In this episode, we are delighted to be in conversation with Sustainable Futures Educator and Interpreter Carra Santos https://www.carrasantos.com 

Carra came from a rural upbringing in Northern Ireland. She was 'promoted' a year aged only four years old, a decision that, when played forward, saw her heading off to Leeds and a foundation course aged seventeen with a suitcase full of clothes and belongings and a bag of art brushes! 

In this podcast, we follow her journey from this rural upbringing to her current position influencing and educating business leaders to see their role in creating a sustainable future by not only reducing their negative impact on the environment; but also increasing their positive impact. 

The power to change our collective habits and start to reverse the damage inflicted on our planet is in our hands, we know what to do and I guess most of us are aware of the urgency of action, but for some, the leap to another way of thinking, acting and living is a step too far, they need to be helped through a series of small positive steps that collectively add up to substantive positive impact. In a nutshell, that's what Carra does as she works with business leaders both in the UK and internationally to change mindsets and encourage positive actions. 

Carra wants business success to be measured on more than growth and profit made, but instead wants new criteria to be introduced, such as the concept of business contentment...when is enough, enough? When do staff well-being and retention become key success criteria? Carra challenges the concept of capitalism and suggests that there are deeper, more important success measures that we should all be using. 

I found this to be a very thought-provoking podcast, I found I had as many questions as I had answers at the end of it but it has encouraged me to want to dig deeper. I don't run a multi-national company but small individual change matters. Carra mentions the book 'Citizens' by Jon Alexander and Ariane Conrad within the podcast, a book that I am now avidly consuming. 

You are on your holidays, so pull up a sunlounger, pour yourself something long and cold and enjoy Designed for Life, in conversation with Carra Santos. 

This podcast has been recorded with the help of our sponsors, The Edge Foundation https://www.edge.co.uk/ inspiring the education system to give all young people across the UK the knowledge, skills and behaviours they need to flourish in their future life and work, and PTC Onshape Providing industry-standard cloud-based CAD to education  https://www.ptc.com/en/news/2020/ptc-onshape-education-enterprise-plan-available-free-of-charge

We are indebted to The Edge and PTC Onshape for their continued support.