Climate Change Realty was founded with a mission to donate 50% of the company’s profits to causes.
Ethan Shapiro graduated from the University of Colorado and has spent his career finding ways to change the world. In 2020, he decided it was time to give back to the cause that affects the most people: the environment.
Shapiro studied business administration and entrepreneurship at CU. After graduating, he traveled to Europe and learned about real estate investing. After returning to the United States, he combined his love of interacting with people with his knowledge of real estate and entrepreneurship to become a real estate broker in the Longmont/Boulder area.
As a young entrepreneur, Shapiro said he was arrogant and thought the path to success was measured by the amount of money one made. As he built his business in 2020, he began to realize that life is about loving what you do and sharing it with others, he said.
Climate Change Realty was founded with a mission to donate 50% of the company’s profits to causes. Shapiro said he debated for a long time which causes to contribute to until he thought about the environment, which affects everything. Mr. Shapiro says he doesn’t want to single out just one nonprofit, but instead asks his clients to choose nonprofits that work on environmental issues. Once the home is sold, Shapiro will divide his share between himself and the homeowner’s chosen nonprofit organization.
“I really wanted to use my money to help as many people as possible, instead of just spending it to get money,” Shapiro said. “I didn’t want to cherry-pick a particular cause that I was passionate about. I wanted everyone to feel their impact equally.”
Since starting his business, Shapiro said he has donated about $58,000 to nonprofit organizations working on sustainability issues.
In the future, Shapiro hopes to continue making a difference by starting a foundation to support environmental startups.
“I truly believe that markets are a way to move things quickly,” Shapiro said.
Mr. Shapiro doesn’t expect his donation to dramatically change the world, but he is satisfied with doing something to help move the world in a better direction.