Lead With We

In the Best Of episode, we look back at Dan Wideaier of Bolt Threads. Dan Widmaier is a bioengineer who’s taking on the fashion and beauty industries. As the Co-Founder and CEO of Bolt Threads, he’s ushering in a new era of regenerative lab grown materials that can help us reverse course when it comes to the health of our planet. In this episode Dan and I talked about the science behind Bolt Threads’ patented materials, and how they’re being adopted by big brands like Stella McCartney and Adidas. In what was a fascinating conversation, I heard about his growth strategy, how industry disruption can be used to create social and environmental impact, and why companies that don’t adopt regenerative practices could face existential problems.

Dan Widmaier

Dan has carefully tended Bolt’s growth since 2009, using his passion and expertise to lead the company through technology development, expansion, and financing. He earned his Ph.D. in Chemistry and Chemical Biology from UC San Francisco, where his graduate research involved designing genetic circuits to control microbial organelles. Dan has grown Bolt Threads from an incubator start-up to a biomaterials platform company with 75 employees. He has led Bolt Threads through multiple fundraising rounds, created lasting partnerships with iconic global brands like Stella McCartney, and launched commercially available materials including MyloTM – a mycelium-based leather alternative – with a select group of partners including adidas, Kering, lululemon, and Stella McCartney.

This episode of Lead With We was produced and edited by Goal 17 Media and is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify.

You can also watch episodes on YouTube at WeFirstTV.

Resources

Learn more about Bolt Threads at boltthreads.com

Connect with Dan on LinkedIn

For case studies and other free resources about purposeful business, go to WeFirstBranding.com

Simon’s new book, Lead With We, comes out Nov. 9th and is now available for pre-order on Amazon, Google Books and Barnes & Noble. Check it out!

In the Best Of episode, we look back at Bryce Fluellen of Everytable. Bryce Fluellen is the Executive Director of Social Equity Franchise at Everytable. They are redefining the fast-food landscape by selling nutritious, fresh, made-from-scratch food at fast-food prices in underserved communities. To that end, they’re reducing meal prices to meet the minimum income of each community. Bryce is a master chef who has worked with nationwide restaurants to drive systemic change to benefit underserved populations and communities. In this conversation, he shares how his passion for education and healthy eating serves the company’s rapid growth and the democratization of healthy, affordable food where it’s needed most.

Bryce Fluellen

Bryce Fluellen is the Executive Director of Everytable’s Social Equity Franchise Program. This model invests directly into marginalized entrepreneurs of color by providing the opportunity to open Everytable stores with zero upfront capital or net worth.

Fluellen has fought for food justice and social equity for more than 20 years. He developed and implemented strategic programs at Starbucks, Magic Johnson Enterprises, and the American Heart Association to drive systemic change to benefit underserved communities. As Community Impact Director at the Los Angeles chapter of the American Heart Association, he was instrumental in developing and implementing a multi-year, million-dollar regional campaign with the National Football League Foundation to transform and improve youth physical activity and building an impact blueprint for the League to scale across 30 team markets.

Also a Master Chef, he operated a Los Angeles full-service catering company, YAMS Catering, where he created partnerships with health-focused organizations to educate Black and Brown communities about healthy eating.

Resources

Learn more about Everytable at https://everytable.com/about

Connect with Bryce on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryce-fluellen-8307468/

Visit leadwithwe.com to learn more about Simon’s new book or search for “Lead With We” on Amazon, Google Books, or Barnes & Noble.

In this Best Of episode, we look back at Martin Wittaker of JUST Capital. Whether you know it or not, JUST Capital is playing a crucial role in business by supplying the economy with critical knowledge that holds companies accountable based on what they hear directly from the American public and how the American public believes they should behave.

In this episode, JUST Capital CEO Martin Whittaker and I had a thought-provoking conversation around the present and future of business. We explored how JUST’s public rankings help direct market forces to build a better future, where we are in the journey towards stakeholder capitalism, why it’s absolutely necessary to create a more equitable economy, and what business leaders can do to bring about this change.

Martin Whittaker

Martin Whittaker is the founding CEO of JUST Capital and is responsible for the overall leadership of the organization. He is also co-founder and Board member of the CREO Syndicate, a family office investment network; a Board member of the Carbon Disclosure Project U.S.; and a member of the Forbes Finance Council and Forbes Contributor. Some of Martin’s previous work includes co-founding the impact investing firm Sonen Capital and serving as the Director of MissionPoint Capital Partners, a family office-led private equity firm. Martin received his Ph.D. from University of Edinburgh, an MBA from the University of London, an M.Sc. from McGill University and a B.Sc. from University of St. Andrews.

This episode of Lead With We was produced and edited by Goal 17 Media and is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify.

You can also watch episodes on YouTube at WeFirstTV.

Resources

Learn more about JUST Capital

Connect with Martin on LinkedIn

For case studies and other free resources about purposeful business, go to WeFirstBranding.com

Simon’s new book, Lead With We, is now available for pre-order on Amazon, Google Books and Barnes & Noble. Check it out!

In this Best Of episode, we look back at Sally Uren of Forum For The Future. Sally runs a leading sustainability non-profit called Forum For The Future that works directly with big brands and business leaders to create global change. Together we discuss the future of humanity (literally), and how we’re seeing very different trajectories play out simultaneously in real time. And what I particularly love about this conversation is that Sally points to growing movements, such as regenerative agriculture and impact investing, as proof that we can build a positive future through our actions.

Sally Uren

Sally joined Forum for the Future, then a not-for-profit based solely in the UK, in 2002. Previously Deputy CEO, Sally was appointed Chief Executive in 2013. Since then, she has spearheaded Forum’s mission to create a more sustainable future by catalysing transformational change in key global systems. Over this period, Sally has overseen Forum’s substantial growth into new markets while honing its focus on ensuring Forum makes a positive contribution to three global challenges: the climate crisis and ensuring the sustainability of our global food system and value chains.

Sally oversees the delivery of Forum’s programmatic work through a team of more than 80 sustainability professionals across offices in London, Singapore, New York and Mumbai. As part of this, she works with leading global players, including businesses such as Unilever and Olam, foundations such as the Laudes Foundation, and membership organisations such as Sedex, both in one-to-one partnerships, and also as part of multi-stakeholder collaborations designed to address complex challenges in systems as diverse as food, energy, apparel and shipping.

In December 2017, Sally received an OBE in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List for services to sustainability in business. In 2019, she was ranked number one on Assent’s list of Top 100 Corporate Social Responsibility Influence Leaders.

Resources

Connect with Sally on LinkedIn

Read Forum for the Future’s latest report: “From Systems Shock to Systems Change”

For case studies and other free resources about purposeful business, go to WeFirstBranding.com

KoAnn is the Founder and CEO of Sustainable Life Media, producers and conveners of the internationally respected Sustainable Brands community. Through Sustainable Brands, she and her team lead the global conversation about how 21st-century brands can, and are delivering new business value through innovation for environmental and social purpose. In this episode, we discuss the evolution of sustainability efforts around the world and the positive progress we're making, as well as exciting and disruptive new companies, technologies, and collaborations that are unlocking huge marketplace opportunities in the future.  Lead With We is Produced by Goal 17 Media - https://goal17media.com

KoAnn Skrzyniarz:

KoAnn is the Founder and CEO of Sustainable Life Media, producers and conveners of the internationally respected Sustainable Brands community. Through Sustainable Brands, she and her team lead the global conversation about how 21st-century brands can, and are delivering new business value through innovation for environmental and social purpose. In addition to overseeing direction and strategy at SB, she writes and speaks worldwide on the shift in consumer demand and the opportunity for brands to respond by changing the way they think of and deliver against their societal role.

Resources:

Learn more about Sustainable Life Media at https://sustainablebrands.com/ 

Connect with KoAnn on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/koann/

David Clark is the Founder and CEO of The Right Here, Right Now Global Climate Alliance, an international initiative ensuring climate change is recognized as the human rights crisis that leading scientists and human rights advocates, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, have declared it to be. In this episode, he reveals the state of the climate movement and how companies large and small can participate in meaningful ways that support much-needed business growth while also course-correcting our future. Lead With We is produced by Goal 17 Media - https://goal17media.com.

David Clark

David Clark is the Founder and CEO of The Right Here, Right Now - Global Climate Alliance, which is an international initiative created to take on climate change as the human rights crisis that leading scientists and human rights advocates, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, have declared it to be.

Resources

Learn more about Right Here, Right Now Global Climate Alliance at righthererightnow.global

Connect with David on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-clark-b816083/

Visit LeadWithWe.com to learn more about Simon's new book or search for "Lead With We" on Amazon, Google Books, or Barnes & Noble.

It’s hard to overstate Paul Hawken’s contribution to transforming the relationship between humanity, business and the natural world. His books and leadership have built the foundation and laid out the roadmap for how we work together to address the climate crisis. It was a privilege to speak with him about his new book: Regeneration: Ending the Climate Crisis in One Generation.

Paul Hawken

Paul Hawken starts ecological businesses, writes about nature and commerce, and consults with heads of state and CEOs on climatic, economic and ecological regeneration. He has appeared on numerous media including the Today Show, Talk of the Nation, Bill Maher, CBS This Morning, Charlie Rose, and others, and his work has been profiled or featured in hundreds of articles including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Newsweek, Washington Post, Forbes, and Business Week. He has written nine books including five national and New York Times bestsellers: Growing a Business, The Next Economy, The Ecology of Commerce, Blessed Unrest and Drawdown. He is published in 30 languages and his books are available in over 80 countries having sold more than two million copies. His last book, Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming debuted on April 18, 2017 as a New York Times bestseller and is currently in seventeen other languages. He is the founder of Project Drawdown, which worked with over two hundred scholars, students, scientists, researchers, and activists to map, measure, and model the one hundred most substantive solutions that can cumulatively reverse global warming. He is the founder of Regeneration.org and his new book, Regeneration: Ending the Climate Crisis in One Generation, is published by Penguin Random House launching September 21st, 2021.

This episode of Lead With We was produced and edited by Goal 17 Media and is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify.

You can also watch episodes on YouTube at WeFirstTV.

Resources

Learn more about Paul’s work at regeneration.org

Connect with Paul on LinkedIn

For case studies and other free resources about purposeful business, go to WeFirstBranding.com

Simon’s new book, Lead With We, is now available for pre-order on Amazon, Google Books and Barnes & Noble. Check it out!

The beauty industry is undergoing a massive transformation. Pascal Houdayer is CEO of Orveon, a new and disruptive enterprise at the forefront of this reinvention. As a purpose-driven leader with 30+ years of experience in Beauty & Personal Care, he’s committed to exposing the dirty secrets of “clean” beauty and realizing his vision of “pure beauty” as part of holistic health and wellness. In this episode, he shares how to plan, launch, and disrupt a powerful and pervasive industry, and how to maintain your integrity, grow your business, and increase your impact even in these turbulent times.

Lead With We is Produced by Goal 17 Media - https://goal17media.com

Pascal Houdayer

Pascal Houdayer is a purpose-driven leader with 30+ years of experience in Beauty & Personal Care, with a personal mission to improve people’s lives and well-being. He’s passionate about creating innovative solutions to foster Diversity, Equity & Inclusion for a more sustainable world. He currently serves as CEO of Orveon (bareMinerals, Laura Mercier, BUXOM), Board Member, and Senior Advisor for Global Private Equity firms. Previously held the role of NAOS CEO (Bioderma, Esthederm, Etat Pur), EVP, and member of the Management Board at Henkel for the Beauty Care Division, after 19y at P&G in various international Leadership roles.

Resources

Learn more about Orveon 

Connect with Pascal on LinkedIn 

Visit leadwithwe.com to learn more about Simon's new book or search for "Lead With We" on Amazon, Google Books, or Barnes & Noble. 

Waste is one of the most dire and distressing issues we face today both for our own lives and for the planet. Tom Szaky is the founder and CEO of TerraCycle, a global leader in the collection and repurposing of complex waste streams polluting our planet. The company operates in 21 countries, working with the world’s largest brands and companies to recycle products and packaging that currently go to landfill or incineration. In this episode, he shares why it has become such a growing and seemingly intractable problem, and how we can fix it together to better serve our communities and future.

 Lead With We is Produced by Goal 17 Media - https://goal17media.com

Tom Szaky:

Tom Szaky is the founder and CEO of TerraCycle, a global leader in the collection and repurposing of complex waste streams. TerraCycle operates in 21 countries, working with the world’s largest brands and companies to recycle products and packaging that currently go to landfill or incineration.

Resources:

Learn more about Terracycle at https://www.terracycle.com/en-CA/ 

Connect with Tom on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomszaky/ 

Visit leadwithwe.com to learn more about Simon's new book or search for "Lead With We" on Amazon, Google Books, or Barnes & Noble. 

Dr. Tom Hunsaker is an international bestselling author and thought leader who previously served as Associate Dean of Innovation for the Thunderbird School of Global Management. He also helped to pioneer the Global Challenge Lab, a cutting-edge capstone course that engages students with global organizations to solve challenges related to growth and impact. In this episode, he shares what leadership can and must look like to ensure your company thrives in turbulent times while also scaling its impact. And how to find balance in your personal and professional lives to best serve business and our shared future.

Lead With We is Produced by Goal 17 Media - https://goal17media.com

Dr. Tom Hunsaker:

Dr. Tom Hunsaker is an international bestselling author and thought leader who previously served as Associate Dean of Innovation for the Thunderbird School of Global Management. He also helped to pioneer the Global Challenge Lab, a cutting-edge capstone course that engages students with global organizations to solve challenges related to growth and impact.

Resources:

Learn more about Tom at: tomhunsaker.com

Connect with Tom on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/btomhunsaker/

Visit leadwithwe.com to learn more about Simon's new book or search for "Lead With We" on Amazon, Google Books, or Barnes & Noble.