Brandon Rus graduated university and asked to be dropped off in a remote Mexican fishing community, as you do. He went door-to-door asking people if he could live with them. Somebody finally said yes. Brandon immersed himself into their community and learned about their source of sustenance - the Sea of Cortez. Brandon headed back to grad school with a clarified focus on marine biology. After years of study and working in marine biology, Brandon took what he’d learned and directed his efforts into a business on a mission to empowering coastal communities through connected oceans. Conserva Collective works with the local artisan community in Mexico to offer healthy soaps concocted with local ingredients. They also are beginning an organic fertilizer initiative in partnership with area farms. Conserva Collective is giving back in a big way.
IN THIS EPISODE WE TALK ABOUT:
Forming an appreciation of the ocean as a young child
Wanting to be a marine biologist since childhood
Anthropogenic, economic & societal impacts on marine biology
Current economic landscape of the Sea of Cortez
Biodiversity of the Sea of Cortez
Communities that rely on handline fishing for their livelihood
Asking strangers in a Mexican fishing village if he could live with them
Studied environmental science and anthropology in college
Building trust in a community other than ones own
Getting into the soap making business
Making fertilizer from compostable seaweed
Partnering with an existing artisanal soap-making business in San Jose Del Cabo
Making organic fertilizer out of seaweed
The constructs of identity
Seeing Conserva Collective as a tool to expose people to things they aren’t typically, centering around the ocean
Giving back to the community of Agua Verde through education
Dreams to expand replicate the model around the world
Identifying more as a scientist than a business person