Team Bio

Alex Copp M.A. - Co-Founder / CSO / Consultant

As the co-founder of Quiver Sustainability and Consulting Services I believe in preserving, enhancing, and enjoying the various experiences the world has to offer. I have a deep rooted passion for environmentalism and sustainable living developed from my background of exploring and experiencing nature on a surfboard or snowboarding, education, and employment in the surf and snowboard industry. I experience a profound connection to the natural world when sitting in surf line-ups around the world for the next great wave or riding in crisp mountain air of snow filled peaks.

I first experienced the importance of real world sustainable development while in high school. I was invited to be a part of a team from the University of North Carolina that traveled to Uganda to establish a rural agribusiness. Inspired by my Uganda experience I embarked on an academic career focused on the environment and graduating from Carleton University (Ottawa, Canada) with an Honors B.A. in Environmental Studies and a Masters in Geography. Both of my theses focused on sustainable urban management and development in Ottawa’s urban forest. While in Ottawa I was exposed to a unique form of surfing, river surfing. This is where river surfers take advantage of standing waves made by rapids building a continuous surfable wave. After a while I recognized that the local river surf community was fragmented so I undertook to bring together the local river surf community through organizing community surf events which helped build community stewardship of the river we enjoyed.

My love for surfing, snowboarding, and travel influenced my pursuit of the study of sustainability particularly related to the tourism industry and is growing year over year. Unfortunately, what comes with this large scale growth in surf tourism, and destination tourism in general, are negative environmental, economic, and cultural impacts. My passions for travel and environmentalism inspired me to learn more about sustainable tourism so I obtain my certificate in Sustainable Tourism from the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC). GSTC is the leading international accreditation body in Sustainable Tourism Certifications. Embodying a holistic approach to sustainability, the GSTC standard pushes the industry towards adoption of best practices, continual improvement, and consistent monitoring of tour operations, hotels, and destinations. Undertaking and achieving the GSTC certificate has aligned my academic knowledge and experience with the world of sustainable tourism.

I have been in the Surf & Snowboard industry for nearly 15 years. My experience includes being the operations manager of a successful retail surf shop in Toronto that is dedicated to the sport, community, and maximization of sustainability trough the sourcing of the best, most sustainable products available. We engaged in local environmental outreach programs, environmental clean-ups and public awareness events.

My background as an academic, and my passion to make a more sustainable world has provided me with the platform to transcend my knowledge and experiences with others and to help build more sustainable industries.