Casson Trenor facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Casson Trenor
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Trenor at TEDx San Francisco (2012)
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| Born | April 7, 1979 Seattle, Washington, U.S.
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| Years active | 2005–present |
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Casson Trenor is an American environmentalist, author, and business owner. He works to protect our planet, especially the oceans. He has written several books about environmentalism and sustainable seafood. These include Umijoo, a children's book, and Sustainable Sushi, a guide for adults.
In 2009, Casson Trenor and two friends opened the world's first sustainable sushi restaurant. This means they served sushi made from fish caught in ways that don't harm the ocean. Later, in 2015, they opened Shizen, a popular plant-based Japanese restaurant. Because of his important work, Time magazine called him a "Hero of the Environment." He also received a special award from the U.S. Congress.
Today, Trenor mostly works as a speaker, author, and advisor. He helps people and companies understand how to be more environmentally friendly. He has worked with groups like Greenpeace and the Monterey Bay Aquarium. In 2012, he gave a TEDx talk in San Francisco. He spoke about the "sustainable sushi" movement, which he helped start.
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Early Life and Education
Casson Trenor was born on April 7, 1979, in Seattle, Washington. His family soon moved to Mukilteo, Washington. He lived there until he was 17 years old.
In 2000, Trenor earned a degree in political science from Hobart and William Smith Colleges. He then studied cooking and received a chef certificate in French cooking in 2001. In 2005, he earned a master's degree in international environmental policy. He studied at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in California. In 2012, his former university gave him an award for his achievements.
Working to Protect Oceans
After finishing his studies in 2005, Trenor began working to protect the environment. He first worked with the Conservation Strategy Fund. He also joined Sea Shepherd on a mission in Antarctica to help protect whales.
In 2007, he started working for FishWise. This group helps businesses sell seafood responsibly.
Starting Sustainable Sushi
In 2008, Trenor, along with Kin Lui and Raymond Ho, opened Tataki Sushi Bar in San Francisco. He got the idea after seeing how much overfishing was happening. He realized the sushi industry was a big part of the problem.
During his TEDx talk, Trenor explained his goal. He wanted to save the world's oceans by creating sustainable sushi. Tataki Sushi Bar became the world's first restaurant to serve only sustainable sushi.
Work with Greenpeace
In 2009, Trenor joined Greenpeace as a senior campaigner. He worked to improve how seafood is caught and sold in the United States. He led many campaigns that changed how big companies like Costco and Walmart handle seafood.
He also helped create Greenpeace's yearly "Carting Away the Oceans" reports. These reports show how different companies are doing with sustainable seafood. Even after Trenor left Greenpeace in 2014, they still publish these important reports.
Awards and Recognition
Trenor's work with sustainable sushi gained a lot of attention. In 2009, Time magazine named him a "Hero of the Environment." The next year, he received an award from Congress. He also got the "Ocean Protection Hero" award.
In 2011, he was featured in Forbes magazine. He talked about the problems facing the food industry. He said the sushi industry was "like a snake with its tail in its mouth."
His TEDx talk in 2012 shared his personal story. He grew up collecting clams on a beach in Washington. As he got older, the beach became polluted. This made him want to protect the oceans and start his sustainable sushi restaurant.
New Plant-Based Restaurants
In 2014, Trenor left Greenpeace to focus on opening new restaurants. He wanted to create plant-based sushi. In 2015, he and Kin Lui opened Shizen Vegan Sushi Bar and Izakaya in San Francisco.
They later opened Limu & Shoyu in San Francisco in 2016. This restaurant offered a sustainable version of Hawaiian poke. In 2019, they opened Tane Vegan Sushi Bar in Honolulu. In 2020, Trenor and John Le opened Chikyū Vegan Sushi Bar & Izakaya in Las Vegas.
Writing Umijoo
In 2016, Trenor worked with artist Caia Koopman to create Umijoo. This is a children's book about protecting the ocean and eating food responsibly. Most of Umijoo is hand-painted, which is very rare for children's books.
The book is a long poem with 72 pages. It has many original paintings and pencil drawings. It took Koopman three years to paint the book. Umijoo was released in March 2019. In 2020, it won a gold medal at the Nautilus Book Awards for middle-grade fiction.
Achievements and Awards
Casson Trenor has received many honors for his work.
- In 2009, Time magazine named him one of their Heroes of the Environment.
- He wrote two books: Umijoo and Sustainable Sushi.
- His book Umijoo won a gold medal at the Nautilus Book Awards.
- He is a founder and co-owner of Shizen Vegan Sushi Bar in San Francisco. He also co-owns Chikyū Vegan Sushi Bar in Las Vegas.
- In 2010, he received the Ocean Protection Hero award from the Save Our Shores group. This was for his work in promoting sustainable seafood. He helped the Monterey Bay Aquarium create their popular sustainable seafood cards.
- In 2019, the California State Senate honored him. They recognized his "visionary leadership" in protecting the oceans.
See also
