DAVID KATZ Invite David

David Katz · Founder & CEO, Plastic Bank · Keynote speaker

Don’t wait for the
world to change.
Go change it.

Drawing on his experience founding Plastic Bank, David Katz challenges leaders to question limits, take ownership and build something people believe in.

David Katz seated on a bucket among discarded materials and collection bagsDAVID KATZ.
DAVID KATZFounder & CEO, Plastic Bank

A BIG IDEA.
A WORLDWIDE CONVERSATION.

TEDspeaker
Plastic BankFounder & CEO
Ernst & YoungLifetime Achievement Award
UN Climate ChangePlastic Bank · Lighthouse Activity 2017

Ideas shared on international stages

Selected speaking and conversation appearances—not institutional endorsements.

David Katz speaking at the World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings in Washington, D.C.

World Bank / IMF

Washington, D.C. · Spring Meetings, 2019

Photo: World Bank / Grant Ellis

WHEN THE VISION IS CLEAR,
BUT THE NEXT STEP ISN’T

What could your people
make possible?

Your next breakthrough may begin with an assumption someone finally questions, an idea someone dares to voice or a responsibility someone chooses to own.

David Katz founded Plastic Bank by seeing possibility where others saw waste, then bringing people together to build what didn’t yet exist. He knows the distance between believing in an idea and getting people to believe enough to act.

He brings that experience into your room, challenging people to think beyond the familiar, recognize the power of their contribution and take ownership of what comes next.

The question becomes personal: What could I make possible, and what am I waiting for?

Find the right conversation for your audience

IN THE ROOM

Words that stay with people.

BC Chamber of Commerce

“David's engaging & inspiring speech provided valuable insights that carried through the rest of the week's sessions, contributing significantly to the overall success of the summit.”
Jennifer JonesDirector Events and PartnershipsBC Chamber of Commerce

Global Alumni Reunion · November 2023 · Excerpt

“Using a natural, extemporary delivery, David was able to captivate our audience in a way that left a lasting impression.”
IESE Business School Alumni AssociationGlobal Alumni Reunion · November 2023
Read the longer IESE excerpt

“As a public speaker, David possesses a rare ability to articulate complex issues with clarity and authenticity. He brings a unique perspective that goes beyond the traditional business narrative, challenging the audience to think differently and encouraging them to consider the broader implications of their actions. His narrative is not just about success, but a deeper purpose.

Using a natural, extemporary delivery, David was able to captivate our audience in a way that left a lasting impression.”

THREE KEYNOTES. A CHALLENGE TO WHAT COMES NEXT.

A clear need. A human connection.

Help your people see what could be
and decide what they will do about it.

The most powerful conversations connect a bigger possibility to something deeply personal: the part each of us can play.

David shapes each keynote around your audience’s ambitions, the assumptions holding them back and the decisions ahead. His stories bring the possibilities to life. His questions bring the responsibility home.

01Unlearning ImpossibleLeadership · Ownership · Change

From waiting for certainty to taking a meaningful next step.

For organizations whose ambition is being held back by familiar assumptions or a habit of waiting for direction.

David shares the thinking behind beginning an enterprise that seemed impossible. Through the experience of building Plastic Bank, he explores how people can question inherited limits, take ownership within a shared vision and begin creating before the whole path is clear.

Ask about Unlearning Impossible

AUDIENCES EXPLORE HOW TO

  • Recognize assumptions that are being treated as facts.
  • Connect individual initiative to a shared organizational goal.
  • Choose a meaningful next step without waiting for perfect certainty.

Best suited to
Leadership gatherings, company-wide meetings, entrepreneurial audiences and organizations navigating change.

02Give Them Something to Believe InLeadership · Teamwork · Shared purpose

A vision becomes powerful when people see their place in it.

For leaders who need more than agreement: they need people who choose to contribute.

Plastic Bank required people with different needs and perspectives to take part in something larger than themselves. David draws on that experience to explore leadership as an invitation: making purpose personal, connecting contribution to a shared ambition and building belief through action.

Ask about Give Them Something to Believe In

AUDIENCES EXPLORE HOW TO

  • Express a vision people can connect to in their own work.
  • Make participation tangible for employees, partners and customers.
  • Turn shared purpose into everyday choices and contributions.

Best suited to
Executive meetings, company gatherings, sales conferences, association events and culture conversations.

03The Prosperity EffectInnovation · Entrepreneurship · Business value

Find opportunity in what others overlook.

For organizations looking for a different way to see an established problem.

Plastic Bank began with a shift in perspective: discarded plastic had value, and the people gathering it could participate in an economy built around that value. David uses that experience to explore how innovation begins with a better question, a human need and a model that gives people a reason to participate.

Ask about The Prosperity Effect

AUDIENCES EXPLORE HOW TO

  • Identify value conventional thinking overlooks.
  • Connect a business opportunity to a real human need.
  • Consider how customers, partners and communities can participate in creating value together.

Best suited to
Innovation forums, business conferences, entrepreneurial audiences and brand or strategy teams.

SPECIALIST CONVERSATION

Plastic as Money

Circularity · Social enterprise · Sustainability

The enterprise behind the TED talk.

For audiences focused specifically on plastic, circularity and social enterprise, David explores the model connecting collection with income, social benefits and recycled materials, and the people who make that exchange possible.

Best suited to sustainability, packaging, circular-economy and social-enterprise events.

Ask about Plastic as Money
WAYS TO WORK TOGETHER

Keynotes

·

Moderated fireside chats

·

Leadership conversations

START WITH YOUR PEOPLE

What does your audience need next?

01 / ENTREPRENEURIAL COURAGE

From possibility to a first step.

For founders and teams questioning inherited limits. Explore ownership and beginning before every answer is known.

See Unlearning Impossible
02 / LEADERSHIP & BELONGING

A purpose people choose to join.

For leaders connecting individual contribution with shared ambition. Explore Give Them Something to Believe In.

Explore the leadership keynotes
03 / BUSINESS & PROSPERITY

A different way to see value.

For business audiences exploring enterprise and opportunity. Start with David’s TED talk and The Prosperity Effect.

Explore the founder’s perspective

SEE THE MESSAGE IN THE ROOM

Different audiences.
The same human connection.

Explore David’s live keynotes and conversations, then see his recent media interview and specialist talk below.

Choosing a speaker?

Start with David’s signature TED talk, then explore his live keynotes and conversations below.

NOAH CONFERENCE · ZURICH 2021

Panel discussion · 16:36

Corporate responsible action: minimizing plastic waste

A panel discussion with business and investment leaders about the role of companies in addressing plastic waste.

Watch the conversation

A DIFFERENT FORMAT. THE SAME FOUNDER’S PERSPECTIVE.

Recent interviews & specialist talks

For organizers exploring a media conversation or a focused session on circularity and social enterprise.

ONE NEWS PH · MONEY TALKS

Media interview · 8:59 · Published October 2026

Circularity & EPR in the Philippines

A conversation with Nikki De Guzman about connecting plastic collection, economic opportunity and business participation.

Watch the TV interview

EPR FORUM · MANILA 2026

Specialist talk · 16:40 · Published October 2026

EPR: turning plastic waste into opportunity

David’s perspective on extended producer responsibility: recognizing the value of collected materials and the people behind them.

Watch the Manila talk

AFTER THE CONVERSATION

A different perspective.
A lasting impression.

Event-host reflections and clearly attributed feedback on the talks.

Post-event feedback · October 2024

“The story of Plastic Bank is inspiring and the results, very compelling.”
Fiona FamulakPresident and CEOBC Chamber of Commerce

LEADERSHIP & PARTNERSHIPS

Ideas made real, together.

Reflections on David’s leadership and Plastic Bank partnerships—not keynote testimonials.

“We are grateful for our journey together.”
Roland RaduFounder, Natreve
“David made it possible for us to act.”
Aldo ZucaroSr. Director Commercial Strategy, CooperVision
“Our partnership with Plastic Bank has been invaluable.”
Alan VanderMolenChief Communications Officer, SC Johnson

MORE THAN A REHEARSED MESSAGE

A conversation shaped around
the people in the room.

David’s style is direct, personal and grounded in the work. He connects the experience of building Plastic Bank to the questions your audience is facing, rather than asking every audience to fit the same story.

The planning conversation starts with your goals: who will be in the room, what they are navigating and what you want them to think about or do differently afterward.

Additional conversations and time with attendees can be discussed as part of the event plan.

Planning an event? Get the bio, photographs and organizer resources.

Start with your audience
David Katz by the ocean

A LIFE IN THE MAKING.

David Katz alongside a Plastic Bank collection community member

WHERE THE IDEA MEETS REAL LIFE.

THE PERSON BEHIND THE PURPOSE

He saw what others discarded.
And imagined what it could become.

David Katz is the founder and CEO of Plastic Bank, a TED speaker and an entrepreneur who chose to pursue an idea many would have considered impossible: connecting the value in discarded plastic with income and opportunity for the people collecting it.

Building that idea meant more than starting a company. It meant questioning familiar assumptions, asking others to believe in a different future and finding a way forward before every answer was clear.

That experience shapes the way David speaks about leadership. He brings the conviction of someone who has built, the humility of someone still learning and a belief that people can contribute far more than they realize.

On stage, he connects the ambition to change the world with the choices in front of each of us: what we notice, what we believe, what we take responsibility for and what we are willing to begin.

His work begins with possibility. His invitation is personal: What is mine to change?

Explore David’s work at Plastic Bank

POSSIBILITY, PUT INTO PRACTICE

What that belief
has built.

Plastic Bank connects plastic recovery with income and opportunity for collection communities. These company-reported totals put the scale of that work in perspective.

80,000+

Collectors since 2013

210M+

Kilograms of plastic collected

10.5B+

Plastic bottle equivalents

Cumulative company-reported figures since 2013, checked October 27, 2026. Collectors and kilograms rounded down.
Bottle equivalents are a comparison of weight—not a count of actual bottles. Conversion: 1 kg = 50 single-use 500 ml bottles.

Explore the company’s reported impact ↗
Bottle-equivalent methodology ↗

LET’S START WITH YOUR AUDIENCE

What do you want your people to
see, believe or do differently?

Tell us about your event, the people in the room and the challenge or opportunity bringing you together. We can explore which conversation is the right fit.

PREFER A DIRECT CONVERSATION?david@plasticbank.com

Invite David to your event

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Questions? david@plasticbank.com