TerraCycle is a social business, which means that we focus on the so-called triple bottom line: planet, people and profits. For us, this has meant creating a business model that involves capturing nonrecyclable waste — like chip bags or diaper packaging — before it goes to a landfill or incinerator and finding a way to recycle, upcycle or reuse it. Basically, we’re giving garbage a second life by creating a system for otherwise nonrecyclable waste to be recycled. Through sponsorship from more than 50 brand partners (L’Oréal, Kimberly-Clark) we are able to offer free shipping and a small donation (typically 2 cents per piece of waste received) to a school or organization of the collector’s choice. Today, we engage more than 35 million people in collecting this waste in 22 countries around the world. While our sales have grown every year for the past nine years — we finished 2012 with slightly less than $15 million in revenue — we just became profitable in 2011. We earned a small profit in 2012 as well. In my letter to the company, I wrote that our goal is to eliminate the very idea of waste: “This is a lofty goal that I believe is best executed via a for-profit platform. But I would like to underline that we do not exist for the sole purpose of profit.” Instead, I explained, profit is a tool we use to help us accomplish our purpose. But it can get complicated, and much depends on how a company is structured and financed. One challenge of trying to balance profits with a socially minded business can be the law. Perhaps the best example is the sale of Ben & Jerry’s to Unilever. Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield started the company in a renovated gas station in South Burlington, Vt. They were fair to their employees and their cows, they cared about the environment, and they used the business as a vehicle to raise awareness about social and environmental issues.