As my four month solo Asia/Israel trip approaches, most  people I talk to have asked me…

                                                       “why are you doing this?”

Well, the short answer is that this trip has been a dream of mine for many years.  I have schemed to combine a career as an international plastics trader with my passion for travel since I started my business 13 years ago.  Now is the time… for adventure and to expand my international business network.

But this isn’t the complete answer.  As I have gotten older and, dare I say more mature, (for those of you who know me well, stop laughing…)  I have realized that truly with good fortune come responsibilities to help others.  I wanted to find a way to realize my dream while at the same time kick off a 2nd parallel career in philanthropy.  Hence, the Wandering Capitalist.  My goal is to contribute in some way to our country…in causes that have a positive impact on the youth of America.

This is where the “who” comes in…enter BUILD – Greater Boston, stage right.

The curriculum at BUILD just makes sense to me in that they focus on experiential learning where kids learn from real lessons derived from starting and running actual businesses.  First, start the program with an elective course in entrepreneurship at low performing, intercity 9th grade high schools in Greater Boston.  Go for the kids that statistics show will get left behind.  Next, with the help of Mentors, start businesses, raise capital, make products, and sell them to make real money.  While at BUILD’s fundraising gala in December, a student talked about how cool it was to create an enterprise as part of a student team and to earn money through their collective efforts.  He expressed how this showed him that school was a means to an end – a successful career and all the benefits that come with it.

I think this is cool too.

My hope is that The Wandering Capitalist can raise money for and bring awareness to non-profit organizations like BUILD – Great Boston for years to come.  Join the ride and be like the wind.