Ximena Yvette Johnson: The Climate Tech Pioneer Who Dressed Like the Future 🌍✨

Ximena Yvette Johnson is a climate tech pioneer who went from a corporate burnout to a valiant climate tech disruptor, building not just a company but a movement. And, she did it in style.
Growing up in the air-polluted sprawl of Los Angeles Ximena had two truths—one, the planet was dying; two, fashion was her shield. While other kids doodled pictures of animals on paper, she was sketching solar panels on cocktail dresses. At 22 she gave up a six-figure consulting job ("I just couldn't breathe between spreadsheets and hypocrisy" 💔), and maxed out credit cards to prototype her first invention: a carbon-capturing textile that transformed streetwear into a solution for the climate crisis.
The Breakdown Before the Breakthrough:
- Slept in her lab (a loft in Chinatown she converted into a lab) for 8 months.
- Was scammed by a manufacturer who stole $30K of her life savings.
- Wore the same leather trench coat (vintage, of course) to 47 investor meetings, before one finally said yes.
Today she's leading EcoGlam, a climate tech start up now valued at $120M, her TED Talk "Climate Couture" has compounding virality (12M views and counting), and Vogue has called her "the Steve Jobs of sustainable swagger." But she's not interested in the notoriety—she wants to spark. Whether she's testifying in front of Congress in an upcycled power suit, or dancing at Burning Man in spore-ing bioluminescent algae gowns (🌙 yes, it glows), every fibre she wears screams: The future is fierce. Fight for it.
Mic drop. Planet pick up. 🎤🔥