David Katz 2025
For 2025, The Global Presence is honored to recognize Canadian David Katz for his magnanimous trailblazing in the arena of financial literacy with its annual Humanitarian Award. Growing up on the shores of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, David loved beachcombing for colorful shells and sea creatures. He also contemplated the rarest of finds – the message in a bottle — something that would connect him to those on distant shores. That something arrived one day in the most unglorious of forms: discarded plastic.
Concern about where the plastic originated and the harm it was causing set David on a path to learn the full extent of plastic pollution. One fact was particularly striking: 80% of ocean plastic came from countries with extreme poverty. Learning this inspired David’s Marcus Aurelius – “The Obstacle is the Way” solution – Plastic Bank in 2013.
Plastic Bank turns discarded plastic into income for underserved collector communities to fight poverty. Collectors exchange plastic waste at local branches for additional income and social benefits, which they can then use to improve their lives. This creates a new income stream for collector families while providing companies with ethically sourced, traceable recycled plastic for their products.
Today, Plastic Bank is a global movement that redefines prosperity by transforming waste into wealth. By tackling two of the most pressing challenges facing people and the planet, poverty and plastic pollution, Plastic Bank has enabled the exchange of the world’s largest volume of hand-gathered plastic (over 170 million kilos) for income and social benefits, opening pathways to prosperity for over 61,000 families in underserved communities across Latin America, North Africa, and Southeast Asia.
David’s humanitarian works have garnered international acclaim, with features on BBC, CNN, Time Magazine, Forbes, Fast Company, Business Week, and National Geographic. He has delivered impactful TED talks, appeared in award-winning documentaries, and starred in an international reality television show.
Often referred to as a steward of the Earth, a champion for the underserved, and a thought leader on the prosperity mindset. David’s previous awards include The Prix Voltaire, the United Nations Lighthouse Award for Planetary Health, and the Paris Climate Conference Sustainia Community Award. Other notable recognitions include the Ernst & Young Lifetime Achievement Award, The Globe and Mail’s Changemakers Award, and the Entrepreneur Organizations’ Global Citizen Award.