Rob Greenfield

Early life

Rob Greenfield was born and raised in Ashland, Wisconsin where he was raised by a single mother, along with his three siblings. At the age of 18 he became an Eagle Scout, the highest rank in Boy Scouts.

Rob Greenfield graduated from Ashland High School in northern Wisconsin. He would later attend the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse and graduated with a Bachelor of Science. Rob traveled to six continents throughout his time in university and upon graduation.

In 2011 Rob relocated to San Diego, California, where he founded The Greenfield Group, an environmentally active marketing company.

Adventurer

Through his adventures Greenfield is known to inspire people to start living a happier, healthier lifestyle and to promote giving back to others, simple living, and earth friendly living.

2013: Off the Grid Across America

In 2013, Greenfield cycled 4,700 miles (7,600 km) across America on a bicycle made of bamboo to inspire Americans to live more sustainably. On this 104-day ride he used just 160 US gallons (610 l) of water, created a mere 2 pounds (0.9 kg) of trash, traveled via his own power save one mile on a ferry into New York City, plugged into only five outlets, and never turned on a light switch.

On the journey he carried out multiple campaigns to "inspire individuals to wake up and take action." To raise awareness about water waste he lived off a leaky fire hydrant for five days in New York City. Later he cycled from New York City to Boston during a heat wave living solely on leaky faucets in a campaign called Drip by Drip. About 70 percent of his diet came from dumpsters—he ate more than 280 pounds of food from grocery store dumpsters to bring attention to food waste.

2014: Lessons Learned From a Year Without Showering

From April 2013 to April 2014 Greenfield spent a year bathing only in natural water sources such as rivers, lakes, waterfalls and in the rain. The campaign started while cycling across America to promote sustainability and eco-friendly living. He initially committed to not taking a shower for just the 104 day bike ride, but once he was done cycling, he extended the time period - first to six months and then a year.

The average American consumes around 100 gallons of water per day. During the first four months of the campaign Rob used an average of two gallons a day, and when he returned to his home he managed to use just ten to twenty gallons per day.

The purpose of the campaign was to inspire people to start paying attention to their surroundings and to be conscious of how their simple actions affect the world around them. He was quoted as saying, “We have to be aware of the origin of the things we consume every day, such as water, food, and energy. In this case I wanted to show how valuable water is and inspire people to conserve and protect it".

2014: The Food Waste Fiasco

Greenfield cycled across the USA for the second time in the summer of 2014. In the first half of the ride he volunteered at nonprofits, planted wildflowers and vegetables along his path, and promoted a happy, healthy, carefree and waste-free existence. He left home with $2,000 in cash, no credit cards, and upon arrival in Madison, Wisconsin donated his last $421 to a non-profit. He then vowed to travel without money the rest of the way to New York City and eat solely out of dumpsters at grocery stores and convenience stores to draw attention to and find solutions for food waste.

In major cities he held Food Waste Fiascos in which the edible food he found in dumpsters, was displayed in one spot to show how much of it there is. Greenfield said, “The stats are enormous—$165 billion worth of food thrown out each year, or about half of all the food we produce—but it’s hard for people to wrap their head around numbers. Seeing a beautiful display of a couple thousand dollars’ worth of perfectly good food pulled from dumpsters near them does the trick, though".

Ultimately the purpose of the campaign was to get grocery stores to donate the food they would otherwise throw away. The primary reason corporations have given for not donating their excess food is the fear of liability if someone gets sick from eating it. The Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act, shields food donors from liability and a 2013 study by the University of Arkansas School of Law shows there has not been a single case that involved food donation-related liability for a grocery store.

Personal life

Greenfield prompts sustainable living and he practices what he preaches. He has converted to a vegetarian lifestyle and focuses on sustainable living. He travels barefoot, and mostly by bicycle. He doesn't have credit cards or a retirement account, doesn't own a car and hasn't used a shower since April 2013. What allowed him to live in this manner is giving up the desire to have lots of money.

He aims to live a life that is beneficial to the Earth, to the community and self and aims to “lead by example and live it out loud". He got a vasectomy at 25 because he doesn't support the pharmaceutical industry and doesn't want women subjected to the hormones of birth control. Greenfield was quoted as saying, “Goodness is my currency. When you live a life in the service of others, then others have a desire to serve you as well”.