Joe Rios works at Export Development Canada (EDC) as a Marketing Leader enabling Canadian exporters to grow internationally. In his spare time, he’s a fitness instructor and an ultra-marathoner. Running for a cause is part of his DNA.

His fitness journey started in 2009 when he went from couch potato/smoker to running his first half-marathon for Team Diabetes. The challenges continued and in 2015 Joe completed a marathon on all 7 continents, including a 50k ultra-marathon in Antarctica, while raising $100,000 for a variety of charities.

His biggest passion is helping others find a way to do good while challenging themselves with their running goals. One way he does this is by volunteering with an organization called Impact Marathon – a social business designed to bring people together to harness the power of running marathons and sustainably build communities.

In 2016, Joe travelled to Nepal with Impact Marathon to run in the Himalayas and build a 5K water pipeline in line with the UN Sustainable Development (SD) Goals. In March 2018, he led a team of 13 Canadians in Guatemala to run a race up a volcano and participate in a project to help build a youth leadership centre. Find out more here on Run Ottawa.

Joe is currently assembling a team of 30 Canadians to join him in his next adventure in Malawi in May 2019. There he will be supporting three of the UN SD Goals: No Poverty, Zero Hunger, Good Health & Well Being.

Follow Joe’s adventures on Instagram @thrivewithjoe