Jason Aramburu

The Bold Idea:

Bold Idea: Build distributed carbon-negative power plants that produce energy from waste and replenish soils in rural farming villages in Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America.

Millions of small farmers in India, Africa and Haiti face a cycle of endemic poverty and famine stemming from poor soil quality, limited income opportunities and virtually no access to grid-based energy. Conditions in these areas are compounded by the looming threat of global climate change, which could dramatically alter global food production and carrying capacity. re:char offers the first low-cost, integrated solution to these three great challenges: food, energy and climate.

Re:char designs and builds small-scale biomass energy plants that can convert bulk agricultural waste (husks, pits, wood waste, animal waste) into electricity and biochar. Biochar is a carbon-negative soil amendment that can improve crop yields as much as 200%. Biochar has also been hailed by leading climate scientists James Hansen and James Lovelock as one of the only viable and cost-effective technologies to permanently sequester the atmospheric carbon responsible for global climate change. re:char will build and deploy these plants in small farming villages, providing clean energy for lighting, refrigeration, mobile phones and other devices, while educating farmers on the benefits of biochar. These plants will generate new revenue streams for farmers, while eliminating waste.

  

Biography:

Jason Aramburu is a recognized social entrepreneur and technologist developing solutions to meet the energy needs of the developing world while fighting global climate change. He is a Pop!Tech Social Innovation Fellow and an Unreasonable Institute Fellow. He was also recently invited to participate in the 2010 Global Social Benefits Incubator at Santa Clara University, focusing on rural electrification. Jason has been invited to speak at numerous renewable energy and social innovation conferences, including the upcoming Global Engagement Summit. Prior to founding re:char, Jason was a researcher at Princeton University's Carbon Mitigation Initiative, a think-tank focused on developing low-carbon energy technologies.

Moment of Obligation: What experiences led to the desire to start your own organization?
While in University I spent some time working with small farmers in rural Panama through the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. I found that even a few hours drive outside of the bustling capitol, many small farmers lived in abject poverty. I realized that simple farming techniques could benefit these people greatly, and might mean the difference between feast and famine.

Gall to Think Big: What has given you the ability to dream big and take on deeply entrenched social and difficult problems? (Such as experiences, skills, events, etc.)
I am very fortunate to have brilliant and supportive friends, family and mentors who have shown me that every big idea begins with one person. As early as high school, I competed in the International Science Fair. I saw firsthand hundreds of motivated students pitch their ideas to the likes of NASA, Intel and other multinationals. This experience gave me the confidence to see an idea through, no matter how bold or crazy it might seem.

New and Untested: What's innovative about your new idea for social change?
re:char turns small farms into carbon-negative power plants. We create new sources of revenue for farmers by converting their waste into energy and biochar. We provide farmers an economic hedge against bad harvests, and promote development in farming communities. Our model leverages the massive scale of global agriculture to create the world's largest potential pool of carbon offsets. With sufficient growth, we can take 2 billion tons of CO2 out of the atmosphere each year.

Seeing Possibilities: What are the most important qualities to be a successful social entrepreneur?
Perseverance is tantamount as a social entrepreneur. 90% of startups fail in the first year, but I imagine that most simply give up. Flexibility is also important. The best entrepreneurs can adjust their approach on the fly to better suit a dynamic marketplace.

Which musical artists/albums get you going and keep you inspired?
Paul Simon and Bob Dylan are great sources of inspiration. If I really need to get pumped up, I might listen to Beck or Modest Mouse.

What books do you recommend (pleasure, work and anything in between)?
For work, I love to read Michael Pollan and James Lovelock. In fact, I'm such a fan of James Lovelock that he is now an advisor to re:char.    For pleasure, I enjoy everything from Bukowski to Kundera. I also love the work of Philip K. Dick.

Which websites do you visit often (work and/or personal)?

• poptech.org 
• socialedge.org
• nextbillion.net
• huffingtonpost.com  
• treehugger.com

What advice or quote do you keep close to your heart as a social change leader?
I keep a fortune from a fortune cookie above my desk. It reads "Perseverance and endurance will be rewarded." This mantra has gotten me through a lot.