#199: Olin Lagon
from Hanging Out with Nolan Hong Hosted by Nolan Hong: Hawaii Emcee, Actor, Entrepreneur
Olin is a serial social entrepreneur, innovator, and community organizer. We talked about growing up in KPT where he was stabbed at the age of 7, serving in the Peace Corps in Russia in a city where the economy was collapsing, how Asperger’s Syndrome is his super power and curse, and why his mission in life is to spread kindness. Olin is currently focused on clean energy and STEM education. He founded multiple companies and nonprofits, holds multiple patents, and his designs have been adopted by Global 1000 companies across five different industries. His inventions have also been used in several institutions such as the Olympics and MIT. As one example, he invented and launched the first commercial crowdfunding service which scaled to channel $100 million to fund causes worldwide. One nonprofit he co-founded is Purple Maiʻa, focused on Hawaiian-grounded stem programs in education, entrepreneurship, and workforce development. He has spoken at conferences worldwide including a keynote speaker at Microsoftʻs Annual Developerʻs Conference. His community service includes the U.S. Navy, the Peace Corps, and numerous nonprofits. In 2020, he along with some friends designed and hand built ventilators when Hawaiʻi had insufficient supply. He’s a past Petra Fellow (Center for Community Change) and East West Center Fellow (general engineering and Asian industrialization). Olin and his wife Alison have two boys, both students at Kamehameha Schools. Connect with Olin at https://www.facebook.com/olagon
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