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“A leader amongst an emerging generation of change makers who are proving that every person can be a force for positive change.”

—Ann Veneman,
Former Executive Director of UNICEF

About Adam Braun

Adam Braun is a New York Times bestselling author, globally recognized speaker and 3x entrepreneur. He is the CEO & Co-Founder of Clarasight, the leading Carbon Planning & Analysis platform that empowers companies with over $1T in market capitalization to achieve breakthrough sustainability and business performance.

He is the Founder and Chairman of Pencils of Promise, the award-winning organization he led as long-time CEO to now build 600+ schools around the world serving 250,000+ students. He also founded and served as CEO of MissionU, the company that pioneered many of today’s leading upskilling and workforce development best practices, which was named one of Fast Company’s 50 Most Innovative Companies in the World.

He has been featured as a speaker at The White House, the United Nations, Fortune 500 companies, industry associations and universities. He has also been named to Business Insider’s 40 Under 40, Wired Magazine‘s 50 People Who Are Changing the Worldand was selected by the World Economic Forum as one of their original ten Global Shapers.

Braun began working summers at hedge funds when he was sixteen years old, sprinting down the path to a successful Wall Street career. But while traveling abroad as a college student he met a young boy begging on the streets of India, who when asked what he wanted most in the world, simply answered, “a pencil.”

This small request became the inspiration for Pencils of Promise, the organization Braun would leave Bain & Company several years later to start with just $25. This mission-driven work continues today as the CEO of Clarasight, which enables companies to reduce business emissions without reducing business outcomes.

His book The Promise of a Pencil: How an Ordinary Person Can Create Extraordinary Change debuted at #2 on the New York Times Bestseller list and went on to become a #1 national bestseller. Braun’s work has led to a nomination for the TED Prize, and he is the recipient of the United States’ most prestigious award for public service, the Jefferson Award.

Recent press coverage

Pencils of Promise

Pencils of Promise believes every child should have access to quality education. We create schools, programs, and global communities around the common goal of education for all.

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