Sleepless, long nights are when the grit of a venture is tested and created
ABOUT
Results-driven, strategic, roll-up-the-sleeves CFO, financing architect, and strategic advisor with a track record of scaling and exiting high-growth companies and structuring financing for private, public, nonprofit, and hybrid institutions.
Throughout my 18+ year career, I’ve been a “go-to” executive and advisor for spearheading large-scale expansion and re-organization efforts, structuring and facilitating complex financing transactions, and translating organizational strategy into “nuts and bolts” operating plans and financial models. My work increasingly sits at the intersection of blended finance, multi-layer capital stacks, cross-border operations, and mission-driven enterprise building.
I’m determined to help others reach beyond what we thought was possible and to build a more just and sustainable society for communities around the world.
After graduating from Brown University, I turned down a Fulbright grant so that I could start RUNA, a social enterprise that makes clean energy drinks with guayusa. A rare Amazonian leaf, guayusa is grown in sustainable forest gardens and improves livelihoods for thousands of indigenous farming families in Ecuador. With the help of investors like Channing Tatum and Leonardo DiCaprio, Runa became a multimillion-dollar company and was acquired by VitaCocoin 2018.
I was named a Forbes “30 Under 30 Entrepreneur” and winner of both the Big Apple Entrepreneur of the Year Award and the Specialty Food Association's Citizen Leader of the Year Award. CBS This Morning, ABC Nightline, National Geographic and Richard Branson's book “Screw Business As Usual” have all featured my unique approach to building high-growth, purpose-driven companies.
In 2018 I joined Terrafertil, one of the largest natural foods companies in Latin America, andfacilitated multiple M&A transactions including the sale of the company to Nestlé in 2019. In 2022 I joined Flying Embers, a leading brand of Ready-to-Drink alcoholic beverages, ranging from Hard Kombucha to Canned Cocktails, where I served as President & CFO, oversaw a 100-person organization, and led the sale of the company in 2024.
I graduated with honors from both Brown University (BA) and the Wharton School (MBA) and now live in Bellingham, Washington. When I'm not in front of a computer screen you can often find me in the North Cascade mountains or the waters of the Salish Sea. I have a deep love for the outdoors and also serve as a wilderness guide and on the Board of Directors of Back to Earth, a youth wilderness immersion and rites of passage non-profit.
PORTFOLIO
I invest in socially responsible businesses with a focus on health & wellness, education, renewable energy, information access, and consumer goods.
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TRANSFORMING BUSINESS IN THE ANDES & AMAZON
I co-founded the Aliados Foundation (a US 501c3 non-profit) in 2009 to bring together people who believe in development without destruction.
We’re creating resilient community businesses based on biodiversity in the Andes and the Amazon— and connecting them to markets across the globe.
Our work has helped generate millions of dollars of direct income to thousands of farming families since we began in 2009.
Join our pioneering alliance of communities, funders & practitioners that support the stewardship of one of our planet’s most vulnerable ecosystems.
CONSULTING
I work at the intersection of strategy, capital, and execution, helping founders, developers, and impact-driven organizations turn ambitious ideas into financeable, operationally sound realities. Whether structuring complex capital stacks, designing scalable business models, or preparing institutional-grade financial models and investor materials, I step in as a hands-on partner who can quickly assess the landscape, clarify the path forward, and move projects from concept to committed capital. My background leading multi-million and nine-figure initiatives across real estate, infrastructure, food systems, and climate ventures allows me to bridge vision with rigorous financial discipline.
Clients typically engage me when the stakes are high and the path is complex: new fund structures, large development projects, growth-stage financings, public-private partnerships, or strategic pivots that require both creativity and precision. I bring senior-level financial leadership, sharp modeling, and practical deal experience, combined with the ability to align investors, boards, and operators around a clear plan. If you are building something meaningful and need a partner who can structure it, pressure-test it, and help you get it funded and built, I would welcome the conversation.
BOOK
Building a startup is like being thrust into the middle of the Amazonian rainforest: living every day on the edge of your comfort zone,
vulnerable to the unexpected challenges constantly being thrown your way, and constantly shifting to meet daily demands and do everything and anything you can to survive, let alone to thrive. Published by Simon & Schuster, Fully Alive: Using the Lessons of the Amazon to Live Your Mission in Business & Life shares tools and guidance to show readers how we can dig deeper to bring greater meaning and purpose to our personal and professional pursuits. Vulnerable, raw and deeply transparent, Fully Alive reveals powerful tools and lessons that can teach all of us how to grow toward and beyond our personal edges, no matter our circumstances.
“Rich with tools and guidance for how
entrepreneurs can accomplish ambitious social missions by building thriving businesses.”
—JOHN MACKEY, founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market
“We need new thinking to tackle the massive environmental and structural problems the world faces today. Tyler points a way forward, using ancient knowledge and practices, and lays a foundation for its application in modern business.”
—ROSE MARCARIO, CEO and president of Patagonia, Inc.
“A refreshingly honest, often brutally frank blend of big picture inspiration and pragmatic learnings that will help inform any entrepreneur about facing and overcoming challenges, especially
with mission-driven businesses.”
—GARY HIRSHBERG, cofounder, chairman, and former CEO of Stonyfield Farm
“Whether you’re an entrepreneur, business person, seeker, or lover of adventure stories: Read this book.”
—MARK RAMPOLLA, founder of ZICO Coconut Waterand author of High-Hanging Fruit
