Businessman (or businessteen?), environmentalist, and aspiring lobbyist Will Bildsten met me at the Caribou Coffee on Lyndale Avenue, about a mile from his home in Tangletown. The tall high school sophomore greeted me cheerfully while he pulled out a reusable coffee mug and went to order.

I complimented his greenness when he came back.

“It’s To-Go Ware,” explained the 16-year-old entrepreneur, holding up a bamboo spoon. “Plastic is a big mistake. Did you know the recycling rate for plastic is 7 percent?”

He looked at his yogurt.

“I feel bad about this container," he said. "But I needed some protein.”

Bildsten started his t-shirt company, Be Simple Apparel, in February 2010 in the midst of the depressions, complexities, and anxieties of adolescence.

“Once, when I was frustrated, I typed in big, plain letters on a blank Word Document, ‘Be Simple.’ I put it on my door," he said. "I thought, ‘I could do something with this.'"

Wanting to share the positive message, he settled on designing t-shirts. After researching how to start a company, he incorporated in Minnesota, copyrighted his designs, and completed the small pile of paperwork that comes with starting your own venture. With some seed money from his father and the proceeds from a launch party with family and friends, the company was up and running.

Aiming for a combination of environmental sensitivity, relatively ethical manufacturing, and quality, Be Simple's t-shirts are manufactured by Los Angeles-based designer American Apparel and printed by eco-friendly Denver Screen Printing and Embroidery in Colorado. So far, marketing is mostly word-of-mouth, and high production costs have made it hard to find retailers who will take his products.

Bildsten said he doesn’t care too much about making money for himself, though, and said he's aiming his life and business at philanthropy.

“The only thing I buy a lot of are t-shirts,” he said with a laugh.

Proceeds from his shirt sales have been sent to Haiti, and he donates over half of what he makes to nonprofits. He even asked for donations for Christmas. 

Recently, Bildsten has even taken to political lobbying, meeting with Mayor R.T. Rybak and his City Councilmemeber, John Quincy, in support of banning plastic bags from stores and supermarkets.

“Ideally, the city would get on board with biodegradable everything,” Bildsten says, “and start to focus on reusability that’s not petroleum-based.”

So how does he manage the typical responsabilities of a teenager—read, school—and run his business? Homeschooling. The flexibility for self-directed education has lead him down some interesting paths, like teaching himself Latin or exploring the many international issues he cares about.

Ultimately, Be Simple has been a conduit for Bildsten to spread his ideals. 

“It’s a business, so we want to make a profit,” he said, “But it’s also a great concept. It’s important to spread awareness with products that change the way people think.”