizens in need and now investing in local, sustainable agriculture and food systems islandwide. In the face of Coronavirus, she has been driving her non-profit’s Conscious Kitchen program to transform school food supply chains, source and serve 19+ million organic, nutritious meals to students and vulnerable populations across Northern California.

 

Erin is a graduate of New York University as a DEANS Scholar and 2019 Young Alumna of the Year – spending terms abroad in the Middle East, West Africa, South America, and Europe – with a degree in Social and Cultural Analysis. From her hometown in Marin County, California to eighty nations, this bold innovator is on a lifelong journey to inspire and mobilize people to discover and activate passion for social impact and policy change — that ensures a just, safe, thriving world for future generations.

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