Mar 2 @ 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm
About this Panel
Join us in the last session of the Side-Hustling Series: How to Turn Your Passion into Profit.
Showing how we can move away from purely consumption-driven thinking to more conscious decisions and awareness of what we need and already have, these two YouTube creators do this in an informative and non-judgmental way.
About the Panelists
Alyssa
Alyssa Beltempo is a slow fashion expert who changes the way people think about their wardrobes by encouraging creativity instead of consumption. Alyssa’s approach to slow fashion is non-judgmental and fun, with a focus on celebrating the abundance of what we already have, instead of feeling like we need to sacrifice our style for the planet. Her previous role as a stylist allows her to break down fashion into intentional elements of style so that everybody can be a chic, conscious consumer. Through her Youtube Channel, live virtual events and online community, she continues to serve up slow fashion tips. When not creating content, she enjoys long runs, eating pasta, and taking her cat Apollo for long walks.
Derrick
Derrick is the co-founder of Back to Reality, a YouTube channel that encourages people to get back to basics, become more self-sufficient, and develop a greater appreciation for nature. Typical topics include: growing and preserving your own food, learning about the natural environment, and the odd bit of philosophy for when things don’t go as planned.
It all started immediately following their wedding in the summer of 2014, when Derrick and his wife Paula, gave up their apartment, moved into an old camper van, and traveled across Canada for their honeymoon. Along the way, they met some incredibly inspiring people, and discovered a reality that was far removed from the typical rat race they were accustomed to.
Then upon their return, having enjoyed the minimalist lifestyle and wishing to incorporate some of the lessons they had learned, they decided to see where else this journey might lead them. So, despite returning to their full time office jobs, they continued living in their 63 square-foot home on wheels for 2 more years, even during our harsh Canadian winters.
It was during that time that they began documenting their experiences on YouTube (under the original channel name: A Guy, A Girl, And A Camper van), in hopes of inspiring others to reevaluate their own assumptions about what’s truly important in life. But in the end, this experience not only gave them a far greater appreciation for their own finite resources (like money, energy, space, and time), but also allowed them to save up a modest down payment for a small house in the country, with enough land to begin growing their own food.
Then, in 2016 they changed their channel name to Back to Reality, with a mission to explore a more sustainable future, and figure out how to get back to basics, back to nature, and back to reality.
And now, 5 years later, using a mix of education and inspiration, and with a unique style that combines both animation and videography, they have grown their channel from a fun hobby, into a profitable side-hustle with over 200k subscribers. And all that was just in their spare time, after work.