Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks President & CEO of ECOS Celebrating Earth Day 2021
She’s All Over The Place - A podcast by NFT Chonacas - Tuesdays
Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks shares the birth of ECOS the brand that her father created 54 years ago while being an aspiring chemist and having an interest in protecting humans from chemicals on our planet back in the ’60s by creating safer cleaning products from his garage. Kelly shares the importance of diversity and empowering women in the workplace. In addition, Kelly shares 51% of our population is comprised of women, and how it’s important that more than 50% of ECOS executives are comprised of women. Kelly is one of the very few women with a diverse background being Greek and African American to run a National cleaning products company. ECOS is celebrating the 51st anniversary of Earth Day the theme this year for 2021 is Restore - Restoration - now 200 Countries celebrate Earth Day and over 1 billion people celebrate Earth Day. ECOS website in the link below shows you how to read labels and what to avoid. Some topics we cover: As of April 1st ECOS announced they are a “climate positive” manufacturer and partnering up with Green for All Skin issues, eczema, baby skin health, inflammatory responses how our bodies are fighting these toxins. Leading a company that is environmentally responsible, socially responsible, and focused on environmental justice. So many GREAT insights in our conversation, here are two quick tips for you! Step one, do not buy cleaning products that do not list ingredients. Step two, ingredients that come from nature. We go over and break down simple terms for all to understand the importance of being greener in your everyday lifestyle and we break down the psychological reasons why it’s so important for you and your loved ones. “Committed to creating the cleanest and greenest products in the market place bc we believe everyone has the right to have a healthy home and we all have the right to a healthy shared planet” - Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks, President and CEO of ECOS “Cleaning products are critical to your long-term health. They’re critical to planetary health but they're critical to your health and your families health and you have complete control.” - Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks, President and CEO of ECOS As President and CEO, Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks leads the strategy and production of environmentally friendly cleaning products at ECOS. She oversees four geographically diverse facilities across the U.S. as well as a European manufacturing platform. She has been widely recognized for her highly effective leadership at ECOS and her influential voice in the green movement, corporate social responsibility, and sustainable manufacturing. Vlahakis-Hanks has led ECOS to become a Climate Positive company and the first company in the world to achieve the sustainability trifecta of carbon neutrality, water neutrality, and TRUE Platinum Zero Waste certification. Her sustainable business practices have made ECOS a model for green business in the U.S. ECOS is a primary manufacturer that has received many awards for its innovations in safer green chemistry, including the U.S. EPA’s Safer Choice Partner of the Year four times. As an African American woman and the daughter of a Greek immigrant, Vlahakis-Hanks has made environmental and social justice a cornerstone of ECOS’s mission. She actively promotes a corporate culture of diversity and empowerment, ensuring that over 50% of her C-Suite and top executives are women. She supports a green economy by creating sustainable manufacturing jobs across the U.S. and offering strong employee benefits and a living minimum wage of $17 per hour, one of the highest in the industry. She also offers financial incentives to employees who make sustainable living choices such as purchasing a low-emissions vehicle or solar panels. Vlahakis-Hanks received her undergraduate degree at UCLA and an MBA at Chapman University Argyros School of Business and Economics. She has been featured on CNN, CBS News, ABC News, FOX News, NBC News, Bloomberg and Marketwatch and in publications such as Fortune, Entrepreneur and the Los Angeles Times. She has received many awards for her sustainable leadership, including Entrepreneur Magazine’s 100 Powerful Women in 2020 and Conscious Company’s World-Changing Women in Conscious Business Award. She is an active member of several boards, including the Environmental Media Association and the Chapman University Board of Governors, where she serves on the Diversity Task Force. She is active in industry councils and public policy advocacy, including the American Sustainable Business Council and the Companies for Safer Chemicals coalition, working to promote higher standards for consumer products to protect human health and the environment. She is also a member of YPO (Young Presidents’ Organization) and Abundance 360, Peter Diamandis’ select community of executives and entrepreneurs using exponential technologies to transform their businesses. Vlahakis-Hanks resides in southern California with her husband, teenage daughter, and rescue dog Mina. Check out ECOS new website at www.ECOS.com and subscribe today to keep you in the loop and on top of mind on how you can keep creating healthier choices for your beautiful life. 500 chemicals to never put into your products, check out the NASTIES list here. https://www.ecos.com/the-nasties/ Thrive Global article on Kelly https://thriveglobal.com/stories/diverse-leadership-empowering-women-with-kelly-vlahakis-hanks/ Dream Corps Green for All https://www.thedreamcorps.org/our-programs/green-for-all/ Follow Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks https://www.instagram.com/kellyfromecos/ https://www.instagram.com/ECOScleans/ https://www.instagram.com/ecosgreece/ Follow Kyriaki Pick up my Poetry Book http://www.aloversfairytale.com A gift for you! A Lover’s Fairytale Spoken Word Music Video Playlist https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EfPtI9MniE&list=PLQSdVfHrFOMY6B5rH-XQ6FLgUggAc2MD4&index=7 https://www.chonacas.com/ https://www.instagram.com/chonacas/