STARTUP LAB- Ep.5: Bloomtrigger
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Following on from our last episode on conferencing software, Shakespeak, here is our fifth episode of the StartUp Lab: an interview with the founder of Bloomtrigger (bloomtrigger.com), James WJ Sutton. Deforestation accounts for one fifth of global carbon emissions responsible for climate change (Source: World Bank Institute). The Bloomtrigger Project allows people to take responsibility of the rainforest and try and protect it from the huge increase in deforestation that is happening each day. By getting schools and the local community involved Bloomtrigger presents a solution to this problem using innovation and education as its driving force.
What is the company?
At Bloomtrigger we are pioneering a new, visual model of online fundraising to empower people to help protect rainforest in a simple, affordable and creative way. Through ‘the bloomtrigger project’ we bring together individuals, businesses and primary school children enabling them to support local forestry communities on the ground by promoting sustainable development and environmental awareness.
Deforestation accounts for one fifth of global carbon emissions responsible for climate change; the single biggest threat facing our lives and our children’s future. Put simply the bloomtrigger project shows children a concrete example of how they can use the latest digital technology to collaborate and engage their community, in order to tackle the big challenges they will face in their adult lives such as the effects of climate change over the coming decades.
Copse and Robbers by Brett Jordan
The backstory & inspiration
The inspiration for bloomtrigger arrived suddenly, it was one of those ideas that strikes you in the middle of the night and you find yourself scribbling frantically in a notebook at 2am when you’re supposed to be sleeping, or at least this was the case for me.
In the summer after graduating with a degree in architecture from Nottingham University, I was looking forward to an expedition to the Ecuadorian rainforest, an adventure that would involve doing some conservation work and teaching English to children in a local school in the Amazon. To pay for this trip I was working for a British company over the summer, who briefed me with developing a marketing strategy for an ‘eco-cows milk’ product. This is what started me thinking about the concept behind bloomtrigger and caused me to get out of bed at 2am in the morning. In the end the ‘eco-cows milk’ product was never developed, so I left this job to begin testing the concept behind bloomtrigger. With the help of a friend I began to explore some of the basic technologies the project would require by raising money for a ‘breast cancer’ charity of all things. Unfortunately this work had to be abandoned after I discovered that I required urgent heart surgery. I had massive aortic aneurisms and needed to be fitted with a mechanical heart valve. Within 10 days of hearing this news I was in the operating theater. The surgeons fixed me up and have kept my heart ticking. (Quite literally as my new mechanical valve ticks very loudly now).
It took me 6 months of recovery before I was given the all clear from my surgeon. Frustrated with being stuck at home for so long, I decided to buy an around-the-world ticket and spent the best part of a year working my way around the world, making sure I made plenty of useful contacts to help develop my idea for bloomtrigger. For example working for the Rainforest Rescue in Australia.
When I returned from my travels I decided to focus completely on getting bloomtrigger off the ground. It has taken twice as long as I planned and a lot of sweat and blood, but I have now launched a pilot phase for the bloomtrigger project. We are trialing the project in 5 primary schools across the UK and are getting an enthusiastic response from the businesses and individuals who have already signed up to become a part of the bloomtrigger project.
Brilliant, good work James, it looks like you've come a long way since we last spoke!
If anyone would like to become a pioneer of 'the bloomtrigger project' you can claim a FREE 'bloom' from this company. Just follow this link, click the bloom, sign up and have a go a planting the bloom on the map to help protect your own part of the rainforest in Peru! http://bloomtrigger.com/Business/Details/75 Happy planting!
This is an amazing project. Good luck Guys!
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