Futures Collective

Meet Saúl

Saúl A. Zavarce C. is the Head of Advocacy at the Venezuelan Australian Democratic Council and Campaign/Youth Advocacy Officer at Plan International Australia. He is a Melbourne based Venezuelan-Australian human rights advocate, and youth worker who migrated to Australia in 1992. He holds a Master of International Relations, specialising in gender and radicalisation theory from Monash University.

What we discuss

We talk about: We talk about: Failure, legacy, tips to Saúl's younger self, and productivity.

Meet Saúl

Saúl A. Zavarce C. is the Head of Advocacy at the Venezuelan Australian Democratic Council and Campaign/Youth Advocacy Officer at Plan International Australia. He is a Melbourne based Venezuelan-Australian human rights advocate, and youth worker who migrated to Australia in 1992. He holds a Master of International Relations, specialising in gender and radicalisation theory from Monash University.

What we discuss

- The power of vulnerability

- How we can be effective advocates for social change

- Finding the issues we really want to make an impact on

- What an effective democracy looks like, and how best involve minorities/diversity of perspectives in the democratic process

We discuss failures, legacy, productivity and tips to Eva's younger self in 7 minutes

Eva currently spends her time running The Last Straw, a campaign to end the use of plastic straws in venues around Australia. Over 100 venues across the country have changed their straw use so far, with over 4 million plastic straws being saved from use since the campaign started. Eva has been deeply involved in the social change space, and is undertaking her honours in Middle East Studies anda Diploma of Arabic at Deakin University.

Meet Eva

Eva describes herself as a social change hipster, having been working in the industry since before social change was cool. From the age of 15 Eva has devoted her life to social good, starting with volunteering her summer holidays working in the office of a Tasmanian youth empowerment organisation, to the leadership team of national fundraising campaign Live Below the Line, to consulting on youth participation across the country with MoHow, to taking the leap and founding her own initiative The Last Straw in 2015.

Eva currently spends her time running The Last Straw, a campaign to end the use of plastic straws in venues around Australia. Over 100 venues across the country have changed their straw use so far, with over 4 million plastic straws being saved from use since the campaign started. The Last Straw has been backed by the Foundation for Young Australians and Taronga Zoo, and has established partnerships with organisations around the country. In her free time, Eva is a member of the Start Up Tasmania board, Awesome Foundation Melbourne and is undertaking her honours in Middle East Studies anda Diploma of Arabic at Deakin University.

What we discuss

- Navigating your social change pathway

- Why sustainability is so important now

- How straws and waste impact sustainability

- Barriers to development solving issues in other countries

We discuss failures, legacy, productivity and tips to Paige's younger self in 7 minutes

Paige was the only American, only female engineer, and youngest member of the ground crew of the world’s first solar-powered airplane (Solar Impulse 2) as it completed its historic flight around the globe. Paige is a a spokesperson for young women in STEM, inspiring the next generation to create their own path in STEM fields. Now in her role as a Market Analyst, she explores how new mobility trends, like autonomous vehicles and ridesharing, will create new material demands.

Meet Paige

Paige Kassalen is a market analyst for the future of mobility at a material science company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Kassalen began her career in material science as a process control technology intern at a Baytown, Texas, plant site. One of Kassalen’s first jobs was representing her company as an electrical engineer on the ground crew for Solar Impulse. In this role, she traveled with the world’s first solar-powered airplane (Solar Impulse 2) as it completed its historic flight around the globe.

On the ground crew, Paige was the only American, only female engineer, and youngest member. Her experience with Solar Impulse not only gave her the opportunity to apply her electrical engineering background in a new and exciting way, but it also marked the beginning of Kassalen’s role as a spokesperson for young women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math). She continues to be a voice for the company in inspiring the next generation to create their own path in STEM fields.

Prior to graduating college, Kassalen gained valuable experience in her field completing her Electrical Engineering capstone project with Intel and internships with Westinghouse Electric Company and Federal Mogul.

The Pittsburgh native graduated from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering. Kassalen is an active member of the IEEE Women in Engineering (WIE) Pittsburgh Chapter, serving as co-chair from 2015-2017. She is also involved in the Women’s Leadership Council – United Way of Allegheny County and the Pittsburgh Social Exchange. She landed a spot on the Forbes 30 Under 30 energy list for her work with solar impulse as a ground crew member.

Now in her role as a Market Analyst, she explores how new mobility trends, like autonomous vehicles and ridesharing, will create new material demands. She works on a team to identify how highly engineered materials can solve the technical challenges and leads projects to uncover the unmet needs of the industry.

What we discuss

- Where science and creativity meet

- The importance of a support network & diversity in the workforce

- Identifying & pushing your limits

- The potential of technology.

Meet Rose

Social impact entrepreneur Rose Duong talks me through her journey and some key experiences in getting to where she is today. Rose is the Founder of Clothes loop, a fashion retailer where you can shop their products and swap them afterwards. With a passion for sustainability and fashion, Rose is a digital designer who believes the key to stopping fashion waste is though clothes sharing where it benefits not only the customers but retailers too. Rose also helps businesses build their technologies and ideas and lectures at RMIT in Sustainability and Design.

What we discuss

- The role of design in social change

- The importance of sustainability in fashion and clothing

- Where design and sustainability meet

- Navigating social entrepreneurship from a young age

Meet Jamie

Futurist and entrepreneur Jamie Skella talks with me about why we should be optimistic about technology like AI and blockchain. As well as the future of democracy and the media.

I resonate so much with Jamie who talks about something I absolutely believe in, and is one of the driving factors of why I started this podcast and Futures Collective as a whole. Technology like AI is automating and replacing jobs, there’s no doubt about that, but there is also incredible opportunities that can come out of all this innovation if we foster what makes us unique as humans. The best part is he also makes this podcast actionable and relevant to young people growing up today.

Jamie has spent 20 years in the design, building and advising of businesses across blockchain, eSports, machine learning, and even future food. He has formerly been the Executive Director at MiVote, and is now the Co-Founder of Horizon State, who are redesigning how societies collectively make decisions using distributed ledger technology.

What we discuss

- How automation and AI might affect our futures, and things we can do to prepare for that

- Democracy - what is wrong with it and how to shape an effective democracy

- Media influence and bias

- The importance of curiosity

Meet Lilia

Lilia Tarawa is a #1 bestselling author, speaker and holistic lifestyle coach. She was born into New Zealand's infamous religious cult, Gloriavale. She broke free at eighteen years old.

In the 'real world' Lilia drifted not really knowing who she was. Now she's found a calling to 'empower people to live meaningful, passionate lives that belong to them'. Her life experience compelled her to a career promoting human rights, welfare and personal empowerment.

We talk about building meaningful relationships and navigating the world as a young person to find your passion and purpose. Lilia's TED talk has over 2 million views and we really dive deep into not just her incredible journey, but the holistic aspects of life that we can all develop.

What we discuss

- Building meaningful relationships

- Finding your passion and purpose

- Finding your path to fulfillment

Meet Stevie

Stevie is an ex-lawyer turned social media marketer, and has spent the past ten years spent working with some of the biggest brands in Australia on marketing strategy and social media. 

She is now the owner of Stevie Says Social, a social media consultancy which provides training, education and strategy services to service-based businesses looking to lift their social game.

She write extensively on the topic of social media, and has had her work featured in the likes of Social Media Examiner, Smart Company and Business Chicks. 

What we discuss

- The importance of storytelling and authenticity in our public and private lives

- Expressing your unique stories and how we all have one

- What social media holds for the future - the possible dangers for the development of youth and the opportunities it presents