My life

I grew up in the hills of Berkeley, California, in a safe, loving, and financially abundant family, and dedicated my career to non-profit work.

In 2004, after graduating from Columbia, I launched a project that registered over 10,000 new voters in seven swing states. After that I worked as an activist and community organizer in Kansas City, helping to prosecute corrupt developers, defend immigrant rights, raise the minimum wage and defeat anti-gay laws.

Following Hurricane Katrina I founded Emergency Communities, a $10 million humanitarian relief organization that built large-scale relief camps along the Gulf Coast at which 4,000 volunteers delivered food, clothing and shelter to over 50,000 people.

I then worked on economic development projects in Brazil, India, Nepal, Ghana, New Orleans and New York City. I received my MPA from NYU, and consulted with hundreds of for-profit, nonprofit, and hybrid startups, launching over 50 new businesses, creating 300 new jobs, and raising millions of dollars for my clients. 

I was a 2013 Coro Leader, a 2012 NYU Reynolds Scholar in Scaling Social Enterprises, a 2009 Wagner Scholar, and a 2007 Nominee for CNN Hero of the Year.

Finally, I ran fundraising at two civic technology nonprofits: Code for America and DataKind.

But by 2016 I was burnt out. I’d gotten fired from the best job I’d ever had, and needed to rethink my life. I founded Evolve.Men, and during COVID, I founded forLove, a virtual erotic events company.

Men’s work

Although I was raised a nice white liberal, I’ve continued to demonstrate Patriarchal thinking and patterns of behavior. I’ve used misogynistic insults, violated consent, and caused harm in my intimate relationships, including through physical violence.

The seismic shifts of the #MeToo era motivated me to take full responsibility for my actions, make amends, and change. But I also saw just how widespread the patterns that I demonstrated truly are, especially in communities that think of themselves as progressive.

So I dedicated my life to changing that equation, and making it easier to be a better man. I’m here to liberate men from anything that keeps us from being our full, loving, and authentic selves, pursuing our dreams, and being a contribution to our partners, families, and communities.

I’ve supported hundreds of clients and students to reimagine their manhood. I hold a coaching certificate from the Academy for Coaching Excellence and a certificate in somatic trauma therapy from the Embody Lab. I have also taken supplemental trainings in abuser counseling, facilitation, antiracism, trauma, gender, consent, men’s work, and sexuality.