Meet Audra D Carson | Environmentalist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Audra D Carson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Audra D, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Solutions. Upon beginning my journey to business ownership in 2010 there were countless wilderness moments as I had ventured into a non traditional space for a woman, not to mention a Black woman. Leading my first business De-tread, I handled evironmental & hazardous tire waste and regularly talked about how my social enterprise would notably solve the global issue of tire waste. De-tread folded. Now as the CEO of Izzie Global, a company that provides “Environmental Services for People & Planet” three certainties have always undergirded my work. 1) I want to be a solution & positively impact the physical conditions & environments where Black and marginalized people live and play. 2) I want to be able to express my creativity and smile while being in service to humanity and mother earth. 3) I want the approval of the elders and my fellow Detroiters to be proud.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Izzie Global is actually the current iteration of Izzie Logistics & Distribution LLC. Izzie Global (named in honor of my mother) stands on three pillars: Climate Action, Sustainability and Beautification to bring services to our clients. Izzie provides subscription cleanliness maintenance of corridors & small to medium sized campuses of commercial developments, Environmental Adaptation Landscaping and Sustainability consulting for developers, organizations and universities. Under my leadership as CEO, our work brings both dignity to those who do the physical work as well as public shared spaces being healed. We pick up litter/debris along corridors and in common areas. This is timely and paramount as we know the correlation between the physical conditions of communities and how the residents of said communities feel about themselves and their neighborhoods. Well being and walkability matters. The Izzie team understands that our work is not just tasks. We use manual, low to no carbon approaches to our work, because faster is not always the best. Air & noise pollution are real so we are intentional about how we enter community. Our work connects to all the projects on our roster, to those of our collaborators and the good work of those improving conditions for legacy residents in Detroit and other areas of SE MI. We create momentum, a vortex, a once in a lifetime movement to majorly impact space, mother earth and humanity.

Izzie is on the team of favorite client the Institute For AfroUrbanism, a campus that will be an international, intellectual, cultural and beacon of Sustainability. We are a community partner with SEMIS at EMU on a 3 yr grant from NOAA (National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration) and working with the University of Olivet to provide our students with robust community engagement opportunities. Izzie is planning on expanding our work with the BLAC – Black Legacy Advancement Coalition on uplifting space in LaSalle Gardens.  Additionally, Izzie is consulting as part of the Design Team of Other Work for redevelopment work in NW Detroit. These projects send me around the rings of Saturn 3 times. High Vibration work. High Vibration collaborators. To co-create curriculum for high school students in SE MI and cultivate servant leaders with my alma mater, the University of Olivet and assist Developers in Detroit in using wisdom to revitalize community with thoughtful intention and environmental harmony leaves my heart full of gratitude.

An iteration of the dream is still here. I just keep going. Failure no longer paralyzes me. It is inevetable and full of priceless wisdom. Calamity has happened and will happen again. Tears fall and they will fall again. Isolation is par for the course. Yet, Angels will show up. Guideposts will provide Light to lead you on. I have always known this work is bigger than Audra. Upon graduation from the University of Olivet I was certain my path was corporate offices, fly designer suits and shiny things. Welp MostHighGod had other plans and trust me, I would not change a thing! This work has evolved my soul. My friend Dr. T Hudson called me an Evangelist for the Environment, I chuckled at first…yet I think it is a pretty cool and befitting moniker!

I want the world to know that Izzie Global is Black woman led, Detroit based. The company is doing energetically positive, public shared space healing, environmentally sustaining and humanity uplifting work!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

This question makes my whole heart smile. So Belle Isle should be a daily morning spot, facing the International waters of the Detroit River. The water has healing calming properties. SpaceLab Detroit should be on the list, because that is where I am a coworking member and it fills me with GLEE! One day should be on the Ave of Fashion with stops in Good Cakes and Bakes, Three Thirteen, Trap Vegan and also a visit to Margaux & Max in Ferndale. I am tremendously fortunate to know quite a few folks with coolAzz establishments so the rest of the list is in no particular order…Ivy Kitchen and Cocktails, Savannah Blue, HipNZenAgain, Sweet Potato Sensations, Avalon Village, Neighborhood Grocery, Detroit Sip, In Harmony Cafe & Sweets, Motown Legacy Lounge, Baobab Fare, Source Books Sellers, Petty Cash and Cornerstone Bar & Grill.

The owners of all of the above spots are some of the most interesting folks in Detroit, so if they are available to chat a lil they will receive some anecdotes about Detroit, Life or whatever positivity bubbles up.

A dose or two of House Music with the fellas Bruce Bailey & Tony Foster would be a treat. I would have them visit a few of favorite client spaces E. Warren, North End and O’Hair Park.
They must have the elevated experiences at sound thereapy at Bloom Transformation Center and a “Here To Pour” beverage immersion.

They should hit the Charles H Wright, DIA and hot exhibits in smaller spots. Seeing art is physical space is a must.

Please Note: This question is right up my alley. My Dear Mother nicknamed me the Detroit Ambassador at the age of 12. I led the bus tours of Detroit for our family reunions, kept up with all the goings on as my favorite past time. Yesterday I did an all day tour for my friend. a Brooklyn transplant living in Metro Detrot and she learned a lot and had a blast.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My list of those responsible for my mental, emotional and Spiritual wellbeing is extensive and for that I am abundantly grateful. My notables: brother Chris, my family, lifelong friends who grew up in our neighborhood on the “Lawns”, my Cass mates, Olivetians, Stephanie Onwenu & the Pour Tribe, Fellowship Chapel, Tenita, Vickie, Kim, Shawn, Sun, Karen Burton, My GodSugahs, Jay, Attorney Melbourne and my heartbeats…Rev Shaheerah & TLC Fam.

Website: www.izzieglobal.com

Instagram: izzieglobal

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/audra-d-carson-380623116/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/izziellc