I met with General Tom Middendorp during the Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in the Defense and Security Sector.

Tom Middendorp is a retired four-star general. He now advises The Hague Centre for Strategic Studies (HCSS) as a principal expert. Until October 2017 he was the Chief of Defense of the Netherlands Armed Forces. In this period he led one of the largest transformations in the history of the armed forces and was involved in over 20 military deployments worldwide.

He conducted a proces of strategic analysis and re-orientation, including several Future Force Conferences where he introduced an ecosystem approach to security and positioned Defense as a platform for innovation. During his tenure, the tide of continuous downsizing and reductions changed and the government decided to increase the defense budget. Mister Middendorp initiated and operationalized several far-reaching military cooperation programs in which the Netherlands became one of the frontrunners in Europe.

He studied civil engineering at the Royal Military Academy in Breda, is a graduate at the Command and General Staff College in the United States and received the high awards in Australia, Germany, France and Belgium. Tom Middendorp is also the Netherlands’ Special Envoy on European Defence Cooperation to the EU.

In the hopeful documentary "The Climate General and the Youth," three high school students concerned about climate change form an unexpected alliance with former Commander of the Armed Forces Tom Middendorp. Under the inspiring leadership of 'the Climate General,' these passionate young people (ranging from booksmart to streetwise) use their most powerful weapon against climate change: their minds. They sign up for a youth climate think tank where they develop solutions for climate change and environmental pollution. Viewers follow the young people on their remarkable journey, which begins at the kitchen table in their homes, through the think tank days, and culminates in an audience with Pope Francis. This extraordinary story is about more than the importance of education; it teaches us about resilience and leadership. By the end of the film, you take away that help sometimes comes from unexpected places, that collaboration is crucial, and above all... that hope is not far away. A true must-see!

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"We are all connected. In nature, an affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake." Part of the mission statement of Reboot the future, one of the great initiatives that is being led by Kim Polman.

Bringing global experience and dynamics into this episodes, the powerfull touch point she creates with new generations (in education) and how she deals with creating the movement in practice on Hope Farm. An amazing powerfull and inspirational woman with a great story!

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Dr Hans Hoogeveen was elected as Independent Chairperson of the Council of the Food and Agriculture

Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in June 2021. FAO Members elected him in July 2023 for a second term

of two years. He is the former Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to FAO.

Hans Hoogeveen is duly acknowledged as a consummate professional and a man of agriculture in the utmost

degree. With unwavering focus on the stimulation and promotion of sustainable agriculture globally, food security

and safety, he has served in numerous international functions. He is political advisor to the World Bank and special

advisor to the UN Task Force. Board membership includes Yale University Governance, Environment and Market

Initiative, and Fellow of Forest Trends, a leading International NGO on innovative natural policy in Washington

D.C. He is also a member of the Board of the World Agriculture Forum.

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Look for more info about Rogier's company on www.zonnespelt.nl/ and link with Rogier www.linkedin.com/in/rogier-scherpbier-757a5aa7/

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It was a privilege to tap Georg's mind on his journey leading the future on a global governance scale at UN and other roles. We share the mission to have children and youth at that heart of sustainability transition. Georg is doing amazing work now, next to his distinguished career.

Georg Kell established the Global Compact as the foremost platform for the development, implementation and disclosure of responsible and sustainable corporate policies and practices. In a career of more than 25 years at the United Nations, he also oversaw the conception and launch of the Global Compact’s sister initiatives, on investment, the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), and on education, the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME), together with the Sustainable Stock Exchanges Initiative (SSE).

Georg is Chairman of Arabesque Partners, an Anglo-German ESG Quant fund manager that uses self-learning quantitative models and big data to assess the performance and sustainability of globally listed companies. Its investment technology processes over 100 billion data points to select an investment universe of equities with the aim of delivering superior returns, integrating Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) sources across 15 languages.

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Lely is a company that is leading to facilitate farmers globally in leading the future in farming. Talking to André we explored the edge of the future of farming and what it means for a new generation and for a leading country in the world being based in the Netherlands.

What does the sector need to do to learn for taking the lead in future proof agriculture? Is this transforming from the past? And how does learning and knowledge sharing take a role in this?

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If you want to lead the future, how do you start, how do you find the next step that resonates with you?

Carina travelled the world as a Nuffield 2023 scholar to find answers to questions like these. Listen to our conversation and how this fires up her own entrepreneurial journey?!

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Kobus Pienaar is programme manager Farming for the future from Woolworths South Africa and is responsible for looking at ways to ensure Woolworths contributes to a sustainable Food System in South Africa. He has amazing experience to get stakeholders together including young people to work on important challenges like conservating one of the most improtant biodiversity hotspots in the world in South Africa.

He states: The fundamental principle of the Farming for the Future programme (FFF) is to work with nature, not against it.

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