John S Martinson

Nonprofit Entrepreneur in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA

John S Martinson

Nonprofit Entrepreneur in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA

I co-founded the China Mist Tea Company in my Scottsdale, Arizona garage in 1982 with a friend, and over 34 years co-nurtured it into a national and international foodservice iced tea brand and selling the company in 2016.

In January of that year, I earned an Executive Master of Sustainability Leadership (EMSL) from Arizona State University’s School of Sustainability.

On Earth Day, 2021, I and friend Peter Culin, (also an entrepreneur), co-founded the Valley of the Sun (Arizona) chapter of the nonprofit Electric Vehicle Association (EVA).

On January 5, 2024, Peter and I co-founded DRIVE Electric Arizona, an Arizona Nonprofit Corporation, whose mission is to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles in the State of Arizona. The new nonprofit is the State of Arizona’s sub-grantee of the U.S. Department of Energy’s DRIVE Electric USA Initiative.

  • Work
    • DRIVE Electric Arizona
  • Education
    • Arizona State University (ASU)
    • EMSL, ASU School of Sustainability
    • College of Integrative Sciences & Arts