Lowell Sheppard

Biography

Lowell Sheppard is an author, speaker, social entrepreneur, former minister, fellow of the Royal Geographic Society, husband, father, long-distance cyclist, and aspiring sailor. Lowell has spent his entire adult life working with established non-government organisations (also known as non-profit societies) and in several NGO start-ups. As Founder of HOPE International Development Agency Japan and Asia Pacific twenty years ago, Lowell has seen the growth of HOPE to be in the top 2% of charitable organisations in Japan with the coveted “nintei” certified tax-deductible status.

Lowell has served for the last twenty years as an informal advisor to companies and boards in the area of ethical decision making and thought leadership with a focus on community legacy. He has dedicated much of his life to social and environmental improvement projects.

While continuing as Asia Pacific Director for HOPE International Development Agency, in 2020 Lowell is launching an Education Initiative called Navigate22, with a focus on Thought Leadership in the area of Ethics, and Sustainable Goal Setting. Pacific Solo is a 5 year initiative within Navgate22.

Over the coming years, Lowell will prepare himself for the biggest challenge of his life: a solo journey across the North Pacific by the time he’s reached 70 years of age. Sailing from Tokyo to Vancouver, Lowell will navigate through the Pacific garbage patch to mourn the human impact on our planet and contemplate the beauty and resiliency of our world.

The project accompanies Navigate22, an ethics consulting company founded by Lowell in 2019. Pacific Solo will serve as a motif for exploration, sustainability, goal setting, and achievement.