Baltimore faces a set of deeply interconnected challenges: aging and unsafe housing, high energy costs for families with limited means, and a generation of underemployed youth struggling to access meaningful work. These overlapping issues reveal a systemic gap highlighting an opportunity to rethink how housing, workforce development, clean energy, and economic mobility can be addressed together.

We invited Brendan McCluskey, President at Trident Builders, to share how his team is tackling these challenges through a bold and collaborative model. Brendan explains how Trident Builders is transforming vacant homes into energy-efficient housing using modular construction and solar technology while creating training and job pathways for underemployed youth. He also shares how partnerships across business, nonprofits, and community leaders are helping scale solutions.

This discussion offers a compelling look at how one company is rethinking the role of business in solving complex social problems and how leaders across sectors can identify opportunities within their own work to build solutions that strengthen communities.

Listen for insights on:

Supporting small, community-based developers to keep wealth local
Collaborating across sectors in addressing systemic community challenges
Connecting environmental sustainability with economic mobility

Watch this conversation on YouTube!

Resources + Links:

(00:00) - Welcome to Purpose 360
(00:13) - Meet Brendan McCluskey, Trident Builders
(02:45) - About Brendan
(04:52) - Lessons from Parents
(06:15) - Baltimore
(07:21) - Revenue vs. Sustainable Systems
(09:47) - 10,000 Small Businesses
(11:33) - BMore Co-op
(15:56) - Parts and Problems
(18:26) - Equity
(20:29) - Helping the Youth
(22:31) - Modular Manufacturer
(23:34) - Selecting the Right Partners
(24:58) - Using Solar
(27:50) - Example Project
(29:47) - Advice for Young People
(30:30) - Integrating AI
(31:11) - Quick Takes
(33:06) - Last Word
(33:35) - Wrap Up