Episode 181: Teaching Kids to be EcoHeroes with Brett “Mr. Eco” Edwards
Brett "Mr. Eco" Edwards is the founder and Chief Eco Officer of the Eco Hero show. He created Mr. Eco in college and has brought the brand to life since 2014. He is an environmentalist, an educator, an entrepreneur, a Grammy-voting member, a YouTuber, and a philanthropist.
Brett and I talk about how he created the Eco Hero show and his climate change activism. He talks about the show’s growing success and also gives some fantastic tips on how to build a show’s momentum.
Topics Discussed:
How a teacher inspired his activism
How the Eco Hero show is evolving
Gap vs. the gain mindset
Resources mentioned:
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Read the transcript for this episode:
Welcome to Educator Forever, where we empower teachers to innovate education. Join us each week to hear stories of teachers expanding their impacts beyond the classroom and explore ways to reimagine teaching and learning.
Brett "Mr. Eco" Edwards is the founder and Chief Eco Officer of the Eco Hero show. He created Mr. Eco in college and has brought the brand to life since 2014. He is an environmentalist, an educator, an entrepreneur, a Grammy-voting member, a YouTuber and a philanthropist. Welcome Brett, so nice to have you here.
Brett Edwards 0:20
Thanks for having me.
Lily Jones 0:21
Well, I've known you for a while now, and had the pleasure of working on some curriculum projects for you and with you, and I'm so excited for our audience to learn a little bit more about eco hero show and the work that you're doing. So can you start by telling us about the Eco hero show? What is it, and why did you develop it?
Brett Edwards 0:42
Yeah, for sure. Well, thanks for having me, and thanks for the curriculum that you have developed for us. Super exciting. I believe that big change begins with youth, and I combine my passions for hip hop and sustainability into an environmental rap superhero named Mr. Eco. It uses music to educate and empower elementary students to become eco heroes, who know they can change the world. And that morphed into the equal heroes show, which I started about 12 years ago. I started Mr. Ego when I was in university, about 15 years ago, and now we perform for we perform 1000s of presentations a year, and have a lot of talented performers that go in person to schools. We also do virtual programming as well. And so, yeah.
Lily Jones 1:29
So cool. Can you tell us a little bit about how did this idea come to you, like you're blending these two passions, where you're like, all right, I'm taking it to schools, or how did it kind of come to you?
Brett Edwards 1:39
It's pretty random. I it really stands for my love for wild animals that I had grown up. Would go camping with my dad and loved watching Animal Planet Discovery Channel. Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, was a big hero of mine. I was him for Halloween in fifth grade, and then in eighth grade, I was actually 50 Cent for Halloween, he was my first favorite rapper, so that shows the kind of Yeah, the blend there. And then I had a teacher in high school, Mr. Morgan, my junior year, AP, environmental science. And he inspired me, because in that class, I started to learn about some of the big environmental problems that our planet was facing, and I knew that I wanted to dedicate my life to make an impact in a positive way. I always wanted my own business, and I was like, Wait, why don't I rap? Because I was rapping for fun at that time with my friends about normal high school stuff. And then in college, I was like, why don't I rap about the environment? And so then, yeah, combined the two and started performing at some local elementary schools.
Lily Jones 2:41
So cool. I love that. And so tell us a little bit more. You started at the local elementary schools, kind of coming up with these wraps on your own, and then have eco hero shows offerings grown over time.
Brett Edwards 2:53
Yeah. So, you know I mean, as with all businesses as they start, starter, founder typically does everything. So I was performing, I was scheduling, I was getting sponsorships from cities and counties. And I realized, you know, I could only be one place at one time. So I was like, Well, let me see if I can have other people perform the content. And so then that's when I started training other eco hero performers. And they don't go as Mr. Eco, they go as ecosystem or eco Luna or eco Eden, they put their own spin on create a character that then uses our content and performs at the schools. And we've really been able to do this through sponsorships from cities and counties. We've been sponsored by over 160 different municipalities, mostly in California, and then also, are starting to work more with school districts that then allow us to perform at the schools for no cost.
Lily Jones 3:42
It seems so relatable to me, you know, having my own business and helping many educators have their businesses, that it's like, we often go through this phase of starting a business where it's just us and we're like, kind of trading time for money, right? And then we run out of time. So it's like, yeah, you couldn't be at all these schools at all different times. You know, just like a virtual teacher, right? Like, couldn't be teaching all the students at all times themselves. And so talk to us a little bit more about finding people to help you, you know, coming into something that you built and training them. How did that go?
Brett Edwards 4:15
Oh, Gabe, I probably shouldn't have said his name, but the first performer didn't have a chance. I had no idea what I was doing, training someone. I was way too hard on him. And then, luckily, I really hit with the with the second one, eco hero, Alexi and then, but yeah, it's most of them have been actors who are looking for a better job than being a waiter, you know, for example, and also much more rewarding and fun while they're still pursuing an acting career. And then through that, we've been fortunate that most of the new hires have been referrals from the current team of their friends who are also in acting. We have had also. One. There's one former teacher I would love to hire more teachers in the future, for sure, who have, you know, had their teaching credentials and such. But the training process has evolved a lot, and it really stems from us, you know, giving an overview of the mission, having examples and teaching them the dances, and then going and having them step by step start to build. So like, the first day, they just perform one song, and then the second day they might do three songs, and then they do three songs in trivia. And so it so you can just be comfortable in front of the kids. And I think, I mean, we're still, we're still surprised from time to time, but I think we've seen pretty much the gamut of what can happen at a school in terms of to just, basically, you have to just be ready for anything. Is the main qualification of this. You don't know, yeah, and you can't mess up, meaning like, just go with it. If something goes wrong, the school that you're performing for doesn't know. And as long as nobody gets hurt and everybody's having fun, it's a win, right?
Lily Jones 6:06
It sounds like teaching where it's like, yeah, you don't know what you're gonna get, right? You come in with your best plan, and you're like, doing the best you can with whatever is thrown at you, for sure. And so how about the kid experience of coming to an eco hero show. What do you notice that really resonates with kids?
Brett Edwards 6:27
So I've, I've performed in over seven countries, over 1000 schools, myself and with the students. The thing that rings true is just how empathetic and wanting to help I think they are. And also kids are kids everywhere like that. They want to have fun and they want to help. And the our message, the whole mission of this, is to empower the students to become the Eco heroes. So our superpower is creating more superheroes. So it's such a pure cultural like exchange of energy and good vibes, which I love because, and, yeah, I thought about this, even if they don't take Environmental Action, after which I hope that all of them are, but, you know, you can't win them all, but they're still, it's still a fun, positive experience, because they're they're laughing, they're dancing, they're having a Good Time with their teachers. So, yeah, that's the thing, really, is that kids are kids everywhere, and they want
Lily Jones 7:25
to help. And I love that mission too, of really empowering this whole new generation of heroes and getting kids exposed to that in a way that's really fun and engaging too, for sure. Talk to us a little bit more about where you see Eco Hero show going next.
Brett Edwards 7:41
Oh, baby, we've we've discovered that there's actually it kind of we backed into this because I started writing these children's read rap long books. It's like Dr Seuss meets Jay Z, and they're actually launching on Earth Day. Been working on them for almost two years now, because I wanted to be able to tell a story of an environmental topic that was longer they could fit into a song that has to have the pre hook and then the chorus be the same, repeating things. And so because of that, we created this book series, and then realized, oh, wait, literacy is an actual issue across the United States, and something that school districts want to help improve. And so then our program is kind of shifting a bit to be where, I mean, obviously we're environmental at our core, but we're a literacy steam program that happens to be about the environment versus just being an environmental show. So I'm really excited about that, and all the curriculum that we've developed around the read wrap along books with educator forever and yeah, looking to be working with more and more school districts as we we do in person, whole group assemblies. We do individual literacy workshops where the kids create their own wraps and art pieces. And then we also are creating this virtual press Play program that has the curriculum activities for them to do following along with our book that has a video component to it as well, so that it can be done without us having to physically be there. So that's the future is working more and more with school districts. Also we on Earth Day, we do a global live stream. So I encourage all of the educators out there, for as long as you're an educator and as long as we're Eco Heroes, to join that Earth Day Live Stream. It's an amazing concert with 1000s, 10s of 1000s of kids from all over the world that zoom in and the energy is just wonderful. So, yeah, that's on earth day every year, unless it's a weekend. But yeah, the Friday closest to it, April 22 join us.
Lily Jones 9:49
Yes, absolutely, that's amazing. And I love this new direction. I think it's so cool. I mean, it's been so fun to work on this curriculum and see the books that you've created, and also just. To see how you've taken something that works in schools and just fleshed it out so much to be this, like cohesive offering for teachers. And so I'd love for you to talk a little bit more about like our teacher listeners out there who want to add some environmental education into their classroom. Do you have any advice for them?
Brett Edwards 10:19
Yeah, check out our YouTube. It's Spotify. Would be the first place that I would go to. And then from that point, I mean, if there's a way to talk to, yeah, your district, that would be a way for us to get this press Play program into, hopefully the entire school district. So yeah. I mean, yeah, I'm being there's a lot of great resources out there around the environment, but I am obviously biased that Let's start. Let's start with the ecohealth show in our in our YouTube. Just by searching Mr. Eco, you'll find the videos. All the books come to life as well. So all of the characters are have voice actors tied to them. And then we have an animator version where me and ecosystem, the CO creator, are actually moving on screen and such. Yeah, that's the starting point.
Lily Jones 11:06
Those are great resources too, because I know, as a teacher, you know, sometimes you're looking for something just to get started with, right? So it's like having a video, like play a video, right? Doesn't have to be all the things at once. It could just be started with something small, and then kind of following the direction of the kids and what they're interested in too.
Brett Edwards 11:23
Yeah, you know, on that, I guess, because I've made over five albums now have 30 plus music videos, and then these read wrap along books that we have, have like, four or five different versions of content to all of them that we're releasing on YouTube. So yeah, there's a lot to start at with the Eco growth show.
Lily Jones 11:42
So I want to change directions a little bit and talk about your personal experience growing this business. And some of our listeners out there are looking to start their own business, or their own, you know, venture of some sort, and it likely feels overwhelming to them, so I'd love to start by just hearing from you, like, what have you learned through this experience, like this idea you've had and seeing it grow over the years?
Brett Edwards 12:08
I think really the just consistency is the main thing for me, that you just keep showing up. And if your why is big enough, you'll figure out the how. You just start with why, and that problems are actually a good thing, because if you don't have problems, then you're not in business, or you're not trying to make a big of an impact. So it's, it's really the thing that I, you know, work on the most is, is my personal state and mindset, because I think that the leader of an organization, it's that's the main bottleneck to growth oftentimes, and it's, it's, you know, some of these things have to just be learned experiences. It's it's easy to read a book and just think, oh, yeah, I'm going to do that. But really, you just have to keep showing up, be consistent, and truly have something you care about. Is your why is big enough to figure out any how?
Lily Jones 13:14
That reframe is so powerful, too, of not being put off by problems, right? Like, problems are a good thing in many ways, right? Like it's how we learn, and even thinking about, like, back in the day, teaching little kids, right, like it's how kids learned, by failing, by having problems, by struggling through them. And the same thing's true for us. And so I love that you brought that up as part of the process and the mindset piece too, that being a leader is kind of like setting the tone of a whole organization, and thinking about how you're going to show up, and it really makes a big difference. And then lastly, yeah, having the why right, like, that's what makes it worth it, not only for the impact that we all hope to make, but also just personally, being able to persevere through all the things we have to be kind of anchored in the why there. What's your why? I mean having learning be fun. I think it is my why for curriculum, right? Like, I didn't like school growing up, and I felt like it wasn't fun, like I felt like I was learning all these things outside of school, and I was like, Well, why can't I learn in school? And so that was my wife or become a teacher too. Of like, oh, let's make learning fun. Like, let's make it things that kids are actually interested in and feel connected to their own life. And then my wife, our teacher side of educator forever, is like helping teachers be the superheroes that they actually are right. Like helping them actually be able to have career pathways and, like, hopefully prestige and know that they're education experts in a system that tells them that they're not dope. Yeah, so, okay, so thinking about teachers who want to do something new, what advice do you have for them when they feel kind of it feels overwhelming.
Brett Edwards 14:59
I do. To have one thing that I want to touch on too about around that the mindset that there's this book, the gain versus the gap, for the gap versus the gain. It's part of this business coaching program that I've started, Strategic Coach, which has been awesome and the whole and for someone starting a business, it's imagine trying to chase a rainbow or a mirage in the desert, and you're walking, walking, walking. That goal post keeps on moving, moving, moving, so you can't measure where you are today in your business versus the ideal. Because if you're always thinking about the ideal, you'll always be not happy with your progress, but if you turn around and measure how far you have come to where you are at that exact day, then that's a mindset shift that you can have, where you're always looking for wins, which then create more wins. So like I do this exercise that's from the book, every day, I write three things that were a win for that day, and then three things that I want to have a win for tomorrow. And that book is a wonderful resource for mindset for entrepreneurs. And then, yeah, the question about for starting something new as teachers,
Lily Jones 16:13
Yeah, like, if somebody's like, I want to start something, you know, like a business organization, a project, and they just feel stuck. What advice would you give them around getting started.
Brett Edwards 16:24
If you want to take the island, burn the boats. I'm already fire/aim personality. So it is a little easier for me to just say because I know not everybody's wired the same way, but what I you know, it really is, unless you try, you'll never know, and you don't, and you learn by trying things out and pivoting from the successes. I mean, that's what I did as Miss Rico, like I could have, you know, focused on a couple of not stellar things that happened for my first performances. And when I look back and watch the videos, I'm like, Oh my gosh, but, but But I focus on the positives, you know, and then built, built on that. So, yeah, just do it.
Lily Jones 17:09
Yeah. I mean, I think just the way that you put it around, like you have to try to know how it goes, we can get stuck in our own mind sometimes, being like, Oh, well, maybe you know it's like, you don't know until you try. Like, you owe it to yourself to try. And it doesn't have to be like, on the hugest scale to start, but I think that action is really what gets us unstuck.
Brett Edwards 17:29
And also, like, what's worst case scenario? I mean, I often think about that, and so like, really map out your there's a thing called fear setting Tim Ferriss is, do you know who Tim Ferris is huge, huge impact in my life, and his podcast, and all the guests that go through there. But fear setting is one activity from that book, The Four Hour Work Week, where it makes you actually list out your fears in because everybody puts their goals right, but then wait, what's your fear? So it's a different way to look at it too, to make you realize, oh, like worst case scenario, would this be altering my life where I can't go on anymore? And most of the time, the vast majority of the answer is no. So you can just, yeah, you can do it, but, but we create these problems in our head as being much bigger. Trust me, I've been I've been there many a time where it's on repeat in something that's not useful. So it is nice to just write it out and do that fear, setting exercise.
Lily Jones 18:25
Yeah, flipping the script, you know, being able to see it as something that's workable, rather than a blocker, you know, and also normalizing it, I think, too. Like, yeah, everybody has fear, right? Everybody has their first performance that sucks, or whatever, you know, like we all have that, like, I always tell the story of, like, the first webinar I ever did, like, so long ago, it was, like, super awkward, like, all these, like, tactical difficulties. I was stumbling over my words, and it's like, yeah, the next one was like, maybe slightly better, but it got better because I kept showing up and doing it. And I think that just normalizing it, like we all, you know, do a not amazing job the first time we try something, for sure. So it's been so inspiring, talking to you, hearing more about your journey. Can you tell folks how they can connect with you?
Brett Edwards 19:14
Yeah, for sure. YouTube, Mr. Eco, M, R, E, C O, also, Instagram, Mr. Eco, and then Earth Day, Baby, let's go eco dot live. That's let's go eco, dot live. That's how you can sign up. And yeah, I hope that as long as you're an educator, you'll be joining us on Earth Day all the educators out there, amazing.
Lily Jones 19:34
I really appreciate you coming on, and I'll talk to you soon.
Brett Edwards 19:38
All right, thank you so much. Lily.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai