The Sustainable Jungle Podcast is a mission driven show, focusing on solutions for the world’s sustainability and conservation challenges. Hosts, Lyall & Joy, talk with some of the most interesting and inspiring people working to future proof our planet. Join us as we create a place to encourage and galvanize positive change.
Erin Meezan is the VP and Chief Sustainability Officer at Interface Inc, a publicly listed company in the USA that manufactures carpet tiles and has earned a reputation as a leader in sustainability. Erin led the company to unveil a new mission in 2016 – Climate Take Back, tackling the single biggest threat facing humanity: global climate change. This mission is focused on creating a path for Interface and others to reverse global warming, not just reduce carbon emissions. We first caught up with Erin back in episode 21 so we highly recommend going back and listening to that episode to learn more about Interface and also about Erin personally, including how she got started in this fascinating career. Today we cover the latest progress from Interface, Erin's thoughts on what has changed over the last 3 years, #corporateinfluencing and much more... ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Sam Le Roux is the Canadian co-founder of SOLIOS Watches. “SOLIOS Watches is a Canadian company based in Montreal. [Their] main purpose is to disrupt the Watch and Fashion industry by offering high quality, elegant and eco-friendly solar powered timepieces. [They] want to give people the option to consume sustainable goods without having to sacrifice on design, attractive price or durable quality. [They] believe [they] can influence a new way to live and consume as a society and together create a real change in the way the world perceives fashion.” We cover how this affordable luxury watch brand is driving innovation and change in a very traditional industry that is very much associated with fast fashion and negative environmental and social impact. We go deep in particular on the material choices Solios has made and their dedication to constant improvement. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
“Gautam Shah is the founder of Internet of Elephants, a social enterprise that develops groundbreaking digital tools to engage people with wildlife. For most of his life, living in the United States, India, Argentina and Kenya, he's had incredible experiences with wildlife around the world, but no positive impact on that wildlife. In 2014, Shah decided to change that and quit his job of 20 years as an IT consultant at Accenture to pursue new ways that technology could be used towards wildlife conservation. Through unique mobile games, augmented reality and data visualizations that use GPS and other data gathered about individual animals, Internet of Elephants tells the stories of individual animals studied by conservation organizations and individuals all over the world. In doing so, Shah hopes to catalyze whole new approaches to engaging the public with wildlife. He is still ruining his back and his eyesight behind a desk and a laptop, but at least he is using his background and experience towards what is most important. Shah lives in Nairobi with his wife and newborn daughter.” - National Geographic We cover Gautam's transition to working in conservation and the innovative work Internet of Elephants is doing to build an army of urban conservationists. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Adam founded Move For Hunger in the summer of 2009. Adam's family has owned a moving company in New Jersey for nearly 100 years (dating back to Great Grandpa Lowy). After years of seeing so much food wasted when people move, Adam decided to take action. Move for Hunger is a network of socially-responsible relocation companies providing their customers, clients, and residents with the opportunity to donate their food when they move. Members of Move For Hunger also volunteer to host/assist with community food drives, participate in cause marketing campaigns, and create employee giving programs. Since 2009, they have delivered more than 22 million pounds of food to food banks across the United States and Canada. We cover Adam's family history in the moving business, the incredible work Move for Hunger is doing and his thoughts on tackling social and sustainability issues at scale. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Noel Kok is a storyteller specialising in wildlife and conservation filmmaking. He is passionate about telling African conservation stories and both enabling and building black talent in the industry. He is also the Co-Founder & Programmes Director at Nature, Environment & Wildlife Filmmakers Congress (NEWF). He is a recipient of the National Geographic Society COVID-19 Emergency Fund for his inspiring project in St Lucia, South Africa. NEWF is a “platform in Africa aimed at bringing together nature, environment and wildlife filmmakers, scientists, conservationists and broadcast media to engage, contribute and connect whilst creating a path to conservation through film by amplifying the challenges faced by the natural world and driving solutions through impactful creative science communication. Through an integrated slate of programmes NEWF is inspiring and incubating emerging science, nature, wildlife and conservation storytellers in digital media in africa. Dedicated to discovering the next generation of filmmakers.” We discuss Noel's winding career path, the challenge of finding black filmmakers and the importance of enabling the next generation of storytellers to positively shape our natural world through film. Fundamentally, Noel answers the question we're all asking - How do you change the story? ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Simon Griffiths is the Co-founder and Head Honcho of Who Gives a Crap, a mission based company that sells “good looking, forest friendly toilet paper, paper towels and tissues direct-to-consumer and donate 50% of [their] profits to help build toilets for those in need”. Simon co-founded the business with the big hairy goal of having a huge impact on the world's global problems - and they're doing it! Since 2013, they've donated $8M to water, sanitation and hygiene projects and initiatives around the world! We discuss all this and more including advice for other aspiring mission based entrepreneurs. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter
Meera Jain is a teacher, a close friend of Sustainable Jungle and The Green Mum! The Green Mum's Instagram account is an incredibly honest, authentic and non-judgemental space to learn about living a greener life, especially with kids. Meera focuses on low impact living including zero waste, plant based and vegan food and everyday eco choices and trade offs. In this episode, we cover Meera's reflections on her own journey and some of her top tips for mums and others. We also cover conscious consumerism and her thoughts on making the holiday season that much more thoughtful. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Georgina is on a mission to reduce overconsumption by using positive storytelling to shift social attitudes. As the founder of pebble, she has inspired consumer change through her much-loved magazine, events and online community for the last 3.5 years. She has 17 years experience as a magazine publisher and editor, has worked with corporations and charities as an editorial and comms strategist. Pebble is a sustainable lifestyle magazine covering ethical fashion, design, food and travel. #pebblesmakeripples. In this episode we talk about the impressive projects pebblemag has covered over the last year including their very own pebble forest! We also cover Georgina's two books that are coming up for release early next year and the upcoming futurefest pebblemag will be hosting in November which we at Sustainable Jungle are super excited to be part of. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Carlee is a co-founder of Minorities in Shark Sciences (MISS), an organization dedicated to amplifying the minority voices in the field of shark science. Originally from Detroit, MI, she moved to south Florida and received her B.S. in biology from Florida Atlantic University in 2016. She currently works as a marine turtle specialist, helping to protect sea turtles in Florida. This past summer she received her M.S. in Marine Biology from Nova Southeastern University. Carlee's master's research examined how provisioning (feeding) tourism affects the behavior, habituation and abundance of nurse sharks in Belize. She continues to work in the field of shark science, working to increase diversity in this field. We cover all of this fascinating and important work and much more! ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Alfred Adjabeng is the founding executive director of Reach Out to Future Leaders Movement (ROFLM), a community-development-based organisation that is responsible for ensuring that young people are educated, empowered and engaged for local development in Ghana. School Farms is ROFLM's flagship programme. School Farms supports rural schools in Ghana to be food sufficient by creating community-driven farms to grow what they eat. Alfred is also passionate about social innovation, development practice, public policy and environmental sustainability. He is a Chevening scholar at the Institute of Development Studies, the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom. He also has several impressive accolades: Awarded African Youth SDG Achiever of the year by Africa Youth SDGs Summit and the UNDP in 2018 Selected to be one of 40 Young African Innovators to Attend Africa4Tech Conference in Morocco in 2016 Was among 40 young people in Ghana awarded the 2016 MBC Fellowship for contribution to local agriculture development in 2016 Came second place in the 2016 West Africa Regional Mandela Washington Fellows Regional Conference's pitch competition (pitch was on ‘Achieving Zero Hunger in Schools-The school farms programme approach') Youth keynote speaker at the second Global Youth Summit on Youth Agribusiness, Leadership, and Entrepreneurship Summit on Innovation in Dakar-Senegal. Awarded the Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders by President Obama in 2015 Was among 23 young Africans awarded SETAfrica 2014 Fellowship by Makerere University Business School in Uganda for contribution in advancing Social Entrepreneurship in Africa. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Dr. (Hon) Wong Siew Te, founded the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre in 2008. One of the few Malaysian wildlife biologists who was trained in Taiwan and U.S.A., Wong has been studying and working on the ecological conservation of the sun bear since 1998. His pioneering studies of sun bears in the Bornean rainforest have taken him into the most threatened wildlife habitats on Earth, where field work is exceedingly difficult. Seeing sun bears in dreadful captive conditions inspired Wong to set up the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre in 2008. We cover all this in detail as well as the recently released book that has been written by Australian Author Sarah Pye about Wong's life and his quest to save the Sun bears. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Ndéye Marie Aïda Ndiéguène is a Sénégalese author, social entrepreneur and climate activist. She has written two award winning books, founded a construction company called Eco Builders Made in Sénégal and has represented Sénégal at the UN Youth Climate Action Summit. She has also been named as an Ashoka Africa Youth Champion, a Youth Connekt Africa Awardee and a SUSI's Fellow . Marie has also set up a Climate Summit for climate leaders in Sénégal. Eco Builders Made in Sénégal uses recycled materials like tyres, bottles and plastic bags to build affordable food storage solutions for farmers in rural areas. This innovative engineering company not only massively extends the life of farmed food like onions and potatoes but also focuses on developing skills in rural communities through community engagement and training. In this episode we talk about this incredible innovation in detail as well as Marie's thoughts on doing business as a woman. We also cover the award winning books she has written and her passionate climate activism. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Tamsin is the co-founder of Onloan, a UK based fashion rental company. Having always been passionate about doing something meaningful, Tamsin has had several impactful roles in her career including volunteering for Technoserve at a coffee mill in Zimbabwe, working for impact investor Acumen as the Executive Operating Officer of a Cotton Ginnery in Uganda and helping social entrepreneurs get funding while at ClearlySo. Tamsin has also refined her business skills while working as a Management Consultant in London and is energised by combining business with social impact - a passion that led her to Onloan! Onloan believes that great clothes should be enjoyed, not consumed. So they loan women clothes, for work and the weekend, from the best contemporary brands, on a monthly subscription. Tamsin shares her thoughts on squiggly careers, fast fashion and why now is the time for fashion rental. We also cover how Onloan works and some of the extraordinary brands they offer. And of course, the world is still smack bang in the middle of dealing with and figuring out how to recover from COVID-19 so we chat about that too. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Jerry Yudelson is the author of 12 professional books in the field of green building and sustainable design, an arena where he's known globally as “The Godfather of Green.” As a campus organizer for the very first Earth Day in 1970, Jerry's recollections are featured during an Earth Week in the A+E History Channel's podcast, History This Week. Jerry's nine-word resume reads simply: Engineer by training. Marketer by inclination. Writer by Avocation.” His new book, The Godfather of Green: An Eco-Spiritual Memoir, published on Earth Day 2020, combines his career as an active environmentalist with an inspiring story of spiritual awakening and discovery. In this episode, Jerry shares what it was like to live with out-of-control air and water pollution in the 1960s and 70s in Los Angeles and how he was involved in organising the very first Earth Day on his college Campus in 1970 which of course, helped lead to real change. Jerry also shares his reflections on what we can learn from the current Coronavirus pandemic and he tells us all about his latest book, titled the “Godfather of Green: An eco spiritual memoir”. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Jenny Whelan is a true eco-warrior and is the Admin Director / Enrolment & Payroll Officer of Albert Park Kinder in Melbourne, Australia. She was the driving force that ultimately converted the Kinder into the very first Carbon Neutral early learning center in Australia. Oscar Pearce is the School Captain (Student Head) at the local high school, Albert Park College, in Melbourne, Australia. He is working with Jenny and others to drive change, both at Albert Park College and in the community, towards a more sustainable future. In this episode we talk about what it took to become carbon neutral, how they are inspiring other schools and even facilitating this movement and various thoughts on education, school strikes and how things are changing for our young people. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Ayana Young is a podcast and radio personality specializing in intersectional environmental and social justice, deep ecology and land-based restoration. Graduating summa cum laude with an undergraduate degree from Loyola Marymount University including a double major in Art History and Theology and a minor in Philosophy, as well as education through Columbia University in Ecology and Eastern Religions and Restoration Ecology at the University of Victoria, Young has a strong academic background at the intersections of ecology, culture, and spirituality. She was studying at Columbia when the Occupy Wall Street movement began and amid the burgeoning resistance in Zuccotti Park, she co-created the Environmental Working Group. For The Wild is an anthology of the Anthropocene; focused on land based protection, co-liberaton and intersectional storytelling rooted in a paradigm shift from human supremacy towards deep ecology. For the Wild run their own activist and restoration activities including the holistic restoration of a redwood forest… listen out for this particular part of the conversation as it was a revelation to me that not all tree planting is equal. We also chat about Ayana's background, her journey and her passion for old growth forests. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
“Dan is the Co-Founder and Chief Grain Officer of ReGrained, a mission-driven ingredient platform that leverages technology and culinary science to transform beer waste into food. Dan is an entrepreneurial systems thinker and loves tackling seemingly intractable problems through creative entrepreneurship and cross-sectoral collaboration. Through ReGrained, he has become a thought-leader about food waste business models, "edible upcycling" and the circular economy for food.” “ReGrained rescues the nutritious grain created every time beer is brewed. Powered by patent-pending tools and culinary creativity, [they] elevate this overlooked but awesome ingredient to the hero status it deserves with [their] award-winning upcycled nutrition bars, puffs and premium ingredients.” In this episode, we talk about the food waste problem, this no-brainer solution, Dan's journey in mission-based entrepreneurship, the challenge of perishable sustainable food packaging and what's next for REgrained. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Mike Smith is an experienced entrepreneur, having spent the past decade building start-ups across a range of industries including technology, surfing, hospitality, fashion and wine. He's also the founder of registered Australian charity The For Good Group and The Seaweed Project. He is also the founder of Zero Co. “[Zero Co] is on a mission to eliminate single-use plastic from every Aussie kitchen, laundry and bathroom. To do that we've created a circular supply chain that replaces single-use plastic packaging with beautifully designed dispensers (made from plastic waste pulled from the sea) and refill sachets (made from recycled materials diverted from landfill).Zero Co works via an incredibly simple 4 step process: you order, we deliver, you return, we refill. It's just like the milkman…reimagined!” – Zero Co We cover Mike's journey starting Zero Co, their mission, how they're doing it and Mike's advice for other aspiring entrepreneurs. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Maya K. van Rossum has served as the Delaware Riverkeeper and leader of the Delaware Riverkeeper Network since 1994. Maya is the founder of the national Green Amendment Movement. In her role as the Delaware Riverkeeper, Maya has dedicated her life to being the “voice of the Delaware River.” She has taken on industry, government, and even the U.S. Army, preventing harm to the River, communities, and environments she bravely champions. Now, Maya is working to empower individuals across the nation to stand up for their environmental rights by pioneering the Green Amendment Movement through her organisation the Green Amendments For The Generations.. The goal of the Green Amendments For The Generations initiative is to advance a Green Amendment movement that sweeps the nation and secures for all people constitutional recognition and protection of their inalienable rights to clean water, clean air and healthy environments. We cover all this and more in this fascinating conversation! ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Chris Fisher is an archaeologist, National Geographic Explorer, and Professor of Anthropology at Colorado State University. He is the Director for the Center of Archeology & Remote Sensing (CARS). Chris has performed fieldwork throughout Latin America, Europe, and North America. His work is featured in the New York Times Bestselling Book, The Lost City of the Monkey God by Douglas Preston. He founded the Earth Archive out of his experiences using remote sensing technologies in Mexico & Honduras to better understand the causes and consequences of urbanism and environmental change. The Earth Archive is an unprecedented scientific effort to LiDAR scan the entire surface of the Earth before it's too late. In this episode, we cover more on The Earth Archive, the meaningful applications of the technology to mitigate the impact of climate change and their plans for the coming year. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Georgina Wilson-Powell has been a magazine editor for 16 years, she has a slight obsession with setting up magazines and brands and flying by the seat of her spotted (now organic bamboo) pants. Her previous roles include Associate Publisher in Dubai responsible for BBC Good Food and Lonely Planet Traveller magazines; an exclusive blogger for BBC Travel and managing many Time Out travel guides. She set up her first magazine aged 21 focusing on music and street art magazine back when street art was called graffiti. Georgina is also the founder of pebble magazine, pebble magazine is a fast growing destination for a stylish, sustainable life with a passionate audience. They are all about supporting businesses that have developed fairer ways of trading and making choices that lighten the load of your life on the planet. In their words: “What we'd really like is just to say we're a magazine about living a good life full of adventures and for all this talk of eco this and ethical that not be needed any more, because it's just the way we all do things.” Listening back to this episode we spend a lot of time laughing which reflects how much fun this conversation was. We chat about how Pebble Mag came to be, how consumerism is changing and the role of media in driving change… oh and we talk about innovation in fashion… with hemp and stinging nettles making notable mentions ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Adam has a long history in ethical investment, with an expertise in superannuation, ESG (environmental, social and governance) research and constructing ethical sharemarket indices. He leads the ethical investment team at Future Super and is a member of the Investment Committee. Prior to founding Future Super, Adam spent almost 10 years at Australian Ethical Investment as a senior manager in business development and marketing. He is a director at the Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility, an organisation dedicated to shareholder advocacy and engagement. Adam is also the portfolio manager for the Thomson Reuters Australian Fossil Fuel Free Index, and a member of the Responsible Investment Committee for the Betashares Global Sustainability Leaders ETF and Betashares Australian Sustainability Leaders ETF. Kirstin is the Managing Director at Future Super where she is leading the movement to use the power of money to invest, advocate and campaign for a future worth retiring into. Kirstin began her career as a Solicitor at Freehills before moving to Bain & Company where she specialised in financial services strategy, working for clients in banking, insurance and wealth management in Australia and Canada. She has done pro-bono work for non-profits including the Aboriginal Trust Fund Remuneration Scheme, OzHarvest and Whitelion, chaired the board of the Youth Food Movement Australia, and founded Aussie Babywearers for Refugees. In this episode, we talk about the power of money and how your retirement investments can contribute in a massive way to changing the world for the better… and how simple and easy it is to do just that. We also cover Future Super's leading approach to building an incredible team, what they're doing to promote a fair, inclusive and enjoyable workplace and how they're driving change, not only through investing members funds but also out on the streets. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Dave grew up in Bendigo, Victoria and tries to spend as much time as possible exploring remote parts of Australia. He's always felt a bit guilty driving a diesel 4WD to get to pristine natural places, which is what inspired Jaunt. With two decades of experience leading top digital experience agencies combining emerging technology with beautiful design, he's excited to bring sustainable technology to adventure travel. Jaunt creates unique journeys to explore regional Australia through a bespoke car rental service with iconic cars up-cycled into electric vehicles. Catering to the growing demand for tourism products that are more adventurous, more attuned to local culture and more sustainable. Their vision is to work in partnership with regional communities and have the mechanical and electrical engineering work completed locally. We cover all these topics and more… in fact look out for Dave's perspective on finding purpose in what you do… for us that is a gem of an insight… ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
PATCH was born when James Dutton (the founder of Nutricare) noticed that while trying to protect his son's adventure wounds his skin was in fact reacting badly to a common wound covering and making the wound worse. This puzzled James and he set off on his mission to find out why. He was shocked to discover that there is an array of chemicals that lurk in the common plasters. He became motivated to find better alternatives when he found that Charlie wasn't alone with his reactions. The result (after much evolution) is a completely compostable (and safe for worms) wound care product and Nutricare, the holding company that will ultimately support the development of various sustainable products. We cover how this idea developed, a lot more detail on the actual PATCH strips, how James plans to expand the product range and thoughts on running a sustainable business including going through the B-Corp registration process. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Danielle Doggett is the co-founder and Managing Director of Sailcargo Inc, the “freshly emerging freight company, here to make a name in the sustainable transportation market.” SailCargo are currently building their very first ship in their rustic shipyard on the Coast of Costa Rica. Ceiba, this first ship, “will offer something unique to both exporters and importers: the opportunity to finally close the loop for their most important organic, sustainable products.” – they will transport these important products between the Americas, all while running an entirely carbon negative operation. In this discussion, we cover the ubiquity and destruction of modern day shipping, how Sailcargo will not only build Ceiba in a sustainable way but how they plan to actually deliver carbon negative shipping. We also cover their innovative funding model, operating a sustainable start up in Costa Rica and how the project is doing so far. Danielle was calling in from an ultra rustic shipyard on the coast of Costa Rica so the audio for this episode is a little hummy, but hey on the bright side, how amazing is technology that we can even bring you this story from the other side of the world! ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Adam Baske is the Director of Policy & Outreach at the International Pole & Line Foundation (IPNLF) and has over 15 years of ocean-related experience, with specialties in global tuna fisheries, international environmental policy bodies, and marine education. Adam has worked in diverse fields across the spectrum of marine conservation and management, including as a fisheries observer in Alaska, as an educator on-board a state-of-the-art sailing school vessel, and as a manager for an international campaign aimed at reforming the world's largest tuna fisheries. Julie Thomas is the Project Manager on the beautiful island St Helena. As Project Manager, Julie uses her knowledge and experience to support the St Helena's tuna fishing industry to develop and expand, whilst ensuring that the island's maritime zone is sustainably managed for future generations. She has been involved in the existing commercial fishing industry on St Helena Island for over 10 years. Her exposure to the fishery includes practical and theoretical knowledge as she is an executive committee member of the St Helena Commercial Fisherman's Association (SHCFA) and also represents the fishermen and the industry as a member of the St Helena Fisheries Corporation (SHFC) Board. The International Pole & Line Foundation (IPNLF) works to develop, support and promote socially and environmentally responsible pole-and-line and handline tuna fisheries around the world. IPNLF's ambition is to contribute to thriving coastal fisheries, including the people, communities, businesses and seas connected with them. This was a multi-country recording with Adam and Julie dialing in from the US and St Helena respectively. While the recording is by no means perfect, we were pretty impressed that technology held out, especially from St Helena which is in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean! We enjoyed learning about one-by-one fisheries and covered the destructive fishing methods that are decimating our ocean life, why the pole and line approach is a sustainable alternative, why it's not so black and white when considering different and opposing approaches to saving the world like veganism and sustainable fishing, the latest in food trace-ability and if you are a tuna eater, how you can do so in a way that supports both coastal communities and marine environments around the world. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Susan Stevens is the founder of Made With Respect, an online platform that supports sustainable brands, inspired by a desire to live a more meaningful life. Susan is passionate about being part of the solution in protecting the precious resources around her that are often taken for granted by encouraging consumers to make more conscious choices. Living in New Zealand, a beautiful country with clean beaches, oceans, rivers and lakes, she feels most at peace when she's on or in the water with her husband and 3 children surfing or paddle-boarding. Susan wants to ensure her children and future generations continue to appreciate and enjoy the beauty of nature. Through her journey her passion was ignited to create a business that supports and enables, a business with a purpose that delivers social and environmental impact. We cover Susan's motivation and her journey, the key values of her online platform, what constitutes a sustainable brand, the importance of supporting sustainability focused brands what are some of her favourite brands and her thoughts on making the world a better place. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Brendan Condon is a respected Melbourne-based authority in the field of environmental restoration, among many other things. He has founded numerous sustainability oriented companies including Australian Ecosystems, Biofilta, Cirrus Fine Coffee and Live at the Cape. Brendan is a passionate eco-warrior with immense empathy for humans and the natural world and is actively building his vision of the sustainable city of the future – with a strong focus on urban gardens and redirecting valuable resources that are currently being treated as waste streams We decided to record this episode outside in Brendan's very own pop up urban garden in the car park of his inner city offices. For those listeners out there who haven't had exposure to your typical inner city Australian birdlife, apologies in advance, they do settle down after a while… and this conversation is well worth persevering for. We talk about his journey, 4 of his impressive businesses including a sustainable coffee company and his sustainable living property development… all of which we found incredibly compelling and inherently positive. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Kate Gilman-Williams: “Kate Gilman Williams wrote [Let's Go On Safari] when she was 8 years old. A trip she took to South Africa – and the friendship that developed with her safari guide, Michelle Campbell - inspired her to write Let's Go On Safari! Upon learning about the threats facing wildlife, Kate came home determined to do something to help the animals who were being harmed by humans - and she knew her generation could help.Kate is now 9 years old and in third grade at Trinity Episcopal School in Austin, Texas. Michelle Campbell: Michelle Campbell was born in South Africa and lived in five different countries growing up. She fell in love with the bush at age seven when her family took her on safari. She never forgot that experience and years later, whilst working as an economist, she decided to follow her dream to become a safari guide. We were so lucky to talk to these two ladies while they were on their book tour together around the US. We talk about the importance of wildlife advocacy, what readers of ‘Let's Go on Safari' can expect from the book and Michelle's other important project “Wild Wonderful World”, which focuses on connecting people from around the world to conservation projects in Africa, a model that developed after Michelle and her partner spend well over a year exploring the continent and learning about conservation issues. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Ben Young is a caffeine enthusiast and passionate environmental advocate. He is also the founder of Frank Green, a company specializing in solving the single use plastic problem through beautiful, practical reusable products. They are most well-known for their stylish, curvy coffee cups and water bottles. Since their inception in 2013, Frank Green has grown into one of Australia's most loved reusable cups and bottles brands and is rapidly expanding around the world. We caught up with Ben at the Frank Green headquarters in Port Melbourne, Australia and we couldn't help but be inspired by his enthusiasm and energy, he was literally shaking with excitement as he spoke about the company's vision, their iterative approach, how they've built sustainability into their value chain, advice for purpose-driven start ups and Frank Green's big plans for the future. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Olivia Kennaway is the founder of sustainable, ethical fashion label Lalesso and more recently, Asha:Eleven. Olivia helped drive the ethical fashion movement in Africa with early involvement in the Ethical Fashion Forum. She was also the instigator of what is today, Soko Kenya, which was then set up by Joanna Maiden in the Rukinga Wildlife Sanctuary (and now manufactures ethical fashion for big brands like Asos Africa). She is passionate about building an inspirational label that considers both planet and people by taking sustainability to the next level. We caught up with Olivia in Betty's Bay, a small coastal town just outside of Cape Town on a moody and stormy day (so please enjoy a little wind whistling as background ambiance).We covered Olivia's particularly inspiring journey in ethical and sustainable fashion, her impact on communities and individuals and the brand values that she has built into Asha:Eleven to take it to the next level of sustainability. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
“Justine is the Director of Progress Namibia Technical and Advisory Services. Her academic qualifications include natural science, law, and education. She has most recently been working on the broad framework of sustainable development, including system thinking and economic transformation. Justine has extensive experience working on themes that are interconnected, such as climate change, sustainable land management, poverty eradication, among others. She has a large portfolio of work supporting African governments in their sustainable development planning, and has recently been working closely with the Sustainable Development Goals. Justine leads the Secretarial work of the WE-Africa (Wellbeing Economy Africa Research and Action Network), and is a member of the core research group of the WE-All (Wellbeing Economy Alliance). Justine has published widely on themes from economic transformation, alternative measures of economic wellbeing, as well as climate change, global transformation, and ecology. She has also had extensive experience in developing, implementing and evaluating different projects and strategies all over Africa, including for various UN and bilateral agencies, governments, and business. Justine's biggest passion is the redefining of value systems towards a more equitable world.” We cover all sorts of ground including growing up as a conservation kid, how looking after yourself and re-evaluating what is most important is vital for doing good in the world, how working in sustainability can be a lonely place, how she and her team are driving the wellness economy in Africa away from old-school metrics like GDP growth and finally, Progress Namibia's very impressive work. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
“South African Angie Gullan developed Africa's first structured wild dolphin swim program in 1996 after a two year pilot study in Ponta do Ouro, Mozambique. Under the supervision of Dr Vic Cockroft (The Centre of Dolphin Studies SA), Dr Almeida Guissamulo (The Natural History Museum of University Eduardo Mondlane) & Dr Vic Peddemors (Natal Sharks Board) a set of standard operating procedures were developed that included the implementation of a dolphincare code of conduct with data collection. Angie has worked closely with various governmental institutions in Mozambique to shed light on the importance of ethical marine mammal tourism and the implications of such activities in the area.” We visited Mozambique's small coastal town and beach-side paradise, Ponta do Ouro – a spectacularly pristine and beautiful place well known for the incredible diversity of ocean life. We so enjoyed the wildlife, both on land – hello
“Born and raised in Slovenia, Primož Kovačič is an entrepreneur and geodetic engineer who lives in Nairobi, Kenya. Primoz is a co-founder and director of Spatial Collective, a social enterprise that supports communities and organizations in adopting available technologies to collect, manage, own and use data that is important to them.” Michelle Gathigi is a Nairobi local and the Spatial Collective Operations Manager. She is an International Relations Graduate from the University of Birmingham and is “passionate about community development and particularly see the benefits of empowering community members to be innovative, creative and proactive in improving their lives.” We hung out with Primož and Michelle in the Spatial Collective office in the busy, lively “silicon savanna” of Nairobi. We discussed how knowledge and data can give power back to the people and make real, meaningful change. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Tomás and Marcelo are two Costa Rican biologists who founded deep travel, ecotourism company, the Oropopo Experience, based in San José, Costa Rica. They have a “strong passion for the understanding and protection of tropical environments, as well as sharing the scientific information with people”. Their mission is to “provide authentic experiences around ecosystems and communities of Costa Rica, highly focused in biology, human quality and operational sustainability”. We spent two weeks hanging out with these two passionate biologists in San Jose as well as the jungles and towns of rural Costa Rica. It was quite the epic adventure and at the end we sat down with Tomás and Celo to chat out what floats their boat, mindfulness in nature, their favourite moments in wild places, why Costa Rica is winning at conservation and renewable energy and thoughts on becoming a more sustainable person. We recorded this episode on the banks of the Tortugeuro river so you will hear the sounds of birds, boats and locals going about their business. Enjoy! ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Misha Teasdale is the Tree-E-O of Greenpop South Africa, a tree planting eco-education organization, popularizing the green movement and coordinating climate-action events and festivals in Southern Africa. Misha has a B-Tech in Sustainable Industrial Design, and before he started Greenpop, had a colourful career, including a journey from Cape Town to London, where he profiled NGO's and CBO's across the continent to attract CSI funding and encourage knowledge sharing and grassroots volunteering. He also drinks coffee, bikes, runs mountains, and practices low-impact living! We visited Greenpop's Eden Festival of Action, held in Knysna, South Africa, a small town hit by devastating forest fires and in desperate need of re-greening. We interviewed Misha in the middle of a very high energy tree planting day, in a forest, right next to the ocean so you can hear the waves, the birds and the delighted shrieks of high-school students throughout the episode. We discuss many things but most importantly, we cover how the very special Greenpop events make exceptionally positive change on more than just the environmental front. We were blown away by the energy, love and care that defined the Eden Festival of Action for us so as you listen to this episode, we would encourage you to think of someone who may be interested in attending one of these life-changing festivals and share this episode with them… or perhaps you might like to head over to South Africa and participate yourself? ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Rafael Robles is a biologist, researcher and an esteemed leader in the rural town of Tortuguero, Costa Rica. Rafa has also lived and worked in Mexico and has contributed to conservation projects all over the world. He is passionate about his country and their significant efforts to protect their wild places. Rafa has spent a lifetime protecting and improving both human and “wild” life in Tortuguero, Costa Rica and has made extraordinary contributions to making this a model sustainable, rural town We visited the small village of Tortuguero Costa Rica with our friends from the Oropopo Experience and were really impressed by the village's intense focus on sustainability and protecting their wild. We were fortunate to get time with local leader, Rafa and enjoyed sitting down in his very ‘alive' garden (we had a sloth hanging about overhead!) on the edge of the Tortuguero National Park to discuss small town sustainability, surviving a pit viper snake bite and Costa Rica's success in prioritizing conservation and sustainability. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Ian Dommisse is an Architect from Cape Town, South Africa. After learning about eco bricks, an innovative “invention” that uses unrecyclable plastic waste to make building materials, he founded the Ecobrick Exchange, “an environment awareness enterprise that facilitates the construction of preschools in underprivileged communities using unrecyclable plastic waste”. Their programmes “empower individuals to address the shortage of quality education facilities, implement sustainable waste management systems and raise environmental awareness.” We managed to catch Ian while the Ecobrick Exchange was on their big Winter Tour, a series of educational events held in Winter throughout South Africa. Specifically, we managed to gatecrash an epic Eco Festival called the Festival of Action, run by Greenpop (a tree planting eco-education organization, popularizing the green movement in South Africa) and boy are we glad we did, it was outrageously inspiring to see the work these folks do in action – Ian and the Ecobrick Exchange team included! We managed to find a semi-quiet spot, nestled on the outskirts of the Knysna Forest to sit down with Ian and chat about the wonder of ecobricks and how they can be (and are being) used as a powerful tool to tackle our huge plastic pollution problem. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Luis Ricardo Murillo-Hiller is a Costa Rican entomologist working at the University of Costa Rica. He has been passionate about butterflies his entire life and believes protecting them will help us save the few remaining forests we have. Ricardo founded the Live Butterfly Exhibition together with his professor in 2010 as a way of educating school children about diversity, natural history, sustainable development and butterflies! He, together with his team, also conduct research on genetics, diseases, natural history and they help support breeders who export butterflies for exhibitions globally. The team at Oropopo Experience introduced us to Ricardo and we visited him in his live butterfly exhibition on the university campus. It was, as you would expect, a little noisy, being in the middle of the big city, San José, but in our little pocket of paradise, we were surrounded by the most beautiful butterflies and jungle sounds - the perfect backdrop to cover some butterfly related topics including why they're so important to protect and how we can all do something to help by planting the right flora in our backyards! ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Fabian was born and bred in Southern Africa. He grew up on a farm in the Kalahari and has always been fascinated by nature and our impact on it as humans, especially when it comes to agriculture. He has studied extensively, covering Botany, Environmental and Geographical Science, Zoology, Agroecology and Permaculture. He now dedicates himself to educating others about the “thrive-ability” permaculture design principles can offer and has some pretty incredible impact stories from working with rural communities in Namibia. We hung out with Fabian at his farmhouse outside of Windhoek Namibia and along with marvelling over his incredibly sustainable off-grid lifestyle (think solar panels, parabolic stove, solar oven, french drains and veggie garden - in the DESERT!), we got to chatting about about permaculture and how this design system can help with a whole raft of human problems ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here Watch the video here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Listeners, thank you for your support and feedback over the last 25 episodes! We're entering new era and based on your feedback, slightly adjusting our release schedule and podcast length. Let us know if this new approach works better! ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find all episodes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Sara and Daniel are nature-loving, eco-warriors and experts on sustainable travel. They are are the founders of Peru Eco Expeditions, a Sustainable, Ecotourism company based in Cusco, Peru that specialises in luxury, customised and sustainable expeditions. They have both enjoyed long careers in tourism in both Peru and the United States and are visionaries when it comes to the tourism industry in Peru. They want to see epic things happen to create a viable and sustainable industry well into the future. We got to know Sara and Daniel on two of Peru Eco Expedition's epic bike and trek experiences and boy, was it good fun! We then sat down in the Amazon Cloud forest next to a gorgeous waterfall at the end of almost a week together and captured the essence of what we spent most of our trip time talking about: the importance of connecting to nature, tourism as a double-edged sword, how to be a sustainable tourist, why the Peruvian Amazon Cloud Forest is such an important and special place and what you can do to make the world a better place. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
“Award-winning wildlife expert, author and public speaker, Gareth Patterson, is known internationally for his efforts to protect the lions and elephants of Africa. His wildlife work has featured widely in the media, books and in documentaries.” Gareth has written extensively about his experience rewilding George Adamson's last lion cubs and subsequently written about his discovery of a viable population of elephants in the Knysna Forest. He continues to work to raise awareness and build passion for the wild with his recent children's' book “Born to be Free”, his upcoming project “Beyond the Secret Elephants” and his ongoing efforts to reignite African Environmentalism through Sekai Africa. We visited Gareth Patterson in his cottage on the edge of the beautiful Knysna Forest in South Africa and together with his beautiful bush dog, Tuli (you can hear her grunting and sniffling throughout), covered how Gareth became well-renowned lion man, working with George Adamson's lions, truly incredible stories about rewilding lion cubs, the remarkable story of the secret Knysna elephants in South Africa, Gareth's upcoming project, his new children's book, 'Born to be Free' and his vision for African Environmentalism. *This Episode is dedicated to Gareth's very special bush dog Tuli who sadly passed away shortly after this episode was recorded. You will be able to hear her joining in throughout this episode, making her presence known* ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
“An award-winning television presenter and filmmaker, Bonné de Bod, is well-known for her in-depth reporting on wildlife and environmental issues. For nearly a decade, Bonné has presented in both Afrikaans and English on South African television. Awards include the prestigious SANParks Kudu Award for Best Journalist in 2015 and an ATKV-Mediaveertjie in 2016. Her Kudu award stated that she received the nod due to her “passionate, balanced reporting on wildlife conservation issues as well as keeping the public updated and informed about environmental issues in South Africa.” For the last 4 years, Bonné, together with her co-filmmaker Susan Scott, has been working on a film about the rhino horn war and the devastating impacts on our beloved real-world unicorns. The film is called STROOP: Journey into the Rhino Horn War and is due to be released in San Francisco on 9 September 2018! We met up with Bonné in the Walter Sisulu Gardens in Johannesburg where the 3 of us pretended we were in the wild bush of the Kruger National Park and covered Bonné's career path to telling stories about the wild, the rhino horn problem and some of the amazing work being done to fight the rhino horn war including her upcoming film, 'STROOP: Journey into the Rhino Horn War'. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Dipesh is quite the eco-leader and one of the founders of the Flipflopi Expedition, a remarkable plan to build a 60ft dhow out of recycled plastic and sail it from Lamu, Kenya to Cape Town South Africa ('just' 5,250km!). More on Dipesh: "Having lived on the Kenyan Coast for seven years, Dipesh became addicted to trash. He was obsessed with what else one could do with all the flip-flops and discarded bottles that he picked off the beach. For a few years, he had a lot of fun building giant size sculptures (have a look at Mfalme the Whale) from thousands of flip-flops as well as houses, water tanks and other structures from plastic bottles. Alas, his children, he was told, could not spend their lives picking trash, and school fees had to be raised, so he and his family left the coast and moved up country where he currently runs an outdoor adventure company near Mt Kenya where it's far too cold to wear flipflops." We visited Dipesh in Nairobi, Kenya and shortly after, visited dhow maker Ali in Lamu where we got to see the "small" plastic pilot dhow for ourselves! In this wide-ranging discussion with Dipesh, we cover Dipesh's varied but mission-driven career path, the Flipflopi Expedition's key messages and the power of individual choice in changing the world. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Erin Meezan is the VP and Chief Sustainability Officer at Interface Inc, a publicly listed company in the USA that manufactures carpet tiles and has earned a reputation as a leader in sustainability. Erin came from an environmental law background and has always been exceptionally passionate about making a difference. Today she "leads a global team that provides technical assistance and support to the company's global business, addressing sustainability at all levels – from operations and management, to employees and customers, and in policy forums". Erin is the definition of a changemaker and a leader. We were fortunate to chat to Erin in early 2018 and were so inspired by Erin's path and the work that she and her team are doing at Interface. We covered Erin's career evolution, why Interface is an incredible example of sustainability leadership, how they're tracking against their aggressive sustainability goals and some advice for how to do the same in your workplace or business ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Aarón Bendfeldt is a young social entrepreneur based in Guatemala City. After visiting Norway and learning about effective waste management (amongst many other things), he co-founded Grønn, a social enterprise that "generates social, environmental and economical impact through its operation in Guatemala. [They] are creating Guatemala's first glass recycling platform for restaurants and upcycling glass bottles to manufacture handmade glassware and home décor items while providing economic opportunity to vulnerable women living in the most dangerous slums in Guatemala City". We visited Aarón at the Grønn factory in Guatemala City. The factory is based in a vibrant area so there was all sorts of interesting and fun background noises, including a band that was practising for the Independence Day Festival! It was a fun backdrop for an inspiring, uplifting interview which covered the vaue of social entrepreneurship, turning waste into minimalist beauties, changing the lives of single moms from the most dangerous parts of Guatemala, Guatemalan Gangs and making a difference. Be inspired and enjoy! ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Danelle Murray, together with her husband Brendan, her two kids and her team, runs the Owl Rescue Centre and Sanctuary in Hartbeespoort, South Africa. "The Centre takes in hundreds of owls every year through their rescue efforts. The owls are rehabilitated and when they can survive on their own in the wild, are released in The Sanctuary - a farm which is located within a twelve thousand hectare protected conservancy." Danelle and Brendan are also working hard on a number of other projects including a plastic recycling program and a master plan to save the world with a giant ship. These guys are practical, hard-working legends that are out there making it happen. We visited the Owl Rescue Centre in Hartbeespoort, about 1 hour outside of Johannesburg. Danelle very kindly showed us around, introduced us to some feathery and rather vocal owls and chatted to us about saving + rehabilitating owls, the Owl Rescue Centre's very own plastic processing plant, Danelle's book about their lives in Africa and buying a ship to haul plastic out of the sea! ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Philip Wilson is a serial entrepreneur, who, having been successful in business in the USA and Guatemala, sought meaning and purpose in his life and turned his hand to social entrepreneurship. He built Ecofiltro into a profitable business that serves clean water to the rural poor of Guatemala. Philip also mentors other social enterprises who focus on building financially sustainable businesses and have “doing good” at their core. He now lives in Antigua, Guatemala and also runs an organic coffee farm! For us, this was an incredibly inspiring interview and we were grateful for the opportunity to learn about the following from Philip: Finding happiness in being a giver, how the concept of 'people, planet and prosperity' is entirely feasible, the Ecofiltro business model, sustainable manufacturing and the role of consumers and social enterprises in driving change. ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Eliza was born in the USA and grew up in Guatemala City to visionary parents who today, run The Jungle School for 400 kids in San Andres, Petén, Guatemala. Back in the USA, she enjoyed a career in PR and events before hearing the call to return to Guatemala to start Itza Wood, the social enterprise that uses local, responsibly sourced wood offcuts (that would otherwise be wasted or burned) to create beautiful heirloom pieces while employing local people and supporting education at The Jungle School. This interview was done jungle style! We hung out with the fabulous Eliza in the gardens of the Jungle School in San Andres, Petén, Guatemala. The birds were singing, the spiders jumping and the wind blowing so please forgive the range of noises and momentary distractions ;). This was a relaxed and reflective interview that covered supporting education at the Jungle School, creating local employment, using sustainable, natural resources and creating beautiful one of a kind heirloom products This interview was done outside so the audio can be a little windy at times! Hopefully, the sweet, jungle bird sounds make it worth it ;) ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube
Frank is a Southern Californian who spent his youth hanging out in nature. He pursued a career in the Navy until, on a prompt from his wife, realized that he needed more in his life. Today, he is the founder of Golden Coast Mead, a small meadery based in Oceanside California that supports healthy bee populations by buying organic honey from regenerative farms. Frank is a deeply thoughtful and deliberate guy and we really enjoyed the opportunity to learn from him! We had the pleasure of hanging out with Frank at his meadery in Southern California. It was a rather fun and joyous episode, in no way due to the delicious and unique organic, coffee mead we were tasting along the way ;) We cover Frank's transition to work that makes him happy, saving bees by choosing suppliers wisely, Bee Colony Collapse Disorder, Regenerative Farming and where to get a good ‘ole mead in Southern California. Really sorry about the beeping – there was all kinds of construction and meading action at the meadery in the background… you get used to it! ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Find the show notes here ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ *** SOCIALIZE WITH US *** Website Instagram Facebook Twitter YouTube