Benjamin Bronfman

Benjamin Bronfman
Born	Benjamin Zachary Bronfman (1982-08-06) August 6, 1982 New York City, New York, U.S.
Nationality	American
Other names	Ben Brewer, BZB
Ethnicity	African American mother Jewish father
Children	Ikhyd Edgar Arular Bronfman (with M.I.A.)
Parents	Edgar Bronfman, Jr. Sherry Brewer
Relatives	Samuel Bronfman (great-grandfather) Edgar Miles Bronfman (grandfather) Vanessa (sister) Hannah Bronfman (sister)

Benjamin Zachary Bronfman (born August 6, 1982) is an environmentalist, entrepreneur, and musician. Bronfman is currently a Strategic Advisor & principal of Global Thermostat. He was a member of rock band The Exit (going by the name Ben Brewer), and he is currently a member of the music collective, Teachers, and co-founder of the Green Owl record label. He is the second eldest child of actress Sherry Brewer and Edgar Bronfman, Jr., former CEO of Warner Music Group.

With musician and activist Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam, better known under the stage name M.I.A., Bronfman has a son named Ikhyd Edgar Arular Bronfman, who was born on February 11, 2009.

Early life

Bronfman was born in New York City, and then lived in London briefly, during his father’s tenure as managing director of Seagram Distilleries Europe. The family returned in 1984, once his father became President of Seagram’s U.S. marketing division. His mother is African American and his father is Jewish Canadian.^[1]

Benjamin attended The Collegiate School in New York City, graduating in 2000. He enrolled in Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts, where he studied Politics and Law before dropping out.

Environment and technology

Bronfman became interested in progressive environmental technologies & geo-engineering in 2007. Teaming with Columbia University economist Graciela Chichilinsky he embarked on a project to reduce the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide. In 2007, he became associate managing director of Global Thermostat, Chichilinsky and fellow Columbia Professor, Peter Eisenberg’s technology firm focused on developing a technology for direct air-capture of carbon dioxide.^[2] The firm recently completed construction of its first pilot plant at The Stanford Research Institute.^[3] He was integral in convincing his father to invest in the firm, and thus the subsequent appointment of Edgar Bronfman Jr. as chairman. In 2010, Benjamin Bronfman was named Strategic Advisor of Global Thermostat. On November 13, 2010, Bronfman presented Global Thermostat’s vision and process as a speaker at the TedxBrooklyn Conference at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY.^[4]

In 2010, Benjamin also became a principal and advisor at Algae Systems, LLC,^[5] a third-generation bio-fuel company founded by Matthew Atwood that takes waste water from cities (using CO2 captured by GT) and generates jet fuel and diesel.

Music

Bronfman performing with The Exit in 2004

Bronfman was guitarist for The Exit, an indie/punk/reggae rock band he started with Gunnar Olsen and Jeff DaRosa in 2000, while he attended Emerson College. During this time period, he went by Ben Brewer, using his mother’s maiden name to avoid unnecessary associations between the band and his father. In 2007 shortly after the official announcement of The Exit’s breakup, Bronfman founded Green Owl, an independent record label distributed by Warner Music Group, created to be the first environmentally conscious sustainable record label and apparel line.^[6]

In 2010, he started a music collective known as Teachers (sometimes stylized T∑∆CH∑RS) with Grey McMurray, Steve Borth, Matt Kranz, and Casanova Brown. The first single, “Gold”, debuted on the website of the music editorial, The Fader, on July 12, 2010.^[7] Ben and Teachers worked with Kanye West and contributed to his single "Monster" featuring Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj, Rick Ross and Bon Iver.

In 2013, Teachers produced New Slaves, the first single out of Kanye's Yeezus album, earning Bronfman his first Grammy nomination.

References