The Oblique Life Podcasts

Oblique Spotlight on Sustainability is our commitment to focus and discuss some of the most pressing issues we need to overcome and solutions we need to adopt in order to shift our planet from 'self destruct mode' to 'sustainability mode'. Every session we will invite different guest speaker(s) that can explore a specific topic and open a discussion with our members to help further our understanding and opportunities in the sustainability and impact space.

For our next session we will be focusing on eliminating food waste with guest speaker Heather Lynch, Sustainability Manager at Oddbox.

Between 33-50% of all food produced globally is never eaten, and the value of wasted food is worth over $1 trillion. What’s more, it is fruits, vegetables, roots and tubers that have the highest wastage rates of any foods. It is for this reason that companies like Oddbox are so important within wider food systems as they work to reduce this wastage, whilst directly solving some of the key inefficiencies that have existed for decades between all major stakeholders involved. During this session of Oblique Spotlight on Sustainability, we will be exploring these themes in more detail and reflect on some of the key factors that we should all consider to help reduce the environmental and social impacts of food wastage.

About Heather Lynch

Heather is the Sustainability Manager at ODDBOX and is responsible for driving ODDBOX’s sustainability agenda. She was involved in the B Corp certification process (ODDBOX became a certified B Corp in July this year) and in developing a personalised way of measuring the impact of the food saved, based on the composition of fruit and veg in every box we send, so that each customer can understand what impact they've had by purchasing an Oddbox.

Before joining ODDBOX, Heather was a consultant in the Sustainability and Climate Change at PwC, working on impact assessments for investors and managing large international development programmes and organisational transformation projects.

About Oddbox

ODDBOX is London's largest sustainable fruit and vegetable subscription box that fights food waste. Working directly with growers, we offer an alternative to the strict supermarket cosmetic specs and take this totally edible produce, which has been rejected because they’re too small, too big, slightly misshapen, not the ‘perfect’ colour or surplus to requirements at a price deemed fair by growers.

Using only recyclable boxes to make sure every possible aspect of our business is helping the planet, we then deliver straight to your door. We then donate up to 5% to local charities like City Harvest and The Felix Project to fight food poverty with food waste. We want to inspire people to eat more sustainably, through rescuing great tasting seasonal fruit and veg.

In this session our focus was on plastic. Plastic in many ways is the symbol of the fight we face to save our planet. A material that has become omnipresent but causing so many issues and challenges to our environment. In this session we will be exploring this material, briefly touching on why it is such problem but focussing more on how we can live in a plastic free planet.

These are all big and important questions which is why we invited Sian Sutherland, Co-Founder of a Plastic Planet. Igniting social change, creating brands, campaigns and businesses with soul is Sian’s passion. Multi-award winner, including Female Marketer of the Year, CEW Achiever Award, Entrepreneur of the Year ,British Inventor of the Year and the UK Government Point of Light Award,; Sian is a serial entrepreneur with a varied background in advertising, Michelin Star restaurants, film production and brand creation design agencies. In 2005 she co-created Mama Mio, the first premium pregnancy skincare range and in 2014 launched Mio, again creating a new niche in a saturated market – delivering skin fitness to active women. The business was sold to The Hut Group in 2015. Now Sian is often asked to speak about female empowerment, entrepreneurship and how to build positive, passionate, responsible brands and campaigns people really connect to.

In 2017, Siân and Frederikke Magnussen founded A Plastic Planet; a global social Impact movement with a single goal - to ignite and inspire the world to turn off the plastic tap. As entrepreneurs, they bring a different fresh pro-business approach to environmental issues focusing on solutions and the power of business to impact change at speed and scale. A Plastic Planet are highly vocal in the media, working collaboratively with industry, retailers, Governments, legislators and the UN. Recognised in The 2019 and 2020 Fast Company Awards and  winners of International Campaign of the Year, A Plastic Planet created the infamous Plastic Free Aisle campaign, opening this catalyst for supermarket change in Amsterdam early 2018. They also launched the Plastic Free Trust Mark for brands, with over 1000 already certified, and the Industry Commitment Mark ‘Working Towards Plastic Free’. During 2020, they commenced a pivotal project with Skiathos, instigated by the island's inspirational new mayor.  From plastic hackathons for Unilever and WPP to creating new laws banning export of plastic waste, from lobbying for plastic taxes, and the planned launch of the first PlasticFree.com materials library with partner IBM, A Plastic Planet have created global impact in just 3 years.

COVID 19 has changed our world in many ways, and as it stands the only solution to get us back to some state of normality (whatever this looks like) is a vaccine. However the rapid rate at which we are developing a vaccine for COVID 19 is causing concern, with big questions about their safety, ethics of production and testing, the role that the pharmaceutical industry plays in this and what future side effects could be.

Earlier this year Bill Gates was accused of illegally trialling vaccines on girls in India, the claim was dismissed and billed false however the very claim brings to light the murkiness around the world of vacccines. In this discussion we will discuss the necessity of vaccines, the ethics of production and consumption and also how the industry is managed and who should get access to them.

We are also absolutely delighted to be joined by Stephen Baker, Professor of Molecular Microbiology based in the Department of Medicine at the University of Cambridge.

His research focusses on studying the mechanisms and epidemiological influences of antimicrobial resistant Gram-negative bacteria. His group used various genomic and laboratory techniques to understand how antimicrobial resistant bacterial emerge and spread and how best they can be combatted through antimicrobials and vaccines. He has published over 300 scientific articles and is a recognized name in global health with a portfolio of work ranging from typhoid fever and other enteric diseases to hospital acquired infections and zoonoses.

In this focussed in on carbon markets and climate change. Carbon markets are one of the most contentious parts of the Paris Agreement on climate change, offering a way to dramatically reduce the volume of emissions globally. However are carbon markets actually the solution or another loophole for the big polluters to just pay their way to adding more CO2 to the atmosphere? Secondly how can we create more efficient and transparent markets so we can efficiently trade carbon?

These are all big and important questions which is why we have invited Joseph Pallant, Founder of Blockchain for Climate Foundation and Director of Climate Innovation at Ecotrust Canada. With a longitudinal focus on carbon markets & climate change, Joseph is working to foster collaboration and manifest the dream of the Paris Agreement by connecting the national carbon accounts of the world with Blockchain. He has been active in the carbon market since 2004, providing project development expertise and strategic direction across private, public and NGO endeavour. He developed first-of carbon offset projects in forestry, fuel switching and transportation, founded CPS Carbon Project Solutions Inc., and founded Blockchain for Climate Foundation, “Putting the Paris Agreement on the Blockchain.” A 2019 “Canada’s Clean50” award winner, Joseph’s work, insight and advocacy continue to shape the growth of Canada’s low-carbon economy. Joseph holds an MBA degree from INSEEC, Paris, France, a post graduate diploma in Latin American Management from the McRae Institute of International Management (Capilano College) and a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and Environmental Studies from the University of Victoria. He loves to explore BC’s old-growth forests and paddle beautiful coastal inlets with his wife. A new father, the experience of existing amidst the people, cultures and ideas of the world fosters insight and enthusiasm for his work.

So join us on Zoom, the call will be open to only members (no guests are allowed), please just RSVP so that we can send you your private dial-in link. If you do have any specific topics you would like to cover please let us know in advance so we can plan accordingly.

Oblique Spotlight on Sustainability is our commitment to focus and discuss some of the most pressing issues we need to overcome and solutions we need to adopt in order to shift our planet from 'self destruct mode' to 'sustainability mode'. Every session we will invite different guest speaker(s) that can explore a specific topic and open a discussion with our members to help further our understanding and opportunities in the sustainability and impact space.

For our next session we will be focusing in on the creating a more sustainable way of being, looking at how we live, produce food and take care of our selves. To help us with the discussion we will be joined by Justin Robertshaw, Aryuveda and Permaculture Consultant. Combining these very interesting and complimentary practices we will be taking a deep dive in permaculture and how a regenerative mindset can help us live a more sustainable life.

In this session we invited one of the individuals that played a role in actually putting together the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Åsa Skogström Feldt is the Manager of IKEA Social Entrepreneurship BV. She has a combination of business and NGO background. She was previously the global President and CEO of The Hunger Project in New York as well as has been the CEO of The Hunger Project Sweden. In between that, she worked at IKEA of Sweden to establish a social entrepreneurship initiative in the supply chain. Some of her other corporate assignments has been as head of marketing for Sony Ericsson in Germany, corporate communications director for Aspiro and as marketing communications manager for Ericsson Mobile Communications in the Middle East and Africa. She is currently also member of the steering committee of the Swedish Forum for Social innovation. Throughout her carrier Åsa has focused on women empowerment; on board assignments, by co-founding two women’ organisations, in exchange programs and grass root activism around the world and in her everyday life. She is passionate about sustainable development and social impact.

Our discussion focussed on the Sustainable Development Goals, how they came about, the amount of collaboration that took place and how companies can play a role in ensuring we reach the 2030 targets.

In this session we invited Kieran Day (Group Director) at Elewana Collection, Cheli & Peacock Safaris and Life & Land Foundation to discuss the importance of educating local communities to support conservation, the future of tourism in East Africa and how we can drive economic growth by empowering local communities.

About the Speaker

Kieran Day is a group director of the Elewana Group of Companies which includes Elewana, Afrika, Cheli & Peacock Safaris, Sopa Lodges, SkySafari and the Land & Life Foundation. He is ex PricewaterhouseCooopers with some 25 years corporate finance, M&A and restrucuring experience in the UK, Far East and Africa. His involvement with the Elewana Group spans some 16 years having acted for 10 years in a corporate advisory capacity before taking up a full  time executive office within group. Kieran lives in Nairobi, his home for the past 23 years, before which he worked in the professional services arena in London with a 1 year stint in Kuala Lumpar.  He is passionate about tourism, safari and the plight of conservation: the need to rethink its future in the wake of accelerating shifts in population dynamics, in particular.

About the Organisation

The Land & Life Foundation undertakes the corporate social responsibilities for both Elewana Collection and Cheli & Peacock Safaris. The Foundation aims at improving the lives of communities living alongside wildlife in East Africa, so that they feel the benefits of wildlife conservation, and in turn, support the protection of wildlife for generations to come. Land & Life strongly believes that the sustainability of our wildlife and habitats depends on four key actions: securing land for conservation, protecting wildlife species, providing tangible benefits to communities living around protected areas, and educating the next generation. They achieve these through their four key program areas i.e. Wildlife Warrior Program, Nature Conservation, Medical and School support programs.

This session we looked at how to support and achieve Sustainable Development Goal 4, Quality Education. Education should be a right for all individuals and is crucial in helping the world break through poverty and inequality, however how do we actually deliver it and what type of education is actually needed. To help us explore we invited the incredible and inspiring team from Nigerian Charity, Slum 2 School. Slum2School is a volunteer-driven development organisation transforming the society by empowering underserved children in slums and remote communities with quality education, entrepreneurial skills, and psychosocial support to enable them to realise their full potential and become social reformers.

On the panel we had 3 members of the team:

- Sandra Onyedum, Partnerships and Stakeholder Manager: Leading the External relations, Fundraising and Partnerships department at Slum2School she has attracted and sustained high-level relationships between Slum2School and industry partners while securing unrestricted and program-focused corporate funding which has enabled the successful enrolment of more than 2000 underserved kids into school and still counting.

- Ella Togun, Programs Manager: Working in Global Health and Development she has focussed on how to strengthen health and educational systems in resource constrained settings. Having worked across public, private, non-profit and research institutions in Africa and Europe, she has developed great experience in developing programs, training, policy, advocacy and research.

- Ruth Ebe, Head of Operations: Even though she is a licensed medical doctor from the National Medical University, Kyiv Ukraine, she currently serves as the Head of Operations at Slum2Schol. Her focus on media and human resource management within the organisation has enabled the enrollment of over 2,000 children into schools including medical outreach programs which has impacted many more thousands through strategic media campaigns, the engagement of over 3,000 volunteers from several countries and continents, including national and international stakeholders.

Oblique Spotlight on Sustainability is our commitment to focus and discuss some of the most pressing issues we need to overcome and solutions we need to adopt in order to shift our planet from 'self destruct mode' to 'sustainability mode'. 

For our fourth session, we discussed how to find the companies of the future, what impact really is and how to bring corporate and startup together. We were also joined by guest speaker Evan Patronik, Director of Venture Selection for Unreasonable Group and leads the investment committees for two of Unreasonable’s largest initiatives - Unreasonable Impact and Unreasonable Future. Evan’s expertise is in sourcing, identifying and engaging for-profit ventures from around the world who are solving some of the world’s most challenging social and environmental issues. These ventures range from early (seed) to late growth stage (Series E and beyond), and his focus is on driving funding to these ventures, as well as creating an inclusive and global network of entrepreneurs to be part of the Unreasonable community. Through his relationships with advisory firms, funders, corporates, and ventures, Evan looks to build a stronger ecosystem for leveraging market forces to create lasting impact while providing significant financial returns. In his spare time, Evan is also a merchant marine boat captain, volunteer firefighter, avid freediver, EMT, and Swiftwater Rescue Instructor. Evan is passionate about life, humanity and the planet. He has an exceptional ability to spread excitement and incite kindness, and his intense curiosity pervades every aspect of his work and life. His on a never-ending mission is to "live a life that surprises others, as well as himself, and to do it with maximum enthusiasm!”

Oblique Spotlight on Sustainability is our commitment to focus and discuss some of the most pressing issues we need to overcome and solutions we need to adopt in order to shift our planet from 'self destruct mode' to 'sustainability mode'. Every session we will invite different guest speaker(s) that can explore a specific topic and open a discussion with our members to help further our understanding and opportunities in the sustainability and impact space.

For our third session, we were delighted to invite guest speaker Andre Langwost, Secretary General at European Solar Manufacturing Council. He is also a German-French Lawyer (More than 25 years on the German Bar), Historian (Universities of Gottingen, Freiburg, Montpellier and Krakow), President of Eurosolar-France, President ADIFENA (African German Institute for Sustainable Development in Africa. He specialises in renewable energy, energy efficiency and rural development in non-connected zones (Sub Saharan Africa). We discussed:

- Renewable energy in Europe

- The role that solar energy plays in this sector

- What is being done right now to make the changes that we need to slow down climate change