Sustainable Change Makers

At this moment is fast fashion a huge polluting industry that is hurting our planet and people across the globe. What must we do to change this? How can we enable fashion to contribute to our planet, our society and ourselves? In today’s podcast Wouter Winters (i-did) will take us on a deep dive into the textile industry. We discuss the possibilities of turning fast fashion into harmonious fashion. What ingredients do we have in Holland to be such a sustainability pioneer? What initiatives are already out there and what does it take to scale up? How can we combine our forces to make real impact? So we no longer act as small islands in the sea but instead we are connected in the deep. What does Wouter mean with the Dutch Textile Street? Are you curious? Listen to the podcast to find out more! For more information go to: - I-did website - Partner in sustainability website

Mitja Caboni ⁠is an Acceleration Manager at Port XL. He helps innovators to accelerate their projects and turn them into real companies in the maritime space. Mitja believes that "Everyone can have an impact - if you want to. Whether you want to build your own solution in your garage, whether you want to be involved in funding, whether you want to talk to your (local) politicians to tell them we would like to see this kind of change. We can all be part of the solution. At Port XL we give a push into the right direction." ⁠PortXL⁠⁠ is an ecosystem of start-ups, scale-ups, corporate partners and mentors – all change makers, creative thinkers and problem solvers who work collaboratively to disrupt the status quo. Listen to this week's podcast to find out more about innovative start-ups, the scouting process and acceleration programs. Bonus movie: Have you ever thought of worms as part of a toolkit to solve civil engineering problems? Watch this video: ⁠https://vimeo.com/1005722433?share=copy#t=0⁠

Jeroen Botter was working for years in the fashion industry and was commercially very successful. Until one day, he decided this was not the way to go forward and drastically change directions. He started working for an NGO called Sea Shepherd, where he began coordinating and initiating many spectacular campaigns.   Sea Shepherds, who are they and why do they matter in building a meaningful and sustainable society? In today’s podcast, our fellow change maker will explain it all. Click here for more information on Jeroen Botter and Sea Shepherd.

Nadine Maarhuis is a journalist and writer who has interviewed many sustainable change makers. Lucky for us, Nadine has now bundled all the knowledge, insights and experience she acquired into a Green Action Guide. In today’s podcast Nadine will: Explain what an ecological society exactly is Share key insights and practical examples from sustainable change makers and herself Explain how everyone can make a difference. Just start with the topic of your preference and take it from there. Share exciting challenges which enable you to have fun, meet inspiring people and learn along the way And as a bonus, Nadine also teaches us how we - change makers and leaders - can improve the communication of our initiative, project and/or idea in such a way that the world around us becomes excited to join us on the ride. For more information on Nadine Maarhuis, her book or initiatives click ⁠here⁠.

What do you think the city of the future will look like? Are the buildings similar to Bosco Verticale in Milan? A beautiful building where people and nature both can flourish? In today’s episode Fred Booy (DS) will talk about the cities of the future. About nature inclusive and biodiverse cities, by which the inner city is deeply connected with the nature outside of the cities. For more information about Fred Booy, DS Landscape Architects and the projects they work on click here For the NL version of the First Guide to Nature Inclusive Design click here For Amsterdam Vertical click here

Listen to the story of Hans Lodders and Sunamita Borges Da Costa (QXote) how they bring back prosperity to Santa Cruz in Portugal. Their secret? Build partnerships by which they collaborate with local and international organizations, municipalities and, above all, students and knowledge institutions. This episode is especially interesting for leaders and change makers from business organizations, municipalities and knowledge institutions who are: a) interested in setting up multidisciplinary challenges themselves, b) who want to experience being part of such a challenge themselves or c) who want to sponsor impactful initiatives. For more information on Hans, Sunamita, their company or challenges click here: QXote the company website Qxote Instagram SDG Challenge Portugal website SDG Challenge movie 2023 Small Change, Big impact documentary

When we are watching the news or reading the newspapers we can really become depressed. Because we are facing an existential crisis such as climate change and biodiversity loss. But we can do something to slow down these effects and turn the tides. In this podcast we will learn from fellow Change Makers. People who are pioneering and brave to make things happens. What sustainable topics would you like to learn about? Submit your request to Nynke Visser. Looking for more inspiration? For more inspiring episodes and articles visit the Innivitity Academy. To learn more about Sustainable Change Maker Nynke Visser and her work go to Linkedin, visit Innivity.nl or send her a ⁠⁠message⁠⁠.

What do Patagonia, YouBeDo and Squarewise have in common? Nature is part of the DNA of their organizations. Not only in their mission, vision and the way the act. Their entire organization is structured in innovative ways where nature (and employees) have a significant seat at the table. Why is this important? What can our organizations learn from them? How does this work? And what are the first steps to take? Vincent Deinum is working with organisations who are doing exactly this. In today’s podcast, he will share his insights and teach us what we can do ourselves to bring nature into our organizations. For more information on: The voice of the earth program you can contact Vincent via e-mail or LinkedIn. Restorative principles and practices: www.regeneratie.org Shaman practices and work: www.uturn.world⁠

Stories are much more effective than ideas to drive change, they are easier to remember and also more fun to listen to or to read. To fundamentally bring changes into this world, stories are a great instrument.    Today, I will use storytelling to deep dive into several impactful business events that happened to me in the recent years and I connect them with some real powerful stories and books.  One book in particular that really makes people shift their mindsets.  

Is it hard for you to make your organization ready for the future? Is progress going slow, is it difficult to bring everyone on board and do wonder if you are ever reaching real sustainable impact? You’re not the only one. Many people are struggling. But what if I tell you that there is a huge database available out there with over 3.8 bio years of knowledge owned by 30 million different types of experts; who know how to deal with complex problems? And what if I tell you that each organization, including yours, could tap into this massive R&D lab to speed things up? That you no longer have to (re)invent the wheel? Would you believe me? Years ago, Bas Adib and Christiaan Uittenbosch from Fired Up both had a ‘holy moly’ moment where they were confronted with the direct effects of climate change. Christiaan in Australia and Bas in Cape Town, South-Africa. They also experienced firsthand how to deal with these complex issues; and learned about the resilience that we as human have, by nature. They researched this phenomena. Now they help professionals and organizations to flourish and shape a sustainable future. Do you want to know what their secret is? It is biomimicry.

Last Saturday, more than 25 000 people joined the climate protests in The Hague, The Netherlands. It was a big call to action to the Dutch government and politics to stop subsidizing fossil fuels (currently more than 37,5 bio euros).   This protest was initiated by Extinction Rebellion (XR). A group of ordinary people from all over The Netherlands and of all ages who are really worried about the climate and ecological crisis. About 4 years ago Extinction Rebellion was very small. And now they have a very large reach. What’s behind this? Who are these rebellions? How do they work? And what can we learn from them?   In today’s podcast we will zoom into the life of an Extinction Rebellion and learn from Lynn VanHeule about importance of activism in the past and still today, the dilemmas she is facing and her upcoming projects.

Do you know what ecological intelligence (EcQ) is and how it can serve you and your organization? It’s the intelligence level that is enables you to create your futureproof life or organization. I reckon that you are aware of IQ (intelligence quotient), EQ (emotional quotient) and perhaps even SQ (spiritual quotient) and FQ (physical quotient).To bring about long term sustainable change, Daan explains that we need another level of intelligence: EcQ.   Today Daan will explains what EcQ is and why it is essential in building a sustainable society. He explains how it works and gives examples of companies or persons that are already doing. He also provides the tools for you to make it happen. Click here to learn more about Daan Fousert and his work.

Is diversity and inclusion also a hot theme in your organization? And how are you dealing with this? Are you having discussions about more females at the top? Or how you can make toilets accessible for all? For females, males, disabled people, trans people and other persons? Or does diversity and inclusion mean more to you? Did you know that inclusion can bring a lot of advantages to your organization? Done well, your organization becomes more successful, a better employer, and more resilient towards the future. Today, I speak with Thessa Bos. We both work for the same networking organization called Empact. Diversity and inclusion is really in her veins. In her childhood she lived in the multicultural part of Haarlem, where she learned about the true value of diversity. Also she spend over a decade in South Africa, where she grasped the importance of inclusion. As a professional change maker she now teaches organizations how they can embrace diversity and to become fully  inclusive companies. Thessa explains it is not easy; it’s more like a lifelong journey. But an incredibly important journey for change makers and leaders. It is the only way forward, if we really want to become that sustainable society.  

Do you know what it takes to set up a successful event? Successful leaders and change makers continuously stay in sync with their eco-system to share ideas, be inspired and/or to co-create. Often this is done through the organization of so-called sustainability or ESG events. Done well, these events can unleash enormous power and create a huge ripple effect. However not everyone enjoys organizing such events or is very good it. Do you know how to involve your audience, to inspire them, and to have them actively participate at the same time? In this podcast, I will share three tips on how you can to turn your event into a meaningful and memorable experience for everyone. I will also share a practical example of the Rotterdam Clean Shipping roundtable I did last March. This event was organized by two large NGOs: Seas at Risk from Europe and Pacific Environment from the United States.

Someone asked me: "how do we take everyone along in the transition towards a more sustainable future? Also the ones with a little wallet?" In this podcast, I will share three different initiatives that help to improve the living conditions of people with low income. I will also reflect on how you can use the unique capabilities of your organization to take these people on board, so you can create win-win-win situations in which the entire (eco-) system can benefit. For more inspiration visit www.innivity.nl or send a direct message to Nynke Visser via Linkedin

“Sometimes I get skeptical by seeing so slow progress.” “Often I feel really lonely.” “It feels so good to meet likeminded people.” “I didn’t know there were so many people who feel the same sense of urgency to change the world for the better.” “I get so much energy from our session, this is exactly what I needed to keep on going.” …I hear people say sentences like these quite often. Being a sustainable change maker or leader can be really tough. Especially when you want to turn your sustainable dreams and ambitions into reality. When you believe the time has come to go from pioneering to start making true sustainable impact in your organization or beyond. Sometimes you feel that you are on your own. Struggling for change. You can get skeptical: if people know what’s right for our planet and people, why aren’t they acting upon this? Because there is a big gap between intentions and behaviors… Professor Bolderdijk studied this topic for more than 18 years and knows how we can overcome this gap. It turns out that your role as change maker / leader is crucial to realize long lasting change. Listen to today’s podcast to learn what you can do to accelerate this change.

Building a sustainable organization, how does that work in practice? As an executive or leader, stakeholders expect from you to take it on and make it happen. But becoming a true sustainable and futureproof organization is easier said than done. Sarah Valkering, partner at the Reputatiegroep acknowledges this and explains how organizations go through similar stages of maturity. In the first stages, they start with compliance & donating to charity, then sustainability becomes a task of the marketing department (here the greenwashing usually starts), after that sustainability becomes more of a strategic asset and, in the final stage, organizations use sustainability to become a transformational leader. This is the moment when true societal impact happens. When traditional systems and sectors change. As an organization how can you skip the first stages and speed up to become a transformational leader and make true impact? Is that even possible? And what do Sustainable Development Goals and collaboration have to do with this? Listen to this week’s Sustainable Change Makers podcast to find out.

Are you making your organization ready for the future? And have you started with introducing healthier food offerings of your restaurants/coffee corners yet? Do you experience a lot of resistance?  You are not the only one. There many executives, leaders and change makers who find it difficult to reduce the amount of meat, fish and traditional dairy products in their organizations. So what can you do about this? Listen to this week’s podcast to find out! In this podcast I will explain to you why a plant based diet is so valuable. When you are informed well, it is easier to keep on going and to encourage the people in your organizations to join you. Learn about regenerative farming by watching a beautiful movie of Lenteland or visit Land van Ons.

Do you work for an organization with a large supply chain where raw materials or intermediary products come from abroad? In that case, your business is likely to severely harm biodiversity and indigenous people. Maybe even without you knowing about it. If the amount of biodiversity and nature is reduced significantly, ultimately, we ruin our access to eco system services like food, water, fresh air, medicines and more. How can we repair the damage that we have caused (and basically are still causing)? Lucky for us, there are people in this world, who know everything about protecting nature and creating a biodiverse world: the indigenous people. The only downside is that also their way of living is severely under pressure. Today, I will be talking to Raki Ap, the New Guinea expert, who will share his insights with us.  In this show, we will talk about how our economies severely impact local communities, what western companies & institutions can learn from indigenous people and how we must work together to protect our economies, the communities involved and nature. 

Do you think that being vulnerable can strengthen sustainability? Most of us have learned that showing vulnerability is a weakness. If you want to be a true professional, you put on your picture perfect mask, you work long hours and you definitely do not show your insecurities or weaknesses. But did you know that the most inspiring leaders actually do show their vulnerability? It is what makes them human and it helps them to connect with fellow human beings. Learn more about the strength of vulnerability in my talk with Diane Zandee. She will share real-life examples of how it has helped her, as Director Procurement at Eneco, to make big sustainable changes happening at the company. Under her leadership Eneco became one of the frontrunners in sustainable energy supply in the Netherlands. Diane is a researcher and teacher at Nyenrode Business University, a consultant and a sustainable CFO. We have met each other at an event that focused on sustainable reporting last October. I was moderating the event and she was one of the key note speakers. Where she spoke about role of procurement and how they can play a huge role in supporting organizations to adopt circular economies. Enjoy this show!