Director
MBA
Class of 2012
Bengaluru, India
@jacobcherianis
Jacob Cherian didn’t expect to find his calling in
a forest. Having started a business in social me-
dia, managing creative campaigns with a charita-
ble edge, his work revolved around tweets, reach,
and hashtags. A move to the remote wilderness of
Kodaikanal, in the south of India, unexpectedly
opened his eyes to the war against plastic, kick-
starting a new career combining smart product
development and environmental activism.
Jacob Cherian
8
Career Change
“This story started up on the moun-
tain,” says Jacob, who still resides in
Kodaikanal, a 90-minute trek from
the nearest road. “It’s pretty wild,
but we have internet and electricity,
so I’d been working up there. One
day I found a pile of trash in the for-
est. I started cleaning it up, contin-
ued to clean it up. Last March, as a
joke, I threw a party around picking
up the trash—35 people joined on
day one, and it’s been 4000+ since.”
What Jacob’s actions had un-
knowingly tapped into was the con-
cept of “plogging,” a term conceived
in Sweden for communities coming
together to tackle the planet’s ongo-
ing waste problem. He has gone on
to mobilize over 40 cleanup par-
ties across ten cities in the last year,
building a template that engages
local business sponsors and volun-
teers alike.
“It’s always transparent, inclu-
sive, accountable, and quantifiable,”
says Jacob. “Our business sponsors
are typically aspirant environmen-
talists—take restaurants, for exam-
ple. They can’t be puritans, work-
ing at zero waste just yet, because
the ecosystem doesn’t allow it. But
we can give them fun, simple ways
to participate so that they become
active businesses. We can offer
trade-offs to offset the damage they
are doing. Just understanding the
damage is important. I believe our
sponsors are coming to terms
with their trade-off by sponsoring
these events.”
Amplifying the message to both
businesses and volunteers has put
Jacob’s previous experience in so-
cial media marketing to task, too.
“Plogging was very trendy, we hi-
jacked that as a marketing idea—
hijack is a cruel word, but when
you look at people’s free time then
really weekends are all they have,
and that’s where we need them.
Now that it [sustainability] has be-
come social, the sense of commu-
nity is the driver. The #trashtag
challenge has been great, as has
plogging, and before-and-after for-
mats. We’ll continue to make use
of fads and ride the trends so we
stay relevant, so that people always
have something new and bite-sized
to tell each other.”
“I’m a businessman—and I believe the ultimate
solution has to be business. It’s still the best way to
organize humans and walk them toward a com-
mon goal; it’s a system the world understands.”
Alumni Weekend
2020
Meet inspiring alumni like
Jacob at Alumni Weekend
2020; taking place across
Dubai, New York, and
London from March to July.
Register for these one-day
campus-based events as
they’re confirmed on Hult
Connect.
Employing the root cause analysis from the worlds of science and de-
taught as part of his business degree, sign, it aims to eliminate what
Jacob has translated the data gath- Jacob calls the “big five” plastics of
ered from cleanups to inform his the daily commute.
The goal? More products, to fulfill
next venture, TerreGeneration. The
company is currently developing re- each of the “buckets,” and ever-greater
usable products to replace the most- amplification. Jacob’s social media
used plastics across 12 “buckets” of savvy has been key in turning out tac-
consumption and waste: from bath- tical campaigns at a time of increased
room to kitchen, commute to office, activism—both armchair and tradi-
laddering up to large-scale industrial tional. He has also been buoyed by
change. “When you look at plastic the passion and intent of Generation Z.
as a whole, it’s a big intimidating “Every generation has its responsibili-
problem,” says Jacob. “But it’s really ties, and ours is to regenerate our
not when you break it down into lit- planet. It’s too late just to be sustaina-
tle problems.” His first product, ble. We can do this through business,
MyDr0p (seen in development in through activism, with product, but it
the images above) combines water all needs to work together. Through
bottle, coffee mug, cutlery, straw, activities like plogging we can distrib-
and tote in one neat, 400g pack- ute the load, act with empathy, and
age. Combining expert knowledge spread the word.”
Career Change
9