The Convex Conversation

Michelle Feeney founded Floral Street Fragrances – an award-winning British brand with sustainability at its core – after a dynamic career leading top global beauty names, including Estee Lauder and Mac Cosmetics.

The inspiration to create clean, affordable fragrances which won’t impact the planet, came during what Michelle describes as her gap year, aged 51. Inspired by flowers and vibrant culture, Floral Street has collaborated with the Van Gogh Museum and watch this space for another exciting partnership. 

As Black Friday approaches, Michelle explains what Floral Street is doing to help, partnering with Clean Hub, given the sales frenzy generates 25% more waste – an excess of 100 million tonnes.

Seasoned barrister & environmentalist James Cameron - one of the leading architects of COP – reflects on three decades of arguing for a fairer and more sustainable planet.

He co-hosts a new podcast series – Fossil vs Future – with his 30-year-old god-daughter Daisy Nicholls who works in sustainable finance. It’s a refreshing, authentic conversation exploring the climate crisis through different generational lenses.

Together they discuss a series of what they call ‘what abouts’ – what about the ocean, food, China, international law, nature-based solutions, the role of finance and much more.

Forensic Psychologist Kerry Daynes delves into the psyche of some of the most disturbed criminal minds to understand what lies behind their often heinous actions.  

Her work as one of the most sought after forensic psychologists in the business has taken her from maximum-security prisons, police interview rooms and the witness box to the wards of secure hospitals where patients are detained under the Mental Health Act. 

These experiences have provided Kerry with a wealth of stories for her best-selling books - including What Lies Buried and The Dark Side of the Mind - which reveal that staring into the darker side of life comes with a price. 

When Jermyn Street shirt-maker Emma Willis MBE heard a documentary on Radio 4 about injured soldiers recovering from life-changing injuries on their return from Afghanistan, she knew she wanted to help.

Emma has spent years visiting patients at Headley Court Military Hospital in Surrey, gently measuring burns victims, Armed Forces men and women who have lost limbs and suffered dreadful injuries, to make bespoke shirts as a thank you for their courage.

Her charity, Style for Soldiers, was born out of Emma spending time listening to their traumatic stories, helping morale and boosting confidence, and realising a need to help young ex-service people find jobs, stay connected with each other after treatment, and start to rebuild their lives.

Photographer & storyteller Giles Duley MBE joins me from Ukraine where his NGO – the Legacy of War Foundation – is providing ambulances to the frontline to evacuate civilians, many of them elderly.

Giles lost both legs and an arm when he stepped on an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan in 2011 whilst embedded with 101st Airborne. Locked in his own mind for 46 days, only able to blink, he was lucky to survive.

He explains how, even before his injury, his work was focussed on drawing attention to the legacy of conflict and the common themes experienced by those whose lives it tears apart. He was inspired by the haunting work of legendary photographer Sir Don McCullin.

After a heady few years in rock ‘n’ roll, photographing bands like Oasis & Massive Attack, Giles travelled extensively capturing real-life stories against a backdrop of war, bonding over simple, shared meals, and now, discovering ways his NGO can make a difference. 

Find out what it’s like to produce your first ever play and put it on alongside 3,800 other shows at The Edinburgh Fringe.

Sam James, Technical Head of Claims at Convex and winner of the company’s Dream Pitch, produced ‘Girlhood’ which examines the roles of mothers and the impact of mother figures on our lives.

Armed with a copy of The Accidental Producer, Sam recruited six young actors as well as up and coming writer Tiegan Byrne & director Cecilie Fray and opened to rave reviews.

Dr Federica Amati - one of Britain’s top nutritional scientists – recalls the eureka moment studying with legendary Professor Elio Riboli when she realised the power of food on good health, preventing many chronic diseases.

The Italian-born scientist teaches medical students at Imperial College London – something that didn’t happen five years ago – and is fuelled by a desire to help us all discover the science of eating for a lifetime of health, as documented in her new book – Every BODY Should Know This.

As Head Nutritionist for ZOE and WellFounded, Dr Fede helps hundreds of thousands of people as well as individuals. She’s also in discussions with politicians and supermarkets in a bid to dramatically change our food environment by reducing the amount of ultra-high processed products on offer and making fresh produce more affordable.

Charlie Wild and Jessica Last have spent three years exploring the UK in search of unique and exciting adventures on our doorstep. 

From climbing peaks in the Scottish Highlands to surfing the breaks off Northern Ireland; foraging in the deepest forests of Snowdonia to camping wild on Dartmoor, they’ve discovered extraordinary places and wonderful characters.

52 of their most unforgettable trips are beautifully documented in their new book, Achievable Adventures, showing that regular adventure isn't exclusive to intrepid explorers or dependent on big budgets or faraway lands. Charlie and Jess inspire us to venture outside more, embrace the benefits of being in nature, and forge more sustainable travel habits. 

When Wing Commander Andy Green OBE broke the sound barrier in a supersonic jet car in 1997, he became the fastest person on land – a world record he still holds, almost three decades on. 

Andy explains the risks involved, the spectacularly small mathematical margins for error, lessons learned, and reveals the thrills of driving more than 763 mph across Nevada’s Black Rock Desert in the British-designed Thrust SSC - 54ft long, weighing 10 tons and featuring two military jet engines.

Even NASA thought the attempt would push the limits too far and end in failure. But the former RAF fighter pilot was part of a world-class team, led by the previous land speed record-holder Richard Noble OBE and the brilliant aerodynamicist Ron Ayres, and achieved the unthinkable. 

101-year-old Jack Dark reflects on life in WW2 as part of the RAF’s elite Pathfinder Force.

Just a lad at 18, Jack was a Bomb Aimer and Navigator in the Lancaster Bomber. The Pathfinders went in first to find and mark the targets. Their accuracy is said to have changed the course of the Second World War.

Jack is one of a few surviving Pathfinders and is in demand by film and documentary-makers for his valuable memories of those daring, dangerous, nighttime missions.

Jack Dark photographed on a Lancaster Bomber by Robin Savage

Photograph by Robin Savage

Jack front row, left