Meet The 30 Under 30 Social Entrepreneurs Making An Impact In 2018 - Forbes

NOV 14, 2017 - The Little Black Book of Billionaire Secrets

Meet The 30 Under 30 Social Entrepreneurs Making An Impact In 2018

Americans owe more than $1.4 trillion in student debt. And Kelly Peeler thinks that whopping figure may very well be an underlying cause of economic instability. She worked at JPMorgan Chase right after the 2008 crash, and while working there, she says, "I got my hands dirty understanding the dynamics around the student loan market and how predatory this whole process was for the 70 million people who will be entering the financial system for the first time... I'm a huge believer that the next financial crisis is rooted in the student loan market."

She left her Wall Street job to found NextGenVest, a financial advice company helping Generation Z better navigate the financial aid process via text message. Its customers (all high school seniors and college students) can text for machine-learning powered advice at all hours of the day and they do. Queries at 10 p.m. on Sunday aren't uncommon. Neither are ones at 1 a.m. on Tuesdays. So NextGenVest is staffed accordingly, with advisers available 24/7. In all, Peeler says, customers have saved more than $39 million through increasing access to the more than $2.7 billion in financial aid that goes unclaimed each year.

Peeler represents just one of the 30 innovative ventures that appear on this year's 30 Under 30 Social Entrepreneurs list. Each of them, right down to the youngest honoree 19-year-old Elvis Zhang, will be making an impact in 2018. Here are some of the notable areas you'll find Under 30s making headlines:

Providing jobs for immigrants: As a Tibetan refugee raised in the Indian Himalayas, Tenzin Seldon, 28, is all too familiar with the struggles of being an immigrant. Realizing the power of technology to empower immigrants, Seldon founded Kinstep, a tech platform that matches pre-vetted immigrants with employment at partners like WeWork, Box and more. While providing a living wage, the company combats the problems associated with "under-the-table" work that often leads to exploitative labor practices.

Bringing advanced analytics to farmers in Africa: Apollo Agriculture's Eli Pollak, 28, and Earl St Sauver, 26, are increasing access to modern farming techniques (and increasing yields) for the 50 million smallholder farmers across Africa. Using machine learning, remote sensing and mobile technology, they've helped over 1,000 farmers in Kenya access the same insights available to farmers in the United States.

Kelly Peeler, 29, founder of NextGenVest

Eliminating food waste: Chobani Food Incubator graduates Phil Wong and Ann Yang, 24, of Misfit Juicery are keeping "ugly" produce out of landfills by transforming rejected fruit into hip cold-pressed juice that can be found in places like Sweetgreen, WeWork and Whole Foods. Meanwhile, Rescuing Leftover Cuisine's Robert Lee, 27, is saving excess food and delivering it to homeless shelters and food kitchens across the nation.

Combating climate change: Jack Amend, 26, and the Web Neutral Project are tackling a little known source of carbon emission: the internet. Through a comprehensive carbon neutral certification program, he has eliminated the production of over 300 metric tons of CO2.

Hundreds of potential honorees were evaluated in the making of this list. After being narrowed down to a shortlist of contenders, they were carefully reviewed by the judges: Case Foundation CEO and Chairman of the Board of National Geographic Jean Case; Echoing Green President Cheryl Dorsey; Forbes Magazine Editor Randall Lane; and Uncharted Founder and 30 Under 30 alum Teju Ravilochan.

Get to know the full list of 30 Under 30 Social Entrepreneurs here.

What do you think of the list? Join the conversation on Twitter with #30under30