Alastair Ong, Esq.
Name: Alastair Ong, Esq.
Position: Co-Founder and COO
Business Name: GreenSoul Shoes
What does your business do/what industry are you in?
Our artisans and factories in developing nations manufacture upcycled products which we sell in the U.S., Canada and Europe and for each product that we sell, we donate a pair of sandals to an underprivileged child in the community that made the recycled products.
What are your “Green” activities (please be specific)?
We use discarded rubber tires, innertubes, magazines, and parts of soda cans to produce an array of lovely sandals jewelry and bags.
How long have you been doing these activities?
GreenSoul Shoes was founded in 2008
Why did you implement them?
Stewardship of planet and people was always important to me. Even when I was in law school, I was an Articles Editor for the Fordham Environmental Law Journal and sought my first job in an environmental law firm.
How hard were these actions to implement?
Its a welcome and joyful struggle every day. Our biggest challenge is working with different groups all over the world to create a uniform product that passes our quality control.
What was the result –Financial/Bottom Line, Environmental, Good Will, etc.?
We have a truly Triple Bottom Line Company, which I refer to as the “3P’s” Planet – we help pulled tires and garbage out of growing landfills, we help People because there are 300 million shoeless people in the world that we have helped to shoe, and we maintain healthy margins or Profit, to continue our social and ecological mission.
Do you have any advice for other small to mid-sized businesses who want to “Go Green”?
It is our earth and accordingly our responsibility to act to help heal and nurture our planet. If you don’t act, who will? As an owner of a small to mid sized business, you can’t always control the outcome of what you do, but you can control the methods. If you make a small but measurable impact, it will cause a chain reaction which will result in effects much more than you put in.
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