WATER x FUTURE – Presented by Aquaporin

In this episode of WATER x FUTURE, we take a closer look at the Danish artist Karl Troels Sandegård who has a profound interest in the potential of water. So far, he has worked with its three most familiar states – solid, liquid, and gas. Now, his most recent exhibition ‘The High Seas of Your Intrinsic Ocean’ unfolds his fascination with the more mysterious nature of water: its fourth state; the jelly-like plasma that is created when water is absorbed by a human or plant body.

Exploring the shapes of water is something not only interesting artists, but it has also inspired our podcast to look at the many nuances of water – and how water is affecting our everyday life. Throughout 18 episodes we have looked at everything from water scarcity to water ambassadors, we have explored why cathedral thinking can secure clean water and how innovations in the food and beverage industry change the landscape. 

This episode concludes the first season of WATER x FUTURE and the many topics we have covered, the many countries we have explored water in, and the many people we have met.

More than 10,000 water professionals, thought-leaders, decision makers, leading researchers, and business representatives from within and outside the water sector were gathered in Copenhagen during the five days of the International Water Association World Water Congress and Exhibition, which focused on water solutions, applications, and innovations. 

During the IWA, the danish company Aquaporin made a lot of events to spark a debate on water and the problems surrounding for instance PFAS in your everyday water.

These highlights include a live water tasting at Bella Center Copenhagen and a panel discussion at Copenhagen-based cinema Empire Bio, which was organized by Aquaporin. In the panel were Lisbeth Knudsen, professor in toxicology at the University of Copenhagen, Paul O‘Callaghan, CEO and founder of BlueTech Research, and Peter Holme Jensen, Chief Innovation Officer and founder at Aquaporin.

Dive into an incredible week of water where the smart liveable cities were the focal point for both exhibitors and the congress.

For decades PFAS has been used in various industries. Now, we are facing the consequences of the widespread use of industrial chemicals contaminating our groundwater, and seeing the effect it has on the human body. 

PFAS have been used in commercial products since the 1940s. They can be in products such as clothing, furniture, food packaging, cooking materials, electrical insulation, and firefighting foam. 

In this episode of WATER x FUTURE, we are talking with a professor in toxicology Lisbeth E. Knudsen at the University of Copenhagen. Recently, she has been featured a lot in the danish media due to PFAS problems on the island of Fanø in the western part of Denmark.

We are also talking to Dr. Jonatan Kleimark, Senior Chemicals and Business Advisor at ChemSec, also known as the International Chemical Secretariat - an independent non-profit organization founded in 2002 in Gothenburg, Sweden. The organization works towards a world free of these 'forever' chemicals.

Use this link to share the episode: The PFAS problem: From Fanø to Flint 

The food and beverage industry is constantly changing and adjusting to new trends. One of the most prominent trends in the last couple of years is the 'clean label' trend that allows consumers to avoid E-numbers in their food and drinks.

But what are the new and innovative technologies that will change the industry? Today's consumer is more health-conscious and wants products produced sustainably. In this episode of WATER x FUTURE Yunfeng Li, the commercial director of Food and Beverage at Aquaporin, gives insights into Aquaporin's Natural Concentration Technology and how it helps businesses concentrate products.

The podcast also visits the Copenhagen-based Kaffe Bueno, a place unlike no other. The startup company was founded back in 2016 and is known for applying biotechnology to the coffee market. The company transforms coffee byproducts into ingredients used in the food industry, nutraceuticals, and cosmetics business, to name a few.

Noomi Mikkelsen is the marketing coordinator of Kaffe Bueno, and she tells the exciting story behind the company and how three friends from Columbia who have studied together in London ended up doing a startup in Copenhagen.

You can learn more about Aquaporin Inside® Natural Concentration Technology here 

June 28 2022 marked Aquaporin’s one-year anniversary as a listed company on the NASDAQ Copenhagen stock exchange. But what does it actually mean to be a listed company? Get the answer from three different perspectives, namely Aquaporin CEO Matt Boczkowski, CFO Klaus Juhl Wulff, and Chairperson of the Board Niels Heering. Together, they give a fascinating and personal insight into Aquaporin’s listing; the many years of hard work ahead of ringing the bell on the big day, and the wins and challenges during the first year.

Heering looks back on the past six years where he’s been part of Aquaporin and explains why it takes years to prepare a company for a listing, how he has contributed to the process and continues to support Aquaporin as Chairperson of the Board, and how being listed makes a difference for all people involved. 

Boczkowski wasn’t aware of Aquaporin’s plans when he joined the company a few months before the listing. Regardless of this, he had – and still has – a strong belief that Aquaporin’s potential is almost infinite. As he explains why, he also dives into Aquaporin’s commercial journey towards becoming a market leader in its field.

Having only been with Aquaporin for a month, Wulff gives an insight into his new role and his thoughts about being CFO of a listed company. 

Use this link to share the episode: What does it mean to be a listed company? (buzzsprout.com)

Andreas Herfelt and Ulrik Hansen Folkmann, two of Denmark’s newly appointed water ambassadors, give an insight into their unusual jobs and the missions they are on in, respectively, Rome in Italy and Chicago in the US. According to both of them, Denmark is a leading country in water innovation, and their purpose is to draw attention to how Denmark can lead the way in support of the environment and the Danish export strategy for water. 

Both Rome and Chicago experience major water loss, and the cities’ water consumption lies way above average. Spotlighting the importance of water, the most valuable resource on Earth, Herfelt and Folkmann seek business opportunities and facilitate contact between Danish and local companies to scale Denmark’s export of water solutions and technologies. 

Use this link to share the episode: Water ambassadors on a mission (buzzsprout.com)

On a global scale, 282 million people walk in search of water every single day. Africa is one of the most water-stressed regions in the world. On the continent, 483 million people lack sanitation, and 3 in 10 do not have access to basic drinking water services. Innovative initiatives are taken to solve the various water challenges facing African countries, and in this episode, some of the solutions are introduced by SafeWater Senior Director Pia Yasuko Rask and Tity Simbo Kamara, Project Manager, Social Enterprise Development Sierra Leone.

Rask stresses that water is at the heart of sustainable development and that improving global access to clean water can truly transform the world. Giving examples of SafeWater’s projects, activities, and partnerships in Africa, she underlines that the ultimate goal is for all of us to have access to safe water in our homes.

Kamara gives an insight into the case of Sierra Leone where 1 in 3 does not have access to safe water. She points out that to change this, Social Enterprise Development Sierra Leone works closely together with local communities and mobilizes them to invest in their own water infrastructure to ensure long-term water security and thereby improve livelihoods.

Explore Singapore’s water dilemma and solutions together with Aquaporin Asia Deputy Manager Guofei Sun and Shane Allen Snyder, Professor & Executive Director of Nanyang Environment & Water Research Institute, part of Nanyang Technological University. Singapore is one of the most water-stressed countries in the world, a place where water is a matter of national security, as the island state doesn’t have access to natural water resources. Therefore, Singapore has to find alternative methods to provide its more than 5 million residents with clean water. 

Snyder introduces Singapore’s four national water taps, highlights some of the innovative solutions the island state has developed to solve local water challenges, and points out how other countries can learn from the way Singapore has managed to turn their vulnerability into a strength.

Sun gives an insight into Aquaporin Asia’s focus areas and how they are contributing to making Singapore a model city for integrated water management, especially when it comes to reducing the energy consumption of water treatment. 

Sustainability Scientist Kimberly Nicholas and Aquaporin CEO Matt Boczkowski explore the concept of cathedral thinking which at its core is to innovate and develop solutions for the sake of future generations. 

Nicholas emphasizes that climate stabilization is our generation’s cathedral to build and how critical this moment and our ability to rethink what is humanly possible are to solve climate change.

Boczkowski highlights the many parallels there are between water and climate, as he uncovers how Aquaporin started with the notion of cathedral thinking which is now the driver of the company’s culture and long-term goals. 

Curious to learn more about how to survive climate change? Anthony Day has got you covered in his podcast "The Sustainable Futures Report". Tune in at: https://sustainablefutures.report/ 

Join our CIO Peter Holme Jensen and Science City Lyngby CEO Marianna Lubanski for a talk about the trending concept of open innovation, how Aquaporin uses open innovation as a foundation for development, and why it’s important to keep on innovating. 

Marianna Lubanski explains how to succeed in developing an innovation district, and why public-private partnerships are so important. 

Peter Holme Jensen describes how open innovation has been a cornerstone of Aquaporin from the very beginning and a way to integrate circular thinking through the initiatives Aquaporin Academy, Aquaporin Garage, and Primer. 

Learn more about Aquaporin Academy here: https://aquaporin.com/company/academy/

Learn more about Aquaporin Garage here: https://aquaporin.com/company/garage/

Learn more about Primer here: https://aquaporin.com/company/primer/