#8: Gokul Halan, Keystone Foundation

Dr Tracey Osborne is the Director of the University of California’s Center for Climate Justice. Her research focuses on the social and political economic dimensions of climate change mitigation in tropical forests and the role of Indigenous Peoples, the politics of climate finance, global environmental governance, and climate equity and justice.

Raj Aggarwal is President of Provoc, a communications firm and certified B Corp that’s rooted in equity and empathy-driven work, and he chairs the Climate Justice Task Force for the B Corp Climate Collective, a group of Certified B Corporations working together to take action on the climate emergency. Alongside the University of Oxford’s Business School and B Lab, Raj and his team at Provoc led a research effort to build a Climate Justice Playbook for Business.

Yang Hong is the founder of Shoshin Insights, a data and engineering consultancy practicing to minimize harm and work for humans.
She also leads a Climate Justice learning group as part of Work on Climate, a positive, action-oriented Slack community for people serious about climate work. The Climate Justice Learning Group has put together a “Climate Justice 101 Guide”, a beginner-friendly guide that offers a starting point for folks wondering what climate justice is actually about, what it looks like in practice, and why it’s so important.

Notes:
04:08 – Tracey's entry point into understanding injustice and climate change 

06:18 –  The evolution of B Corp movement by Raj Aggarwal 
08:49 –  Yang's quarter life crisis 
12:53 –  Mindset shifts and aha moments experienced on the climate justice journey 

30:01 – Challenges faced by business leaders and systemic changes in policies 
34:45 – The changes and shifts within the climate justice movement as seen through Tracey's eyes

38:29 – Yang's advice on making climate justice part of our personal practice 
45:53 – Redressal of past injustices look and ideal world scenarios 
55:32 – Call to dig deeper with Terra.do's Climate Justice Workshop. More details below....

Resources:

1. Sign up for our Climate Justice Workshop on March 13 and March 14
2. B Corp Climate Collective’s Climate Justice Playbook for Business
3. Sign up for updates on Work on Climate’s Climate Justice 101 Guide
4. Work on Climate, an action-oriented Slack community for people serious about climate work. 
5. The plethora of resources shared by Yang Hong

Micah Lang is catalyzing the zero carbon transition as Sr Green Building Planner at the City of Vancouver. He is a climate change and sustainability professional with expertise in green building policy; local climate change mitigation strategies; greenhouse gas quantification and inventory protocol; sustainable development, water and wastewater access in North America, Latin America, Africa and South Asia. Micah holds an M.S. in Energy and Resources from the University of California, Berkeley.

In this podcast, Micah describes his journey towards sustainability, the significance of green buildings, how to incorporate equity issues into green building policy planning design and what the players across the building's value chain need to be doing to fix emissions. 

Notes:
04:02 – Micah's environmental journey 

15:31 –  Ongoing projects 
17:43 – Incorporating equity issues into green building policy planning design
21:20 – Market research on customers 

25:58 – Technologies that are enabling the transitions for green buildings
37:47 – Canada Green Building Council's 'The Climate Forward report' 

42:58 – Awareness in the media
49:07 – Call to action - broaden social networks (both professional and personal)

Prasanna Colluru is the Director of Corporate Strategy at Future Proof Shipping (FPS), a Netherlands-based company that provides zero-emissions marine transportation services to enable players across the value chain to make the energy transition in shipping. At FPS, Prasanna is responsible for maintaining a strategic overview of alternative fuels and zero-emissions technology markets, assessing technologies (on their commercial, technical, operational, and financial) viability, and enabling holistic decision making on the choice of technology/solution for zero-emissions vessels. Prasanna holds an MBA from the Rotterdam School of Management (Erasmus University) and a bachelor’s degree in design from NIFT (New Delhi).

In this podcast, Prasanna describes her journey as well as that of Future Proof Shipping which is looking at changing the way marine transportation is for the future. Their first zero emissions ship will be setting sail later this year, further proof that hydrogen can lead the way forwards towards a new economy.

Notes:
01:47 – All about Future Proof Shipping 

03:35 – Prasanna’s journey in sustainability 
06:07 – Zero emissions vessel setting sail 
10:39 – Market research on customers 

13:13 – Hydrogen infrastructure 
10:39 – Market research on customers 

13:13 – Hydrogen infrastructure
15:51 – Shipping's multi fuel future
18:45 – The New Hydrogen Economy course from Terra.do
19:25 – Decarbonizing ships 
23:02 – Politics and policy 
25:42 – Call to action - repair, reuse, recycle

Niall O’Connor is the Asia Director of Stockholm Environment Institute in Bangkok, Thailand. Niall holds a BSc and a MSc in Forestry, both from University College Dublin, and a MSc in Biodiversity Conservation from Imperial College London. Niall comes to SEI from WWF, where he had served in leadership positions since 2008, and as regional director for Eastern and Southern Africa since 2011. Previously, he served as country director in Gambia and Senegal for Concern Universal, a UK-based international NGO. 

In this podcast, Niall talks about the wonderful work that the SEI Asia Centre has been involved in giving particular emphasis to gender equality, social equity and poverty reduction, how business as usual is not going to help the world in a post-pandemic world and why inclusiveness is extremely important as we look towards the future.  

Notes –

01:02 – Niall’s environmental journey

03:37 – The role of SEI’s Asia Centre

09:45 – Organisational challenges 

14:25 – SUMERNET - Sustainable Mekong Regional Network

17:40 – Examples of SEI’s work in connecting gender and climate change

30:59 – Climate refugees 

35:17 –  Informed climate activism in Thailand

39:01 – Call of action - personal responsibility and inclusiveness 

Jonah Mwangi is the Founder and CEO of Green Nettle Textile. Jonah’s background is in biochemistry and he is a farmer by passion. He is an early stage social entrepreneur in the field of agribusiness helping out small farmers. He is an alumni of YALI Transformative Leaders program as also the ygap social changemakers program. Green Nettle was the first African winner of the prestigious Global Change Award presented by the H&M Foundation in 2019. 

In this podcast, Jonah talks passionately about the importance of the circular economy and fashion. His company Green Nettle Textile is innovating by converting nettle stalks into a linen-like fabric. Learn more about Jonah’s journey and his learnings with entrepreneurship so far…

Notes –

01:01 – Jonah’s entrepreneurial journey 

04:45 – The premise behind Green Nettle Textile 

08:02 – COVID19 challenges 

10:26 – Impact of winning the Global Change Award 

12:08 – Climate change in Kenya and impacts on Jonah’s company

14:24 – Circular economy and fashion

18:11 –  Politics and policy

22:28 – Social entrepreneurship and media awareness

21:13 – Call of action - always think about the impact of fashion 

Cedrick Tandong is the CEO of Three Wheels United. He has been working in India on the smart use of technology for over 10 years and holds a masters in systems and information management. He began his career as a business analyst at Tata Consultancy Services doing market research on fast moving consumer goods in France. Cedrick also previously founded a company in Cameroon in the e-commerce space. Cedrick is TWU’s mastermind when it comes to operationalizing the impossible as he loves organizing, coordinating and executing under unpredictable circumstances. He also holds a second graduate degree in business management and has lived and worked in four countries across three continents.

In this podcast, Cedrick talks about his entrepreneurial journey, the vision and business model of Three Wheels United and its impacts whilst also giving us glimpses into the state of the EV market in India. 

Notes –

01:15 – Cedrick’s entrepreneurial journey 

02:41 – The premise behind Three Wheels United

07:36 – Expansion plans of Three Wheels United

09:41 – Impacts of Three Wheels United

13:03 – Politics and policy 

17:21 – Being a 2020 Henry Arnhold Fellow

18:34 – Experiencing India 

19:50 – Advice to young entrepreneurs

21:13 – Call of action - support the EV ecosystem 

Divya Sharma is the Executive Director at Climate Group’s India office.  A thought leader, researcher, academician she comes with experience spanning nearly two-decades operating throughout India and internationally within the sustainable urban development and climate resilience space. Divya has a Doctorate in urban climate resilience and a Master’s in urban development planning. She has extensively worked with national, state, and municipal governments in India and abroad; regional, national, and international development agencies and foundations and international research community and academia. She has been on prestigious advisory positions on international and national networks for sustainable development and climate change internationally and at the national level. 

In this podcast, Divya talks about her climate journey, her work at The Climate Group, her passion for cities and the need to accelerate climate action. 

Notes –

01:17 – Divya’s climate journey 

03:35 – The Climate Group and Divya’s role at the Climate Group India 

08:46 – We Mean Business Coalition - a Climate Group initiative 

11:31 – COVID, renewable energy and corporate sourcing of renewable energy in India

15:35 – Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network 

20:23 – The Indian government's Smart Cities Initiative

25:12 – C40 Cities Finance Facility

31:03 – Call of action - need to accelerate climate action

Neelima Vallangi is a national award-winning photographer and well published travel writer. For the past one year she has been researching and covering the climate crisis for news media and other forms. She is currently working on a feature length documentary film tentatively titled "The Human Cost of Climate Crisis" set in Nepal, due to be released by December 2020. She was recently featured by India Climate Collaborative as one of the 40 young leaders to raise awareness and strengthen commitments with their solutions on climate and development. She is also working on an independent newsletter titled "Climate Matters". She continues to research and report for mainstream publications on the climate crisis, with a special focus on the Himalayas and South Asia.

In this podcast, Neelima talks about her climate journey, filming her documentary “The Human Cost of Climate Crisis”, talking about climate grief on social media, youth activism and what needs to be done to solve the current climate crisis. 

Notes –

03:28 – Neelima’s climate journey 

05:57 – The genesis of Neelima’s newsletter ‘Climate Matters’ 

08:47 – More on Neelima’s documentary ‘The Human Cost of Climate Crisis’

10:54 – India Climate Collaborative

12:21 – India and climate change 

14:04 – Women and climate change

15:55 – Social media and climate grief 

21:41 – Indian media and climate change

27:55 – Call of action - collective responsibility 

Dr Ana Maria Loboguerrero Rodriguez is Research Director of Climate Action for the Alliance of Bioversity International and International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and Head of Global Policy Research for the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), based in Cali, Colombia. She holds a Master and a PhD in Economics from UCLA. She has more than 10 years’ experience of working on climate change challenges. She has used her experience working in the public sector to become a key partner of policy makers and planners in the region to find ways to make climate information practical for end-users.

In this podcast, Ana Maria talks about her journey, her roles and responsibilities in her organisations, what climate change means to Colombia, the role of policies and how best to tackle climate change. 

Notes –

01:12 – Ana Maria’s starting point on her climate change journey

06:33 – Roles and responsibilities in CGIAR, CIAT and CCAFS

13:13 – What climate change means in Colombia

19:37 – Colombian government’s policies towards climate change

26:50 – Climate smart villages 

29:56 – Food security in Colombia 

33:10 – Women in agriculture in Colombia

36:22 – Governmental help to organisations 

41:19 – Climate change narrative in Colombia

44:33 – Climate strikes in Colombia

47:51 – Call to action 

Prasenjeet Yadav is a molecular ecologist turned National Geographic Photographer & Explorer. Prasenjeet is one of the very few photographers who integrates science deeply into his photo stories. His previous projects helped bring light on sensitive issues such as climate change and its effects on high elevation in the Himalayas. Similarly a project on how windmills affect surrounding ecosystems raised questions about how green is our green energy. He is a founder member of 'Shoot for Science' which is an initiative to train scientists in science communication.

In this podcast, Prasenjeet talks about his journey and passion for science and communication & snow leopards changing his life. He also asks to become more aware and become part of the solution in the fight against climate change. 

Notes –

01:09 – Prasenjeet’s journey to becoming a storyteller

03:37 – Nat Geo grant and story on the Shola Sky Islands

06:35 – Challenges faced during the Shola Sky Islands story

09:46 – The snow leopards - conservation challenges, human impact and more

25:19 – Starting up ‘Shoot for Science’ 

29:18 – Harnessing the power of social media 

31:35 – Indian media and climate change

35:53 – Informed climate activism

37:42 – Call of action - become aware and be part of the solution