Building a sustainable future with Julia Collins and climate friendly food
/OUR FOOD & OUR FUTURE
The relationship between our food systems and climate change is tightly connected. No matter the industry, climate change is a trending topic, deserving of the attention it gets—but what does it really take to elevate those conversations into real action?
Spending her entrepreneurial career working at the intersection of food and tech, serial entrepreneur and Outspoken speaker Julia Collins began a more narrow focus with her latest company, Planet FWD, to understand the relationship between food systems and climate change as she was preparing to become a mom. Inspired by this new chapter in her life, Julia is on a mission to help tackle the climate crisis by making it easier to bring climate-friendly products to market. Planet FWD has developed a software for other food companies to integrate to create sustainable and carbon neutral food that sources ingredients through regenerative agriculture practices—satisfying cravings and saving the planet.
And Julia reminds us of how rare her success has been and how far we have to go to ensure people of color are gaining access to investments. Even though less than 2% of all venture dollars go to women, and Black women get less than 0.5% of all venture funding, Julia Collins continues to pave the way by raising millions to make a difference. She co-founded Zume Pizza in 2015, making her the first Black woman to reach unicorn status in tech, and grew the business into a $2 billion food brand before leaving in 2018. Since then, she has raised $10 million for Planet FWD. She also often mentors other women of color and helps them to gain access to capital by connecting them to investors as well as investing in them herself.
The intersection of social justice, racial justice, and economic justice demand that we take action on climate change—and Julia shows audiences why regenerative agriculture matters, from the kinds of farming practices we can use to our ability to de-carbonize agricultural processes.
In her talks, Julia shares:
➡️ How regenerative agriculture may save us from climate change
➡️ How to accelerate the success of women and people of color
➡️ How to raise venture capital, even when the market is tough
➡️ How leaders can do more active listening within communities to make lasting change
And with a climate-friendly snack like her own Moonshot Crackers, you, too, can help with her mission for a more sustainable future with how you eat.
IN THE MEDIA
“Generation after generation we see the same narrative being pushed forward. The reason why [access to capital] is such a sticky problem is because it’s connected to the core of what’s broken in our country.”
Outspoken Agency is a women-owned speaking agency representing leaders, founders, public intellectuals, authors and entertainers for paid keynotes, workshops and panels at in-person and virtual events. Learn more about our female founders here.